Giuseppe Wulz (Cave del Predil, March 18, 1843 – Trieste, March 14, 1918) was one of the most important Triestine photographers of the 19th century and a central figure in the city’s photographic history. Born in Cave del Predil, a hamlet of Tarvisio, he moved to Trieste with his mother Klara in 1851. He became an apprentice at the photographic studio of Friedrich Wilhelm Engel, one of Trieste’s leading photographers of the era.
Early Career and the Allievi di Engel Studio
After Engel left Trieste in 1868, Wulz took over the studio together with Luigi Boccalini, his former apprentice colleague, renaming it Allievi di Engel. The studio specialized in portraits, becoming a reference point for Trieste’s society and international personalities. Wulz photographed celebrities such as:
- Arturo Toscanini
- Hans Richter
- Richard Strauss
- Johannes Brahms
during their visits or performances in Trieste.
Landscape and Urban Documentation
Besides portrait photography, Wulz dedicated himself intensively to landscape and urban documentation, capturing Trieste’s rapid transformation in the second half of the 19th century. His city views are now valuable historical records. He experimented with new printing techniques, moving from collodion to albumen, and from 1880 to gelatin.
Major Commissions and Later Years
Between 1885 and 1890, he completed a major commission for the Austrian Lloyd, photographing 72 ships in the bay of Muggia. In 1891, after separating from Boccalini, he moved his photographic studio to the Palazzo Hierschl at Via del Corso 19. In 1912, a fire completely destroyed the studio, an event that deeply affected Wulz and led him to hand over the business to his son Carlo Wulz (1874–1928), who continued the family tradition.
Legacy and Archive
The Wulz studio remained active until 1981, becoming an important cultural and archival institution. The Wulz archive, now preserved at the Fondazione Alinari, is one of the most significant photographic collections in Friuli Venezia Giulia.