Underexposed

 

Underexposed

 

Pioneers to Professionals


Anne Brigman (American, 1869–1950), Finis (detail), ca. 1910, photogravure, 5 3/8 × 9 7/16 inches, purchase, 1979.149.

At the turn of the twentieth century, the global emergence of the “New Woman,” a cultural icon who represented an ideal of progress, independence, and professional success for women, coincided with major transformations in the practice of photography that greatly expanded possibilities for women interested in the medium. The invention of industrially produced negatives and lightweight and simpler cameras, as well as the rise of amateur camera clubs offering instruction and community, made photography more accessible. The explosion of the illustrated press in the 1920s spurred a greater market for photographs, especially in the fields of journalism, advertising, fashion, and portraiture. As more women sought to establish careers outside the home, photography thus increasingly became a viable career, and many of these women in turn mentored, befriended, and supported other women photographers.

Women still faced numerous barriers to success: some found their careers cut short by motherhood, others suffered under conditions of hardship and political exile, and still others have been relegated to the sidelines, overlooked or forgotten as the history of photography began to be written during the second half of the twentieth century. In this period, women of color especially suffered from lack of opportunity and delayed recognition by critics, curators, and institutions—a fact that is made visible by the absence of women of color in this section.