A Wet Day on the Boulevard, Paris 1894

"A Wet Day on the Boulevard, Paris" (1894) by Alfred Stieglitz is a striking photographic study of a Parisian street scene. The image depicts a bustling boulevard transformed by a recent downpour, captured in the sharp detail and tonal range characteristic of Stieglitz's work. The wet pavement reflects the city's architecture and the fleeting figures of pedestrians navigating the rain, a testament to Stieglitz's interest in everyday urban life and the power of photography to capture the fleeting moments of existence. This iconic photograph, now housed at the Art Institute of Chicago, is a prime example of Pictorialism, a movement that sought to elevate photography as a fine art through techniques like soft focus and evocative subject matter.