id:			162134
accession number:	2001.7
share license status:	Copyrighted
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/2001.7
updated:		2024-03-26 02:00:46.046000

Paul Robeson as "The Emperor Jones", 1933. Edward Steichen (American, 1879–1973). Gelatin silver print; image: 24.1 x 19.2 cm (9 1/2 x 7 9/16 in.); matted: 50.8 x 40.6 cm (20 x 16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Alma Kroeger Fund 2001.7 © The Estate of Edward Steichen / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

title:				Paul Robeson as "The Emperor Jones"
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			1933
creation date earliest:		1933
creation date latest:		1933
current location:		
creditline:			Alma Kroeger Fund
copyright:			© The Estate of Edward Steichen / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

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culture:	America, 20th century
technique:	gelatin silver print
department:	Photography
collection:	PH - American 1900-1950
type:		Photograph
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

* Edward Steichen (American, 1879–1973)  - artist
Edward Steichen American, b. Luxembourg, 1879-1973

His long and illustrious career places Edward Steichen among the major figures of 20th-century photography. Born Eduard Jean Steichen in Luxembourg, Steichen moved with his family to the United States in 1881, was naturalized a citizen in 1900, and changed the spelling of his first name in 1918. Educated in Wisconsin, he showed an early interest in art. He studied at the Milwaukee Art Students League and was an apprentice lithographer; later he studied painting at the Académie Julian in Paris.
	Steichen took his first photograph in 1896. Early recognition came in the Second Philadelphia Salon of 1899, and he was encouraged by Clarence H. White. Shortly thereafter, while on his way to Europe, he met Alfred Stieglitz, who bought three of his prints. In 1900 he participated in the New School of American Photography exhibition in London. Steichen's first one-person show, which included paintings as well as photographs, was held in Paris in 1902. He helped to found the Photo-Secession and played an important role in the life and design of its galleries, programs, and publications, including the decision to exhibit international works in a variety of media.
	Steichen was the commander of aerial photography for the American Expeditionary Forces during the First World War. After the war, he became chief photographer for Vogue and Vanity Fair, and a well-known portraitist. During World War II he was in charge of all navy combat photography and was also responsible for the exhibitions Road to Victory (1942) and Power in the Pacific (1945) at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. These, along with his 1955 show, The Family of Man, established a new, more popular form of photographic exhibition. In 1947 he was made director of the museum's department of photography, a position he held until 1962.
	In 1961 the Museum of Modern Art mounted a retrospective of Steichen's work. The following year he received the Medal of Freedom from President John F. Kennedy. His photographs have been represented in many exhibitions and publications, including the book Steichen the Photographer, with a text by his brother-in-law, Carl Sandburg. T.W.F.
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measurements: Image: 24.1 x 19.2 cm (9 1/2 x 7 9/16 in.); Matted: 50.8 x 40.6 cm (20 x 16 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

	inscription:	written on verso: "1357-20/ 1619; photographer's stamps: "PHOTOGRAPH BY STEICHEN / 139 East 69th Street / COPYRIGHT / Conde Nast Publications, Inc."
	translation:	
	remark:		

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art
	opening date:   2007-06-24T00:00:00
	<i>Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 24-September 16, 2007).

	title:		A New York Minute: Street Photography, 1920-1950
	opening date:   2021-07-11T04:00:00
	<i>A New York Minute: Street Photography, 1920-1950</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 11-November 7, 2021).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

* {'description': 'The Cleveland Museum of Art (6/24/07 - 9/16/07); "Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art", no exhibition catalogue.', 'opening_date': '2007-06-24T00:00:00'}

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PROVENANCE

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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	Cleveland Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisitions Press Release,” April 4, 2001, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives.
	page number: 	
	url:		https://archive.org/details/cmapr4381

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IMAGES