Memories and stories

"It is recognized that statements such as these are presented to fit a personal view or agenda. Terry Barrett, in his text, Criticizing Photographs: An introduction to understanding images, describes that art theory has different approaches: by critics, by photographers, by historians, and by curators.
Here it is, of course, a view [...] by a conservator.
[...] The conservators start from an object-centered approach [and try] to reconcile with the image-centered visual culture approach.
Would Barrett consider adding “Theories and conservators” to his list?

The retouching techniques on dry plate negatives of Portuguese photography collections of the first half of the 20th century, 2022

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Portraits of the Portuguese Republican Conspiracy: Three Negatives from Foto-Carvalho

Three large-format negatives from Foto-Carvalho, a former Estremoz studio, reveal the faces of Machado Santos, Luz de Almeida and António Maria da Silva, members of the Carbonária’s Alta Venda. Found broken and unidentified, these portraits link the local history of Estremoz to the republican conspiracy that led to the 1910 Revolution. Preserving also means discovering and sharing the hidden stories of photographic archives.

Photography

Detalhe de retrato de pianista encostada ao piano, com retoque a tinta no pescoço

Retouched Collections – Foto-Estefânia: Retouching, Neighborhood Photography and the Glamour of Cinema

A technical and cultural analysis of the Foto-Estefânia collection, a set of retouched negatives from 1920s–30s Lisbon. The article explores how cinematic glamour shaped studio portrait aesthetics and the manual gestures applied to the negatives. A rigorous approach to image, taste, and photographic heritage.

Photography

Glass negative, with graphite pencil retouching marks.

Retouched collections – Foto-Carvalho – Portrait, a Retoucher and Local Identity

Exploring the history of the Foto-Carvalho studio (Estremoz) and the invisible role of retoucher D. Esmeralda. Through the negatives, we uncover the technical gestures that shaped photographic images and local identity in early 20th-century Portugal.

Photography

Glass stereoscopy and "Glyphoscope" camera

Looking Deeper: Stereoscopic Photography at the Turn of the 20th Century

Celebrating Stereoscopy Day, June 21th. Explore the history and experience of stereoscopic photography at the turn of the 20th century, through cameras, viewers, and images from my collection. A look into the fascination with depth and the persistence of visual wonder.

Photography

Retouched collections – Seeing the Invisible

A proposal for a new reading of photographic negatives as cultural objects. Based on six Portuguese collections, it explores the role of manual retouching in image-making, highlighting the material, technical, and symbolic value of negatives in studio, scientific, and amateur photography of the 20th century.

Photography

Archive boxes for photographic negatives

Archived Negatives: Preserving the Invisible

On International Archives Day, we reflect on photographic negatives as cultural, technical, and historical objects. Retouching — often invisible but essential — reveals gestures and intentions worth preserving. Archiving also means interpreting, and making visible what so often remains hidden.

Photography

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