Dorothea Lange

I've been looking at the work of Dorothea Lange, an american portrait photographer 1895 - 1965. Some interesting facts:

• In the early 1930's Lange turned her attention to the plight of those dispossessed by the Great Depression
• From 1935 - 39 Lange worked for the Resettlement Administration and the Farm Security Administration documenting displaced farm families, sharecroppers and migrant workers
• Lange's picture 'Migrant Mother' became the most iconic photograph of the Great Depression

Migrant Mother image

A quotation from seventeenth century philosopher Francis Bacon:

"The contemplation of things as they are, without substitution or imposture, without error or confusion, is in itself a nobler thing than a whole harvest of invention' Lange kept this quote on her bulletin board for many years, she believed the truth she sought had an ethical dimension. This approach can be seen in her images of farm workers in their sparse surroundings, without pretending they have nothing, recording the moment as it really was.