An American Lens: Scenes from Alfred Stieglitz's New York Secession Book

A close reading of photography yields a groundbreaking cultural biography; reveals photography's impresario, Alfred Stieglitz, as he has never been revealed before and looks at his photographs as they have never been looked at before.

Library Journal

This collection of essays addresses a few major themes in the work of American photographer and modern-art promoter Alfred Stieglitz and the group of artists he supported, often called the "Secession" or the "Stieglitz Circle." With the abundant study in recent years of the Stieglitz Circle, most of the newer scholarship has become redundant and increasingly focused on less well known figures associated with Stieglitz. Bochner (English, Univ. of Montreal) makes some fresh observations, finding unexpected relationships, such as the effect of economic conditions on subject matter, in Stieglitz's photography. He is also especially skillful in discussing literary themes that cross over into the art of the circle. Other subjects he addresses include Stieglitz's marriage to painter Georgia O'Keeffe, the layout and selection of his exhibitions, and the mechanical or industrial metaphors used by certain circle artists. Thoughtful, surprisingly original, and thoroughly researched and documented, this book is recommended for academic libraries.-Eric Linderman, East Cleveland P.L., OH Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.