Edward Steichen portraits of Charles Lang Freer
name: label: Photographer
content: Steichen, Edward, 1879-1973
label: Names
content: Freer, Charles Lang, 1856-1919
label: Collection Creator
content: Freer, Charles Lang, 1856-1919
topic: label: Topic
content: Portraits -- Men -- 1890-1920 -- New York
creator: label: Photographer
content: Steichen, Edward, 1879-1973
setName: label: See more items in
content: Charles Lang Freer Papers
label: See more items in
content: Charles Lang Freer Papers / Series 12: Photographs / 12.1: Portraits of Freer
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Edward Steichen (1879-1973) was an American painter and photographer born in Bivange, Luxembourg. He became a naturalized citizen in 1900. Steichen began his career as a fine art painter, but he soon took up the pictorialist approach to photography, going on to establish the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession with Alfred Stieglitz. 

Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919) was an American railroad-car manufacturer from Detroit, Michigan who amassed a large fortune as one of the founders of the Peninsular Car Company, which would go on to become American Car and Foundry. In the latter part of the 19th century, Freer was diagnosed with neurasthenia, the prescribed treatment for which was usually rest and avoidance of stressful activities. Freer began collecting art, starting with American masters and impressionist painters. Early on, Freer met and began collecting the works of James Whistler, who advised him to start collecting Asian art. Freer traveled to China, Japan and Korea, amassing a large private collection. Early in the twentieth century, Freer decided to donate his art to the public; in 1916, construction began on what is now known as the Freer Gallery of Art at the Smithsonian Institution. The building, which was paid for by Freer, cost one million dollars. Completion was delayed by World War I and the gallery was not opened until 1923. Freer died in 1919, leaving the bulk of his art collection to the federal government. This photograph comes originally from the Estate of Clarence P. Freer, nephew of Charles Lang Freer.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 2 Photographic prints
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1916
container: label: Container
content: Box 256
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Photographic prints
label: Type
content: Platinum prints
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Platinum Prints
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: Two photographic platinum prints, signed by Steichen in pencil on the image, numbered in an unidentified hand in pencil on the reverse.