Rare vintage matte-finish 9.5 x 6.25 photo of Stein by writer and artistic photographer Carl Van Vechten, picturing the scribe above a valley floor with mountains rising in the distance, affixed to the original 12.25 x 12.5 mount, which is signed and inscribed in black ink, "For Alexander Smoller, in appreciation, Gertrude Stein.” The mount is also signed by Van Vechten. In fine condition, with some faint foxing, and a thin stain to the bottom edge.
Stein’s most important champion, Van Vechten met the author in 1913 and soon became one of her most devoted and dearest friends. They corresponded for the remainder of Stein's life and, at her death, she appointed Van Vechten as her literary executor; he helped to bring into print her unpublished writings and played a major role in having her work Tender Buttons released in the United States. Photos signed by Stein remain appreciably rare, with this example all the more desirable given its appealing backdrop and intimate literary connection.
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