Songs of the Sky XX3 or Equivalent XX3 c. 1923 - 1929

Editor: This is one of Alfred Stieglitz's gelatin silver prints, titled "Songs of the Sky XX3 or Equivalent XX3," created sometime between 1923 and 1929. The monochrome palette evokes a feeling of ethereal vastness, almost otherworldly. What do you see in this piece, that perhaps I'm missing? Curator: Oh, darling, it's everything and nothing, isn't it? It's Stieglitz wrestling with the ineffable. These cloud studies, his "Equivalents," are so much more than just landscapes, aren’t they? They are emotional landscapes. He wanted to find a visual language, you see, to express his inner states, a direct translation of feeling into form. What emotions do they stir in you, beyond just the 'ethereal vastness'? Editor: I suppose... a sort of sublime unease? The dark clouds are quite heavy. Do you think he was trying to express something specific through that weight? Curator: Specific? Maybe. Maybe not. The beauty, the terror, is in the ambiguity, no? Stieglitz aimed to trigger emotions, like music does. Close your eyes for a second. Does the photograph feel like a major or minor chord? A lament or a celebration? Editor: Definitely minor! It's interesting how something so abstract can feel so personal, even melancholic. I guess that's the point of "Equivalents", isn't it? A reflection of his own soul in the sky... Curator: Precisely! And that's the magic, isn’t it? We look up and see Stieglitz, we see ourselves. Editor: Thank you, that makes it all click for me! It really broadens how I will approach abstraction from now on. Curator: The pleasure was all mine. Now, let’s find some light!