Themes > The Photo-Secession

The Photo-Secession

Founded 1902

Following the model of other artistic secessions in Europe around the turn of the century—notably that of the Brotherhood of the Linked Ring, an English society of Pictorialist photographers that counted Stieglitz and many in his circle as members—Stieglitz formed the Photo-Secession in 1902. Along with other artists he felt were advancing the artistic acceptance of photography, Stieglitz decided to “secede” from the accepted ideas, promulgated by many camera clubs, of what constituted a successful photograph.

 

He outlined the terms of the Photo-Secession in a statement published in 1903:

 

Its aim is loosely to hold together those Americans devoted to pictorial photography in their endeavor to compel its recognition, not as the handmaiden of art, but as a distinctive medium of individual expression. The attitude of its members is one of rebellion against the insincere attitude of the unbeliever, of the Philistine, and largely of exhibition authorities. The Secessionist lays no claim to infallibility, nor does he pin his faith to any creed, but he demands the right to work out his own photographic salvation.[1]

 

Unlike the amateur camera clubs of the time, the Photo-Secession did not select its members through an official election or board—rather, inclusion relied upon a mutual feeling of belonging and, of course, Stieglitz’s approval. Stieglitz recalled many years later Gertrude Käsebier’s asking if she was a Photo-Secessionist, to which he replied that if she felt she was, “that’s all there is to it.”[2] With the exception of F. Holland Day, who refused the invitation, nearly all of Stieglitz’s photographer colleagues joined the Photo-Secession. Stieglitz published photographs by the group in Camera Work and exhibited works at the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession (later known as 291). He also oversaw the Photo-Secession’s participation in national and international photography salons, submitting the “loan collection of the Photo-Secession”—a representative group of work selected by Stieglitz—for exhibition with the stipulation that all works must be accepted for display.

 

 

[1] Alfred Stieglitz, “The Photo-Secession,” in Bausch and Lomb Lens Souvenir (Rochester, New York: Bausch and Lomb Optical, 1903); reprinted in Richard Whelan, ed., Stieglitz on Photography: His Selected Essays and Notes (Aperture, 2000), p. 154.

[2] Alfred Stieglitz, “The Origin of the Photo-Secession and How It Became 291,” Twice a Year 8–9 (1942); reprinted in Whelan, Stieglitz on Photography, p. 120.

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AIC_1949-690_Ta
Alfred Stieglitz

The Net Mender, 1894

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AIC_1949-830_T
Edward Steichen

Midnight Lake George, 1904

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AIC_1949-868_T
Heinrich Kühn

Portrait of Young Boy with Arm Across Back of Chair (Hans Kühn), c. 1906

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AIC_1949-821_T
Frederick H. Evans

Piscina in Chancel of Little Snoring Church, Norfolk, England, c. 1905

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AIC_1949-874_T
Edward Steichen

Kitty and Alfred Stieglitz, 1905

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AIC_1949-671_T
Frank Eugene

La Cigale, 1898

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AIC_1949-672_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of Miss Jones, c. 1899

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AIC_1949-673_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of Goetz, c. 1900

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AIC_1949-674_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of Alfred Stieglitz, c. 1899

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AIC_1949-675_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of Two Young Men, 1905/15

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AIC_1949-676_T
Frank Eugene

Small Boy Dressed as a Faun, 1908

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AIC_1949-677_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of a Woman, c. 1900

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AIC_1949-678_T
Frank Eugene

La Cigale, 1898

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aic_1949-689_t
Alfred Stieglitz

An Icy Night, New York, 1898

n
AIC_1949-822_T
Frederick H. Evans

York Minster: Looking from the Chapter House Interior, c. 1902

n
AIC_1949-823_T
Edward Steichen

Self-Portrait with Brush and Palette, 1902

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AIC_1949-824_T
Edward Steichen

Portrait of George Frederick Watts, 1901, printed 1903

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AIC_1949-825_T
Edward Steichen

Rodin, Le Penseur, 1902

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AIC_1949-826_T
Edward Steichen

Rodin, Paris, 1907

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AIC_1949-827_T
Edward Steichen

Portrait of Alfred Stieglitz, 1915

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AIC_1949-828_T
Edward Steichen

Portrait of Clarence White, 1908

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AIC_1949-829_T
Edward Steichen

Midnight Lake George, 1904

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AIC_1949-831_T
Frank Eugene

The Horse, c. 1900

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AIC_1949-832_T
Frank Eugene

Sir Henry Irving, c. 1900

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AIC_1949-833_T
Frank Eugene

Hortensia, 1898

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AIC_1949-834_T
Frank Eugene

Brigitta, c. 1906

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AIC_1949-835_T
Frank Eugene

Portrait of Alfred Stieglitz, c. 1899

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Alfred Stieglitz

The City of Ambitions, 1910

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AIC_1949-837_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Spring – The Child, 1901

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AIC_1949-838_T
Alfred Stieglitz

The Flatiron, 1903

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AIC_1949-839_T
Alfred Stieglitz

The Street, Fifth Avenue, 1900/01

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AIC_1949-840_T
Alfred Stieglitz

The Railroad Yard, Winter, 1903

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AIC_1949-841_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Going to the Post, Morris Park, 1904

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AIC_1949-843_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Outward Bound, The Mauretania, 1910

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AIC_1949-844_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Two Towers, New York, 1911

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AIC_1949-845_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Old and New New York, 1910

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AIC_1949-848_T
Alfred Stieglitz

The Terminal, 1893

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AIC_1949-850_T
Alfred Stieglitz

The Hand of Man, 1902

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AIC_1949-851_T
Clarence H. White

Alfred Stieglitz, 1907/1908

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AIC_1949-852_T
Clarence H. White

The Fountain, 1905/1906

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AIC_1949-853_T
Clarence H. White

Evening—Mother and Boys, 1905

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aic_1949-854_t
Clarence H. White

Untitled, 1901/05

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AIC_1949-855_T
Clarence H. White

Sunlight, 1899, printed 1901

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AIC_1949-856_T
Clarence H. White

Girl with Muff, 1906

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AIC_1949-861_T
Sarah Choate Sears

Portrait of Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, c. 1900

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AIC_1949-862_T
Gertrude Käsebier

Alfred Stieglitz, 1902, printed 1906

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AIC_1949-863_T
Heinrich Kühn

The Artist’s Umbrella (Der Malschirm), 1908

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AIC_1949-864_T
Heinrich Kühn

Portrait of Two Children, 1910

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AIC_1949-865_T
Heinrich Kühn

Still Life with Fruit, 1910

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AIC_1949-866_T
Heinrich Kühn

On the Hillside (A Study in Values), 1910

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AIC_1949-867_T
Heinrich Kühn

Portrait of Stieglitz, 1900/10

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Heinrich Kühn

Seated Woman Untying Slipper, c. 1910

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AIC_1949-870_T
Heinrich Kühn

Portrait of Stieglitz, 1909

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AIC_1949-871_T
Edward Steichen

Winter Landscape, 1899

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AIC_1949-872_T
Edward Steichen

Young Tycoon (Self-Portrait), c. 1902

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AIC_1949-873_T
Edward Steichen

The Pool, 1899

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AIC_1952-305_T
Edward Steichen

Clara Steichen with Bowl of Oranges, 1907

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AIC_1952-306_T
Edward Steichen

Still Life with Rodin Statue, 1907

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AIC_1952-307_T
Edward Steichen

Girl with Lilacs, c. 1907

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aic_1952-308_t
attributed to Frank Eugene

Emmeline Stieglitz, 1907

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aic_1952-309_t
attributed to Frank Eugene

Kitty Stieglitz in a Field with Blue Flowers, 1907

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aic_1952-311_t
Alfred Stieglitz

Frank Eugene Seated at Table, 1907

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aic_1952-312_t
Alfred Stieglitz

Dr. Fritz Raab: Sunspots, 1907

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AIC_1952-313_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Mrs. Edward Stieglitz, 1907

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aic_1952-314_t
Alfred Stieglitz

Kitty Stieglitz, c. 1907

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AIC_1952-315_T
Alfred Stieglitz

Kitty Stieglitz, c. 1907

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aic_1952-316_t
Alfred Stieglitz

Kitty Stieglitz, c. 1907

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aic_1952-317_t
Alfred Stieglitz

Child with Striped Dress (Younger Raab Child), 1907

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