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Impressionist Camera – Pictorial Photography in Europe, 1888-1918

Merrill, 2006, ISBN 1858943310

From its earliest days, photography could not escape the pictorial traditions that had gone before it. This book, the first comprehensive study of Pictorialism in Europe, analyzes the remarkable diversity of approaches taken by photographers across the continent. Written by an international team of art and photography historians, Impressionist Camera examines the ways in which their pictorial vision is made, from the re-creation of Academic painting in photography to the use of soft focus to lend images an impressionistic quality. Also explored are the cross-currents with photography in America – where Pictorialism went on to flourish – including the seminal work of Alfred Stieglitz.