We’re pleased to introduce the speakers for the 2026 Daguerreian Society Symposium in Washington, D.C., October 15–17.
There is always more to discover about 19th-century photography. This year’s speakers bring fresh research, new discoveries, and unexpected perspectives to the images, people, processes, and stories that continue to shape the field.
Here’s a preview of what you’ll hear:
Wm. B. Becker — What the Magicians Revealed
Two previously unknown photographs of celebrated 19th-century magicians—one by Mathew Brady and another by André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri—lead to new discoveries about the photographers’ final years, including what may be Brady’s last, unintended self-portrait.
Emma Dacey — Looking Through the Glass: Examining the History of Glass and Its Relationship to Early Cased Photographs, With Examples From the SAAM Collections
Drawing on examples from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, photograph conservator Emma Dacey examines an easily overlooked component of cased photographs: the glass that protected daguerreotypes—and could also pose risks to their preservation.
Christina Finlayson — The Spirit of Invention: Patent Office and Patentees
National Portrait Gallery photograph conservator Christina Finlayson introduces an exhibition exploring 19th-century American patent holders and the U.S. Patent Office building, including the conservation of a daguerreotype featured in the show.
Francesco Fragomeni — On Top of the World: Making the First Known Daguerreotype Views From Atop the Dome of the U.S. Capitol Building
In 2025, artist and independent scholar Francesco Fragomeni climbed through the U.S. Capitol dome to make the first known daguerreotype views from its roof. He shares the extraordinary process—and the challenges of working in extreme summer heat and humidity.
Anne Havinga — Boston Literati Go to Freshwater: Cameron’s Legacy in the Athens of America
Former longtime photography curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Anne Havinga traces how Julia Margaret Cameron’s photographs crossed the Atlantic through literary figures including Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and helped shape Boston’s artistic imagination.
Ross J. Kelbaugh — Sublime Obsessions: Highlights of the Kelbaugh Collection in the National Gallery of Art
Collector and Daguerreian Society charter member Ross J. Kelbaugh explores highlights from the more than 400 photographs acquired by the National Gallery of Art from his collection, including works featured in the exhibition Remember Me: Picturing African Americans in Early Photography.
Theresa Leininger-Miller — The Serpent King Portrait by James Goins, Protégé of J.P. Ball in Cincinnati
A remarkable cabinet card of a snake charmer surrounded by live snakes opens a window onto African American photographer James M. Goins, the 19th-century circus world, and the story behind one unforgettable portrait.
Adrienne Lundgren — The 19th-Century Roots of Instagram: The Amateur Photographic Exchange Club (1861–1863)
Long before social media, photographers were exchanging images with strangers and building networks across great distances. Library of Congress conservator Adrienne Lundgren explores the Amateur Photographic Exchange Club of 1861–1863—and its surprisingly modern parallels.
Scott McMahon — The Clairvoyant Camera: Spirit Photographs from the Lilly Library Collection
Drawing on 325 spirit photographs acquired by Indiana University’s Lilly Library from the archive of magician Ricky Jay, curator Scott McMahon explores photography’s role in conjuring ghosts, spirits, and other mysterious visitors.
Anton Orlov and Dr. Simone Wicca — Daguerreian Storycraft: Practice of two contemporary Daguerreotypists
Two contemporary daguerreotypists explore the medium as a living practice, combining technical experimentation with questions of light, materiality, presence, disappearance, and the continuing creative possibilities of the daguerreotype.
Ariadna Romer — A Spotlight Breaks the Dark: Made by Light, Threatened by Time and Humans
As the bicentennial of photography approaches, Smithsonian American Art Museum conservator Ariadna Romer considers the preservation, stewardship, handling, and long-term survival of the daguerreotype as part of the world’s cultural heritage.
Rachel Wetzel — A Closer Look at Plate Stock: Steps to Solidify a Timeline of Early American Daguerreotypy Through Examination of the Earliest Practitioner’s Working Methods, Materiality Choices, and the Availability of Proper Daguerreotype Plates
What can the metal beneath an image tell us? Library of Congress conservator Rachel Wetzel shares scientific research into some 50 daguerreotypes to better understand how America’s earliest practitioners worked between 1839 and 1843.
Jingxian Wu — Reflections: The Making of Modern Daguerreotypes in China
Jingxian Wu traces the emergence of contemporary daguerreotypy in China, where the Hengli Image Centre in Nanjing has rebuilt a photographic practice in a country where no living tradition of the process remained.
Together, these presentations reveal just how expansive the world of early photography remains—connecting history, collecting, conservation, scientific research, material culture, and contemporary practice.
We hope you’ll join us in Washington for three days devoted to the history, art, science, and continuing life of early photography.
Learn more about the presenters and presentations, register and reserve your hotel room HERE.
Questions? Contact info@daguerreiansociety.org.
