Inventors and Manipulators: Photography as Intellectual Property in Nineteenth-Century New York Mazie M. Harris A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History of Art and Architecture at Brown University Providence, Rhode Island May 2014 © Copyright 2014 Mazie M. Harris This dissertation by Mazie M. Harris is accepted in its present form by the Department of the History of Art and Architecture as satisfying the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Date __________ _____________________________ Douglas R. Nickel, Advisor Recommended to the Graduate Council Date __________ _____________________________ K. Dian Kriz, Reader Date __________ _____________________________ Jennifer L. Roberts, Reader Approved by the Graduate Council Date __________ _____________________________ Peter M. Weber, Dean of the Graduate School iii CURRICULUM VITAE Mazie M. Harris was born in Austin, Texas, in 1977. She holds a B.A. in Art History from Trinity University and a M.A. in Art History from Boston University. While at Brown University her work has been supported by the Brown University Graduate School, the Department of the History of Art and Architecture, and the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design. Her research has been fostered by the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, Massachusetts Historical Society, New York Public Library, Smithsonian Institution National Portrait Gallery, New England Regional Fellowship Consortium, Winterthur Museum & Library, American Antiquarian Society, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Terra Foundation for American Art. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In the conclusion of “The Ecstasy of Influence,” Jonathan Lethem’s 2007 meditation on the pleasure of dialogues between past and present, he confesses that the entirety of his essay was cobbled directly from other sources. Although my references are cited more formally than those in Lethem’s piece and combined with extensive primary research, this dissertation is similarly a celebration of conversations on intellectual property, and deeply beholden to the work of many writers. But whereas Lethem withholds his big reveal until the end of his essay, I am grateful for the opportunity to note at the outset my gratitude to the many friends and scholars whose thoughtful contributions have informed my work. My greatest debt is to Douglas Nickel. His guidance, curiosity, and good humor have sustained me over the many years it has taken to see this project to completion. I greatly admire his ability to bring new perspectives to the study of photographic history, and am profoundly thankful for his mentorship and encouragement. Dian Kriz’s intellectual rigor has likewise pushed me to deeper scholarly inquiry. I appreciate having had the opportunity to benefit from her generosity, collegiality, and erudition. Jennifer Roberts has also been an incredible advisor. Her scholarship and commitment to the field of art history are an ongoing inspiration. I am grateful to have a dissertation committee so fully engaged with the issues at the core of this project and unfailingly available to offer advice and challenge any untried assumptions. I look forward to our continued conversations. Several museum colleagues have thoughtfully served as mentors in both my professional and academic pursuits. At the Harvard Art Museums, the Agnes Mongan Center for the Study of v Prints, Drawings, and Photographs offered a remarkable education. Most crucially, Marjorie Cohn has shown me, again and again, the insights that come from careful visual analysis. It has been a privilege to continue to learn from her. Miriam Stewart’s spirited laughter and thorough research have served as important reminders to stay in touch with the pleasures of art historical study. I was drawn to the history of photography by the work of Deborah Martin Kao and Michelle Lamunière. Their stimulating scholarship in the field continues to motivate me. Conservators Penley Knipe and Craigen Bowen taught me to carefully consider the importance of photographic materials. Their close looking, along with Michael Dumas’s heroic efforts to catalogue Harvard’s carte-de-visite, cabinet card, and tintype collections, spurred me to learn more about nineteenth-century photographic processes. Michael’s knowledge of the visual culture of the period is unmatched. I treasure his friendship as much as I value his intelligence. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to continue to learn about the history of the medium from Britt Salvesen, Amy Rule, and Leslie Squyres at the Center for Creative Photography. More recently, I have had the good fortune to work with the staff of the Museum of Art at the Rhode Island School of Design. The work of the museum’s curators, educators, conservators, preparators, registrars, and installers exemplifies the valuable experiences fostered through collaborative effort. I am especially indebted to Tara Emsley, Deb Diemente, Jan Howard, Gina Borromeo, and Maureen O’Brien, for their camaraderie and astute advice. While at RISD, I benefitted enormously from working alongside Judith Tannenbaum, whose curatorial vision, sharp intellect, and open-minded attitude to a wide range of art continue to invigorate my interest in links between historic and contemporary visual forms. I am thankful to several institutions for supporting my dissertation research in myriad ways. Doctoral funding provided by the Brown University Graduate School and Department of the History of Art and Architecture enabled me to dedicate myself to graduate work. I have had vi the great fortune while at Brown to work with the amazing librarian Karen Bouchard. Her willingness to explore and share new avenues of research is always welcome. Staff members at the Rockefeller and Hay Libraries have been similarly tireless in their assistance and guidance. I am grateful for their collegiality and expertise. In the Harvard Fine Arts Library, Amanda Bowen’s grasp of the library’s collections and resources has been invaluable. Before I proposed my dissertation, a research project for the National Gallery of Art prompted me to consider the difficulties of assigning credit for nineteenth-century photographic innovations. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with the NGA’s phenomenal curators Sarah Greenough, Sarah Kennel, Diane Waggoner, and Matt Witkovsky. I aspire to their ability to bring intensive scholarly study into a museum setting, and I continue to learn a great deal from their intellectually and visually compelling exhibitions. As I began to formulate a dissertation proposal, a Swann Foundation Fellowship provided the opportunity to work with Martha Kennedy and the extensive holdings of the Library of Congress, both have been valuable founts of knowledge in subsequent visits. I am also pleased to have had the chance to meet Carol Johnson, who guided me to several important Library of Congress resources in my study of copyright history. An Andrew Oliver Fellowship at the Massachusetts Historical Society provided important fodder for research on my first chapter, and connections fostered by Kate Viens and Conrad Wright continue to inform my project. David Lowe, at the New York Public Library, never fails to amaze me with his deep knowledge of photographers, and resourceful approaches to research. A short-term NYPL fellowship not only enabled me to work with the library’s impressive collections, but also provided the opportunity to consult with Stephen Pinson, whose scholarship and curating I greatly admire. I am glad to have crossed paths there with Meredith Friedman, with whom I have also gotten to work at the Center for Creative Photography and the vii Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is a fantastically inspirational colleague. I look forward to working alongside her again. During the early stages of my research, a pre-doctoral fellowship at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery introduced me several curators whose insights helped me to re-think my project in significant ways. Ann Shumard, Frank Goodyear, David Ward, and Anne Goodyear each profoundly impacted the scope of this dissertation. I am also grateful to Amy Baskette at NPG for her wisdom and can-do attitude. While at the Smithsonian I benefitted as well from access to the collections of the National Museum of American History. At NMAH Shannon Perich, Michelle Delaney, Helena Wright, Lilla Vekerdy, Kirsten van der Veen, and Richard Doty made every effort to assist in my scramble to gather as much information as possible during my time in Washington. Their encyclopedic knowledge and holdings proved immeasurably helpful. Smithsonian support also allowed me to spend substantial time with the Patent Office records at the National Archives, which proved foundational for my second chapter. The success of the Smithsonian fellowship experience was due in large part to the careful oversight of Cynthia Mills and Amelia Goerlitz at the American Art Museum. The scholarly community they fostered continues to enrich my work. A New England Regional Consortium Fellowship enabled access to several other collections crucial to my research. Caroline Duroselle-Melish kindly aided my work at the Houghton Library. Catharina Slautterback was indispensable in guiding me through the rich resources of the Boston Athenaeum. David Warrington was immensely helpful during my time at the Harvard Law School Library. And the staff at the Baker Library introduced me to a number of archives that fundamentally transformed my knowledge of nineteenth-century business practices. Participation in the New York Art & Law Residency Program likewise viii decisively shaped my project. Sergio Sarmiento, along with the roster of artists and legal scholars he brought together, helped me to think about intellectual property from a variety of distinctive perspectives. My time in the Department of Photographs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as a Jay and Morgan Whitney Fellow was a particularly fruitful opportunity to draw connections between visual and written sources. Access to the museum’s astounding collections was made possible by the staff’s willingness to share their deep knowledge.