Alfred Stieglitz has racked up an impressive roster of achievements as an artist-photographer.

[“Winter, Fifth Avenue,” 1893]

At the turn of the 20th century, Stieglitz helped make photography a respected art form, staging a successful show at Gramercy Park’s National Arts Club in 1902. He experimented with different photo technology and processes, and he furthered the careers of early photographers like Edward Steichen.

Steichen, along with Stieglitz, was a founding member of the Photo-Secession movement, which took a “’painterly’ approach to photographic image-making,” according to Artspace.

[“The Terminal,” 1893]

But the achievement I’m most impressed with is as an early Gotham street photographer.

Born in Hoboken in 1864 to German Jewish immigrant parents, he found his way to New York City in 1890 after studying the new medium of photography in 1880s Germany. During the next decade, Stieglitz “made New York City his central subject,” per the National Gallery of Art (NGA).

“He walked the streets with a handheld camera, which allowed for more spontaneity than a large camera mounted on a tripod. He concentrated, as he had in Europe, mainly on working-class scenes of daily life, albeit now conveyed with a greater immediacy,” continued the NGA. 

[“The Flatiron,” 1903]

To achieve the pictorial quality he strived for, he made a point of photographing city scenes in snow and rain—which lent an Impressionist effect to his images and bathed gritty streets in a glowy or misty softness, explains the Art Institute of Chicago.

“Stieglitz soon realized that technical challenges other photographers largely shied away from, such as rain, snow, and low light, could be a boon to his picture-making,” states the NGA. “Although such conditions were difficult to work in, they helped unify compositions, softened the unruly city, and tied it to nature.”

[“Winter, New York,” 1898]

But harsh weather conditions didn’t obscure the austerity of New York’s streets. Viewing “Winter, Fifth Avenue” showcases the raw, difficult conditions the carriage driver is facing as he struggles his way up the avenue.

Conditions were raw for Stieglitz as well, who wrote in 1897 that capturing this image of the carriage driver required that he stand for three hours with his “hand camera” awaiting “the proper moment” to shoot.

“An Icy Night in New York,” from 1898 (below), appears to be a benign nocturnal park scene. But the trees flanking the sidewalk can be interpreted as symbols of a menacing and mysterious city.

Throughout his life, Stieglitz continued to photograph New York City, with an increasing focus on the older New York of his young adult years subsumed into the modern skyscraper city.

He captured the Flatiron building, ringed by snow-topped trees, in 1903. Like most New Yorkers, the completion of this 20-plus story structure on 23rd Street made a big impression on him.

“I suddenly saw the Flat-Iron Building as I had never seen it before,” he said, per the Art Institute of Chicago. “It looked, from where I stood, as if it were moving toward me like the bow of a monster ocean steamer, a picture of the new America which was in the making.”

[Self-portrait, 1886]

The city was changing, and Stieglitz was determined to capture the shift.

“My New York is the New York of transition—The Old gradually passing into the New. . . . The Spirit of that something that endears New York to one who really loves it—not for its outer attractions—but for its deepest worth—& significance. —The universal thing in it,” he wrote in 1920, via the Art Institute of Chicago.

By this time, Stieglitz had earned a name for himself as one of the most accomplished photographers of the impending Modernist age.

[“From ‘Room 3003’ – The Shelton, New York, Looking Northeast, 1927]

As Modernism dawned in the early 1900s, Stieglitz would switch his style to “a more straightforward depiction of quotidian life,” states the Metropolitan Museum of Art, illustrated by this East Side snow-topped tenement panorama above.

[Top image: National Gallery of Art; second image: Victoria & Albert Museum; third image: Art Institute of Chicago; fourth image: Victoria & Albert Museum; fifth image: Art Institute of Chicago; sixth image: Wikipedia; seventh image: Art Institute of Chicago]

Tags: Alfred Stieglitz Flatiron Building, Alfred Stieglitz New York City Street Photos, Alfred Stieglitz Snow Street Scenes of NYC, New York City in Snow 1890s, NYC Photos 1890s, Photo-Secession Alfred Stieglitz

This entry was posted on February 26, 2024 at 2:23 am and is filed under art, Music, art, theater. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In the mid-20th century, the trend of jetting off to the Mediterranean for a holiday gained immense popularity among Brits seeking sun-soaked adventures at an affordable price. A captivating new book filled with Trevor Clark’s vintage photographs and published by Hoxton Mini Press transports readers back to that vibrant period.

Curated by Jake Clark with a foreword by Jan-Carlos Kucharek, The Package Holiday delves into a bygone era characterised by leisurely days by the hotel pool, refreshing drinks, and endless sunshine, all captured through Trevor Clark’s lens in Mallorca.

Mallorca, a prime destination of the time, enticed visitors with its warm climate, stunning shorelines, and lively culture. The advent of budget-friendly air travel in the 1960s and ’70s led to a tourism boom on the island, prompting the rapid development of hotels and resorts to accommodate the growing number of holidaymakers.

Clark, seizing the opportunity, opened a commercial studio in Mallorca during this period. Using Ektachrome film and a Hasselblad camera, he meticulously documented the leisure and luxury enjoyed by British tourists, adorned in brightly coloured speedos, slathered in factor two suncream, and lounging with a cocktail and cigarette by a chlorinated pool while the kids learn archery.

Jake Clark, an artist and lecturer with deep personal ties to Mallorca, curated his late father’s photographs as a tribute to the work and the epoch it represents. Reflecting on the collection, Jake views it as both a personal journey through memories of “sunburnt childhoods and boozy parents” and a broader exploration of travel’s evolution. He has spent over two decades narrowing down thousands of transparencies, selecting images that resonate with him and that he wishes to transform into paintings. His favourite? “There is an image of a waiter in a wood-panelled pool bar,” Jake tells Creative Boom. “The composition, people’s expressions and flash photography give it real atmosphere.”

The carefully chosen selection highlights the era’s iconic trends, from bold swimwear and minimal sun protection to poolside cocktails, capturing the playful and somewhat kitschy essence of a time when international travel became more accessible to all. Jake notes the irony in his father’s dedication to capturing these holiday scenes without ever taking such holidays himself, a testament to his commitment to his craft. “He was too busy working,” says Jake, explaining that his father’s photographs often graced the brochures of major travel companies like Thomas Cook.

Today, Mallorca and the package holiday scene have transformed significantly. Gone are the days when you could book a break via Teletext and enjoy a week’s escape for the price of a weekly food shop today, staying in the same skyrise hotel with nightly entertainment. In the 2020s, there’s a new emphasis on sustainable tourism that focuses on local culture and cuisine. Despite these changes, the core desire for a break from the ordinary, to explore new places and experiences, remains unchanged, simply reimagined for the modern traveller.

The Package Holiday: 1968—1985 is a nostalgic journey through a pivotal chapter in British travel history, celebrating the discovery of new destinations and the enduring pleasures of sun, sea, and sangria. Through this collection, Jake Clark not only reconnects with his father’s legacy but also shares a slice of history that continues to resonate with today’s travel culture, reminding us of the timeless allure of adventure and relaxation.

Instant film photography has existed as a medium for over 80 years and is as revered today as it was upon its inception. Edwin Land founded Polaroid in 1937, originally creating ski goggles and 3D glasses for the United States military.  A simple question from his daughter about why she couldn’t see a photograph of herself immediately sparked an idea within Land. In 1947, Polaroid released the first instant camera, and changed film photography as we know it with the release of the Polaroid SX-70 camera in 1972.

Polaroid was an essential tool and inspiration for numerous artists such as Andy Warhol, David Hockney, Robert Mapplethorpe, and Keith Haring. These artists took Polaroid and instant film to new heights, cementing its cultural impact throughout the 1970s and well into the new millennium. In the words of Edwin Land, “An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.” The rise of digital photography may have weakened Polaroid’s grip on the industry, but not on the hearts and minds of the photographic community.

Instant film continues to provide tangible evidence of fleeting moments, creating time capsules for our most treasured memories. It combines artistry and chemistry, to produce striking imagery that develops right in front of our eyes. Even though we know how the trick is done, we’re still delighted by its magic.

The photographers we’ve selected showcase the full spectrum of possibilities that instant film provides. While some have advanced degrees in photography or decades of experience in the field, others have only recently discovered (or rediscovered) the wonders of instant film. Their work ranges from traditional portraits and landscapes to experimental techniques and alternative processes. These trailblazing artists are continuing a long history of innovation and creativity that is synonymous with instant film.

The Instant Film Society would not exist without a deep-rooted love and reverence for instant film, but more importantly, it would not exist without the instant film community. Our goal is to continue to highlight not just the 20 photographers we’ve selected, but the instant film community as a whole. Whether you’ve attended PolaCon in person, or follow us online, the Instant Film Society is open to all instant film enthusiasts across the globe. And with that, please enjoy our list of 20 Instant Film Photographers You Need To Know In 2024.

-John Munoz of Instant Film Society