Currently not on view
The Bat,
1904
Gertrude Käsebier, 1852–1934; born Des Moines, IA; died New York, NY
x1975-126
Käsebier originally studied painting at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and she later applied this training to her photography by emulating common painting techniques and styles in her images. Much like the pictorialists of the time, Käsebier opted for the gum bichromate printing process, which reduces detail and sharpness, and results in images, such as this example, that mimic the appearance of charcoal or chiaroscuro drawings. Her goal was to elevate the medium of photography from a means of documentation to a fine art; in The Bat, she attempted a mystical, Symbolistinspired transformation of the nude female form.
Information
Title
The Bat
Dates
1904
Maker
Medium
Gum bichromate print
Dimensions
33.8 x 22.5 cm. (13 5/16 x 8 7/8 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Hermine M. Turner
Object Number
x1975-126
Place Made
North America, United States, Ohio, Newark
Inscription
Signed in white graphite on image, lower right corner: Gertrude Käsebier
Culture
Techniques
- A collection of American pictorial photographs as arranged by the Photo-Secession and exhibited under the auspices of the Captial Camera Club at the Corcoran Art Galleries at Washington, January MDCCCCIV (Washington, D.C.: unknown publisher, 1904)., p. 9
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1975," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University, 35, no. 1 (1976): p. 22-31., p. 30
