The Village Philosopher

1894

Alfred Stieglitz

Associated Names
Alfred Stieglitz

Artist, American, 1864 - 1946

The image displays an elderly man seen from the side, showing the upper half of his body. He is seated at a table, leaning forward with his left hand under his chin and his right hand on an open book on the table. The man has a wrinkled face, short hair, and wears a long-sleeved shirt with a vest. He has a ring on his left hand. The scene is indoors with soft lighting coming from a window behind him, illuminating the room and revealing textured walls and blurred shapes in the background, suggesting a domestic setting.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    platinum print

  • Credit Line

    Alfred Stieglitz Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to image): 17.8 x 14.1 cm (7 x 5 9/16 in.)
    mat: 44.9 x 36.1 cm (17 11/16 x 14 3/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1949.3.187

  • Stieglitz Estate Number

    50D

    Part of Stieglitz Key Set Online Edition

    Learn more

  • Key Set Number

    204

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

Bibliography

2002

  • Greenough, Sarah. Alfred Stieglitz: The Key Set: The Alfred Stieglitz Collection of Photographs. Washington, 2002: vol. 1, cat. 204.

Inscriptions

by Georgia O'Keeffe, on mount, lower left verso, in graphite: 50D

Wikidata ID

Q64034732

Scholarly Remarks and Key Set Data

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