Carleton Watkins

Carleton Watkins

Carleton Watkins

Fraenkel Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of twelve rare, mammoth-plate photographs by Carleton Watkins, considered by many to be the greatest American photographer of the nineteenth century. Watkins was the focus of the gallery’s first exhibition in September 1979, and the present project marks the beginning of a season-long celebration of Fraenkel Gallery’s fortieth year. Though made within…
Biography: Pioneer 19th Century photographer Carleton Watkins

Biography: Pioneer 19th Century photographer Carleton Watkins

Carleton Watkins (1829–1916) was an American photographer of the 19th century. Carleton Watkins was born in Oneonta, New York on November 11, 1829, the eldest of eight children. Lured by the opportunities of the California gold rush, he traveled to California with fellow Oneontan Collis Huntington (later to become one of the “Big Four” owners of the Central Pacific Railroad).…