In 1849, ten years after the invention of the daguerreotype, lantern slides were introduced as a new photographic medium. As a transparent slide that could be projected onto any surface, the photograph took a step toward the cinematic: it was now made to be seen by groups or large audiences, sitting in darkened rooms. This development changed the previous intimacy of the photograph and expanded its practicality for entertainment and educational purposes. Amateur photographers and camera clubs helped create a strong market for lantern slides as a lecturing tool. The Camera Club of New York, where Alfred Stieglitz was an early member as well as editor of the Club’s journal, Camera Notes, employed and chronicled the uses of lantern slides.
While mass entertainment uses for lantern slides diminished after the development of moving pictures in 1895, lantern slides continued to be used as an educational tool and in familial settings, as evident in the present lot. The eight lantern slides shown here were created by Stieglitz between 1890 and 1920 and feature an array of family members, friends and acquaintances. Stieglitz probably projected these lantern slides at home, foreshadowing what would become a common living room pastime by the middle of the 20th century.