Alfred Stieglitz (1864-1946) was a photographer, art critic,
art dealer, a photography theorist.
More than any other person he was responsible for establishing
photography as an art form in its own right. His work showed great technical mastery of tone and
texture. In his later years he
became interested in straight photography favoring more clarity and less lush
effects. This reflected a new
approach to photography that claimed its value was as a revealer of truths
about the modern world. He used natural
elements like rain, snow, and steam to unify the components of a scene into a
visually pleasing pictorial whole.
Stieglizt was married to painter Georgia O’Keefe who was 23
years younger than he was. His
photographs of her (many in the nude) remain one of the most dynamic and
intimate records of a single individual in the history of art.
In
his own words: “I was born in Hoboken. I am an American. Photography is my
passion. The search for truth my obsession” (quoted in Green, Camera Work, p.341).1
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