On the occasion of the centenary of the death of Gustave Eiffel, the Swiss Camera Museum in Vevey is offering a unique exhibition: “Gustave Eiffel and photography”. Event to discover for free this weekend.
Everyone knows its name, from the tower erected in 2 years for the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1889. An ephemeral monument which has lasted ever since. A 330 meter tower, emblem of Paris and France. In addition to being a talented engineer, Gustave Eiffel also had a passion, less known to the general public, for photography, in which he became interested in the 1880s.
Benefiting from training as a chemist acquired at the Central School of Paris, he prepared his own plates, printed his images in a darkroom, recorded the technical indications for his shots and tested the novelties of his time, including autochrome, the first industrial color photo process. A passion that he maintained through a club of amateur photographers in France. Devouring passion which went so far as to make him acquire shares in a photographic company owned by Léon Gaumont, pioneer of the global cinema industry.
A hobby also practiced in Switzerland in the summers, from 1892, in a villa acquired at the west end of Vevey. A building that has since been razed and replaced by a complex belonging to the Nestlé group. A plush villa called “Villa Claire”, in which he had a darkroom installed. A scientific practice from which he took advantage, firstly, for his professional communication, his experiments, his travels and secondly in his family life.
On the occasion of the centenary of his death, the Swiss Camera Museum is devoting an exhibition to this little-known facet of one of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution. In addition to the autochromes, the exhibition, on view until April 28, presents black and white images of Lake Geneva, the Fête des Vignerons, Gustave Eiffel’s steam yacht, and other documented subjects. Gustave Eiffel himself appears in several of the photographs. An exhibition, to see for free, this weekend, relayed in Valérie Ogier’s 9-12:
9/12 LFM: On the page, 01/29/2024 10:29
In parallel with the exhibition, the Vevey Historical Museum is currently delivering the results of its research on the “Villa Claire”, the Vevey house of Gustave Eiffel with “Gustave Eiffel in Vevey”. Also available this weekend for free. Archives also available until April 28. A villa mentioned, in the video below, by Luc Debraine, from the Swiss Camera Museum as part of the exhibition “Gustave Eiffel and photography” during a “Gustave Eiffel” conference given in Paris:
More info: www.cameramuseum.ch
