Charles Thurston Thompson, 'Oak

Charles Thurston Thompson (about 1816-68)
'Oak, Albury Park, Surrey'
Albumen print
Museum no. 32.962

Given the predominance of art and architecture in Thompson's oeuvre, his series of studies of trees taken in Surrey are extremely rare. His systematic representation of trees was intended as a source of inspiration to artists and designers. His contributions to the 1858 exhibition at the South Kensington Museum were reviewed in the Athenaeum (20 February 1858): 'Even more wonderful for sharp drawing, transparency, and texture are Mr. T. Thompson's Studies of Trees '. Each photograph focuses on either a single tree or a group of trees. Most of the studies seem to have been made in winter, when the trees' branches were bare and their structure most apparent.

Thurston Thopmpson's 'Oak, Albury Park, Surrey' situated in the 1858 Exhibition (click image for larger version)