Edward J. Steichen [Luxembourgeois-born American Photographer, 1879-1973]

(b Luxembourg, 27 March 1879; d West Redding, CT, 25 March 1973). American photographer, painter, designer and curator of

Luxembourgeois birth. Steichen emigrated to the USA in 1881 and grew up in Hancock, MI, and Milwaukee, WI. His formal schooling ended when he was 15, but he developed an interest in art and photography. He used his self-taught photographic skills in design projects undertaken as an apprentice at a Milwaukee lithography firm. The Pool-evening (1899; New York, MOMA, see 1978 exh. cat., no. 4) reflects his early awareness of the Impressionists, especially Claude Monet, and American Symbolist photographers such as Clarence H. White. While still in Milwaukee, his work came to the attention of White, who provided an introduction to Alfred Stieglitz; Stieglitz was impressed by Steichen’s work and bought three of his photographs.

Self Portrait

'THE POND -- MOONLIGHT' 2,928,000 USD

multiple gum bichromate print over platinum, signed and dated by the photographer in crayon on the image, mounted, matted, framed, 1904

(41 by 50.8 cm.)

'BALZAC--THE OPEN SKY'

632,000 USD

direct carbon photograph, signed and dated by the photographer in crayon on the image, mounted to thick board, signed and dated by the photographer in crayon, and with a printed numerical label on the reverse, matted, 1908

(52.7 by 39.3 cm.)

'THE POOL -- EVENING: A SYMPHONY TO A RACE AND TO A SOUL'

296,000 USD

platinum print, with hand-applied ink border, mounted to gray paper, mounted again to a large sheet of heavy buff paper, with the photographer's elongated, stylized monogram and titled by him in pencil on the mount, 1899; accompanied by a backboard from an earlier frame, with a Montreal Museum of Fine Arts exhibition label and a Gilman Paper Company label on the reverse

(20.2 by 15.5 cm.)

'GLORIA SWANSON, N. Y.'

273,600 USD

warm-toned, titled, dated, and annotated in unidentified hands in pencil on the reverse, matted, 1924, (24.4 by 19.3 cm.)

170,750 USD

SELF PORTRAIT, MILWAUKEE warm-toned platinum print with black border, numbered in an unidentified hand in pencil on the reverse, matted, 1898

7 1/2 by 3 5/8 in. 19.1 by 9.2 cm.

154,250 USD

'HEAVY ROSES, VOULANGIS, FRANCE' warm-toned, inscribed 'tone' and numbered by the photographer in pencil and annotated 'Top' by him in red pencil, and various notations in unidentified hands

in pencil and blue crayon on the reverse, 1914 7 3/4 by 9 1/2 in. 19.7 by 24.1 cm.

115,750 USD

'THE BLACK CANYON' oversized gum print, green-toned, signed and dated by the photographer in yellow crayon on the image, mounted to brown board, inscribed 'Steichen' in an unidentified hand in pencil on the reverse, 1906 19 by 15 1/8 in. 48.3 by 38.4 cm.

'THREE PEARS AND AN APPLE'

114,000 USD

THE SPIRAL SHELL

96,000 USD

FREDERICK H. EVANS

84,000 USD

'TRIUMPH OF THE EGG'

84,000 USD

'GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE'

78,000 USD

`DOLOR'

74,090 USD

DIXIE RAY FOR WOODBURY SOAP

66,000 USD

numbered in an unidentified hand in the negative, annotated 'Advert.' by the photographer and titled, dated, and numbered, possibly by Rolf Petersen, in pencil, and with the photographer's 'Photograph by Edward Steichen' stamp on the reverse, matted, framed, 1935

(24.1 by 19.3 cm.)

58,250 USD

'NARCISSUS' platinum print, numbered in an unidentified hand in pencil on the reverse, matted, 1901

6 by 8 in. 15.2 by 20.3 cm. Provenance

Gift of the photographer, 1970

ADVERTISEMENT FOR GORHAM STERLING

38,400 USD

GERTRUDE LAWRENCE'

35,850 USD

28,350 USD

ISADORA DUNCAN, THE PARTHENON oversized, warm-toned print, matted, a Museum of Modern Art label inside the mat, 1921

20 by 13 1/2 in. 50.8 by 34.3 cm. Provenance

Gift of the photographer, 1970

'GRETA GARBO', 19,150 USD oversized print, toned, mounted, notations in unidentified hands in pencil and ink on the reverse, matted, a Museum of Modern Art label on the reverse, 1928, probably printed in 1960 16 1/2 by 13 1/4 in. 41.9 by 33.7 cm.

'ELEONORA DUSE'

18,000 USD

FANNY BRICE

17,925 USD

'FRONT PAGE'

12,000 USD

12,000 USD

GEORGE GERSHWIN dated 'Jan-19-1927' and numbered '#9' in the negative, annotated in unidentified hands in pencil on the reverse, 1927, printed no later than February 1932

9 3/8 by 7 5/8in. 23.8 by 19.4cm.

GARY COOPER'

5,400 USD

BOXER PRIMO CARNERA

5,676 USD

SELECTED PORTRAITS OF THE NAST CHILDREN

7,170 USD

Modeaufnahme, 1935, Vintage print, Hamburg, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg,

In Exaltation of Flowers: Petunia, Caladium, Budleya, 1910-13, tempera and gold leaf on canvas, Museum of Moden Art,

New York.

Nude with Lilacs (Twenty-Five Photographs) negative 1936, printed 1981–82

Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973 Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Image/Sheet: 24.0 x 19.1 cm (9 7/16 x 7 1/2 in.) Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.) Photograph, gelatin silver print

Miss Sousa, 1933 (The Blue Sky)

negative 1933, printed 1984–86

Photograph, gelatin silver print Image/Sheet: 34.0 x 26.3 cm (13 3/8 x 10 3/8 in.) Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.)

Museum of Fine Arts, Bóston

Doris Lane, in Fashion Study

1930s

Photograph, gelatin silver print Image/sheet: 24.3 x 19.4 cm (9 9/16 x 7 5/8 in.)

Museum of Fine Arts, Bóston

Brancusi, Voulangis, France, 1922 (The Blue Sky)

negative 1922, printed 1984–86

Photograph, gelatin silver print Image/Sheet: 33.1 x 26.9 cm (13 1/16 x 10 9/16 in.)

Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.) Museum of Fine Arts, Bóston

Rudolf Valentino, 1926 (In the Studio) negative 1926, printed 1984–85

Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973 Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Image/Sheet: 33.0 x 26.7 cm (13 x 10 1/2 in.) Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.) Photograph, gelatin silver print

Ann Harding, Beverly Hills, California, 1931 (Juxtapositions)

negative 1931, printed 1984–86 Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973

Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Gloria Swanson, 1927 (In the Studio)

negative 1927, printed 1984–85

Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973 Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Eugene O'Neill, New York, 1932 (In the Studio)

negative 1932, printed 1984–85 Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973

Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Greta Garbo, Hollywood, 1928 (In the Studio)

negative 1928, printed 1984–85

Photograph, gelatin silver print Image/Sheet: 33.6 x 26.5 cm (13 1/4 x 10 7/16 in.)

Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.) Museum of Fine Arts, Bóston

Joan Crawford, 1932 (In the Studio) negative 1932, printed 1984–85

Artist: Edward Steichen, American (born in Luxembourg), 1879–1973 Printer: George Tice, American, born in 1938

Image/Sheet: 33.9 x 24.5 cm (13 3/8 x 9 5/8 in.) Mount: 50.7 x 40.5 cm (19 15/16 x 15 15/16 in.) Photograph, gelatin silver print