The Terminal

photograph by Stieglitz

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July 16, 2026

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"The Terminal" is a photograph created by Alfred Stieglitz in 1892. It is considered an early example of his work that responded to technical challenges and his environment, rather than purely adhering to the prevailing Pictorialist style.1

Stieglitz, a pivotal figure in American photography and the Modernist art movement, founded the Photo-Secession group in 1902. This group aimed to elevate photography as a fine art. Through his influential journal Camera Work and his gallery, "291," Stieglitz championed photographers and also exhibited avant-garde painters and sculptors. While early Pictorialist works often softened photographic reality, Stieglitz, particularly in his later career, moved towards a "straight" photographic style, valuing clarity and direct observation[12

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Alfred Stieglitz
The Photo-Secession
…as Winter, Fifth Avenue or The Terminal (both 1892)—are almost always answers to difficult technical problems, which Stieglitz loved, and which often trumped his impulses to make photographs that were artistically correct.
Read More
…as Winter, Fifth Avenue or The Terminal (both 1892)—are almost always answers to difficult technical problems, which Stieglitz loved, and which often trumped his impulses to make photographs that were artistically correct.
Read More