The complete archive of black and white images taken by Anthony Kersting (1916-2008), one of the greatest architectural photographers. The collection of prints, glass and film negatives is documented in detail in hand-written ledgers, and covers the UK, Europe, and the Middle East. 

Overview

Primary visual content: Architectural photography.

Primary medium: Photographic prints, glass plate negatives and film negatives.

Origin: The work of photographer Anthony Kersting, who donated it to The Courtauld.

Size of collection: 62,334 individual negatives and 694 boxes of prints.

History

Kersting was extremely prolific and his photographs cover a huge spectrum of buildings and their contents. All images were taken from 1936 up to his death in 2008 and include largely unpublished surveys of war damage in both the UK and Europe, alongside urban and village life, landscape, commerce, transport and leisure.

Of particular interest are a series of images taken in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kurdistan, Egypt and Syria in the 1940s, which show buildings and cityscapes that have since been damaged or destroyed. For example, Kersting captured sites targeted by Daesh, and documented the uses and costumes of the Yazidi people, who have suffered extensive persecution. In Britain, Kersting photographed most country estates – including Duncombe Park and Castle Howard –  and immortalised buildings that have since suffered unsympathetic restoration. 

Anthony Kersting's images feature in countless publications, and the complete archive of black and white prints and negatives was bequeathed to the Conway Library on his death in 2008.

Collection structure

The Kersting archive is divided into three sections: prints, negatives, and ledgers. The ledgers provide detailed information on the negatives, which are organised by format, size, and date. The F ledger, for example, refers to 35mm film negatives, whereas the G ledger refers to 4 x 5 in glass plate negatives. The negatives are further marked with a unique number and are listed in the order in which they were taken.

The prints were also created by Kersting and include duplicates in various sizes and finishes which were intended for distribution. Most prints are annotated at the back with the number of the negative, and some include additional information.

Digital initiatives

In 2017 the Courtauld Institute of Art began digitising its Witt and Conway photographic collections. Through using two entirely different methods, one outsourced to a commercial contractor, the other in-house engaging volunteers, we have been able to gain a clear understanding of the economic, practical and social benefits of both approaches as well as making excellent progress. Both projects are led by Tom Bilson, Head of the Digital Media Department.

Our initial discussions about digitising the Conway with the National Lottery Heritage Fund – one of the major funders for Courtauld Connects – made us realise that the levels of public engagement and benefit expected of an organisation receiving their support could not be achieved through contracting out the work. The answer was to rescope the project from one conducted externally, and in a relatively short space of time, to one carried out entirely in-house by volunteers between 2017 and 2022.

Using the digitisation of the Conway as a starting point, we developed a different in-house workflow for the Kersting archive. The digitisation volunteers have completed the digitisation and transcription of Kersting's handwritten ledgers and have prepared the prints for digitisation. The prints are currently being digitised and will eventually be available in the public domain.