Preview
Buy Print
Send
Share
Download
Similars
X-Ray
DiaporamaThomas Alva Edison
- 1890
- 114.0 x 138.0 cm
- National Portrait Gallery
Thomas Edison gained world renown for his inventions, including the phonograph; incandescent lighting; and the Kinetoscope, an early motion picture camera. The wealthy entrepreneur was at the height of his career when Abraham A. Anderson, an American artist based in Paris, began this portrait during Edison’s visit to the city for the Universal Exposition of 1889.Edison’s inventions were the highlight of the exposition’s “Gallery of Machines,” with one pavilion devoted to his electric light and another to his recently improved phonograph, which Anderson chose to picture. The wax cylinders on the table were used for recording. Although Edison patented the first version of the device in 1877, earning himself the title of the “Wizard of Menlo Park,” eleven years passed before he achieved sufficient clarity of sound to make it commercially viable. “When this was done,” he reported, “I knew that everything else could be done which was a fact.”
abraham archibald anderson (1846 – 1940)
Discover Abraham Archibald Anderson – a 19th-century American artist & rancher famed for portraits like Edison. Explore his Wyoming Palette Ranch legacy!
National Portrait Gallery (London, United Kingdom)
Discover Britain's story through iconic portraits at the National Portrait Gallery! Explore centuries of art, royal figures & cultural moments – a must-see London experience.
About this artwork
- Title: Thomas Alva Edison
- Artist: abraham archibald anderson
- Year: 1890
- Original dimensions: 114.0 x 138.0 cm
- Format: Landscape
- Copyright status: Public domain
- Where to see it: National Portrait Gallery
- Main color: Phthalo Green
- Color hue: Yellow-Green Range
QR Code
