Matching snapshots
‘Unidentified’ no longer
Published in a newspaper article about the exhibition, the photo was spotted by a member of the public who had a very similar photo (right) in her own family album, showing her late father, Michael Finn.
The two photos clearly belong to the same sequence of images, captured by a street photographer outside Central Station in late 1939. In both photos, six-year-old Michael has a reassuring arm around his two-year-old sister Margaret; their mother was probably standing nearby, out of sight. It’s believed the close‑up photo was sent to a family friend; it later found its way to us in response to our public call-out for the exhibition. The Finns retained the other photo.
Just two of the many images the photographer undoubtedly snapped that day, these photos now hold a much greater significance than could have been anticipated at the time. The photos are possibly among the last images of Margaret, who was fatally injured in a road accident not long after, on 6 January 1940.
These inexpensive snaps, quickly captured and often impulsively purchased, have crept their way into family stories, sometimes just putting a face to a name but occasionally becoming an irreplaceable record of a lost loved one.
Do you recognise yourself or someone you know in these photos? Let us know via streetphotos@slm.com.au
This article originally appeared in Unlocked: The Sydney Living Museums Gazette, our Members’ magazine.
Not a Member?
About the author
Anna Cossu
Curator
Inspired by wonderful history teachers and after her own foray as a high school teacher, Anna found herself drawn to the world of museums and heritage interpretation.
More Street Photography stories
A popular nuisance – controlling the street photographers
By the mid-1930s the street photography ‘craze’ saw increasing numbers of photographers on Sydney’s streets – all competing for the best locations and the most promising marks.
City of a million faces
The passing of years has given many street photographs greater significance than may have been anticipated when they were taken. Behind each image lies a complex history that we can only partially discover.
Family photo reunion
Imagine visiting an exhibition and discovering a photograph of yourself and your family that you had never seen before.
Ikon Studio
During the public call out for our Street Photography exhibition an extraordinarily rare collection of street photography negatives came to light.
Matching snapshots
The names and stories behind street photographs are often lost with the passing of time, and we were unable to identify many of the people whose images are featured in the Street Photography exhibition. However, we’ve since learnt the moving story behind one image, of two curly-haired children.
Signs of the times
In the background of many street photos are glimpses of Sydney’s architecture, from still-recognisable locations to popular landmarks of the day. Many photos also show signs advertising businesses now long gone, including popular cafes like Repin’s and Sargents.
Snapped! The Ikon Studio street photographer at work
A remarkable acquisition of 5000 street snaps provides a lively and revealing record of one Sydney street in 1950 and offers a rare glimpse through the street photographer’s lens.
The street snapshot craze
Our exhibition at the Museum of Sydney explores the heyday of this once popular but now forgotten genre of photography.
Vali Myers: teenage Ikon in street photograph
Two young women stride confidently, hand in hand, up Sydney’s Martin Place on a sunny winter’s day in 1950.