Heinrich Kühn

gum-bichromate print, signed in brown watercolor on the image, with title in pencil on the reverse, framed, circa 1898

Collection of George Eastman House

Collection of Harvey Shipley Miller and Randall Plummer, 1970s

Christie's New York, The Miller-Plummer Collection, 8 October 2009, Sale 2279, Lot 609

Rochester, International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House, Particulars: Selections from the Miller-Plummer Collection of Photography, June - September 1983, and traveling thereafter to 2 locations through March 1984 

Houston, The Museum of Fine Arts, Heinrich Kühn: The Perfect Photograph, March - May 2011

Particulars: Selections from the Miller-Plummer Collection of Photography (Rochester, 1983), pl. 132 (this print)

This impressive gum-bichromate print, on heavy wove paper, is in generally excellent condition. The print has a subtle undulating tonal quality inherent to the medium. The darks incorporate deep gray and brown tones and the highlights exhibit light cream and gray colors. There is a small cluster of linear deposits in the lower left quadrant, one of which has caused a minor impression that is only visible upon close inspection. This print is trimmed to the image and there is some very minor wear. The reverse is faintly soiled. The following are written on the reverse: '12' in blue crayon; 'L83:033:79'; '138' [circled] and 'DEA Y09 33541' in pencil.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Heinrich Kühn was introduced to the gum bichromate technique in December 1895 when he saw five prints by French photographer Robert Demachy at the Viennese Camera Club’s Christmas exhibition.  Kühn was greatly impressed by prints made with the process, which resulted in softly focused, dreamy images that appear almost as if they were sketched or painted.  Kühn took it upon himself to ‘conduct experiments in order to improve the technology’ (Heinrich Kühn in January 7, 1934, quoted in Astrid Mahler, ‘Heinrich Kühn – His Life and Work,’ in Monika Faber and Astrid Mahler, eds., Heinrich Kühn. The Perfect Photograph (Berlin, 2010), p. 228). He published his first article on gum bichromate in the October 1896 issue of the Wiener Photographische Blätter (a journal whose title loosely translates to ‘Viennese Photographic Sheets’) and exhibited his own gum bichromate prints in the International Exhibition of Amateur Photography in Berlin the same year.

The present photograph of Venice, made circa 1898, is an example of Kühn’s earliest efforts in gum bichromate, as well as his preoccupation with Atmospheric Impressionism (Stimmungsimpressionismus).  Although primarily used to describe the popular style adopted by late 19^th century German and Austrian painters, Kühn endeavoured to capture the same effect in his photographs.  Much like an Impressionist painter attempts to evoke atmosphere through diffuse brushstrokes, so did Kühn utilize gum bichromate’s inherent qualities to communicate mood.

In 1911 Stieglitz devoted an issue of Camera Work to Kühn, one of only five photographers to have a dedicated issue of the magazine. The present photograph is reproduced in that issue.