Cover: Life and Nature

Children, Flowers, Genre: Children, Photography, Volume Cover

Dimensions

Image Dimensions: 20.2 x 15.0 cm
Support Dimensions: 36.0 x 28.9 cm

Associated Blog Posts:

Quaker with Soul

The cover image for Life and Nature depicts a child (most likely one of photographer George Wood’s children) removing the lens cap from a tripod-mounted field camera while pretending to take a photograph of flowers artfully arranged in front of her. In reality, this is a composite image, with the flowers photographed separately against a backdrop in a studio setting and the separate image of the girl at the camera stripped into the background of the composition. The cream-stock cover, described as “tinted board”, is further enhanced by a raised-relief pattern of flowers.  The series of punch-holes seen on the top margin of this vertically-oriented album originally held a ribbon, which has gone missing. One unknown plate is also absent from the album. The inclusion of a separate letterpress or forward leaf to the work is also unknown. This example contains nine Japan tissue gravures on separate supports after the album cover leaf, which features an embossed hand-pulled photogravure.  The following advertisement for Life and Nature appeared in the Fall Announcements for publisher Nims & Knight in September, 1889:

Life and Nature.
A series of photogravures from original studies by George 
 B. Wood. Quarto, 12x14. Bound In fancy tinted board, 
with photogravure design on side, $3.00.  1.

Because this work lacks an index and the fact the ribbon keeping it bound has gone missing, the collation of plates as presented with this gallery has been determined by the slight transference of the gravure plate impressions to album leaf versos.

1. Nims & Knight’s Fall Announcements, 1889: in: The Publishers’ Weekly: New York: Office of the Publishers’ Weekly: September, 21, 1889: p. 423