In Real Life: Six Women Photographers

by Leslie Sills

Book Overview

The lives and works of Imogene Cunningham, Dorothea Lange, Lola Alvarez Bravo, Carrie Mae Weems, Elsa Dorfman and Cindy Sherman. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0823414981
• ISBN13: 9780823414987
• Release Date: October 2000
• Publisher: Holiday House
• Length: 80 Pages
• Weight: 1.11 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.3" x 10.3"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Six women who shaped photography

In Real Life: Six Women Photographers (NY: Holiday House, 2002) by Leslie Sills celebrates the accomplishments of six well-regarded shutterbugs: Imogen Cunningham, Dorothea Lange, Lola Alvarex Bravo, Carrie Mae Weems, Elsa Dorman, and Cindy Sherman. The carefully selected subjects represent many generations, cultures, and artistic motives. With its strong feminist tone, the biographies show the struggles of women who must often balance motherhood and career, and choose between financial security and artistic freedom. Reinforcing this notion of sisterhood, Sills often uses the pronoun "she" to refer to all artists. A sculptor and author of two other biographies on female artists, Sills lends her creative expertise to the passages. Her voice is one of lyricism, a refreshing approach for a non-fiction work. A few mistakes do surface in the text. The word "mission" is spelled incorrectly and there are a few inconsistencies with the verb tense. The title offers actual examples of their work too-from black and white still shots of the early 1900s to the more abstract camera work of modern-day photographers. These images bolster the ideas set forth in the text. Unfortunately, some major works are included in discussion, but the image is omitted. Some basics about cameras and words of advice for novices are included. Additionally, an extensive bibliography suggests further reading. The index is comprehensive, spanning three pages. Indeed, younger children will enjoy the vivid photography. Still, this book is best suited for a fifth-grade or sixth-grade student, as they are old enough to understand some of the more abstract concepts, such as photography as a form of self-expression. In Real Life: Six Women Photographers makes a great addition to any school or public library. The slender volume speaks to amateur photographers, those interested in the history of art, and young female readers who embrace "girl power"-making it one of those more-bang-for-your-buck books.

In Real Life

I have thoroughly enjoyed Leslie Sill's previous books on artists, and now her latest book on photographers. They are wonderful outlines of artist's lives, their work, and how their past experiences have influenced the direction of their art. As an art teacher, I try to incorporate different ways of introducing my students to a wide range of work. Because these stories are so well-written and inspiring, I have designed large portions of my curriculum around Sill's past books and look forward to using this book as well. The stories are thorough, yet written in a way that the average person, who may not necessarily feel that they have a valid knowledge on art, could walk away from it with a new understanding and interest. And just the opposite, for someone who is innvolved in art, this book is beautifully put together and would be a valued part of any art book collection.

A Great Book About Women Photographers

When I first read this book, I was moved by these women's lives. I was amazed at how they persevered at their art through all the hardships of life. I find Leslie Sills an amazing writer. This is not the first book I have read by her. I also have the one about painters, and by reading both books I felt that I learned alot. Leslie Sills is an amazing artist herself, and her own life should be the subject of a book someday. I would recommend this book to anybody, but particularly to people interested in photography or art.

Simple Introduction to Six Outstanding Women Photographers

Knowing that women artists in all fields tend to suffer from a lack of public exposure, I took a look at this volume hoping to find some good work that I had not seen before. My hopes were rewarded when all six photographers proved to be talented, interesting, and stylistically different from each other . . . and four of them were new to me. With the two artists I knew before, the biographical essays added to my knowledge, making every aspect of the book a pleasant surprise. The book is organized around the concept that "cameras do copy which is front of the lens . . . [but these images are also] creations of the artist's intention and unconscious mind." The essays are especially rewarding for their balance in explaining the artists' family lives, their relationships with the men in their lives, how they started into photography, their technique, and descriptions of their aesthetic values. Leslie Sills is pleasantly succinct: Imogen Cunningham: "liked to examine life closely" and focused on "shapes, textures, patterns" in nature. She also captured the "essence" of people.Dorothea Lange: The camera was an "activist tool" which "revealed the sufering of thousands and motivated others to help" during the Depression.Lola Alvarez Bravo: Captured the real "Mexico after the Mexican Revolution" occurred there.Carrie Mae Weems: Showed the "complexities of being human" especially in "squelching stereotypes" and "honoring African-American culture."Elsa Dorfman: "Celebrates humanity" with her oversized camera that captures people to look more naturally like themselves than photographs normally do.Cindy Sherman: Sees the camera as an "instrument to copy her constructed scenes" which are "puzzles that challenge her audience."It has not been easy to be a woman photographer and these women succeeded because they persevered, as well as because they were so talented. Their stories are as inspiring as any I have read, and also tell an interesting tale of how your work can help you express your inner self. Here are my favorite images from the book:Imogen Cunningham:Magnolia Blossom, 1925My Father at 90, 1936Morris Graves, Painter, 1950Dorothea Lange:Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California, 1936 (Series of 3) There is a wonderful description of how this series was shot on a day when Ms. Lange was exhausted and had driven past the migrant labor camp in the rain before deciding intuitively to turn back and try her luck. Lola Alvarez Bravo:Por culpas ajenas, c. 1945Elsueno de los pobres 2, 1943The Two Fridas, c. 1944Carrie Mae Weems:Mom at Work, 1978-1984Untitled (Letter Holder), 1988-89Her work also included long interviews with her family.Elsa Dorfman:Robbie and the Dinosaur Femur, 1970Terri Terralouge and Aileen Graham, 1989Cindy Sherman:Untitled #224, 1990Given that these styles are so different and so vivid, I encourage you to use this book to inspire you to create some art. It doesn't have to be photography. Whether you like to sketch, sculpt, paint, o