Dykes in context

The author placed an advertisement in Afterimage, 1984, seeking
lesbian images. She also wrote to a number of lesbian
photographers and publications that used photographs, explaining
her interest in finding lesbian imagery for study. Ten people
replied with letters and slides, which were augmented with 7
sets of slides acquired through the nationwide informal lesbian
network. She also researched the Lesbian Herstory Archives in
NY, and discussed a number of photographers' work by phone. The
article describes her thoughts on what it means to represent
lesbian lives. In general, the article explores "the structuring
absences and negativities that have played so large a role in
determining lesbian image-making up till recently - absences of
money for production and distribution, absences of wide
audiences and sites for exhibition; negations of personal
identity, security, and pride fostered by mainstream culture -
and the resolution with which these photographers have resisted
institutionalised homophobia and gynophobia." The photographers
described are: Nancy Rosenblum, Joan E. Biren, Donita Simpson,
Lynette Molnar, Corinne Tee, Kaucyla Brooke and Susan Manley.
(The article is adapted from a longer version of "Dikes in
Context", in: "Alternative Histories of Photography", edited by
Richard Bolton, Cambridge MIT-Press, forthcoming).


Citaten:
Bolton, R. (ed.): Alternative Histories of Photography (c.1988)