Where are all the great women fashion photographers? Ahead of women’s history month in March, one exhibition is looking at two key figures of the female gaze in fashion. Opening March 5, the Staley Wise Gallery in New York features two trailblazing women who broke ground in fashion photography; 2 Women of Style is the name of this two-woman exhibit showcasing the works of Louise Dahl-Wolfe; who shot for Harper’s Bazaar in the 1930s, and Stephanie Pfriender Stylander; a New York photographer who shot Kate Moss in 1991, when she was just 17. Granted, there are countless women fashion photographers who changed the game, from Regina Lelang to Deborah Turbeville and more recently, Ellen von Unwerth. Here, Pfriender Stylander shares her personal history as a photographer, her triumphs, challenges and what she respects most about actors.
I never really thought about being a woman photographer, I always looked at myself as a photographer. My background was such that my mother during the 1940s and 1950s had a great career, got married in her 40s, and with her as my role model as well as her girlfriends that were always around I saw strong women, women that did what they wanted to do, choosing careers and travel. Funny stories that I do remember are when my team and I would arrive at an airport to meet the driver and the welcome sign would have my male assistants name as the photographer. When I look back especially now, there must have been prejudices and losses of jobs, but the flip side could be that subjects and situations may have seen a woman photographer as less threatening.
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