Houston Photo Fair Offers Chance to Hold History in Your Hand

 For three days this month – starting Thursday, Oct. 17 – Houston will be the center of the universe for people who love the world’s first photographs. Collectors, dealers, artists, museum professionals and just plain fans of these early camera images will gather from across the globe for the annual meeting of The Daguerreian Society (DaguerreianSociety.org), the leading organization dedicated to the history, technology, art and preservation of early photographs.

A highlight of the three-day gathering will be the Society’s Photo Fair, which is open to the public and taking place on Saturday, Oct. 19 at the InterContinental Houston hotel (Live Oak Ballroom, 7th floor). From 10 am to 4 pm, the fair will feature rare and historically important images – most one-of-a-kind and a number related to 19th-century Texas and the Southwest. You will have a chance to not only browse through the past but also buy an authentic piece of history to hold in your hand… for as little as $10.

Thousands of historical photos from as far back as 1840 through the Civil War and up to 1900 will be on display for purchase. The images will include antique daguerreotypes (the earliest practical form of photography) as well as modern daguerreotypes by contemporary artists; tintypes of metal; ambrotypes on glass; and pioneering paper photographs. You can even glimpse the past in lifelike 3D, thanks to early stereoscopic views. Admission is $10.

If that immersion in early photography isn’t enough, you’ll have another opportunity to hunt for photographic treasures later that day: The Society is holding its annual Benefit Auction starting at 8 pm CDT on Saturday, and it too is open to the public, via remote bidding. The auction will offer nearly 80 lots including over 200 fine 19th-century images. Bidding will be in person at the InterContinental Houston for Symposium registrants and online through Freeman’s | Hindman’s auction platform.

This will be the first time that The Daguerreian Society, an international nonprofit founded in 1988, has held its annual Symposium in Houston.

To learn more about the Photo Fair, Benefit Auction, and Symposium, visit DaguerreianSociety.org/Symposium.

To download photos that will be offered at the photo fair and auction, as well as photos from past Society fairs, click here.

Captions (clockwise from top left): Original paper photograph of General Sam Houston with a walking stick, circa 1860. Ambrotype of an African American man with a wandering eye, ca. mid-1850s. Hand-colored tintype of General George A. Custer, ca. 1875. Daguerreotype of two boys in matching outfits with a book, ca. 1845.

About The Daguerreian Society

The Daguerreian Society is the leading organization dedicated to the history, technology, art, and preservation of 19th-century photography. Our international membership brings together photography collectors and dealers, museum professionals, historians, scientists, students, educators, photographers, and artists. A 501(c)3 nonprofit founded in 1988, The Daguerreian Society welcomes all who share an interest in early photography. For more information, please visit DaguerreianSociety.org.

Media contact:
Dave Fondiller
Media@DaguerreianSociety.org.