Fine photographic artist, N.W. Gibbons, will present a lecture and rare demo of the 19th century “wet plate” photography process, Saturday, January 28, 2017 at 1:00pm at the Norwalk Historical Society Museum. He has been producing wet plate photographs, for over 15 years. Learn how these photographs are created, as Mr. Gibbons walks through the steps of his precise wet plate process to create a tintype photograph. Admission is $10. Tickets can be purchased online at norwalkhistoricalsociety.org. Seating is limited. If the event is cancelled by the Norwalk Historical Society due to inclement weather, it will be rescheduled for Sunday, January 29, 2017 at 1:00pm. The Norwalk Historical Society Museum is located at 141 East Avenue. The front entrance is accessible from the Norwalk City Hall parking area at 125 East Avenue. The Museum is in the red brick house with blue double front doors, next to the Norwalk Health Department.

Photographers during the mid to late 19th century used the “wet plate” process to develop tintypes and ambrotypes. Tintypes and ambrotypes are direct positive images on metal or glass respectively. Each image is a unique “edition of one” as there is no negative from which to make duplicate prints. Wet plate images are noted for their extremely fine grain images with a long tonal scale.

Attendees will be able to view original 19th century tintypes and ambrotypes in the Norwalk Historical Society’s new exhibit, Self and the World: Experiencing Photography in 19th Century Norwalk. The exhibit is curated by Elizabeth Avery and graphic designs by Scott Kuykendall. On display are never before seen daguerreotypes, family portraits, cartes de visite photographs, plate glass negatives, stereoscopes and an original early Kodak camera, that helps tell the story of the early age of photography and its influence on the people of Norwalk.

N.W. Gibbons is a fine photographic artist from Westport, CT and has worked in large format non-digital photographic media since the mid-1970’s, and since 1999 has produced work using a number of different 19th century photo processes. Mr. Gibbons creates very large tintypes and ambrotypes and favors cityscapes and landscapes in lower Fairfield County and New York State. Past bodies of work include the bridges of the Merritt Parkway and the former industrial mills of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Mr. Gibbons’ work is in numerous private and public collections, including the Yale Art Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Library of Congress, and the Museum of Modern Art. When not making wet plate images, Mr. Gibbons is a full-time Fire Inspector for the Westport Fire Department. He is also an Associate Fellow of Branford College at Yale University. Mr. Gibbons’ website is: www.nwgibbons.com

For more information on the 19th Century Wet Plate Photography Demo & Lecture visit www.norwalkhistoricalsociety.org, e-mail [email protected] , or call 203-846-0525. The Norwalk Historical Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.