Women at Work: Photography and Labor

January 6–March 31, 2024

Three people wearing masks of human faces crouch on the floor of what looks like a forest, holding objects that they are preparing to throw.
Susan Meiselas, American, born 1948
Youths practice throwing contact bombs in forest surrounding Monimbo, 1978 
Chromogenic print; printed 2015
Purchase, gift of Mrs. Frederick Ferris Thompson, by exchange, 2022.3.3 
© 2023 Susan Meiselas/Magnum Photos via Visura

Hoene Hoy Photography Gallery

As both a profession and artistic pursuit, photography has historically been dominated by men. Yet despite many inequities, women have made significant contributions to photography as a creative profession. Drawn from the Loeb’s collection, this single-gallery exhibition explores the relationship between photography and labor, spanning the early 1900s to the present, featuring seven American women photographers: Jessie Tarbox Beals, Margaret Bourke-White, Mary Lloyd Estrin, Remy Holwick, Susan Meiselas, Carrie Mae Weems, and Janet Yoshii-Buenger. While some have made their living through fashion photography, photojournalism, editorial and documentary photography, others are artists whose photographs examine unpaid domestic labor.

This exhibition is generously supported by the Hoene Hoy Photography Fund.

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