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Harold Baker (1860–1942) was a British photographer who was based in
Baker was born in Birmingham in 1860, the son of Samuel Henry Baker, an artist and member of the
Harold Baker (1860–1942) was a British photographer who was based in Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
, England.
Life and career
Baker was born in Birmingham in 1860, the son of Samuel Henry Baker, an artist and member of the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
The Royal Birmingham Society of Artists or RBSA is an art society, based in the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham, England, where it owns and operates an art gallery, the RBSA Gallery, on Brook Street, just off St Paul's Square. It is both a re ...
. His brother Oliver (1856–1939) was also an artist and a designer.
He went to King Edward School in New Street, Birmingham, and then apprenticed to a wood-carver of church furniture and designer of stained glass windows.
Baker was a keen amateur photographer and in 1886 opened his first photographic studio at 17 Cannon Street, Birmingham, and the following year moved to premises in New Street. He was appointed official photographer to the Birmingham Archaeological Society, succeeding Robert W. Thrupp.
In about 1897 he became closely associated with the ''Birmingham Magazine of Arts and Industries'', and became the magazine's official photographer. He was a regular contributor to photographic magazines including ''Practical Photographer''.
In 1902, Baker was invited to assist J. Benjamin Stone the official photographer for the coronation of King Edward VII
The coronation of Edward VII and his wife, Alexandra, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and as Emperor and Empress of India took place at Westminster Abbey, London, on 9 August 1902. Originally scheduled for 26 ...
, and is credited with having taken the only photograph of the proclamation of the King at St James's Palace
St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster in London. Altho ...
.
In 1921 he judged the first annual photographic exhibition organised by the Soho Hill Men's Movement Camera Club.
A collection of his work including over 200 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 mainly of architectural and archaeological studies of buildings and sites in and around Birmingham c1870-1880 and 500 half-plate glass negatives of architectural and historical subjects is held in the Library of Birmingham
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
.
Further reading
*References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Harold 1860 births 1942 deaths Photographers from Birmingham, West Midlands Archaeological photographers 19th-century English photographers