From The Background to the Foreground: The Photo Backdrop and Cultural Expression - photo exhibit Afterimage, March-April, 1997 by James B. Wyman

Studio photographers active in the U.S. during the 1870s, such as Napolean Sarony, J. M. Mora and L. W. Seavey, all made extensive use of painted backdrops, theatrical sets and scenery. As Robert Taft writes in Photography and the American Scene:

“To Seavey, in large measure, must go the credit, or the blame, for the introduction of the painted background. He rose to fame during the seventies, making a specialty of manufacturing accessories for the photographic gallery. We learn, from an account published in 1879, that "to L. W. Seavey undoubtedly belongs the honor of successfully introducing and making scenic background[s] an indispensable accompaniment to any well-equipped gallery. His grounds combine the color and touch that make him

prominently without rival. To him also belongs the honor of making it possible to introduce into the photograph accessories of every description necessary to complete a composition of almost any character, by actually manufacturing the reality of a light and durable material, which admits of easy and safe transportation and long use without injury. His name is familiar to all; his reputation is not alone national, but world-wide.