Margaret Bourke-White

I have never heard of this amazing photographer before studying for this project.  Upon searching for a photographer that I was wanted to explore, I knew that I wanted my subject to be a woman photographer.  I am enrolled in a Woman's Studies class and am interested and fascinated with the path woman have taken through history.  I also wanted to study a photographer who was socially conscious and took photos from a different time period.  I wanted my photographer to capture people and their life circumstances.  Margaret Bourke-White meets all of these criteria.

Margaret was a college graduate who started studying photography at a young age as a hobby.  After college she became more serious about her artwork.  Margaret was the first in many endeavors.   Margaret was the first photographer from the West who was allowed into the Soviet Industry.  As a war photographer, she was also allowed into the death camps in Buchenwald. 

Her journey into war photography was as a pioneer.   She was the first female photographer who was allowed to enter the combat zones during World War II.  

During the Depression, Margaret Bourke-White captured American history through her eyes.  The photographs show hunger and desperation and tell a story about people during one of the toughest times in our country's history.

Margaret Bourke-White did not limit her photography passion to people.  The composition shown in her photos is truly an art.  The patterns and layouts are amazing.  

I am excited to learn more about this fascinating woman who did not let her gender get in her way of pursuing her passion for photography.