Equivalent

1930

Alfred Stieglitz

Associated Names
Alfred Stieglitz

Artist, American, 1864 - 1946

The image features swirling, ethereal shapes and lines that ebb and flow across the canvas, creating a sense of movement. The abstract scene resembles wisps of smoke or clouds captured in a moment of transformation. The absence of defined edges makes the formations reminiscent of soft, billowing plumes one might see in the sky or as steam rising in the air.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    Alfred Stieglitz Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to image): 9.2 x 11.8 cm (3 5/8 x 4 5/8 in.)
    mount: 34.9 x 27.6 cm (13 3/4 x 10 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1949.3.1078

  • Stieglitz Estate Number

    177A

    Part of Stieglitz Key Set Online Edition

    Learn more

  • Key Set Number

    1339

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

2008

  • Notation, Akademie der Künste, Berlin; Zentrum Für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Karlsruhe, 2008

Bibliography

2002

  • Greenough, Sarah. Alfred Stieglitz: The Key Set: The Alfred Stieglitz Collection of Photographs. Washington, 2002: vol. 2, cat. 1339.

Inscriptions

by Alfred Stieglitz, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: Ex 1932; lower left verso: 1930 [underlined] / 1G
by Georgia O'Keeffe, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: 177A
by later hands, on mount, upper right verso, in brown pencil: 5 [underlined]; lower left verso, in graphite: X

Wikidata ID

Q64036414

Scholarly Remarks and Key Set Data

Stieglitz Collections

A corresponding print was given to the following institution(s) by Alfred Stieglitz during his lifetime, or was received or acquired from the estate:

Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University, New Haven, YCAL MSS 85, box 121, folder 2443 (inscribed: 1—/ 1930 / x)

George Eastman Museum, Rochester, 74:0052:0003

Lifetime Exhibitions

A print from the same negative—perhaps a photograph from the Gallery’s collection—appeared in the following exhibition(s) during Alfred Stieglitz’s lifetime:

1932, New York

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