The National Center of Photography and Images (NCPI) opens an online exhibition titled “An Atypical Journey of Claude de Rarécourt de la Vallée in a Foreign Land – Collotype Prints from Souvenirs de Formose et des Îles Pescadores (Memories from Formosa and the Pescadores Islands).”
The photographs featured in this exhibition were taken by Claude de Rarécourt de la Vallée, comte de Pimodan, a French count who was designated to the Embassy of France in Tokyo during the 19th century. He visited Taiwan, at the time known as Formosa, and other regions in Southeast Asia to observe how Japan, France, and Britain ruled their colonies.
After arriving at the Keelung port in northern Taiwan, he visited several areas from north to south, including Taipei, Hsinchu, Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin, Chiayi, Kaohsiung, and the Magong City in Penghu. He was moved by the scenes of ordinary lives, such as the hardworking farmers and buffalos, traditional buildings, and folk cultural activities.
The NCPI highlighted that the visit to Formosa left a deep impression on Pimodan. Because of that, he began writing a memoir and created an album that included 54 photos printed using the collotype technique.
To view the online gallery, please visit the NCPI’s website.