Young girl with arms crossed

Artist Jeremiah Gurney (American, 1812 - 1886)

Dateca. 1852-1858

MediumDaguerreotype

DimensionsPlate (half): 5 1/2 × 4 1/4 inches (13.97 × 10.8 cm)
Case (open): 6 × 9 5/8 × 3/8 inches (15.24 × 24.45 × 0.95 cm)
Case (closed): 6 × 4 3/4 × 5/8 inches (15.24 × 12.07 × 1.59 cm)

Credit LineGift of the Hall Family Foundation

Object number2006.44.11

InscribedStamped on brass mat: "J. Gurney / 349 Broadway."

On View

Not on view

Collections

Photography

Terms

DescriptionHalf plate daguerreotype housed in traditional image package with leather case, red velvet cushion, and oval brass mat. Image of young girl wearing an off-the-shoulder formal dress with hands gently crossed over chest.Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Rotation 2. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, October 24, 2007 - March 19, 2008, no cat.

Rotation 22. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, August 10, 2016- January 8, 2017, no cat.

Gallery Label

The exquisite artistry of this girl's pose and the silvery luster of the plate itself distinguish this work as one of the most remarkable of its time. Gurney was a pioneer of American photography. He took up the daguerreotype in 1840 and operated one of the leading studios in New York City for several decades.

Provenance

Hall Family Foundation, Kansas City, MO, 2006;
Given by the Hall Family Foundation to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2006.

Published References

Keith F. Davis. The Origins of American Photography: from Daguerreotype to Dry-Plate, 1839-1885. With contributions by Jane L. Aspinwall. (Kansas City, MO: Hall Family Foundation: in association with the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2007), 42 (repro), 302.

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