Though he began his artistic career as a painter, training at the Académie Julian in Paris, Edward Steichen is also known for his role in revolutionizing photography from a commercial tool into an artistic medium.
Famed artist and gallerist Alfred Stieglitz often featured Steichen’s artwork in the magazine Camera Work, published from 1903 to 1917 as photography gained popularity. Over the years, Steichen served as the chief photographer for Vogue and Vanity Fair as well as the Director of Photography at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Steichen’s dramatic, highly stylized compositions and curatorial eye catapulted photography into greater prestige. An art critic quipped in 1905: "One should not say that he recalls Rembrandt but rather, at this rate, that Rembrandt will, in time, remind us of Steichen."
As Steichen shifted his artistic focus to photography, he destroyed nearly all of his painted compositions. Beethoven represents one of the very few surviving paintings and is considered his most remarkable.
Simultaneously realistic and symbolic, Beethoven reflects Steichen’s unmistakable talent for composition, balance and hue. He completed the painting in 1902, immediately receiving critical praise for its commanding nature. Beethoven was hung prominently beside his photos at Steichen’s first solo show in June 1902 at La Maison des Artistes. The artwork was then proudly exhibited at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904, and later at the "National Arts Club Special Exhibition of Contemporary Art" in 1908.
Find original Edward Steichen photography and other art on 1stDibs.
(Biography provided by M.S. Rau)
Leslie Howard
By Edward Steichen
Located in New York, NY
c. 1930 Unsigned Gelatin silver print 10 x 8 inches (25.4 x 20.3 cm) This artwork is offered by CLAMP, New York.
Silver Gelatin, Photography
Gary Cooper
By Edward Steichen
Located in New York, NY
Unsigned Gelatin silver print 11 x 14 inches (27.9 x 35.6 cm) This artwork is offered by CLAMP, New York.
Silver Gelatin, Photography
Eugene ONeill
By Edward Steichen
Located in Palm Desert, CA
Silver gelatin print Provenance: General Electric Corporate Collection Heather James Fine Art
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Greta Garbo, Hollywood
By Edward Steichen
Located in New York, NY
In his autobiography, A Life in Photography, Steichen gave a vivid recount of this sitting: 'When Garbo came in to pose for the Vanity Fair photograph, I asked her to sit on the c...
Silver Gelatin
Price Upon Request
Greta Garbo, Hollywood
By Edward Steichen
Located in New York, NY
In his autobiography, A Life in Photography, Steichen gave a vivid recount of this sitting: 'When Garbo came in to pose for the Vanity Fair photograph, I asked her to sit on the c...
Silver Gelatin
$229
H 15.75 in W 15.75 in D 1.38 in
Fish and Chips Van Square, Haddenham - English Vintage Countryside Color Photo
By Richard Heeps
Located in Cambridge, GB
A classic British fish & chips van, on a classic English day at Haddenham Steam Rally Country Fair, photograph by Richard Heeps. This artwork is a limited edition of 25 gloss p...
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin
Bea with a whip at The Other Side
By Nan Goldin
Located in New York, NY
Nan Goldin Bea with a whip at The Other Side 1973 Gelatin silver print 14 x 11 inches; 36 x 28 cm Edition of 100 Signed, titled, dated, and numbered in graphite (lower right verso) ...
Silver Gelatin
$4,000
H 24 in W 20 in
Kate Moss During a Night Out, 2007 Silver Gelatin Print, Signed, 24x20
By Greg Brennan
Located in New York, NY
Kate Moss is photographed during a night out at the Donmar Warehouse in Covent Garden in London on the 16th of January in 2007. The British supermodel and businesswoman rose to fame ...
Silver Gelatin
$24,000Sale Price|40% Off
H 13.38 in W 10.25 in
Magnetic Core Assembly, IBM Plant, Poughkeepsie, New York
By Ansel Adams
Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Signed in ink on mount recto. Hasselblad Photograph series stamp and numbered 25 on mount. Very rare example. Printed circa negative date.
Silver Gelatin
Going Home
By Earlie Hudnall Jr.
Located in Denton, TX
Gelatin silver print Paper size: 20 x 16 in., Image size: 18 3/4 x 15 in. Signed, titled, and dated by Earlie Hudnall, Jr. Earlie Hudnall, who is one of the most notable African Ame...
Silver Gelatin
New York
By Don Donaghy
Located in Denton, TX
Signed, titled, and dated. American street photographer Don Donaghy (1936 - 2008, b. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), was a fourth-generation native of Philadelphia. He studied commerci...
Silver Gelatin
$4,000Sale Price|20% Off
H 31.5 in W 44.1 in
Black and White Photography by Cuban Photographer René Peña, Self Portrait
By Rene Peña
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Limited Edition Series. Black and White Photography by Cuban Photographer René Peña, Self Portrait René Peña (Rene de Jesus Pena Gonzalez) is a self-taught photographer born in Hava...
Archival Ink, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin
$2,400
H 20 in W 15 in
"The Glimmer Twins - Mick Jagger" Photograph 20x15 in Ltd Ed by Charlie Auringer
By Charlie Auringer
Located in Culver City, CA
"The Glimmer Twins - Mick Jagger" Photograph 20x15 in Ltd Ed by Charlie Auringer Year: 1978 Edition of 50 Medium: Silver gelatin limited edition photographic print on paper Signed a...
Silver Gelatin
Mr. Shine, 3rd Ward, Houston, Texas
By Earlie Hudnall Jr.
Located in Denton, TX
Gelatin silver print Paper size: 20 x 16 in., Image size: 19 x 12 3/4 in. Signed, titled, and dated in pencil on print verso by Earlie Hudnall, Jr. Earlie Hudnall, who is one of the...
Silver Gelatin
Just Like Me
By Earlie Hudnall Jr.
Located in Denton, TX
Signed and titled. Paper size: 20 x 16 in. Image size: 19 x 13 3/4 in. Earlie Hudnall, who is one of the most notable African American photographers living today, has extensively...
Silver Gelatin
High Desert, Spanish Ranch
By Adam Jahiel
Located in Sante Fe, NM
For years, Jahiel has been photographing the cowboys of the Great Basin–perhaps one of the most inhospitable regions of the already rugged West. These people represent one of the l...
Silver Gelatin
$1,100
H 16.5 in W 20.5 in D 1.25 in
Vacant (Portrait, Floral, Dreamy, Surreal, Motion, Pose)
By David Pugh
Located in Kansas City, MO
David K. Pugh Vacant From "BE, AND KNOW" Series Photographic Print on Fine Paper mounted on Foamcore 2026 Image Size: 15.75 x 19.625 inches (40.01 x 49.85 cm) Framed Size: 16.5 x 20...
Photography
Portrait of Alfred Stieglitz
By Edward Steichen
Located in New York, NY
This is a photogravure that came out of a 1930's Camera Works. They are high quality prints from the artist's negatives and were put together in these historic spiral bound books. ...
Photogravure
Charlie Chaplin, Hat Trick #1
By Edward Steichen
Located in Westwood, NJ
These selenium toned silver gelatin prints are the photographs of Edward Steichen, printed by the renowned photographer George Tice. Tice was the last person to print for Steichen i...
Silver Gelatin
Charlie Chaplin, Hat Trick #3
By Edward Steichen
Located in Westwood, NJ
These selenium toned silver gelatin prints are the photographs of Edward Steichen, printed by the renowned photographer George Tice. Tice was the last person to print for Steichen i...
Silver Gelatin