Pathos of the Jackass

Gertrude Käsebier was an American photographer and pictorialist pioneer who elevated photography to fine art status in the early twentieth century. Working primarily in platinum and gum bichromate processes, she created intimate portraits and allegorical compositions that rejected the documentary aesthetic of her contemporaries. Her soft-focus, carefully composed images of mothers, children, and Native American subjects established her as a leading figure in the Photo-Secession movement.

Fort Des Moines, IA, United States