Equivalent
1930
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
sheet (trimmed to image): 9.3 x 11.9 cm (3 11/16 x 4 11/16 in.) mount: 27.5 x 34.8 cm (10 13/16 x 13 11/16 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Alfred Stieglitz Collection
Accession Number
1949.3.1064
Art Historical Context
Alfred Stieglitz *Equivalent* (193) exemplifies the artist's late-career exploration of's emotional depth. A leader in elevating photography to fine art through his Photo-Secession movement and gallery "291," Stieglitz created this image during his time at Lake George, New York. The title reflects his belief that photographs could serve as "equivalents" to music or poetry—abstract expressions of inner states rather than mere documentation. Rendered in gelatin silver print, a precise black-and-white process favored for its tonal range and clarity, the work features a trimmed sheet of just 9.3 ...
About the Artist
Alfred Stieglitz · 1864–1946
Alfred Stieglitz (1864-1946) was a pioneering American photographer, art dealer, publisher, and advocate for the Modernist movement who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, to German Jewish immigrant parents, Stieglitz spent his formative years studying mechanical engineering in Berlin, where he discovered photography in ...