"Camera Work: A Centennial Celebration"

by John Vettese

art

Even though its catalogue only totals 50 issues over 14 years, there's no denying the influence Alfred Stieglitz's Camera Work had on the art world. An exhibit running at Doylestown's Michener Museum through Jan. 4 commemorates the centennial anniversary of the revered publication, which from 1903 to 1917 channeled the work of Edward Steichen, Gertrude Käsebier and Stieglitz himself to help Americans view photography as a legitimate expressive medium. Beyond the shutter and glass-plate negatives, however, the magazine served as a booster to the stateside art world in general. "People who have a casual acquaintance with Camera Work might not be aware, but Stieglitz really introduced modern art to America," said Stephen Perloff, editor of the Langhorne publication Photo Review and curator of the Michener exhibit. "[It] was the first American publication of Gertrude Stein's writing, along with many other icons of early modernism like Picasso and Matisse." Perloff said the exhibit boasts at least one image from each issue of the journal, with a grand total of about 60 photogravure prints -- Stieglitz's method of using negatives to produce etched plates for ink pressing -- along with two complete issues of Camera Work under glass. In addition, a three-part lecture series in October and a symposium in November is planned to give a fairly comprehensive view of the impact of the journal and the evolution of the photography field in the 100 years since.

“Camera Work: A Centennial Celebration,” Sept. 13-Jan. 4, James A. Michener Art Museum, 138 S. Pine St., Doylestown, 215-340-9800