THE
CURTIS BLOG

This is the second in a two-part series about the Curtis orotones. For part 1, click here. The four main Curtis orotone frame styles: (clockwise from upper left: batwing, pie crust, ribbon, ranch. The orotones of Edward S. Curtis are eye-catching from every angle. In addition to the images' lustrous gold tones, these prints stand out in part because of their beautiful frames. Because of the coated glass plate's fragile surface, every orotone was sold in a handmade frame that

Edward Curtis - The Vanishing Race. Orotone in original batwing frame, 1919. “We all know how beautiful the stones and pebbles in the limpid brook of the forest where the water absorbs the blue of the sky and the green of the foliage. Yet when we take the same iridescent pebbles from the water and dry them they are dull and lifeless. So it is with the orthodox photographic print, but in the orotones all that translucency is retained, and they are as full of life and sparkle a

A look at the inner workings of the Curtis Studio in Seattle from 1900 to 1920.

Through the years I wondered how Edward Curtis came to hire John Andrew & Son to produce these incredible pieces of photo/art. There had...

Edward Curtis had a big decision to make. For most of the past year, he had been confined to his bed due to a serious back injury, and...

Watching over downtown Seattle are eight Curtis-inspired sculptures of Native Chiefs. Find out when & how they were created.

Curtis in Hollywood, how to pronouce the name of a Washington city, and the nickname given Curtis by some Navaho People.

In the Curtis/Graybill family collection are numerous references to Edward being born on February 19th, 1868. Lets look at a few here.

An interesting note on "Aphrodite" is that it is said to be two negatives sandwiched together in a dark room.

Elizabeth Loxley Sherriff, Edward’s grandmother Edward's middle name was passed down to him from his grandparents, Charles F. Sherriff and Elizabeth Loxley Sherriff They were married on a farm in White Water, Wisconsin in 1841. One of the eleven offspring from this union was Ellen Sherriff Curtis, who married Johnson Asahel Curtis. It was common back then to use a mother's maiden name as a middle name, and Edward was named in this manner. So you might ask yourself; why would

Florence tells the story of how Geronimo wraps his blanket around her father to protect him from the weather.