Songs of the Sky or Equivalent 1923 - 1929

Here we see Alfred Stieglitz’s gelatin silver print, "Songs of the Sky or Equivalent." Stieglitz, working in the early 20th century, sought to elevate photography to the status of fine art through his Photo-Secession movement. This image is part of a series of cloud photographs Stieglitz called "Equivalents." In these works, Stieglitz moved away from traditional subject matter to capture emotions and ideas through abstract forms. He was interested in the way a photograph could represent an inner state. As Stieglitz said, “My cloud photographs are equivalents of my feelings, of my thinking.” Looking at this photograph, one might consider the cultural moment in which Stieglitz was working. As a white man in a position of power, Stieglitz’s ability to focus on abstraction was a privilege. But here, we can also read the clouds as a metaphor for the shifting, ephemeral nature of identity, a visual representation of the intangible yet deeply felt aspects of human experience. This work encourages us to look beyond the surface.