Dr. Stephen Smith (1823-1869) c. 1860 - 1880

Editor: Here we have a daguerreotype by Jeremiah Gurney, dating somewhere between 1860 and 1880. It's a portrait of Dr. Stephen Smith. I’m immediately struck by the formality and seriousness of the subject – that, and the elaborate grooming! What story do you think this photograph is trying to tell, if any? Curator: Well, it whispers to me of a time steeped in both ambition and constraint. Think about it: photography was still a relatively new marvel, right? But to sit for one of these… arduous! Notice his fixed gaze, almost challenging the future itself. The formality screams “respectability,” a desperate clinging to order in a rapidly changing world, perhaps? What do you make of the details in his clothing? Editor: Definitely hints at wealth and status, and an adherence to social norms... It almost feels staged, not truly capturing the individual. Curator: Ah, but is it? Isn't every portrait, in its own way, a stage upon which we perform our desired self? Maybe, just maybe, the 'real' Dr. Smith peeks through those intense eyes. Look closer—do you see a flicker of something untamed in his expression? That flicker is what excites me! And his *hair*! What wildness is hidden beneath that composed surface, I wonder… Editor: I never considered that. It changes my perspective on the photo completely! Thank you! Curator: The beauty, darling, is in the layers, like peeling an onion – though, hopefully with fewer tears! Each viewing offers a chance to find something new. It’s why I love my job, there is always something to learn and every artwork becomes a fresh story waiting to be discovered, with some onion tears to accompany it.