The woman in this photo, whose name seems to be lost, looks like she is here to welcome us to March. Remember to weave your dreams for the spring!
From Archive.org. Seated Woman, c. 1905. William E. Dassonville (American, 1879–1957). Gelatin silver print
old spirituals 
She looks stately and I love her gown. When I clicked the picture I was amazed by the fine detail!
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It’s a beautiful picture! I wonder if that is due to the paper he manufactured that Rob talked about?
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I know a little bit about this photographer Kimberly!
I took film and photography classes at The School of Visual Arts in the late 70s and came across some of his photos. Couldn’t find many at that time.
He made his own photographic paper that was also used by some other well known photographers.
The paper combined with his own visual style gave much of his work a very ethereal look. His pictures of bridges, islands and waterways in particular were besides being ethereal, downright mysterious.
You might find it interesting that his original photography studio was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake you recently wrote about.
In the late 90s many of his works were found stored in old trunks and I plus many others became reacquainted with his work!
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That is so cool! I looked him up after I read your comment and the paper he created was charcoal black. He certainly did have some beautiful pictures of San Francisco from the 1920s. Mysterious is the perfect word for them. Are you a photographer, Rob?
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Not a photographer Kimberly though while in college in the late 70s I did often roam around Manhattan with a still camera and develop & print photos in the SVA darkroom. (Nowadays I just iPhone it!)
Back then I would go to the Strand Bookstore in the East Village famous for it’s huge collection of rare and used books. I would look through old books about film and sometimes still photographers. That’s where I originally came across some of Dassonville’s photos.
Then again later on in the late 90s when more of his work was discovered.
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That sounds so cool! Did you hang on to any of your old photos?
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Nah, I didn’t think any were particularly that good. I might’ve saved a few for a time but many moves made them go away.
Maybe someday they’ll be found in a trunk like Dassonville’s and create a following –not!
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Well I wouldn’t want to push you but your pictures might be better than you think! I work with people all the time to identify and use their unique strengths. The one thing I notice that’s consistent across all ages, races, sexes, and creeds is our tendency to underrate our own gifts. 😉
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