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Spirit Photographs
These photographs, made between 1928 and 1934 by Winnipeg physician Dr. Thomas Glendenning Hamilton, capture what an observer at a séance held at his home might actually have seen. The medium Mary Ann Marshall is pictured in an intense moment of contact with the dead. Typical of spirit photographs, “vital forces” emanate from the medium in the form of so-called ectoplasm or teleplasm, a mucous-like, clouded substance believed to be a visible materialization of the spirit world. Dr. Hamilton conducted extensive research into psychic phenomena over the course of 16 years, and was convinced that he had found scientific proof that the human spirit survives beyond the grave. Whether these images in fact bear evidence of apparitions, or are merely the product of clever slight of hand on the part of the medium, remains in controversial. The earliest attempts to capture paranormal, ghostly activity on film date from the 1860s. As the Spiritualist movement gained momentum in the late 19th century, spirit photography became a hotly debated topic, attracting the attention of major intellectual figures. Photographs served as evidence supporting the claims of occult and paranormal phenomena. The most intense interest in spirit photography has followed periods of war when victims families were willing to do anything to have one last contact with their loved ones. Spirit photographs are an interesting way of articulating photography’s ability to see the invisible and reveal truths beyond the power of the naked eye.
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