Along with Edward Weston and Alfred Stieglitz, Paul Strand was one of the defining masters of early American modernist photography. Strand was introduced to photography by the renowned social documentarian Lewis Hine, who instilled in him an understanding of the photograph as a powerful tool that should be used for the betterment of humanity. Finding his own vision, in the early 20th century Strand began taking the photographs for which he is best known: scenes of urban hustle and bustle, formal abstractions, and street portraits.
