Giorgio Sommer (1834–1914) was one of Europe’s most important and prolific photographers of the 19th century. Active from 1857 to 1888, he produced thousands of images of archeological ruins, landscapes, art objects and portraits. He was born in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

(modern-day

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

), where he studied business. Sommer opened his first photography studio in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, where he made relief images of mountains for the Swiss government. In 1856 moved his business to

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

and later (1866) formed a partnership with fellow German photographer Edmund Behles (also known as Edmondo Behles), who owned a studio in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Operating from their respective Naples and Rome studios, Sommer and Behles became one of the largest and most prolific photography concerns in Italy. He held studios in Naples at: * Strada di Chiaia 168 * Via Monte di Dio 4 and 8 * Piazza della Vittoria Sommer's catalog included images from the

Vatican Museum The Vatican Museums ( it, Musei Vaticani; la, Musea Vaticana) are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of ...

, the National Archeological Museum at Naples, the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

ruins at

Pompeii Pompeii (, ) was an ancient city located in what is now the ''comune'' of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area (e.g. at Boscoreale, Stabiae), was buried ...

, as well as street and architectural scenes of Naples,

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

Capri Capri ( , ; ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. The main town of Capri that is located on the island shares the name. It has been ...

and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. Most notably, Sommer published his comprehensive album ''Dintorni di Napoli'', which contained over one hundred images of everyday scenes in Naples. In April 1872, he documented a very large eruption of Mount

Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ; it, Vesuvio ; nap, 'O Vesuvio , also or ; la, Vesuvius , also , or ) is a somma-stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples The Gulf of Naples (), also called the Bay of Naples, is a roughly 15-kilometer-wide (9 ...

in a series of stunning photographs. Sommer and Behles exhibited extensively and earned numerous honors and prizes for their work (

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

1862,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

1867,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

1873,

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

1885). At one time, Sommer was appointed official photographer to King Victor Emmanuel II of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Sommer was involved in every aspect of the photography business. He published his own images that he sold in his studios and to customers across Europe. In later years, he photographed custom images for book illustrations, as well as printing his own albums and

postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...

s. Sommer worked in all the popular formats of his day:

carte de visite The ''carte de visite'' (, visiting card), abbreviated CdV, was a type of small photograph which was patented in Paris by photographer André Adolphe Eugène Disdéri in 1854, although first used by Louis Dodero. Each photograph was the size o ...

, stereoview, and large

albumen Egg white is the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms arou ...

prints (approximately ) which were sold individually and in bound albums. The partnership with Behles ended in 1874, after which each photographer continued his own business. In Naples, Sommer opened a total of four additional studios: at No. 4 and No. 8 Monte di Dio, No. 5 Magazzino S. Caterina, and a last at Piazza della Vittoria. Sommer died in Naples in 1914.

References

Gallery

File:1863 Sommer Menschliche Abgüsse aus Pompeij anagoria.JPG, ''Pompeii: Human Casts found on 5 February 1863'',

Städel The Städel, officially the ''Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie'', is an art museum in Frankfurt, with one of the most important collections in Germany. The Städel Museum owns 3,100 paintings, 660 sculptures, more than 4,600 ...

File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 3142 - Capri, Marina - (ca. 1880).jpg,

Marina Grande, Capri Marina Grande is the main port of the island of Capri in Italy, to the north of the main town of Capri and at the foot of Mount Solaro. History The Marina Piccola, on the island's southern shore, preceded the Marina Grande; it was used by Au ...

, ca. 1880 File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 6110 - Napoli - via Roma - (alternative take).jpg,

, 1880s File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 8935 - Vesuvio cratere 26 aprile 1883.jpg, ''Crater of the

, 26 April 1883'' (Catalogue # 8935) File:Sommer, Giorgio (1834-1914) - n. 6144 - (Mangiamaccheroni).jpg, ''Spaghetti eaters'' (Naples), before 1886 File:Stabbia Street (Pompeii).jpg, ''Stabbia Street (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Doimede's house (Pompeii).jpg, ''Doimede's house (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Basilica (Pompeii).jpg, ''Basilica (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Amphitheatre (Pompéi).jpg, ''Amphitheatre (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:The Temple of Venus (Pompeii).jpg, ''The Temple of Venus (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:The Temple of Isis (Pompeii).jpg, ''The Temple of Isis (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:The remains of Numerius Popidius Priscus' bakery (Pompeii).jpg, ''The remains of Numerius Popidius Priscus' bakery (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Street of tombs (Pompeii).jpg, ''Street of tombs (Pompeii)'', c. 1840 File:Panorama of Pompeii with Via di Mercurio.jpg, ''Panorama of Pompeii with Mount Vesuvius in the background (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Panorama Forum Rivile (Pompeii).jpg, ''Panorama Forum Rivile (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Forum (Pompeii).jpg, ''Forum (Pompeii)'', c. 1870 File:Le_temple_de_Neptune,_Campanie,_Italie,_1854..jpg, ''The Temple of Neptune'', c. 1854

External links

*
Biography
(in German)

Artnet

Images of Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sommer, Giorgio 1834 births 1914 deaths Photographers from Frankfurt 19th-century Italian photographers 19th-century Swiss photographers German emigrants to Italy German expatriates in Switzerland