The Ghost of the Sea by Joaquim Pla Janini

El fantasma del mar, Joaquim Pla Janini, 1945

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Num. inventory: 21655F

Object name: bromoil prints

Title: El fantasma del mar

Object date: 1945

Color: black and white

Suport: Paper

Author: Joaquim Pla Janini

Technique and material: bromoil transported on paper

Photography

Photograph dated to 1945 by Joaquim Pla Janini (1879-1970), a referential figure within Catalan photography. More specifically, Pla Janini is an important figure among the pictorialists who defended the artistic status of the photographer, comparing their work to that of painters, photographing themes full of symbolism that were often far from reality. In order to achieve a pictorial effect, the pictorialists used the carbon print technique or, in the case of Pla Janini, the bromoil process.

The Maritime Museum of Barcelona conserves the more maritime part of Pla Janini’s work, with a total of 34 bromoils taken between 1940 and 1960. These include landscapes and portraits of seafarers, anthropological themes that emphasize traditional activities like fishing or shipbuilding, with a great technical perfection and balanced composition.