Edinburgh's Photographers: Hill and Adamson

Pre-requisites for enrolment

No prior knowledge is required, but consulting at least one of the course texts is recommended.

Content of Course

1. Introduction and Edinburgh in the 1840s.

2. The invention of photography and early activities in Scotland.

3. The partnership of Hill and Adamson.

4. The people of Edinburgh, including artists, intellectuals and personalities.

5. The places of Edinburgh, including social conditions and changes to the physical environment.

6. Walking tour to consist of Calton Cemetery, Rock House and Calton Hill.

Teaching method(s)

Lecture based with discussion and a walking field visit.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will be able to:

• Appreciate the photographic achievements of Hill and Adamson;

• Understand the society of 1840s Edinburgh where they lived and worked;

• Identify the sites and their images, and assess how much or how little these have changed.

Sources

Core Readings

• Bruce, David, 1973. Sun Pictures: the Hill-Adamson Calotypes. Worthing, W. Sussex: Littlehampton Book Services.

• Ford, Colin and Roy Strong, 1974. An Early Victorian Album The Hill/Adamson Collection, London: Jonathan Cape.

• Fowler, John, 2006. Mr Hill’s Big Picture. Norwich: Saint Andrew Press.

• Michaelson, Katherine, 1970. A Centenary Exhibition of the Work of David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson. Edinburgh: The Scottish Arts Council.

• Rodger, Robin H., 2002. The Remarkable Mr Hill. Perth: Perth Museum and Art Gallery.

• Hill and Adamson: Photographs from the J Paul Getty Museum. 1999. San Francisco CA: J. Paul Getty Museum.

• Simpson, Roddy. 2002. Hill and Adamson’s Photographs of Linlithgow. West Lothian History and Amenity Society.

• Simpson, Roddy, 2012. The Photography of Victorian Scotland. Edinburgh: EUP.

• Stevenson, Sara. 2002. The Personal Art of David Octavius Hill. Yale CT: Yale University Press.

• Stevenson, Sara. 2002. Facing the Light: The Photography of Hill and Adamson. Edinburgh: Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

• Stevenson, Sara. 1981. David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson, Catalogue of their Calotypes taken between 1843 and 1847 in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. Edinburgh: National Galleries of Scotland.

• Stevenson, Sara. 1991. Hill and Adamson’s the Fishermen and Women of the Firth of Forth. Edinburgh: National Galleries of Scotland.

Web Sources

http://.sshop.org.uk
www.special.lib.gla.ac.uk/hillandadamson
www.nls.uk/pencilsoflight/index.html
www.edinphoto.org
www.capitalcollections.org.uk

Class Handouts

Handouts will be provided.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.