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Imaging rare, unusual, and intriguing objects at the Brown University Library

Category Archives: Brown University Archives

Portrait un-retouching

April 21, 2015 by | 1 Comment

A few weeks ago, I was given a photograph to digitize – a pretty standard request in DPS. The photograph is a portrait of Alexander Nesbitt, co-founder (with his wife Ilse Buchert Nesbitt) of the Third & Elm Press; the Brown University Library has a sizeable archive that includes “art and design work from the Third & Elm Press; in part, joint art and design work of Alexander Nesbitt and Ilse Buchert Nesbitt for other than Third & Elm; and in part the papers of Alexander Nesbitt, including correspondence, writings, miscellaneous papers, academic papers, non-academic lectures, biographical/personal materials, and museum objects” (from Brown University Library catalog record).

beforeIt’s a lovely portrait, and one of the only portraits of him from that time period. The only problem? At some point, the image was retouched to mask out a large area around Mr. Nesbitt’s face – giving this unusual halo effect that proved very distracting. Normally, our archival digitization workflows aim only to capture the originals as accurately as possible, but this was a special case for this particular collection, so we decided that we would keep two copies of the scan that I’d made. We kept one version that included the original retouching, and a new version where I eliminated the halo, and attempted to recreate as best as possible the image underneath. We would add both versions to the Brown Digital Repository, and also wanted to be able to make new prints of the image – printed using archival processes and fine art papers – that we could use for display to protect the original from damage.

The photograph itself was also showing some aging and use problems: there were some minor color shifts in the photograph (the sepia-ish light brown tone was turning to yellow-orange in the highlights), and there were some bends and tears in the paper. I was able to correct those relatively easily using straightforward image processing techniques. I also removed some dust and scratches from the original printing. Then, I moved on to the main job: removing the while halo, and recreating all the areas underneath the white mask. This was relatively easy to do when it came to the background, but when it came to Mr. Nesbitt’s neck, suit, shirt, and tie, it was far more challenging to recreate an accurate and convincing image.

I was able to determine how to recreate the tie relatively easily – I did basic image searches for men’s ties and tried to find some good matches to work from. The shirt and coat lapels were trickier, because they’re a specific style. The coat lapels in particular required a little more investigation, especially to get the notch correct and to make sure the angles and spread looked right. Here, my research led me to Hollywood:

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Left: Screenshot from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, © 1984 Lucasfilm, Ltd. Right: Still from The King’s Speech, © 2010 The Weinstein Company.

I used these images from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and The King’s Speech (2010) as guides in recreating the suit jacket for Mr. Nesbitt. I did not use the images to add to the file I was working on; rather, I used them as reference as I recreated the lines, textures, and shadows of the jacket through various processing techniques. When retouching was complete, we had prints made of both images: the original with basic color adjustments and tear repairs, and the fully retouched version with the halo removed. Here’s the before and after, from raw scan to completed file:
before-after

A Public Art Mystery: part II (Polygons on Triangle)

February 6, 2015 by | 1 Comment

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Polygons on Triangle, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, Brown University, c.196-?

In preparation of the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library celebrating its 50th year this past November, Digital Production Services scanned many photographs of the building during construction, and after its dedication in November of 1964. A photograph of a large metal sculpture on the steps of “The Rock” piqued my curiosity, resulting in A Public Art Mystery: part 1. After reading the post, a recent graduate of the Public Humanities Program here at Brown commented that he could distinguish a large “C” on the center panel. Was the work by Alexander Calder? I searched the internet for an example of how Calder signed his monumental metal sculptures, known as “stabiles,” and found a signature and date from a piece executed in 1960. The signature is from a work titled Gallows and Lollipops and is, interestingly, installed on the plaza adjacent to the Beinecke Library at Yale University. Using my loupe, I closely examined the photograph of the work at Brown. The “CA” above the “63”, and the similarity of the signatures, convinced me that the sculpture was, indeed, executed by Alexander Calder.

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Detail, with boosted contrast, from photograph

I searched the Calder Foundation website by period, 1963-1976, and there it was! Polygons on Triangle, 1963, Sheet metal, bolts and paint, 289.6 (h) x 185.4 x 243.8 cm. But what were the exact circumstances of its installation at Brown? Was it loaned to the University for the grand opening of its new library? How long did it remain there? What were the reactions of the public to the art? (other than the serious contemplation and head scratching documented in the photograph), and where is the piece now?

Polygons on Triangle, 1963, Sheet metal, bolts and paint, 289.6 (h) x 185.4 x 243.8 cm, Courtesy Calder Foundation

Polygons on Triangle, 1963, Sheet metal, bolts and paint, 289.6 (h) x 185.4 x 243.8 cm, Calder Foundation, New York

I have been able to determine that from 2001-2003, Polygons on Triangle was exhibited at the Storm King Art Center as part of Grand Intuitions: Alexander Calder’s Monumental Sculpture, and in 2004 the work was part of an installation on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia. Calder on the Parkway featured a group of ten black sheet metal sculptures and the 21-foot tall “Ordinary” that already occupied the site. The installation was intended to draw attention to the site of a proposed Calder Museum, a museum which ultimately was never built. In 2007, Polygons on Triangle traveled to Dublin and was featured in an exhibit at the Irish Museum of Modern Art that highlighted Calder’s relationship with Joan Miró.

A great deal of mystery still surrounds the Calder stabile that was installed on steps of the library. I have hopes that the curatorial file that I have requested from the Calder Foundation will shed light on Brown’s history with the sculpture, or perhaps the answers lie hidden in our very own University Archives, awaiting discovery.
Storm King Art Center, 2001-03

Polygons on Triangle, Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, New York, 2001-03

 

 

 

 

 

Photographing the Edwards Cane

January 23, 2015 by | Comments Off on Photographing the Edwards Cane

Shortly before we left for our holiday break, I had another opportunity to photograph historical materials and objects from the Brown University Archives. We’ve had a number of interesting objects come through lately as part of Brown’s 250th celebrations, and since we often are photographing books and documents, three-dimensional objects can be a treat to have in the studio.

One of the more challenging objects that I got to work with is known as the “Edwards Cane,” a cane that belonged to Morgan Edwards, an important figure in the founding of Brown University. The bottom of the cane is rounded and does not stand on its own; it also has an ivory head with a small silver plate bearing an inscription. It was important to shoot both the cane overall as an object, but also focus in on the inscription.

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Edwards Cane; full shot (L) and detail of inscription (R). The hole in the cane visible in the detail shot, just below the ivory handle.

Usually, when we are given more complicated objects to photograph, it’s the nature of the surface materials that presents the greatest challenge: oil paintings, for instance, that are prone to glare; or objects made of silver or glass, which require the construction of light tents in order to capture the details of the object without also capturing our own reflections. The Edwards Cane, however, posed a new challenge: how to adequately support the object while keeping the intrusion of the support elements into the image at a minimum. The best way to photograph it would be to build a support that gently but firmly clamps onto the cane and holds it at a precise position, so we could have the exact angle we wanted without damaging the cane. However, despite multiple attempts, I was unable to find any support mechanism that would support the cane well, not allow any movement, not cause any damage to the cane, and not be incredibly difficult to digitally remove from the final image.

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The cane with packaging tape support.

And then I found the trick. The cane actually has a hole running through it a few inches below the top, visible in the detail of the inscription. The hole runs through the width of the cane and is lined in metal; it’s sturdy, and at just the right spot as a center of gravity of sorts. It was perfect – I just had to find the right material to run through this hole to keep the cane supported and at the correct angle. After trying multiple types of rope, twine – even extra strong fishing line – the material that worked best was regular clear packing tape. When folded over itself, the packing tape leaves no residue behind on the object, and it’s possible to fold it in odd shapes as you go. This was important, because I was able to create small bumps on either side of the cane, which did not cover any of the object when photographed but did keep the cane perfectly in place. The cane is very light, so this turned out to be the perfect option for keeping it in place. I ended up using two additional, much more powerful tapes to attach the packaging tape support to the wall and desk of the studio, to keep the cane in the correct position (this technique actually allowed me to change positions easily, so I could angle the cane and capture the inscription without having to reposition the entire setup).

Once the support was in place, the rest of the setup was straightforward. I positioned two lights with umbrellas as well as a simple grey backdrop, and was even able to shoot tethered with our high-resolution digital back (very important in checking the focus, especially on the inscription). I was able to capture the front, back, and a few details relatively easily, only needing to move the lights and slightly adjust the angle of the cane. Adjusting the cane was not a problem, but I waited approximately two minutes after I made any adjustments for any movement I created to cease. The final images did require some minor retouching – mainly just removing the evidence of tape from the grey background. The result was a set of high-resolution, clean final images that show all the important elements of the cane, and further proof that no photography studio can have too much tape on hand.

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The final setup for photographing the cane, showing the packaging tape support attached to the studio wall and desk, the camera tethered to our capture computer, and a basic lighting setup.