An Original Portrait of Dame Clara Butt (1872 -1936).
By Photographer Thomas Fall of Baker Street, London.
Black and white.
Size of image: 12 x 11.8 cms or 4 3/4 x 4 5/8 inches.
Size of surround: 25 x 20.2 cms or 10 x 8 inches.
Dame Clara Ellen Butt, was an English contralto. Her main career was as a recitalist and concert singer. Her voice, both powerful and deep, impressed contempory composers such as Saint Saëns and Elgar; the later composed a song-cycle with her in mind as a soloist.
The name of Thomas Fall (1833 - 1900) is still synonymous with the highest quality pedigree and champion dog photographs. This was particularly difficult at the time since animals do not stay still for long or pose and photographs took longer to produce. Thus you will see in an antique portrait a blur of movement and even a surreptitious hand holding a tail still. In this portrait the cockatoos are shown to their best advantage - from the side with crests silhouetted against a darker surround. The photographer’s details are on the reverse of the photograph and his intials are at the base of the picture.
Condition: Near Fine. The image, but for very faint surface scratches, is in exellent condition. The paper surrounding the portrait is slightly torn and foxed. The mount is faintly marked. The corners are soft.
