Hugh Welch Diamond (1809 – 21 June 1886) was an early British psychiatrist and photographer who made a major contribution to the craft of psychiatric photography.

Early life

Diamond was educated at

Norwich School Norwich School (formally King Edward VI Grammar School, Norwich) is a private selective day school in the close of Norwich Cathedral, Norwich. Among the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, it has a traceable history to 1096 as an episcop ...

and later studied medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons in 1824. He set up in private medical practice in

Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

, London, and then decided to specialise in psychiatry, being appointed to Springfield asylum, the first

Surrey County Asylum Netherne Hospital, formerly The Surrey County Asylum at Netherne or Netherne Asylum was a psychiatric hospital in Hooley, Surrey in the United Kingdom. History Design and construction Netherne Asylum was founded on 18 October 1905 to alleviate o ...

. Diamond later moved to Brookwood Hospital, also in Surrey. Diamond was one of the founders of the Photographic Society, was later its Secretary and also became the editor of the Photographic Journal. He was also a founder member of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

Work

Diamond was fascinated by the possible use of photography in the treatment of mental disorders; some of his many

calotype Calotype or talbotype is an early photographic process introduced in 1841 by William Henry Fox Talbot, using paper coated with silver iodide. Paper texture effects in calotype photography limit the ability of this early process to record low ...

s depicting the expressions of people suffering from mental disorders are particularly moving. These were used not only for record purposes, but also, he claimed in the treatment of patients - although there was little evidence of success. Perhaps it is for his attempts to popularize photography and to lessen its mystique that Diamond is best remembered. He wrote many articles and was a popular lecturer, and he also sought to encourage younger photographers. Among the latter was

Henry Peach Robinson Henry Peach Robinson (9 July 1830, Ludlow, Shropshire – 21 February 1901, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent) was an English pictorialist photographer best known for his pioneering combination printing, an early example of photomontage. He engaged ...

, who was later to refer to Diamond as a "father figure" of photography. Recognition for his encouragement and for his willingness to share his knowledge came in 1855, in the form of a testimonial amounting to £300 for services to photography; among those who subscribed were such people as Delamotte, Fenton and George Shadbolt. In 1867, the Photographic Society awarded its Medal in recognition of "his long and successful labours as one of the principal pioneers of the photographic art and of his continuing endeavours for its advancement." The following year, at his own initiative, he relinquished any further salary as Secretary of the Society, and became its Hon. Secretary.

References

* Leggat, Dr Robert MA M.Ed Ph.D. FRPS

FRSA The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

, ''A History of Photography from its Beginnings till the 1920s'', 1999. 1809 births 1886 deaths People educated at Norwich School British psychiatrists Photographers from Surrey History of mental health in the United Kingdom {{UK-photographer-stub