“Storied Women of the Civil War Era” at the Smithsonian Institute

Patented by the French photographer André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri in 1854, cartes de visite were an evolution of the cards used by the upper-middle classes when paying social calls. Disdéri had invented a method that allowed a photographer to print up to ten images on a single sheet, making the process economically advantageous and therefore accessible to clients. In America, it was the famous New York-based photographer Mathew Brady who made the cartes da visite popular. Brady understood the political and commercial potential that this new format could have in a crucial moment of American history. The American Civil War (1861-65) was just beginning and Brady’s cartes de visite, thanks to their affordability, were in demand by the families of soldiers who were about to leave for the war.

The entrepreneurial spirit that characterized Brady’s approach to photography made his studios in New York and Washington the place to go for anyone who wanted their portrait taken. Soon enough, it wasn’t just soldiers and families who wanted to be photographed but famous politicians, senior military officers, as well as actresses, first ladies, and women’s rights advocates.

Thanks to this exhibition, we discover the fascinating lives of the women immortalized by Brady’s studios. Next to Julia Dent Grant, wife of the eighteenth US President Ulysses S. Grant, we find the eight-year-old Venezuelan pianist Teresa Carreño who, after giving her first performance in 1892 in New York, grew to become one of the most successful pianists of her time.

While the flamboyant silk dress worn by First Lady Todd Mary Lincoln hints at her extravagance, the direct gaze of Anna Elizabeth Dickinson speaks of her work as an abolitionist, advocate of women’s rights, and admired public speaker—she was the first woman to speak in front of the House of Representatives in 1864.

His portraits are not only historical documents that recorded important aspects of American society. They also help us uncover the reasons behind the popularity of these women who lived during the Civil War Era and the ways in which their actions shaped the country’s social and political life. Although his later years were stricken by poverty and depression, Brady remains one of the most important photographers of the modern era because he recognized the importance of his pursuit: “My greatest aim has been to advance the art of photography and to make it what I think I have, a great and truthful medium of history.”