The body of water known simply as “The Gorge” to Victoria locals is a narrow tidal inlet that connects Victoria Harbour to Portage Inlet. The Gorge Waterway is defined as the inlet between Craigflower Bridge and the Selkirk trestle. The Gorge has a rich history as an important spiritual place and food-gathering area for First Nations, and as a recreation area for Victoria residents. Many decades of pollution entering the Gorge from sewage and industrial wastes seriously degraded the water quality by the 1940s. Clean-up efforts beginning in the early 1990s have reversed this trend, and water quality has improved significantly. This is important for the health of valuable fish and wildlife habitat in the Gorge, as well as for aesthetic and recreational values. – CRD- Victoria, British Columbia website (2024)

Simply a hand-colored gelatin silver photograph on matt surface Opal V Eastman Kodak paper favored by photographers such as  Yousuf Karsh, a “Pastelograph” was a darkroom process invention of Blumann. So enamored by his creation, several of his finished prints held by grandson Thomas High bear the following printed label:

A PASTELOGRAPH

is a photographic print made on Opal V Paper

(Eastman Kodak Company)

made in the prescribed way and hand-colored with

Nacco Dyes

(Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation)

Processed and heat treated with

Kandar

(Negatauch Chemical)