A HAND-COLORED WORLD
19th century photographs from the Léon & Lévy Studio
The Roger-Viollet Gallery is presenting for the first time a collection of 67 contemporary prints from stereoscopic glassplates, now owned and preserved by the Bibliothèque historique de la Ville de Paris.
A limited edition of 30 copies.
Shortly after Nicéphore Niépce invented photography in 1826-1827, making it possible to distribute still images on a large scale, engineers developed the process of stereoscopic views on glass plates. This made it possible to reproduce landscapes, street scenes, and portraits in relief, offering a new visual experience of the world.
The Western Wall in Jerusalem.
Palestine, circa 1870.
Detail of a stereoscopic view
40x40 cm print
Launching of a ship at sea in the port of Pegli.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Felucca and dahabieh on the Nile in Nubia.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Stereoscopic view.
60x30 cm print
Towers of Charles Bridge at the entrance to the Malá Strana district in Prague.
Austria-Hungary, circa 1895.
Stereoscopic view.
60x30 cm print
Cloister of the monastery of Sant Pau del Camp in Barcelona.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Donkey cart at the Jardin d’Acclimatation in Paris.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Operators from the Léon & Lévy studio were sent to the four corners of the globe—from Japan to Spain, from Egypt to the United States. Most often anonymous, these photographers were tasked with faithfully reproducing tourist sites and locations while also taking portraits of the “indigenous populations”. Yet these images lacked one essential element: color.
Back in Paris, in the workshops of the Léon & Lévy studio, other skilled hands came into play. Like miniature painters, using watercolor and sable brushes, colorists applied hues to a glass plate inserted between the photographic positive and a frosted glass plate. The sky, clothing, and architecture were then adorned with colors, this time giving free rein to the imagination and sensitivity of the artists.
Moorish woman and her servant in Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Fig seller in Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Woman carrying gifts in Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Portrait of a young Moorish woman in Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Woman carrying gifts for a bride in Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Bedouins in Alexandria.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Moorish tooth puller in Bougie (Béjaïa).
Algeria, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Even before the advent of the postcard, this trade in hand-colored images was a true industry, employing hundreds of workers. Viewed through a stereoscope, these colored photographs offered a bourgeois clientele an immobile journey — at once a tool for knowledge and an invitation to escape.
Young spinner.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Nubian suited for battle.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Coptic woman and her daughters.
Palestine, circa 1870.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Coptic bishop in Jerusalem.
Palestine, circa 1870.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Interior of a house.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Silkworm breeding.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Young women from Valencia.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Ferran VII Street in Barcelona.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Guitarist Antonio Pérez in Seville.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Transport in a hammock in Allada.
Kingdom of Dahomey (now south of Benin), circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Long left unexploited, these images survived for over a century before the advent of the digital age allowed them to be rediscovered. Today's technologies make it possible to faithfully reproduce these photographs, which were created by meticulously assembling several glass plates.
Tombs of the Caliphs in Cairo.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
French soldier on a dock in Canton port.
China, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Boulevard de la République in Algiers.
Algeria, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The port and city of Algiers.
Algeria, circa 1875.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Gate of the Kasbah of Tangier.
Morocco, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Return from a boat trip on Lake Lugano.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Wooden sculpture sellers in Brienz.
Switzerland, circa 1865.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Peasant women returning from the fields.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Broom seller.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Japanese family.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Minnewater (Lake of Love) in Bruges.
Belgium, circa 1880.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
The Port of Yokohama.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Entering the port of Port Said during the inauguration of the Suez Canal.
Egypt, November 17, 1869.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
School boat and yachts in Christiana (now Oslo).
Norway, circa 1880.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Sailboat and steamboat on Lake Lugano.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
View of Arona taken from the port of Angera on Lake Maggiore.
Italy, circa 1895.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The great fishing on the shore of Mont-Saint-Michel.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Trading dahabieh on the Nile.
Egypt, circa 1880.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The Swenksund trapped in the ice of Spitsbergen during Salomon August Andrée’s polar expedition.
Norway, circa 1897.
Detail from a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
A ocean liner entering the port of Le Havre.
France, circa 1870.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The Vieux-Port and Notre-Dame de la Garde Basilica in Marseille.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
The port of Naples seen from the lighthouse.
Italy, circa 1895.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
50x50 cm print
Buffaloes pulling the watering cart in the Jardin d’Acclimatation in Paris.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The Louvre, Quai des Tuileries, near the Pont Royal in Paris.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Charing Cross in London.
England, circa 1865.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Omnibus in Yokohama.
Japan, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Molo Piccolo district in Naples.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Victor Emmanuel II Gallery in Milan.
Italy, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Men at the café.
Egypt, circa 1870.
Stereoscopic view.
60x30 cm print
The ramparts of Avignon.
France, circa 1890.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Fountain in the cloister of the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon.
Portugal, circa 1880.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Ahmed Bey’s Palace in Constantine.
Algeria, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The Court of the Lions in the Alhambra of Granada.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
The Ambassadors’ Room at the Alcázar of Seville.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
St. Mark’s Square in Venice.
Italy, circa 1895.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
The Clock Tower in St. Mark’s Square in Venice.
Italy, circa 1895.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
The Alcántara Bridge spanning the Tagus River in Toledo.
Spain, circa 1885.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Boat on the Hudson River.
United States of America, circa 1880.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Landscape of New York State.
United States of America, circa 1880.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Saint Gotthard railway bridge over the Reuss River in Amsteg.
Switzerland, circa 1865.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Trans-Andean Railway locomotive near Uspallata.
Argentina, circa 1900.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Saint Gotthard railway bridge over the Reuss River in Vassen.
Switzerland, circa 1865.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
40x40 cm print
Manufacturing workshop for stereoscopic views at Maison Ferrier père, fils et Soulier, 113 Boulevard Sébastopol in Paris.
France, circa 1870.
24x30 cm print
Women looking at stereoscopic views.
France, circa 1865.
Detail of a stereoscopic view.
30x30 cm print
Chronology of the Léon & Lévy Studio
Second Empire (1852–1870): Moyse Léon and Isaac, known as Georges Lévy, begin as assistants at the Parisian photographic studio Ferrier-Soulier.
1864: Foundation of the Léon & Lévy studio. Sale of albumen prints, mainly stereoscopic views, signed “L. L.”
1867: Participation in the Exposition Universelle in Paris. The studio is awarded the Grand Gold Medal of the Emperor.
1874: The studio becomes J. Lévy & Cie, with Isaac Georges Lévy as the sole director.
1895: Entry of Georges Lévy’s two sons, Ernest and Lucien. The company is renamed Lévy & Fils, while retaining the “L. L.” signature.
1864 – 1917: Active period of the studio: publication of individual prints and travel albums.
1917: The Léon & Lévy studio ceases activity.
1970: The Léon & Lévy collection is acquired by the Roger-Viollet Agency.
Today: The glass plate negatives are preserved by the Historical Library of the City of Paris (BHVP). The prints are distributed exclusively by the Roger-Viollet Gallery.
Catalog of the exhibition “A Hand-Colored World. 19th Century Photographs from the Léon & Lévy Studio”.
90 pages. 15 €