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85/1284-2008 Glass negative, half plate, 'Pitt St, Sydney', Kerry and Co, c. 1904-1917. Click to enlarge.
  • Image 1 of 1, 85/1284-2008 Glass negative, half plate, 'Pitt St, Sydney', Kerry and Co, c. 1904-1917. Click to enlarge

'Pitt St, Sydney' by Kerry and Co from the Tyrrell collection

Made
This photographic negative was published by the Sydney firm Charles Kerry & Co. and is part of the Powerhouse Museum's Tyrrell collection which contains over 2,900 glass plate negatives by Kerry & Co. Although a few appear to be from the 1880s most were produced between 1892 and 1917. Over this period, and well into the early 1900s, prints from these negatives appeared in many Australian publications and albums of views. In 1903 the company began producing postcards from these negatives, …

This object is part of

85/1284 Glass plate negatives, various subjects, silver gelatin / glass, published by Kerry & Co, part of the Tyrrell collection, New South Wales and Queensland, Australia, 1890-1917
Kerry & Co. photographs from the Tyrrell Collection
1884-1917

Summary

Object No.

85/1284-2008

Object Statement

Glass negative, half plate, 'Pitt St, Sydney', Kerry and Co, c. 1904-1917

Physical Description

Glass negative, half plate, 'Pitt St, Sydney', Kerry and Co., c. 1904-1917

Silver gelatin dry plate glass negative in portrait format. The image depicts Pitt Street, Sydney. The Australian Mutual Fire Insurance Society building can be seen on the corner of Pitt Street and King Street in the centre left of the image. The building was established in 1872 and was designed by arcitects R.H. Robertson and G.A. Morell. The image depicts the entrance of the building and tower like domed structure extending from the roof. The tower structure features an Australian coat of arms, possibly the "Advance Australia" coat of arms. The roof of the building also features a statue of a figure holding a staff. Other commercial buildings can be seen along Pitt Street. The electric tramway along Pitt Street is depicted and the No. 59 tram is travelling along Pitt Street. An omnibus can be seen near the tram and other horsedrawn vehicles can be seen along Pitt Street. Numerous pedestrians can also be seen. Telegraph poles and electric streetlights are present. The caption, studio mark and number are inscribed on the reverse of the negative.

42/132 Tyrrell Inventory Number, 113 Kerry Studio Number

Marks

Studio number and caption on plate emulsion verso lower left, inscribed by hand in reverse print in ink '113., PITT ST, SYDNEY.' Studio mark on plate emulsion verso lower centre (below tram), inscribed by hand in reverse print in ink 'K. & CO.'
Inscription in plate emulsion verso upper right corner, scratched by hand '113'.

Short URL

https://ma.as/28656

Dimensions

Width

120 mm

Production

Made

Made

Notes

Charles Kerry was born in 1858 and by 1885 was running a studio in partnership with C. D. Jones. This partnership lasted until 1892, when Charles became sole owner and changed the studio's name to Kerry and Co.

By 1890 the company was employing a number of photographers who would become famous in their own right. George Bell who covered rural New South Wales was employed in 1890 and Harold Bradley was doing outdoor work and covering events around Sydney by 1899.

Kerry continued to work in the field and in 1895 he took photographs of Royal National Park for New South Wales Government, photographed Queensland artesian bores and was employed by the New South Wales Government to travel the state and photograph Indigenous Australians. In 1897 Kerry led the first party to reach the summit of Mt Kosciuszko in winter conditions and photographed the Jenolan caves.

By 1900 Kerry had turned his studio into one of the largest and most respected photographic establishments in the colony. His new four story premises at 310 George St were designed by the architect H. C. Kent and the third floor studios alone could accommodate 70 people wanting their portraits taken.

In 1913 Kerry retired leaving the running of the studio to his nephew, unfortunately the business did not do well and Kerry and Co. closed its doors in 1917. Kerry himself died in 1928.

Geoff Barker, Curatorial, January, 2009

References
Newton, Gael, Shades of Light; Photography and Australia 1839 - 1988, Australian National Gallery, Canberra, 1988
David, Millar, Charles Kerry's Federation Australia, Sydney, David Ell Press, 1981
Tyrrell, James, Australian Aboriginal and South Sea Islands Implements, Weapons and Curios, James Tyrrell, Sydney, 1929

History

Used

Used

Used

Used

Used

Notes

This photographic negative is one of 2900 Kerry & Co. photographs in the Powerhouse Museum's 'Tyrrell Collection' once owned by Sydney bookseller, James Tyrrell. Almost all of these negatives are 21.5 x 20.3 cm (10 x 8 inch) glass plates and many of those now held by the Powerhouse Museum collection would have been used to create postcards. In addition to the Kerry & Co. Studio images, the Tyrrell Collection at the Powerhouse Museum includes glass plate negatives published by Henry King and a number of other negatives by unattributed photographers

James Tyrrell used the images by Kerry & Co. and Henry King to produce his own booklets and views of New South Wales but although full of iconic Australian images, the collection does not appear to have been fully utilised by Tyrrell.

In 1980 the collection was purchased by Australian Consolidated Press who published a limited series of 2000 contact prints from the collection. Housed in boxes copies of these were given to the State Library of New South Wales and the Macleay Museum at the University of Sydney.

In 1985 Australian Consolidated Press donated the collection to the Powerhouse keeping a set of copy prints for themselves. The collection at this time consisted of 7,903 glass plate negatives and 7,916 contact positive prints.

A further 2,500 Kerry & Co. negatives are held in the Macleay Museum at the University of Sydney, although these do not appear to have been acquired from Charles Kerry and Co. by Tyrrell.

Geoff Barker, Curatorial, January, 2009

References
Newton, Gael, Shades of Light; Photography and Australia 1839 - 1988, Australian National Gallery, Canberra, 1988
David, Millar, Charles Kerry's Federation Australia, Sydney, David Ell Press, 1981
Tyrrell, James, Australian Aboriginal and South Sea Islands Implements, Weapons and Curios, James Tyrrell, Sydney, 1929

Cite this Object

Harvard

'Pitt St, Sydney' by Kerry and Co from the Tyrrell collection 2022, Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, accessed 8 June 2023, <https://ma.as/28656>

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://ma.as/28656 |title='Pitt St, Sydney' by Kerry and Co from the Tyrrell collection |author=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences |access-date=8 June 2023 |publisher=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, Australia}}

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