Dorothy Norman 1936

Alfred Stieglitz created this photograph of Dorothy Norman using the gelatin silver process, a technique that defined much of 20th-century photography. Stieglitz was a master of light and shadow, evident in the way the light rakes across Norman's face and tweed coat. The gelatin silver process allowed for a wide range of tones, from the deepest blacks to the most delicate grays, and the way in which the image is developed, and how it’s revealed on the photographic paper, played a crucial role in the final result. The gelatin silver print was a commercially produced material, a product of industrial manufacturing. Stieglitz elevated photography to the level of fine art, in part by treating the making of the photograph itself as a craft. In doing so, Stieglitz blurred the boundaries between the handmade and the machine-made, challenging the traditional hierarchy between art and craft, making us reconsider the labor and intention involved in the photographic process.