Cameron, Julia Margaret

Definition

Julia Margaret Cameron (1815–1879) was a photographic pioneer who was recognized during the 1860s and 1870s for her unparalleled aesthetic contributions to the medium. She was known principally for her portraits of Britain’s cultural elite and for the allegorical or genre subjects that she called “fancy subjects.” She exhibited both types of imagery in group exhibitions sponsored by the photographic societies of London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, and won international recognition in Vienna, Paris, and Berlin, as well as favorable notices in Britain’s periodical press.

Introduction

Julia Margaret Cameron was a photographic pioneer who was recognized during the 1860s and 1870s for her unparalleled aesthetic contributions to the medium. She was known principally for her portraits of Britain’s cultural elite and for the allegorical or genre subjects that she called “fancy subjects.” She exhibited both types of imagery in group exhibitions sponsored by the photographic societies of...