INTRODUCTION

[USS Decatur, Sloop-of-War in Boston Dry Dock], ca. 1853. George Eastman House.

Young America: The Daguerreotypes of Southworth & Hawes focuses on the refined works of Albert Sands Southworth (1811-1894) and Josiah Johnson Hawes (1808-1901). In partnership from 1843 through 1863, Southworth & Hawes took artistic portraiture to a new level beyond common commercial photography. In service of an elite and famous clientele, they worked with large 8x6-inch plate sizes, technically more challenging but aesthetically more beautiful. As their unique daguerreotypes attest, Southworth & Hawes focused lavish attention on national and international celebrities who traveled to their Boston studio, capturing likenesses in picturesque fashion.

The exhibition and related programs are made possible by a major lead grant from the Henry Luce Foundation; it is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art; major support is also provided by M&T Bank and Nixon Peabody LLP; additional support provided by Frank and Mary Ann Arisman, Furthermore: a program of the J.M. Kaplan Fund; and other individual donors.