Julia Margaret CameronReino Unido, 1815–1879The Five Wise Virgins
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> According to Matthew 25:1-4: “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.” In illustrating the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, Julia Margaret Cameron selected a theological narrative that is comparable in dogma to the Last Judgement. It its broader message, the wise (or righteous) virgins were those who led virtuous lives and were therefore prepared to enter heaven. The foolish virgins were those unrighteous women who were unprepared for the coming of the bridegroom (Christ) and consequently had the gates of heaven closed to them. > > Cameron took great pains to illustrate the lesson according to traditional iconography.
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The wise virgins, huddled together in a phalanx of figures, are modestly veiled, solemn and severe, and bear oil lamps upright and (supposedly) flaming. The foolish virgins (see [84.XZ.186.41](https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/58619/julia-margaret-cameron-the-five-foolish-virgins-british-1864/)) reveal long tresses of unbound hair, suggesting their moral corruption. Their expressions are remorseful and penitent. These women are arranged within the identifiable architectural space of the studio, complete with skylight and black drape. Mary Hillier (1847-1936), Cameron’s household maid, is recognizable in both studies; the identities of the other subjects are unknown. > > This paring of *The Five Wise Virgins* and *The Five Foolish Virgins* was a registered for copyright in December 1864 and exhibited at the Dublin International Exhibition of 1865.
It was not well received by the critic of the *Photographic Journal*, who remarked: “It is difficult to distinguish which are the ‘Wise’ and which are the ‘Foolish,’ the same models being employed for, and looking equally foolish in, both pictures . . . we should be doing an injustice to photography to let them pass as examples of good art or perfect photography.” > > Julian Cox. *Julia Margaret Cameron*, In Focus: From the J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1996), 26. ©1996 The J. Paul Getty Museum.
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- 84.XZ.186.40
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Mientras tanto, en la vida de Julia Margaret Cameron
La vida enterac. 1863
A camera from her daughter
For Christmas her daughter and son-in-law gave the 48-year-old Cameron a camera, to amuse her in her solitude at Freshwater while her husband was in Ceylon; a hen-house became her studio and the coal-house her darkroom. She took a lesson from the photographer David Wilkie Wynfield, to whom, she said, she owed “all my attempts and indeed consequently all my success”.
1864
Elected to the Photographic Society of London
In 1864 Cameron compiled albums of her photographs for Watts and Herschel, registered her work and prepared it for exhibition and sale. She was elected to the Photographic Society of London, showing at its annual exhibitions and remaining a member until her death.
1864–1875
Eleven years of photography
Cameron's career as a photographer lasted from 1864 to 1875: in that time she made more than 900 photographs, portraying great Victorians — Darwin, Tennyson, Browning, Longfellow, Herschel, Watts, Trollope, Carlyle and the actress Ellen Terry. The Virgin Mary in her religious scenes was most often played by her housekeeper, Mary Hillier.
1865
Sales through P. & D. Colnaghi
In 1865 Cameron joined the Photographic Society of Scotland and arranged for her prints to be sold through the London dealers P. & D. Colnaghi; demand for them was strong.
1865
The South Kensington Museum buys 80 photographs
In August 1865 the South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum) bought 80 of her photographs.
November 1865
First solo exhibition
In November 1865 Cameron held her first solo exhibition; her work was shown throughout Europe.
