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F. M. Parkes (England)
"Mrs. Collins & Her Husband's Father, Recognized by Several."
Albumen carte de visite, 2 x 3.8 inches
1875
Parkes was one of the first spirit photographers in Britain, beginning
his work in 1872, the same year as Frederick Hudson. His earliest
images were made in partnership with the proprietor of a restaurant,
who served as medium. Following directions from the spirits, Parkes
required that photographic plates be placed in his control in the
darkroom before they were inserted in the camera--so they could be "magnetised."
If that aroused suspicions, Parkes tried to compensate by cutting a
hole in his darkroom wall so that his patrons could witness the
processing of the negative.
The vertical line running through this photograph is caused by a break
in the glass negative. Perhaps this was intended as a visual
distraction, or served as evidence of paranormal vibrations.
Mrs. Collins' husband was an amateur photographer, who wrote a letter
to the spiritualist journal Human Nature in which he hedges a little
on the accuracy of this spirit likeness of his father (click here for
the text). Judging by appearances alone, the late Mr. Collins could
have served as the model for the Edvard Munch painting The Scream.
Bibliography
A note on the back of this photograph makes reference to an article by
M. A. Oxon in the journal Human Nature for April, 1875 (see text
below). "M. A. Oxon" was the pseudonym of William Stainton Moses
(1813-1892), an Anglican minister and teacher who was a noted English
medium.
Cyril Permutt, Beyond the Spectrum, A Survey of Supernormal
Photography (Cambridge: Patrick Stevens, Ltd., 1983). p. 18 |
