(PHOTOGRAPHY) A group portrait by pioneering photographer Ch

Sale 2631 - Lot 274

Price Realized: $ 3,250

?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price

Estimate: $ 800 - $ 1,200

(PHOTOGRAPHY.) A group portrait by pioneering photographer Charles Franklin Moss. Albumen photograph, 7 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches, on original card mount, with inked backmark of "The Moss Studio, 228 Pitt St., Carlisle, Pa."; minimal wear. Carlisle, PA, 1912

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Charles Franklin Moss (1878-1961) was a native of Winchester, VA; his mother had been born into slavery. After launching a career as a portrait painter in Virginia, he established a photo studio in Carlisle, PA in 1908 or 1909. He was the first African American to be admitted to the National Association of Professional Photographers in 1914. He was also a painter and sculptor. See "'Identical to that of the old masters:' The Art of Charles Franklin Moss (1878-1961)," 23 February 2017 post from the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley blog, "Inside the Collections." This photograph of 15 women in elaborate costumes would appear to be for a theatrical production or patriotic tableaux. We trace no other examples of Moss's work at auction.