Miquel Salom. Ictum Olim III: Ambrotypes and Tintypes

The exhibition provides an opportunity to observe the purity of pioneering photography techniques.

The exhibited works result from decades of applied photographic research and visits to the United States to observe, first-hand, original works by photography pioneers. Selected portraits and landscapes use wet collodion, an early form of photographic emulsion. A glass plate or sensitized metal is exposed directly to sunlight with a chemical solution that enables rapid production of unrepeatable images, a procedure invented by Frederick Scott Archer in 1856 with the tintype patent.

To Salom, “the liturgy of the process is long and tedious but always requires precision chemistry,” but with an unpredictable outcome due to the many variables involved in the “state and purity of chemicals, water quality and composition, temperature and humidity, exposure to light, level of UV light, and other contingencies.” With excellent tonal range and absence of grain, ambrotypes and tintypes are noted for their aesthetic subtlety and their practical durability. In contrast to the infinite multiplication of digital images, in tune with current trends’ revaluation of the first photographic and cinematographic techniques, Ictum Olim III: Ambrotypes and Tintypes provides an opportunity to observe the purity of pioneering photography techniques.

Miquel Salom was born in Mallorca, Spain in 1951. When he was 14 years old, his father placed a Kodak Brownie Fiesta camera in his hands to take a photograph, and in that moment he felt a “strange vibration” when looking through the viewer. Salom has ever since dedicated himself to photography. He has traveled to more than 50 countries honing his craft, and has committed himself to sparking popular interest in the arts and to encouraging people to use photography for self-examination. Miquel Salom now divides his time living in both Mallorca and New York City.

Opening reception on July 1, 2015 at 6 pm (no appointment necessary.)