In the fall of 2007, I had the pleasure of helping David Coleman, curator of photography at the Harry Ransom Center, prepare for the upcoming exhibition: Dress Up: Portrait and Performance in Victorian Photography. Here's the press release.
http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/press/releases/2007/dressup.html
In conjunction with the exhibit, a portrait studio was set up, and the digital images are
viewable online.
http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/photobooth/
At the time I was writing a screenplay based in 1848 Ireland and was able to observe David's scholarly application of performance and identity concepts to curated images, while having a close look at the clothing of the era. David's show is an additional chapter
in the critical history of photography.
The Ransom Center has recently acquired a portion of the Magnum Photo Collection. David expresses his enthusiasm for the new acquisition in the following video interview by
Will van Overbeek.
http://vimeo.com/9830948
Recently, several Magnum photographers have embarked on a sojourn, Postcards from America, which is chronicled via tumblr.
http://postcardsfromamerica.tumblr.com/
http://postcards.magnumphotos.com/
Safe travels!
