The South West Wind 1864

Julia Margaret Cameron made this albumen silver print titled 'The South West Wind' sometime in the 1860s. Cameron was part of a growing photography movement in England at the time, a movement interested in photography's potential as a fine art. Cameron, who was wealthy and from a privileged background, was particularly interested in allegorical and historical themes, especially from the Renaissance. Here, the soft focus and classical drapery evokes the kind of imagery associated with painting. The sitter is thought to be the artist's maid. In combining an aesthetic associated with High Art and a contemporary sitter from a lower social class, Cameron is making a statement about the accessibility of beauty. At the time, photography was still a relatively new medium and was not always considered to be 'art'. To understand Cameron's photography further, one could research art criticism from the period and information about institutions such as the Royal Photographic Society. Approaching art through its social context helps us understand how artists like Cameron were self-consciously trying to define the role of photography in Victorian England.