Jean Adolphe Braun - 16 Carte de Visite - Costumes de Suisse (Costumes of Switzerland) circa 1870

Dornach : Jean Adolphe Braun, 1870. Original Photograph . No Binding. Fine. 16 Carte de Visite photographs (circa 1870) 10x6 cm size. from a larger series of 46 - Swiss Regional Costumes by Jean Adolphe Braun. Excellent quality, very clean, no creases, white back with studio crest, Paris. Adolphe Braun (1812-1877) was one of the most influential French photographers of the 19th century, using contemporary innovations in photographic reproduction to market his photographs worldwide. In his later years, he used photographic techniques to reproduce famous works of art, which helped advance the field of art history. In 1869 he completed a series of 46 images, 'Costumes de Suisse' in a 12 X 9.5" format, (later issued as stereo views, cabinet cards & cartes de visite) combining elements of formal portrait photography, stage design, costume history, and genre painting. Involving a team of painters, stylists, art directors & set builders, the photographs were done at his studio in Dornach, posing young women dressed in the traditional costumes of the 26 Swiss Cantons, featuring aprons, footwear, coifs and other headdress, with variants within a single canton represented with more than one photo. Cantons represented here are: (Berne - 3 photos) - Fribourg (2) - Unterwalden (2) - Lucerne - Schwyz - Glarus - Appenzell - Tessin - Schaffouse - Grisons - Valais (Sion) - St. Gall. A rare offering - loose and wanting a period photo album. Ref.O'Brien & Bergstein, Image and Enterprise,The Photographs of Adolphe Braun,Thames & Hudson, 2000.