Edward Steichen was a prominent photographer and influential curator who played a key role in the development of photography in the twentieth century. He came to the United States in 1881 and began practicing photography in 1896, exhibiting his work at the Philadelphia Salon in 1899. He was a naturalized citizen in 1900 and was introduced to Alfred Stieglitz by Clarence White. Steichen also practiced painting in Paris intermittently between 1900 and 1922, and helped Stieglitz establish the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession in New York. During World War I, he directed aerial photography for the Army Expeditionary Forces and later adopted a modernist style. He served as chief photographer for Condé Nast from 1923 to 1938 and was director of photography at the Museum of Modern Art from 1947 to 1962. He received numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963. Major exhibitions of his work have been held at various institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art and the George Eastman House.