Mario Testino edits Vogue Art Special for Rijksmuseum Photography Show

This summer the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is presenting a major retrospective of 19th-century photography. Three hundred photos from the museum’s own collection will show just how varied photography was immediately after its invention in 1839.

The exhibition will include portraits, nudes, cityscapes and travel photos, as well as scientific and commercial photography, and the first amateur snapshots.

The world-renowned photographer Mario Testino curates his pick of photographs from the 'New Realities. Photography in the 19th century' exhibition in an Art Special for Vogue.

Vogue Art Special for Rijksmuseum Photography Show

As guest editor in chief Testino reveals the story of what lead him to became so interested in art as a young man. Using a mix of photographs from the Rijksmuseum’s collection, modern photography and his own work, Testino explains what has inspired him, and its influence on his work.

Taco Dibbits and Mario Testino at the Rijksmuseum

Knowing history is essential to understanding the pictures of now, says the Peruvian photographer, This exhibition reminds me how important it is to look back.

Also included in the Art Special: an interview with the Dutch photography collector and film maker Jan de Bont, an article about the way Jean Dubuffet - whose sculptures are seen from July 1 in the Rijksmuseum gardens - influences fashion, and a feature on the exhibition Small Wonders, about miniature wood carvings from the early sixteenth century.

The special art supplement is included in the summer issue of Vogue, which is on sale from 22 June.

The exhibition New Realities. Photography in the 19th century is on show at the Rijksmuseum from 17 June till 17 September 2017.

The exhibition New Realities will feature work from leading photographers including William Henry Fox Talbot, Julia Margaret Cameron, Roger Fenton and Gustave Le Gray, alongside anonymous surprises which have never previously been shown. One highlight will be work by the first woman photographer, Anna Atkins, who published the first book illustrated with photographs. The Dutch photographers George Hendrik Breitner and Willem Witsen will also be represented.

New Realities will show how people set out with their camera to explore the world, from personal life to the unfamiliar peoples of distant Asia. X-rays and photos of botanical collections will illustrate the use of photography in the scientific world. There will also be examples of practical applications such as police photographs of criminals, and the first uses of photography in advertising. The exhibition will cast light on how photography established its position as an artistic medium, initially with subjects and compositions derived from painting. Finally, we will see how amateur photography took off and the medium came to be used increasingly as a source of entertainment.

Charlotte by Eduard Isaac Asser 1842

For more information visit Rijksmuseum.

New realities @ Rijksmuseum Amsterdam

Source: press release Rijksmuseum, photos courtesy of Rijksmuseum.