From: Sandy King (sanking@clemson.edu)
Date: 02/26/03-12:43:06 PM Z
I have seen the same claim made for both carbon and platinum.
However, with all due respect to Franklin Jordan, and to all
contemporary gum printers, Jordan's statement is not consistent with
the popularity of pictorial printing practices from the time of their
first use until Jordan's period. Historically gum was the first of
the so-called control processes, and there are certainly many
wonderful images that have been made with it over the years. However,
when bromoil was introduced around the turn of the century it quickly
became far and away the most popular of the pictorial processes.
Almost everyone abandoned gum for bromoil and during the period from
1910-40 bromoil was by far the most popular of the two processes.
From my research I would calculate that over 60% of all pictorial
work between 1910-40 consists of bromoil, and gum less than 20%. And
one certainly can not say that bromoil was more popular because it is
easier to work. To the contrary, it requires at least as much skill
to work as gum, and perhaps even more one gets into the transfer
procedures which gives really exquisite work.
Sandy
>Geez, Dave. A monarch. Gum is a MONARCH. What are you smoking up there this
>winter?
>
>I have been proud to say this to myself, and to say it repeatedly and
>steadfastly: Self, I says, I categorically am not one of you gummy bears. I
>have no interest in gumming unless and until I should lose all of my teeth.
>I don't know who this guy is whose memory not runneth over, but it certainly
>hasn't been me. Gum is something you step in on the sidewalk, and drag home
>in stringy, sticky clumps.
>
>But I've got to hand it to you, Dave. This king thing takes the cake. Okay
>already, you WIN. Some dead guy says gum is king, and you swear by it
>yourself for 66 years, so okay, already. I hereby break with the opposition
>camp. I come over there (not a here yet, still a there), and I don the funny
>little costume, and I will play gummy bear. You just wait, though. With my
>luck, I will turn into a worse zealot than the rest of you combined: a
>king-loving American. What my Irish ancestors would say to that, I don't
>dare think. Probably best not to go there.
>
>Mike Healy
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Dave Rose" <cactuscowboy@attbi.com>
>To: "Alt Photo List" <alt-photo-process-l@skyway.usask.ca>
>Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2003 7:41 AM
>Subject: Re: gum printing
>
>
>"Gum is the monarch of printing processes; they crowned it long ago. Since
>the memory of man runneth not to the contrary, it has held undisputed sway
>as the aristocrat of photography."
>
>Photographic Control Processes by Franklin I. Jordan, F.R.P.S., 1937 Galleon
>Publishers, Inc.
>
>66 years later, I'd have to agree with Mr. Jordan!
>
>Best regards,
>Dave Rose
>Cactus Cowboy
>Big Wonderful Wyoming
>cactuscowboy@attbi.com
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