Songs of the Sky

1923

Alfred Stieglitz

Associated Names
Alfred Stieglitz

Artist, American, 1864 - 1946

The image shows a view looking upward towards a sky filled with dense clouds. The clouds display a textured, quilted pattern with fluffy and closely packed formations. The color palette is monochromatic with varying shades of gray, creating contrast in the sky.

Media Options

This object’s media is not available for download. Contact us about image usage.

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    Alfred Stieglitz Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 12 x 9.4 cm (4 3/4 x 3 11/16 in.)
    sheet: 14.4 x 10.1 cm (5 11/16 x 4 in.)
    mount: 34.3 x 27.5 cm (13 1/2 x 10 13/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1949.3.947

  • Stieglitz Estate Number

    165E

    Part of Stieglitz Key Set Online Edition

    Learn more
  • Key Set Number

    944

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

Curious for more Alfred Stieglitz scholarship?

Discover over 1,000 artworks that the artist’s wife Georgia O’Keeffe termed his “Key Set” of prize photographs. Museum scholars have illuminated each work, his career, practices, and lifetime achievements.


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. 944.

Inscriptions

by Alfred Stieglitz, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: Top 5
by Georgia O'Keeffe, on mount, upper left verso, in graphite: 165E; lower right verso: D

Wikidata ID

Q64036122

Scholarly Remarks and Key Set Data

Remarks

The dates for this photograph and Key Set numbers 945, 946, and 947 are based on the mounting materials and type of paper, which are similar to those of other prints dated 1923.

Other Collections

A print corresponding with this photograph can also be found in the following collection(s):

Collection of Richard and Ronay Menschel (oriented 90° clockwise)


You may be interested in

Loading Results