Alfred StieglitzAmerican, 1864–1946Mittenwald
May one see it?
Not receiving at present
Washington, D.C., United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
Particulars
- Accession number
- 1949.3.21
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- National Gallery of Art
- Image: National Gallery of Art — © the artist or rights holder
Meanwhile, in the life of Alfred Stieglitz
The whole life1884
Stays in Germany for photography
In 1884 his parents returned to America, but the 20-year-old Alfred stayed in Germany: he collected books on photography, bought his first camera, an 8 × 10 plate camera, and travelled through the Netherlands, Italy and Germany, photographing landscapes and country workers. Photography, he later wrote, “fascinated me, first as a toy, then as a passion, then as an obsession.”
1887
First prize for “The Last Joke, Bellagio”
His photograph The Last Joke, Bellagio won first place in the annual photography competition of the British magazine Amateur Photographer.
1887
First article, on amateur photography in Germany
In 1887 Stieglitz wrote his very first article, “A Word or Two about Amateur Photography in Germany”, for the new magazine Amateur Photographer; other accounts date it to 1888.
1888
First and second prizes in the same competition
The following year his works took both first and second places in the same competition. His reputation grew sharply, and British and German magazines began publishing his photographs.
![Ginevra de' Benci [obverse], Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1474/1478](https://api.nga.gov/iiif/8f29e3c9-a289-4d53-abf0-31a66e9e98fa/full/!2400,2400/0/default.jpg)
![Wreath of Laurel, Palm, and Juniper with a Scroll inscribed Virtutem Forma Decorat [reverse], Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1474/1478](https://api.nga.gov/iiif/ff62e8d0-45c4-498f-ad36-6358de827e04/full/!2400,2400/0/default.jpg)
