John Paul Foscolo

[PHOTOS COMING SOON]

John Paul Foscolo was born on the Greek island of Zakynthos in 1852. He moved to Smyrna as a young boy where he eventually became a professional photographer. Unfortunately, not much is known about his early life or early photographic career other than he was regarded as one of the most popular and accomplished photographers in Smyrna during the 1870s. There is some speculation that his brother was also a photographer and had a studio in Constantinople.

In 1879, Sir Robert Biddulph (the first British High Commissioner of Cyprus), invited Foscolo and the Armenian photographer Merdiruz Mathieu Papazian to come to Cyprus to photograph and document the settlement of the British forces on the island. Foscolo was appointed as the official photographer of the British army while Papazian was appointed as the official photographer of the Commissariat.

From the time he arrived, Foscolo had a desire to also photograph the local population. Initially, he worked at the Photographie Rubellin studio on Victoria Street in Limassol before he established his own studio on the same street a few years later (Rubellin is regarded as one of the first of the pioneer photographers to set up a studio to Cyprus).

In 1883, Foscolo and Papazian joined forces and bought the Rubellin studio on Victoria Street. Their partnership lasted for seven years under the name J.P Foscolo & M.M.Papazian. They separated in 1890 to set up their own individual studios.

It is evident that Foscolo took great pride and care when photographing both the British as well as the local inhabitants. He soon established a thriving business selling his photographs as postcards. The ones depicting Cypriots in their traditional dress or performing traditional tasks or roles were particularly alluring and popular, as were the postcards depicting the natural environment of Cyprus and many of its ancient buildings and landmarks.

When Foscolo was able to free himself from his studio in Limassol, he spent time travelling around the island recording some of the rarest and most unique images of life at that time. Thanks to Foscolo, we are privileged to have a rare glimpse into the past – for without him, we would not have such a rich visual record of Cyprus and its people.

In 1901, Foscolo formed another partnership with Theodorikos who had a studio on Agios Georgios street in Limassol but that only lasted for 12 months.

One of his most famous apprentices was the master photographer Edward Voskeritchian, (also known as Edwards of Limassol) who worked and was trained by Foscolo between 1920 and 1926.

Foscolo died in 1927 aged seventy-five.

SOURCES:

History of Cypriot Photography 1839 – 1939 by Kadir Kaba

Cyprus of J.P. Foscolo produced by the Cultural Centre of the Cyprus Popular Bank (1992).