Photo-Secession

Photo-Secession was an American photographers’ group founded in 1902 to establish photography as a fine art. Associated with Alfred Stieglitz, it championed pictorialist photography and modern exhibition practices.

Alfred Stieglitz: Alfred Stieglitz was an American photographer, publisher, and gallery owner who promoted photography as a fine art. He founded and led Photo-Secession, organizing its exhibitions and publishing its journal.
Camera Work: Camera Work was a photographic quarterly published by Alfred Stieglitz from 1903 to 1917. The journal presented Photo-Secession photographers alongside essays and reproductions that argued for photography’s artistic status.
Linked Ring: The Linked Ring was a British photographic society founded in 1892 to advance photography as an art. Its model of an art-focused photographic association preceded Photo-Secession’s American effort.
Alfred Stieglitz Presents Seven Americans: Alfred Stieglitz Presents Seven Americans was a 1946 exhibition of work by artists associated with Stieglitz’s circle. It shows how Stieglitz’s later exhibitions carried forward networks first built around Photo-Secession.
Edward Steichen: Edward Steichen was a Luxembourgish-American photographer and painter known for pictorialist and modernist work. His photographs and design work helped define the group’s visual identity.
Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession: The Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession was an art gallery opened by Alfred Stieglitz in New York in 1905. It gave the group a dedicated venue for photography and modern art exhibitions.
F. Holland Day’s New School of American Photography: The New School of American Photography was a 1900 exhibition of American pictorialist photography organized by F. Holland Day. Its presentation helped create the artistic context from which Photo-Secession formed.
Photo League: The Photo League was an American organization of socially engaged photographers active from 1936 to 1951. Its documentary and political priorities differed from Photo-Secession’s emphasis on photography as autonomous art.
Gertrude Käsebier: Gertrude Käsebier was an American photographer known for portraits and pictorialist images. She was among Photo-Secession’s prominent members and exhibitors.
291 (gallery): 291 was the New York gallery at 291 Fifth Avenue operated by Alfred Stieglitz from 1908 to 1917. The gallery broadened the group’s program by exhibiting European modern art alongside photography.

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