SIGNED BY DARWIN AND BY THE PHOTOGRAPHER
Rejlander, Oscar Gustave. Seated portrait of Charles Darwin, signed by Darwin and by Rejlander on the verso.
Rejlander, 1871
Albumen print on carte-de-visite mount, “Copyright” in manuscript on the mount.
Signed by Darwin and by Rejlander in ink. The collaboration of Darwin and Rejlander was one of history’s greatest partnerships between a scientist and a photographer.
When Darwin decided to use photographs to illustrate his planned book on The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals, he had found it difficult to obtain images with the desired facial expressions. After extensive searching, he eventually turned to the Swedish photographer Oscar Rejlander. The flamboyant and colorful Rejlander, “the father of art photography,” had trained Julia Margaret Cameron.
Darwin may have learned of Rejlander from Cameron whom he had visited in 1868. Darwin met Rejlander when the two were introduced in 1871. This striking seated portrait was one of several Rejlander made in 1871 or 1872. Darwin declared these “The best photographs of me” (Darwin Correspondence Project).
Rejlander was an artist, not a documentary photographer. “In Rejlander, Darwin found a photographer who was capable of manipulating his results to fit specific needs. … His ability to concoct pictures using a mixture of natural and artificial elements proved to be a deciding factor in the completion of Expressions” (Prodger, Darwin’s Camera). Darwin’s first known reference to the photographer is in a letter dated April 1871: “I am now rich in photographs for I have found in London, Rejlander, who for years has had a passion for photographing all sorts of chance expressions exhibited on various occasions, especially by children, and taken instantaneously.” Rejlander became “Darwin’s principal adviser on photographic issues … [and] presented Darwin with at least sixty-four pictures of expression, more than any other photographer” (Prodger). The Expression of Emotions was published in 1872.
Photographs signed by Darwin are very scarce. This lovely portrait, signed by Darwin and by the photographer who was one of Darwin’s advisors and collaborators, is one of the most desirable signed Darwin portraits in private hands.
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