We first spotted these gorgeous, colorized lantern slides by photographer Asahel Curtis on NPR’s blog. The Minnesota-born artist first picked up a camera when his family moved the teenager to Seattle in the late 1800s. In the 1920s, Curtis was commissioned by the Washington State Department of Conservation and Development to shoot a series of slides (hand-colored) that would be used to promote tourism and immigration to the Pacific Northwest area. The stunning landscape images now belong to the Washington State Archives, and we’ve shared a selection of them past the break. The photos have a surreal, dreamlike quality to them. Pictures of apples look like something from Snow White, and the Douglas firs receding into darkness could easily be a still from David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. Click through for a better look.
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Abandoned homestead southwest of Ephrata
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Mt. Saint Helens from Spirit Lake
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Red Delicious Apples
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Rhododendrons, Washington State Flower
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Hogs
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar Trees
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Hood Canal from the Olympic Highway north of Brinn
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Surf, Washington Coast, 8 miles south of Queets and Raft River
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Battleship fleet illuminated
Image credit: Asahel Curtis, circa 1908-1939/Conservation Department, Planning and Development Division/Washington State Archives
Avalanche lilies, Olympia Mountains