With the largest collection of original interferential photochromes by Gabriel Lippmann in the world, Photo Elysée in Lausanne (Switzerland) has recently launched an ambitious research programme to deepen knowledge not only of Lippmann process, in which other researchers and institutions are also interested, but also of Lippmann's role in the history of photography. The complexity of interferential photochromy, Gabriel Lippmann's special position between the scientific, photographic and holographic worlds, and the diffusion and circulation of the process in Europe and throughout the world make it necessary to cross-reference fields of expertise to gain a better understanding of this subject. For this reason, Photo Elysée has embarked on an important interdisciplinary collaboration, which will open up new perspectives of collaborations for the institution for future projects.

An Atypical Collection

In 1985, when Pierre-Yves Suter learned that the Musée de l’Elysée (former name of Photo Elysée), a few kilometres from his home, was dedicated to preserving photography in all its forms, he persuaded his father, Gabriel Suter, to bequeath the Lippmann interferential photochromes he owned to this new institution. Indeed, Gabriel Suter and his sister, Antoinette Monition Suter, were the heirs of the physicist Gabriel Lippmann (1845–1921). Although they had never known their illustrious great-uncle, their mother, Charlotte Cherbuliez, had often spoken of him. She and her sister were very close to the childless Lippmann couple (Suter 1999).