The Pencil of Nature

William Henry Fox Talbot's "The Pencil of Nature." This 2016 Japanese edition contains a full Japanese translation of all the text from "The Pencil of Nature," published in six installments from 1844 to 1846 and considered "the world's first photo book," along with 24 photographic plates.

Talbot, one of the inventors of photography, combined prints made using his self-developed photographic technique with text to demonstrate what photography captures and how it can be used, all within a single volume. Each of the 24 plates, depicting architecture, still lifes, reproductions, and portraits, is accompanied by text, exploring the possibilities of photography as a new medium through both image and word from its very inception.

The 24 plates in this book were supervised by Michael Gray, who served as director of the Fox Talbot Museum from 1989 to 2003. Print data was created as much as possible from Talbot's original paper negatives, and the size of the plates adheres to the original. Not only are the details and gradations reproduced, but also the color variations unique to each print, which originated from the photographic techniques of the time.

In addition to the complete translation of "The Pencil of Nature" and plate commentaries, the book includes essays by Naoya Hatakeyama, Michael Gray, Masaru Aoyama, Tadashi Kanai, and Giuseppe Penone under the title "Nature, Photography, Art - A Study of 'The Pencil of Nature'," as well as Talbot's own letters. The content extends beyond the history of photography to encompass nature, art, sculpture, reproduction, and the relationship between image and text. The book is designed with roughly equal page counts for vertical and horizontal writing, allowing it to be read from either direction. Editing and translation by Masaru Aoyama, book design by Shoichi Onishi.

[Title] The Pencil of Nature
[Publisher] Akaaka Art Publishing
[Publication Date] January 27, 2016 (First Edition)
[Page Count] 192 pages
[Size] Approx. 208 x 308 x 22mm / 1022g
[Format] Hardcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] SHIZEN NO ENPITSU
[Author/Editor/etc.] William Henry Fox Talbot / Photos/Text, Masaru Aoyama / Editor/Translator, Michael Gray / Supervisor of "The Pencil of Nature" plates, Naoya Hatakeyama, Michael Gray, Masaru Aoyama, Henry F. Talbot, Tadashi Kanai, Giuseppe Penone / Contributors, Shoichi Onishi / Book Design
[Printing/Binding] Live Art Books / Printing/Binding
[ISBN] 9784865410433
[Condition] Used [5] Good (Cover: minor tear repaired)
[Accessories] Obi
[Featured In] Checking
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William Henry Fox Talbot (1800–1877)

Born in England in 1800. One of the inventors of photography.

From the 1830s, he researched methods to fix images onto paper using light. He developed the negative-positive process, which allowed for multiple positive images to be made from a paper negative, and later established the photographic technique known as calotype.

From 1844 to 1846, he published "The Pencil of Nature" in six installments. This work, which combined 24 photographic prints with text to illustrate the characteristics of photography and its potential uses, is considered "the world's first photo book."

Beyond photography, he had broad interests including mathematics, optics, archaeology, and linguistics, and continued his research and writing throughout his life.

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Fox Talbot Museum