Pacific pursuits : Postcards

Abstract

Pacific Pursuits is a collection of postcards that were issued in the first two decades of the twentieth century in various countries and territories of the western Pacific. They depict urban architecture and rural landscapes, local fauna and flora, notable monuments and sites, and daily life, particularly scenes of work and domestic activity, as well as portraiture. Although produced and distributed locally for the most part, the postcards were almost certainly geared to Western visitors and Western tastes, both in their role as a means of quick communication to those back home and in the choice of subjects they depict. The views are mostly photographic, though artistic renderings are also represented; both image types are transmitted via reproductive technologies such as collotype, letterpress halftone, rotogravure, photochrom and others (real photo, or photographic, postcards are also included). This collection is organized by the name of the country or territory.

Dates / Origin

Date issued: 1900

Library locations

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Picture Collection