The Paul Messier Historic Photographic Papers Collection Backprinting Project The photographic paper backprinting project began in July, 2007, and stemmed from an interest in documenting manufacturer applied markings while also providing a broad method of dating photographic prints. Paul Messier began collecting photographic papers in the late 1990s. The collection now comprises approximately 4,000 papers, over 3,000 of which are fully catalogued. The papers enter the collection from manufacturer sample books and original packages of unexposed paper. Most paper are North American and European in origin. Once the papers are received, they are given a catalogued by manufacturer, brands, date, surface finish and other attributes. For unexposed papers, a sample is removed from each package and is fixed in the darkroom. These samples are placed into binders organized chronologically by manufacturer and brand. For this project, the notebooks and manufacturer sample books were surveyed for backprinting. Of the over 3,000 samples assessed, only 278 examples of backprinting were discovered (excluding special "postcard" papers, especially popular in the 1930's and 1940's). Once compiled, the papers were scanned,acquiring a detail, pattern and color version of each instance of backprinting (see scanning details for technical information). The resulting scans were then organized by manufacturer and date of production. To provide additional context, the scans of this site are accompanied by key cataloguing information as well images of the paper packaging /sample book cover. Dating the European papers is a particular challenge, since most European manufacturers did not date stamp packages or sample book. Therefore the manufacture dates for the Agfa papers and the Kodak-London papers on this site have been estimated based research into the companies’ production histories, through analyzing emulsion codes, and by comparing logos and packaging with dated samples. The estimated dates presented on this tie should be accurate within 5 years. This project was made possible through the generosity of Paul Messier with his materials, and through the labors of the above, as well as Andrew, Annika, Christina, Diane, and Lauren. - Christina Finlayson, Boston, 2007 |
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