English:
Portrait photograph of
Victor Hugo
published in the widely distributed serial publication entitled
Galerie contemporaine, litteraire, artistique
. Issued in parts from 1876 to 1884 by the firm of
Goupil & Cie
, the series contained 241 portraits of leading figures from the worlds of art, literature, music, science, and politics by a host of Parisian photographers. The illustrations were printed as
woodburytypes
?a photomechanical process that reproduced the continuous tones of photography but did so with pigmented gelatin molded to a varying thickness. The speed and economy with which woodburytypes could be printed, as well as their permanence (unlike traditional photographic processes that were subject to fading), made them a highly practical substitute for albumen silver prints in book publication or other situations where mass production was desirable.
Francais :
Portrait photographique de
Victor Hugo
publie dans la revue illustree
Galerie contemporaine, litteraire, artistique
qui faisait partie d'une serie publiee par
Goupil & Cie
. Parue entre 1876 et 1884, la serie comprend 241 portraits de personnalites dans les domaines de l'art visuel, de la litterature, de la musique, de la science et de la politique. Les portraits, de photographes parisiens, etaient imprimes par
photoglyptie
, procede opto-mecanique qui degagait les parties claires des parties sombres, grace a une gradation de tons continus. Sa vitesse et son faible prix, ainsi que la longevite des reproductions (les procedes concurrents produisaient des copies dont le contraste diminuait avec le temps), en ont fait un procede prise pour l'impression en grande quantite.