Photography

The first comprehensive anthology of the Victoria & Albert Museum's holdings, An Independent Art is also an excellent introduction to the history of photography. The museum began collecting photography back in 1856--just 17 years after its invention--which explains its particularly impressive holding of Victorian era photographs--including Fenton, Hill & Adamson, Jilia Margaret Cameron, Le Gray, and Lady Clementina Hawarden. As this anthology also shows, their modern collection is equally impressive.