A chronological exhibition of analog cameras used by photographers in Eretz Israel from the early days of photography until the digital era: a stereoscopic camera with a “pair of eyes” (two lenses) and a wooden camera similar to those used during 19th-century photographic exhibitions. Other cameras in the exhibit exemplify the development of formats and technology over the years, from the 19th-century cameras with their large glass plate negatives to the photographic films of the 20th century. These cameras were used for photographing portraits, families, nature, sport, wars, architecture, culture and more.
On the back wall of the showcase appear photos of two Tel Aviv photography studios: Avraham Soskin’s “Photographia” and Rudi Weissenstein’s “PhotoHouse” (Hatsalmaniya). Hanging next to them are portraits of men and women who worked as photographers in Israel, holding their cameras (you can read about them at the “House of Photography” website by scanning the QR codes). Also on display are historical photo albums documenting photographic expeditions, instruction books and other books from this country and abroad.
The exhibition of cameras is taking place alongside the “Postcards Without Borders” exhibition, which features postcards from the Museum’s collection showing prints of portrait and landscape photographs (1870–1930) taken in countries of the Eastern Mediterranean – Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt and Tunisia – evidence that the development of photography in this country paralleled that in other countries in the region. The cameras, literature and postcards provide an opportunity to get to know the local photographic heritage and look at the way in which photographers used their cameras to capture rays of light, spirit of place and people, and the layers of our times.
