Mark Osterman is an artist, teacher, writer, musician. Osterman is the Photographic Process Historian for the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, where he researches and teaches early photographic processes from pre-photography to early color.
Over the past ten years, (1999 - 2009) he has developed a unique curriculum chronicling the evolution of photography. In 2010, a few of the new classes are Tracing the Light: Imagery before Photography - The earliest techniques of creating light-based imagery; 1839: Processes of Daguerre, Talbot and Bayard - The three processes vying for supremacy in 1839
Dawn of Photography - Learn Talbot's Photogenic Drawing Process at the same place where he conducted his experiments - this workshop will be held at Lacock Abbey, UK. Osterman's workshops offer participants rare experiences, taking full advantage of the museums collection, from library research, print and technology archive to hands-on laboratory.
He has written extensively about early photography and edited for The New Focal Encyclopedia of Photography, 2007 and written for numerous other publications including: Coming into Focus by John Barnier (2001), The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes by Christopher James (both editions), Le Vocabulaire Technique de la Photographie by Anne Cartier-Bresson (2008), and the third edition of Photographic Possibilities, by Robert Hirsch (2008).
Processes he studies include silhouette-making with a physionotrace, using the camera lucida, heliography, physautotypy, daguerreotypy, photogenic drawing, albumen-on-glass negatives, salted and albumen papers, wet and dry plate collodion processes, gelatin plates and silver-chloride printing out paper, plus the more common printing out papers and early color processes.
Before coming to Eastman House, Osterman taught fine art photography at George School, Newtown, PA; musician and performer in his own "Dr. Bumstead's Lenape Liquid Show;" and previously, a luthier/musical instrument maker.
When he is not teaching, researching and writing, Osterman makes images in his skylight studio (Scully & Osterman) in Rochester's Highland Park neighborhood. He is represented by Howard Greenberg Gallery, NYC; and Tilt Gallery, Phoenix, AZ.
Ballyhoo,©2002 Mark Osterman
from the series, Confidence, hand-tinted wet-plate collodion ambrotype
For more information
Eastman House Photography Workshops: ![[WWW]](https://rocwiki.org/wiki/eggheadbeta/img/sycamore-www.png){kind=small}
http://www.eastmanhouse.org/events/series/photo-workshops
George Eastman House: http://www.eastmanhouse.org/
Scully & Osterman Studio: http://www.collodion.org/
Howard Greenberg Gallery: http://www.howardgreenberg.com/
Tilt Gallery: http://www.tiltgallery.com/
