Unloading

1894, printed 1895/1896

Alfred Stieglitz

Associated Names
Alfred Stieglitz

Artist, American, 1864 - 1946

The image shows a beach with the sea in the background. The horizon is in the upper third of the scene, emphasizing the sky and ocean. There is sand with clumps of seaweed or debris in the foreground. A boat marked "K.K.W.H." is anchored in the distance, with a person leading a horse in the water nearby. The sea has small waves leading to the shore, and the sky is mostly cloudy. The color palette is sepia-toned.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    platinum print

  • Credit Line

    Alfred Stieglitz Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to image): 14.9 × 19.8 cm (5 7/8 × 7 13/16 in.)
    page size: 34.8 × 27.3 cm (13 11/16 × 10 3/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1949.3.211

  • Stieglitz Estate Number

    78E

    Part of Stieglitz Key Set Online Edition

    Learn more

  • Key Set Number

    230

Associated Artworks

See all 34 artworks
This is a photograph of two oxen yoked together in a field. The image depicts two oxen standing side by side in a field with a dirt-covered ground. The oxen are fitted with harnesses and a yoke. The background shows a distant horizon. The photo is in a grainy sepia tone.

An Idyll

Alfred Stieglitz

1887

The image shows a body of water with mountains in the distance. The point of view is elevated, capturing the shoreline and the water. A person leans towards a cow, holding its halter by the rocky shore. The horizon is high in the image, with the mountains forming a dark outline against the sky. The mountains appear as a soft silhouette due to the diffuse lighting. The image has a grainy and vintage texture. The color palette is monochromatic, with shades of gray and sepia. A small boat with figures is on the water, and a larger vessel is docked to the right.

The Unwilling Bath

Alfred Stieglitz

1887

This is an image of a blacksmith workshop. It shows a scene in front of a rustic building with textured stonework and arched doorways. There is a blacksmith’s anvil in the center, along with tools and a vice on a wooden bench. The entrance has an intricately carved arch. To the right, there’s a cart wheel, and sunlight casts shadows across the cobblestone. The setting conveys a sense of historical craftsmanship and rural life, with deep contrast and details in the photograph bringing out the texture of the building and ground.

Before the Smithy's

Alfred Stieglitz

1890

The image shows a man leaning his head on his hand, positioned with his face resting on his left hand. He has a mustache, thin-framed eyeglasses, and thick, greying hair that curls slightly at the edges. He is dressed in a formal jacket, a white shirt, and a black bow tie. The background is a soft, dark blur.

Alfred Stieglitz

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Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Georgia O'Keeffe; gift to NGA, 1949.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2002

  • Alfred Stieglitz: Known and Unknown, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, June 2–September 2, 2002; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, October 6, 2002–January 5, 2003

Bibliography

2002

  • Greenough, Sarah. Alfred Stieglitz: The Key Set: The Alfred Stieglitz Collection of Photographs. Washington, 2002: vol. 1, cat. 230.

Inscriptions

by Alfred Stieglitz, on interleaving tissue, upper right, in graphite: "Unloading" / 1894.

Wikidata ID

Q64037724

Scholarly Remarks and Key Set Data

Remarks

For Stieglitz’s description of boats landing in Katwijk, see Key Set number 225.

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