Collection Cicada Daguerreotype

A Becquerel Daguerreotype photogram of the "Lace Cicada" (Tailainga binghami). Made in September, 2017.

The 'Daguerreotype' process was the first successful commercial photographic process, debuting in 1839. The photograph is imprinted on a polished silver plate -- when the shinier parts are angled into a dark object, they appear black and the image forms a positive. Likewise, when angled into a bright object, the image appears as a negative. The 'becquerel' method of development, discovered in 1840, is collection a safer alternative method of developing the image that requires no mercury.

The silver was reclaimed from old mirror material. The daguerreotypes have been sealed under glass and glued into the frame. The case was 3d printed with wood filament, sanded and stained.