Interior of the Motee Musjid, Agra (India)

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Interior of the Motee Musjid, Agra (India)

Artist Samuel Bourne (British, 1834-1912)

Date1865

Dimensions9 x 11 1/8 in. (22.9 x 28.2 cm)

MediumAlbumen print

ClassificationPhotographs

Credit LinePurchased with funds given by an anonymous donor

Object number

1986.4

Not on View

Label TextSamuel Bourne began making photographic images of India in 1863 after establishing his credentials in Great Britain where he lectured on photography and wrote technical articles for photographic journals. In India he established a studio with the master photographic printer Charles Shepherd that did commercial work while marketing Bourne’s landscape and architectural studies. Bourne’s success in the 1860s and the continued admiration for his work today are partly due to the luminescent quality of his prints. This ‘luminescence’ could have easily been lost during printing, therefore credit for Bourne’s popularity must also be given to Shepherd’s excellent technical skills. The Motee Musjid (or Moti Masjid) was built between 1648 and 1654 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, who also commissioned the Taj Mahal. Built of light-reflective white marble (in the local language Moti means pearl), the Moti Masjid was a natural subject for Bourne’s camera.Exhibition HistoryToledo Museum of Art, Refraction/Reflection, April 20-September 2, 2012.