I was thirty-four when my husband and I headed to Ecuador. Because the work I thought I would be doing didn’t materialize, I decided to further explore my photography. I had been thinking about ways to break down stereotypes – could someone’s intimate story, accompanied by photos taken of them at home in surroundings and circumstances very different from my own, impact not only my own stereotypes and prejudices but those of others as well?
Photography was very new to me at the time. From my studies in anthropology and sociology I developed interview questions that would help me get to know a person. I combined this interview practice with photo sessions to show the women in their environment. I traveled to out of the way villages with the help of local Peace Corps Volunteers braving the precarious public transportation system and staying in the homes of fellow volunteers. It was here that the Women in Common photographic portfolio was born.
The only thing that I could offer these women was a gift of photos I had taken during my time with them. What started out as a necessity, shooting with B&W film and doing my own developing and printing (in my kitchen and borrowed darkrooms), became an art form and a passion. It is a lifelong project.
Also see related work at: The Ladies’ Guild and Teen Pregnancy pages.