Trans women as religious icons, Sally Mann’s photos of her children, the mythology behind Nan Goldin’s latest work, and how Keyezua and Kia LaBeija channel trauma through their cameras
Almost three decades ago, mother and photographer Sally Mann’s images caused a controversy so hot that she had the police called on her. Her crime? Taking photos of her children, Emmett, 12, Jessie, 10, and Virginia, 7. Published as a book titled Immediate Family, Mann’s images depicted everyday family life, but also included her children as nude, smoking, and sometimes bleeding. With some of the images on show at Washington DC’s National Gallery of Art, and an accompanying book from Abrams & Chronicle, Dazed took a closer look at what caused the fuss – and whether it was warranted.
Rineke Dijkstra is a master of the portrait and has been capturing bittersweet and fleeting moments of young people for the past three decades. With her documentation of youth currently on show in the Netherlands until the end of July, Dazed looked back on her career, her iconic works, and the reasons why she has remained so relevant.
“Jalta, Ukraine, July 30”, 1993Courtesy of Rineke Dijkstra, and Marian Goodman Gallery, New York, Paris and London
Photographers Juan Jose Barboza-Gubo and Andrew Mroczek shared their empowering series Virgenes de la Puerta, which captured Peruvian trans women as religious icons. The South American country is sectarian, with much of the population identifying as Catholic. With trans women being excluded from these conversations and traditions for far too long, Barboza-Gubo and Mroczek offered them a sacred space for holy expression.
Denise,Yefri,Angie. Yefri has played an important role in promoting anti-violence legislation for transgender people, after having been the victim of a brutal attack that was witnessed by two police officers who refused to come to her aidCourtesy of Juan Jose Barboza-Guba and Andrew Mrozcrek
Nan Goldin’s The Ballad of Sexual Dependence and other series – including unreleased images – are being given new life in the photographer’s latest work, Veils, a series of collages that pair her images with mythological references. In an exhibition currently running in Geneva until 10 May, Goldin looks at the ways in which we reveal parts of ourselves, by using the veil as a symbol that is both metaphorical and real. In honour of the new work, Dazed unravelled the deeper mythological references behind the collages.
Nan GOLDIN, Marble Quartet, 2013, C-Print mountedCourtesy of Nan Goldin and Art Bärtschi & Cie
Tired of seeing fetishised and marginalised perspectives and representations of PoC in art – especially that of queer bodies – D’Angelo Lovell Williams trained the camera on himself and took control of his own narrative. His images balance vulnerability with power by sharing the true stories behind his own experiences in the hopes of empowering those like him.
Photographer Rafael Martinez’s defiant and touching series humanises the Mexican youth overshadowed by media headlines and America’s fear-mongering president. Speaking with Dazed last month, he described recently moving from his native Tijuana to New York but adding that he refuses to forget his friends. By taking their portraits and telling their stories, he ensures that the world doesn’t overlook them either.
Last month, street photography legend and Magnum member Joel Meyerowitz mused on memories of shooting spontaneity on the streets for five decades. He also gave some vital advice to the next generation of luminaries who wish to follow in his globe-trotting footsteps.
“New York City” (1963)Courtesy and copyright of Joel Meyerowitz
Angolan artist Keyezua’s dad passed away when she was young after being diagnosed with diabetes. As a result of the illness, both of his legs were amputated. Frustrated by the amount of imagery of disabilities that only show people suffering and weak, Keyezua worked with six disabled Angolan men to create a series of masks in which she channelled her trauma – captured in a striking series of images.
Keyezua, “Fortia” (2017). Giclée print on Hanhemühle paper 52 1/2h x 78 3/4wCourtesy of Keyezua
For Earth Day, Dazed caught up with photographer Fabrice Monteiro, whose ongoing series The Prophecy creates dramatic and stylised predictions of our world if we continue to consume the way we do.
In her ongoing efforts to erase the stigma surrounding people who identify as HIV+, artist Kia LaBeija transformed into a “monster” for her series Fear is Only a Fraction of Love. Posing with the moon and a mirror, LaBeija appears in a blacked out room, black paint covering her face and body, except for an illuminating red pout – a colour which she calls “a survival colour”, as well as “seductive”. Speaking with Dazed, she explained the moments of extreme vulnerability which made the series possible.
“Kia LaBeija Featuring The Moon”Courtesy of the artist and Royale Projects
. Gelatin silver print, 49.5 × 49.5 cm (19 1/2 × 19 1/2 in.))
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. Giclée print on Hanhemühle paper 52 1/2h x 78 3/4w)
. Giclée print on Hanhemühle paper 52 1/2h x 78 3/4w)
