A Presentation by Emma Porter Dorothea Lange A Presentation by Emma Porter

Dorothea Lange Born May 26, 1895 in Hoboken, New Jersey Died October 11, 1965 of cancer Moved to New York City when she was 18 Moved to San Francisco, California where she started a successful and upscale portrait studio

Her Childhood Had Polio at age 7 Was inspired by her mother and grandmother Decided she wanted to be a photographer at 18 Her polio left her disabled for life, with a withered lower left leg and a twisted foot which enabled to be able to put her foot down as she walked Her mother and grandmother taught her how to use her eye, because it is her most powerful tool She decided she wanted to be a photographer while she was 18 and in a training school for teachers in New York

Her Family She had two husbands Had two son Maynard Dixon Paul Schuster Taylor Had two son Daniel Dixon John Dixon Lange was married to Maynard Dixon for 15 years He had many extramarital affairs He was a renowned painter She was with Paul Schuster Taylor for 30 years (until her death) She had no children with him He worked as a professor at the University of California at Berkeley Lange placed her children in what essentially was foster care many times while she was on the road for work (her husband came with her many times) Her children felt resentment towards her about this and they didn’t blame their father The photo above is of Lange and Paul Schuster Taylor

Lange’s Photography Jobs She Took Photographs… For the U.S. Farm Security Administration At the Japanese-American Internment Camps In 1935 Lange was invited by Roy Stryker to join the federally sponsored Farm Security Administration It was a group of photographers Was hired by the war relocation authority and the Office of war authority to take pictures of the internment camps Later in her life she went to countries such as Japan, Egypt, and Indonesia to photograph their developing world

"She would walk through the field and talk to people, asking simple questions - 'What are you picking? ... How long have you been here? When do you eat lunch? ... I'd like to photograph you,' she'd say, and by now it would be 'Sure, why not,' and they would pose a little, but she would sort of ignore it, walk around until they forgot us and were back at work.” -Ron Partridge The quote is talking about how she want natural pictures of the Farmers –didn’t want any posing or the subjects looking at the camera She was friendly with her subjects The quote was said by Ron Partrtidge

Her Photography Her photographs became very symbolic Her photographs were meant to show people who Americans were No artist did more than Lange to advance the democratic vision Defined the national agenda. The agenda aimed to restore prosperity and prevent further depressions, to alleviate poverty and reduce inequality. Her photos were meant to show who Americans really were –the variety of people including people if all genders and ages, all religions, all social classes, all races, and everything else. Her work created an opening for the expanding and developing American democracy

Some of her most progressive and well-known photographs…

This photograph is the one that brought her attention to the national crisis that is the depression

Young migratory mother, originally from Texas Young migratory mother, originally from Texas. On the day before the photograph was made she and her husband traveled 35 miles each way to pick peas. They worked 5 hours each and together earned $2.25. They have two young children . . . Live in auto camp.

Between Weedpatch and Lamont, Kern County, California Between Weedpatch and Lamont, Kern County, California. Children living in camp

Cheap Auto Camp Housing for Citrus Workers

Members of the Mochida family awaiting evacuation bus Members of the Mochida family awaiting evacuation bus. Identification tags were used to aid in keeping a family unit intact during all phases of evacuation. Mochida operated a nursery and five greenhouses on a two-acre site in Eden Township." In 1942 Executive Order 9066 ordered the removal of 110,000 civilians of Japanese descent, including 71,000 American citizens, from the western United States, placing them in internment camps.

A crowd of onlookers on the first day of evacuation from the Japanese quarter in San Francisco, who themselves will be evacuated within three days

This is Lange’s most famous photograph of Florence Thompson and two of her children

A Few More Photographs…