NEWS RELEASES
Fashionable Photography - New Exhibition at Horsham Museum
20th February 2007
On the 8 February 2007 Horsham Museum opened a window on an unfamiliar view of its photographic collection. Built up over more than a century the Museum has acquired photographs of people and places, events and scenery, visual records and reminders of a specific past. For the exhibition Fashionable Photography the Museum is showing, for the first time, selected photographs portraying fashions, and what a picture they paint.
Spanning one hundred years the photographs show Horshamites in their Sunday best, starting a tradition that still goes on to today- the desire to look ones best for the camera (as press photographers know only too well). One of the glories of the photograph is the insight into individuals and how they want to appear to posterity. The visitor to the exhibition won’t know individuals names, occupations, or their role in life but the clothes reveal all and make the exhibition. Fashionable Photographs is an interactive experience as you try to decode the visual messages.
Starting from the 1850’s through to the 1950’s the forty plus images are of every day people rather than the wealthy. Prior to the photograph the image of the more humble member of society would have, if at all, been captured by the amateur artist, or the silhouette cutter, concentrating on the face, the unique feature, rather than the clothes. Very few people in Horsham’s history had been portrayed until the advent of photography - then there was an explosion of images.
The exhibition will also amuse, for apart from the full crinolines, the two piece suites, the frock coats and bodices on display, the facial images are a sight to behold, some of which might even win a national gurning competition as the “model” stands grim faced in front of the lens. As for the birthday suit it is “worn” by a 1940’s baby.
Fashionable Photography opened on 8 Feb at 10am in the Horsham Museum Photographic gallery and runs until 26 April.
For further information please contact Jason Semmens or Jeremy Knight.
Horsham Museum, 9 Causeway, Horsham, West Sussex RH12 1HE.
Tel: (01403) 254959 Fax: (01403) 282594
Email: museum@horsham.gov.uk
www.horshammuseum.org
Exhibitions currently on display at Horsham Museum feature:
Coaching
The Jeweller's Craft
Hogarth - Up Close & Personal.