Nadar: 9 works

'Nadar opened his first photography studio in 1854. Six years later he moved it to 35 Boulevard des Capucines, a large space that his colleagues--photographers Gustave Le Gray and the Bisson brothers--had vacated.'

'For a brief period, Nadar and his brother Adrien Tournachon worked together in the latter's studio in the boulevard des Capucines.'

'By using strong overhead diagonal light to shape the large dome of the head and to cast half the face into shadow, Nadar emphasized the gravity of Préault's presence.'

'She pouts, she scowls: she is Nadar's wife, Ernestine, displaying the universally recognizable "I don't want my picture taken" expression familiar to anyone who has photographed a reluctant subject.'

'Nadar made numerous self-portraits, which allowed him to experiment with poses and gestures before turning the camera on his illustrious subjects. The writer Charles Baudelaire's homage, "Nadar, the most astonishing expression of vitality," applies easily to the intense young man gazing coyly but self-assuredly at a point just above the lens of his own camera.'

'The writer Charles Baudelaire's homage, "Nadar, the most astonishing expression of vitality," applies easily to the intense young man gazing coyly but self-assuredly at a point just above the lens of his own camera. Perhaps Nadar was merely looking at an assistant helping to make the exposure, but he clearly intended to project an image of himself as the intense, Romantic artist.'

'He was a good friend of Nadar, who photographed Doré many times, even on his deathbed.'

'Nadar much admired the Barbizon painters and their emphasis on nature, declaring that among them Rousseau "has long exhausted praise."'

'Nadar's sketch of the death chamber showed that black drapery was tied across a window behind the bed and then to one of the bedposts in order to visually isolate Hugo's recumbent figure against a somber background.'