“There’s the paradox: we see the beauty and we see the dark side of things; the cornfields and the full sails, but the ashes, as well,” words stated by the famous photographer Sally Man in her book, “Immediate Family.” I came across Sally Man’s book of photographs in the library. As I flipped through the pages of children naked, bleeding, smoking cigarettes, and posing next to dead animals, I felt a little disturbed but at the same time very intrigued. I decided Sally Mann had a reasoning behind these photos and the only way to find out was to checkout this book, examine it some more, and learn what type of artist Sally Mann evolved.
Sally Mann was born in 1951 and has lived in southwestern Virginia her whole life (Yes, she is still living now). After completing her studies at the Putney School, she attended Hollins University where she earned a Bachelor degree in 1974 and a Masters degree in creative writing a year later. Following her graduation, Mann was hired at Washington and Lee University as a photographer. There she took photos of the law school building, Lewis Hall during its construction. These photos granted her a solo exhibition in Washington D.C. at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1977.
Introduced to photography by her father, Robert Munger, Mann’s first ever debut into it was at the Putney school. Her first ever photo she used was a photo of a nude class fellow; her father greatly approved of her creativity. Following her expedition in Washington D.C., Mann began to photograph children in black and white for a good decade. After that, her specialty became photographs of landscapes signifying death and decay. Sally creates her images with an 8x10 antique view camera from the early 1800s. With this camera, she utilizes the Collodion Process. The Collodion process is an early technique created in 1851. The process involves adding soluble iodide to a solution of collodion and then coating a glass plate with the concoction.
Additionally, as I researched more into Sally Mann, I discovered her book, “Immediate Family”, stirred much controversy after being revealed in 1992 at Houk Friedman Gallery in New York City. The same criticism and disturbing looks I gave when first viewing these photos were the same critics gave. On the other hand, as I dove more into the book and read more about her reasoning behind it one quote stood out to me: “many of these pictures are intimate…but most are of ordinary things every mother has seen. I take pictures when they are bloodied or sick or naked or angry.” I absolutely loved what she had to say and couldn’t agree more, because most of the time raising a child is messy and crazy. This helped me choose my favorite picture in the book: The Two Virginias #1, 1988
This photograph really intrigued me after reading about the African American woman named Virginia Carter who helped raise Mann and her two brothers. Because of Virginia, Mann decided to name her youngest daughter after her. This turned into the series The Two Virginias, photographs of her daughter Virginia and Virginia Carter from 1988-1991. The photograph, The Two Virginias #1, represents the connection between Mann’s caretaker and her youngest daughter. The form of the photograph is taken from an above angle looking down on the little Virginia with the elder Virginia caressing her head, as if she’s trying to protect her from all evils. I think Mann’s decision to choose this angle really focuses on the pure calmness in little Virginia’s staring eyes while being looked after with care by Virginia Carter.
Overall, I am very pleased with the work of Sally Mann. I think it’s different and eye opening, and I would recommend her work of art to anyone interested in seeing something REAL.
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