December 2009
9 posts
Annie Leibovitz
When you think of women in photography, the name Annie Leibovitz will undoubtedly come up. Unfortunately, now when you think of massive loans and archives of photos as collateral, her name will also come up. In order to secure a loan to cover debts of $24 million, Leibovitz has basically pawned the copyrights to her entire catalogue of photographs- and what a catalogue it is.
Annie...
Diane Arbus - Magazine Work
Diane Arbus, Mrs. T. Charlton Henry, fashion luminary, in her Chestnut Hill home in Philadelphia, Harper’s Bazaar, July 1965
Famous for her harsh “documentary eye” and her unique ability to make the normal seem callous, Diane Arbus began her body of work at a very young age. Arbus married Allan Arbus at just 18; they began producing photos together, at first for “the family business”...
Cindy Sherman - Untitled Film Stills
Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still #3, 1977
When Cindy Sherman was asked about the role of feminism in her work for an interview with Tate Magazine, she responded, “The work is what it is and hopefully it’s seen as feminist work, or feminist-advised work, but I’m not going to go around espousing theoretical bullshit about feminist stuff.” However bluntly evidenced by her remarks, Cindy...
Nan Goldin
Looking at Nan Goldin’s work, it is hard not to get a sense of who the artist is herself. Besides portraying primarily her friends and family in her striking photographs, the raw atmosphere of the photographs resonates through to the audience - these images connect us to Goldin on a purely primitive level.
Nan Goldin, Skinhead Having Sex
Many of Goldin’s photographs have...
Mary Ellen Mark - Celebrities
Over the past four decades, Mary Ellen Mark has photographed hundreds of celebrities, many on the sets of movies. Her black and white portraits of film actors are of particular interest because they include a remarkably diverse variety of settings while consistently maintaining distinct focus on the subject—the actor. This blog post examines five of these portraits. Mark creates interest in...
Mary Ellen Mark - Streetwise
“There’s this abandoned hotel…And we’d carry water up in these gallon jugs, ‘cause it didn’t have no water or electricity. It was pretty easy, actually.” - Rat, 1983
Streetwise, a collection of photographs shot between the spring and Halloween of 1983 which documented the complex runaway community in Seattle. Unlike many photographers who choose to hide behind...
Dana Hoey
Dana Hoey primarily photographs women, using her work to reveal the diverse ways in which females relate to the world around them. This world consists of men, other women, and oftentimes nature. In her work exists a tension between the assembled and the authentic. Though some of her photographs may appear to portray more candid moments, all of her scenes are completely constructed. Three of the...
Shirin Neshat
Shirin Neshat, Still from Women Without Men, c. 2005-2009
Shirin Neshat, born on March 26, 1957 in Qazvin, Iran, is a contemporary visual artist most known for her work in both film and photography. While she now resides in New York, her Iranian roots play a highly influential role in her work. Her photographs often depict the social, cultural, and religious aspects of Muslim societies. She...
Dorothea Lange
When Dorothea Lange graduated high school she decided that she wanted to be a photographer even though she had never photographed before. According to AMERICANSUBURB X, she only took one college photography course and did not complete most of the assignments. Lange became an apprentice for a photography studio where she learned photographic techniques before setting out on her own. She moved...