In The Silver Canvas: Daguerreotype Masterpieces from the J. Paul Getty Museum, Bates Lowry and Isabel Barrett Lowry document Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre's miraculous invention of the daguerreotype at the dawn of photography. Using first-hand reports, the authors vividly convey how Daguerre captured the public's imagination and inspired others to embrace this unique art form.

In nearly eighty examples—most never previously published—selected from the nearly two thousand daguerreotypes in the J. Paul Getty Museum's comprehensive photographic collection, the authors present the historical and artistic development of the daguerreian process, chronicling more than two decades of European and American history and culture. Their documented narrative uncovers important new information about Daguerre's invention.

The Silver Canvas, which takes its title from the term used in 1839 by Daguerre's principal proponent to describe the new medium, portrays the impact of the daguerreotype's discovery on the scientific, historical, social, and artistic movements of the day. The recording of historical places, monuments, and contemporary events; still lifes; portraits—even self-portraits of these pioneers of photography themselves—all gave voice to the daguerreotypists' journey toward self-expression. Their pursuit of art and the essence of nature culminated in the creation of a new visual language and the formation of a completely orginal art form.

Bates Lowry is an art historian, former museum director, and the author of The Visual Experience, Renaissance Architecture, and Building a National Image. Isabel Barrett Lowry is former executive director of The Dunlap Society, an organization devoted to the education and appreciation of American art, and an independent researcher and photographer. The Lowrys are currently working on a book reflecting their interest in hand-colored photography entitled The Lens and the Palette.

This title is out of print. Please look for it at your local libraries and/or used bookstores.

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