Old Topographics: Photography and Urbanization in Nineteenth-Century Paris : Transit and Transition in Marville's Paris, Part 1

February 2014 - Masha Belenky, associate professor of French and acting chair, department of Romance, German, and Slavic Languages and Literatures, The George Washington University. Organized in conjunction with Charles Marville: Photographer of Paris, this symposium held on December 6, 2013, at the National Gallery of Art offers new perspectives on art and urbanism in 19th-century Paris. An international panel of art, architectural, and literary historians address the transformation of 19th-century Paris in papers that focus on diverse topics including the representation of Parisian quarries in 19th-century photography, painting, and literature; the formative role of architect Gabriel Davioud in reshaping Paris; the use of photography to map the changing city; new modes of transportation that shape the experience and representations of the city; the impact of 19th-century photography of Paris on 20th-century film; and the relationship between Marville's urban documentation and contemporary photographic practice. Charles Marville: Photographer of Paris is on view at the Gallery through January 5, 2014