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Background information
"Whether photographing the socially disadvantaged, those on the fringes of society or celebrities, Mary Ellen MARK told the stories of her protagonists without prejudice. For both her private and commissioned work, she accompanied her subjects often for many years—sometimes even for decades. In the light of the emerging women’s movement in the USA in the 1960s and ’70s, and as a freelance photographer at a time when print media was suffering its first major crisis, she fought her way to the forefront of female voices in photojournalism with her own visual language.
Content
Encounters provides a cross-section of the photographer’s life’s work. The photographic volume 'Encounters' focuses on five iconic series from the 1970s and 1980s whose subsequent publications in book form contributed significantly to her reputation: 'Ward 81' in which she photographed women in an Oregon psychiatric hospital; a reportage on prostitutes on Falkland Road in Mumbai; a tribute to Mother Teresa’s charitable work; 'Indian Circus' documenting traveling circus families; and the long-term project 'Streetwis'e, in which she followed the life of Erin Blackwell (Tiny) for more than 30 years, first as a teenage runaway, later as a mother in precarious living conditions. For the first time, this book contextualizes these works within her œuvre and presents them alongside original magazine spreads and archival material including contact sheets, letters and notebooks, to reveal the sweep of her accomplishment and singularly compassionate eye." (© Steidl Verlag, 2023)