Women in Photography
Women photographers gained an important place in photography at the very beginning of the art and science of picture taking. Many women gained an international fame for their outstanding creations. Here are only a few of many women photographers who went into history:
Anna Atkins (1799-1871). The English botanist and photographer who lived in the 19th century is often mentioned as the first woman photographer. However, some sources claim that the first woman photographer was Constance Talbot, wife of William Fox Talbot who invented the calotype process. It is impossible to say which of the two women was really the first female photographer because there are no surviving camera-based photos by Anna Atkins and no photos by Talbot’s wife.
Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879). The British photographer became famous for her portrait photography. Although her work was not regarded as exceptional during her life, she had a major influence on modern portrait photography.
Ilse Bing (1899-1998). The German avant-garde photographer who started her career in photography in Paris is particularly noted for the use of different perspectives, while her photographs were included in the first modern photography exhibition in the Louvre Museum in 1936.
Margaret Bourke-White (1904-1971). The American photographer was the first female photographer to work for the Life magazine, the first foreign photographer who was allowed to take pictures of Soviet Union industry and the first female war correspondent. Among her most famous works are also photographs of Gandhi and 1st Governor-General of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Lola Alvarez Bravo (1907-1993). The Mexican photographer was one of the first Mexican professional female photographers and one of the most influential artists in the post-revolution era in Mexico. In 1944, she became the first Mexican female photographer to have one-woman exhibition at the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City.
Helen Levitt (1913-1991). The American photographer established herself as an important figure in street photography and achieved relatively early success. However, it was not until the mid-1960s when she published her first major collection titled A Way of Seeing.
Dorothea Lange (1895-1965). The American photographer and photojournalist is best known for her Depression-era photographs which she took for the Farm Security Administration. Her most famous and influential work is the image of Florence Owens Thompson known as the Migrant Mother. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, she documented the relocation of the Japanese-Americans living along the Pacific coast.
Diane Arbus (1923-1971). One of the most influential American female photographers is best known for black-and-white photographs of marginal and “deviant“ individuals. In 1972, one year after she committed suicide, her photographs were displayed at the Venice Biennale which made her the first American photographer to have photographs displayed at this important contemporary art exhibition.
Annie Leibovitz (born 1949). The American portrait photographer is famous for her iconic photographs of celebrities. Her most outstanding works include the photograph of John Lennon and Yoko Ono for the Rolling Stone cover a few hours before Lennon’s assassination, pregnant Demi Moore for the Vanity Fair cover and Bill Gates for the cover of his book The Road Ahead.