Songs of the Sky B6

1923

Alfred Stieglitz

Associated Names
Alfred Stieglitz

Artist, American, 1864 - 1946

The image shows a view of the sky with dark clouds and a bright light source, possibly the sun, partially obscured by the clouds. There is no visible horizon or objects in the scene. The focus is on the contrast between light and dark areas among the cloud formations. The style suggests a photographic capture with clear lines and well-defined contrasts. The color palette is monochromatic with deep blacks, various shades of grey, and a bright white highlight around the light source.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    Alfred Stieglitz Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 9.3 x 11.8 cm (3 11/16 x 4 5/8 in.)
    sheet: 10.2 x 22.7 cm (4 x 8 15/16 in.)
    mount: 34.3 x 27.6 cm (13 1/2 x 10 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1949.3.859

  • Stieglitz Estate Number

    158B

    Part of Stieglitz Key Set Online Edition

    Learn more

  • Key Set Number

    903

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. 2, cat. 903.

Inscriptions

by Alfred Stieglitz, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: Top / B6 [6 in subscript]; upper center verso: Top / B6 [6 in subscript]
by Georgia O'Keeffe, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: 158-B
by later hand, on mount, lower right verso, on linen tape in graphite, arrow pointing up: ^

Wikidata ID

Q64035914

Scholarly Remarks and Key Set Data

Remarks

For more information about the date of this print, see Key Set number 898.

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