WOMEN PHOTOGRAPHERS' NET

CENSUS ABOUT WOMEN PHOTOGRAPHERS CURRENTLY ACTIVE IN ITALY,
EUROPE AND THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION

See ITALIANO Translation

(article const.)

THEMATIC

In order to contribute to overwhelm, at least for the present, this gap, I decided to present my project "WOMEN PHOTOGRAPHERS " NET "to Committee BOLOGNA 2000 European City of Culture. I think that till to day in Europe nobody has produced a census about contemporary women photographers.

The culture of the image, the education to its use and its perception in the communication and in the art need to be nourished: with my project and the convention I organized I hope to create a moment of exchange of ideas and experiences.

METHODOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT

In order to produce the most adherent census about the professional work of the photographers, I sent a questionnaire (in Italian, English, French and Spanish) to many European contemporary colleagues who have multiplied thanks to the solidarity of many of them.

In the questionnaire I asked them to send three meaningful images of their production and to answer to the relative questions about their biography and works (CV, list of exhibitions, kind of photographs, and so on)

Then I created a web site in Italian, English, French and Spanish, loaded on many Italian and European server and I created links with other european web sites about photography. The project and the questionnaire have been therefore sent you to the other European Cities of the Culture (for year 2000: Avignon, Bergen, Brussels, Helsinki, Krakow; Prague, Reykjavik, Santiago di Compostela) and to the most important photographic agencies in Europe. In the questionnaire I asked the photographers to list the titles of their available expositions, indicating the subject, the number and the format of the images.

Women Photographers' Net is today can purpose more than 250 ready exposition of women photographers coming from: ITALY FRANCE GERMANY SWITZERLAND GREAT BRITAIN BELGIUM HOLLAND POLONIA CZECH REPUBLIC GREECE SPAIN PORTUGAL. ISRAEL The youngest photographer is 26 years old, the elder is 74 years old

RESULTS (OR: OUTCOMES)

A deep and enormous collaboration, particularly by famous and "aged" photographers who have greeted this initiative with freshness and confidence.

A large enthusiasm and an incredible desire of exchange arrived by young photographers, yearnings contacts and information from who, as I do, is living in the difficult world of photography since many years. By my side, this project gave me an incredible enrichment: the possibility to see the images and the biographies of many women photographers in one side provoked me a newborn and collective sense of strength, from the other side, the comparison between myself and the others, between what I have done and what I have still to do, has been a stimulus to replace in argument and to improve just my daily job.

Moreover the encounter - even if virtual - with foreign colleagues, shows their different professional formation and, as consequence, the relief position that the profession of photographer has in other European countries. In Italy only young photographers could study photography in schools, institutes or course of high level (and only in some cities), while the others are self-taught or have followed as assistants of more expert photographers. In other european countries nearly all the photographers, and not only the young ones, have a nourished scholastic curriculum, enriched from the opportunity to choose several specializations in photographic field; consequently the photographer job is estimated much mote than in Italy.

(NOTE for Jean Ferro/Women In Photography International): till to day in Italy there are not public schools for photographers.In my town there is a branch of the University (ART) where there is also a course of photography (only history of photography), without labs! In Milan and Rome there are, since 1985, private and expensive school for photographers. In the secondary schools in Italy photography is not taught, except in few a secondary schools (Professional courses for graphic design). Because of that most of italian photographers are self taught persons)

The result is therefore an enormous data bank to use both in our inside than towards the outside: a reflection on what direction is taking photography (and I do not mean a discussion between the value of "pure photography" and photography that has taken advantage of the new technologies); then, on what direction women photographers are going. The idea to organize a congress, after the presentation of my research, is born from the need to know us and to exchange experiences and projects for the future. Another important fact emerges from the census: in how many fields of photography we are active and, at the same time, a reflection about how many fields photography concerns (and therefore, like consequence, how much part of the communication our work concerns).
From the census three groups of photographers emerge:

• photographers who operate artistic and personal research, not only a "formal" research, but a symbolic one: therefore photography as an evocative medium of inner states of mind or medium to represent ironically the different kinds or category of women.
• reporters engaged on social topics (wars and conflicts / ethnographic and anthropological researches), operating in Italy or abroad
• commercial photographers with different kinds of specialization

To the apex of this subdivision there are those photographers who, independently from the fields in which they are working, produce images that remain in our memory, photographers who produce art even if their branch is photojournalism, or make information even if their images are born more from an existential urgency than from a need of communication.
There is moreover a spin conductor and a continuous interlace between all the photographers who joint the project.

• The ones who produce commercial reportage in Italy or abroad, they are also involved in social problems of the countries in which they operate, for curiosity, sensibility or social engagement
• The ones who are engaged in social reportage often collaborate with "politically correct"advertising campaign (some reporters have collaborated with Oliviero Toscani's"Fabrica "project, others have supplied their own images for campaigns such as "United Colors"of Benetton.
• The ones who are searching their inner world and choose photography to show it to the other people, often they organize expositions also for other photographers, pressed by the "urgency" of communication.
• Or the ones who, taking pictures for art reproductions or working in the dark room for famous photographers, from their work they receive artistic stimulus.

Many other factors join us:

• the rigor of the research
• the attraction towards the self-portrait
• the topic of peace (connected with the topic of war) and the daily life pictures, or the pictures "on the road": an "inside" way to read and interpret the "outside".
• the attention towards the other people - that, for a photojournalist, it is perhaps the deeper implication and less "voyeur " side in her profession;
• the need of pushing ourselves outside (outside our bodies, outside our own skin, outside our own culture), towards other women, also for photographers who don't work only in photojournalism.

Therefore photography as a sign to mark our way to exist and to to stay in the world. Photography as a mean to see the world with our own eyes, or with the eyes of those women who have not the freedom to show to the world their way of life. Moreover, the way to see, to observe and to analyze ours inner world, meant as a reflection about ourselves, our own physical and biological experience: our own body.

The participants to the census can be divided into:

• famous women photographers ("Ladies" of photography)
• the professional women photographers
• the emergent young women photographers.

To the project have joined 107 photographers.
For each photographer I prepared a form containing:
year of birth / nationality / studies / studies about photography / year of the beginning of their professional activity/ list of national and international exposition / list of books published / kind of pictures (portrait / photojournalism / advertising / still-life / fashion / food, and so on).
Every photographer sent 3 images in JPG low resolution, as "champion" of her work..
The images were shown by a video-projection on 25th November.

THE PROJECT WAS INTRODUCED ON NOVEMBER 25TH, 2000
AT SALA DEI NOTAI, VIA PIGNATTARI 1
(PIAZZA MAGGIORE), BOLOGNA, ITALY

PROGRAM:

12 AM: Patrizia Pulga introduced the completed project with a video projection of the pictures sent by the photographers

THE FOLLOWING PARTIES ATTENDED:

The project partners:
CNA IMPRESA DONNA (CNA Women's Enterprise): Ms. Alessandra Naldi, President of the Provincial Comitteee

E.N.W.S. (European Network for Women's Studies): Mrs. Laura Benigni, Professor at the Institute of Psychology of CNR, Rome, introduces the topic "Subjectivity and Women-Eye Technique Behind The Lens"

The sponsoring Bureau:
COMMISSIONE NAZIONALE PER LE PARI OPPORTUNITA' (GOVERNMENT COMMISSION FOR EQUALI RIGHTS):
Mrs. Maria Grazia Negrini, Ph.D.

Mr.Roberto Grandi, Professor of "Theory and Technique of Mass Communication", Communication Sciences, University of Bologna, introduces the topic: "Photography and Image"

Mr. Riccardo Marcialis, photographer, responsible for the professional training of SIAF (Association of professional photographers), lectures about professionalism in photography.

Mrs Margherita Verdi, photographer, and Mrs Vittoria Ciolini, art-gallery manager, organizers of the international award for women photographers "I luoghi della vita",lecture about their initiative.

Mrs Giuliana Traverso, photographer, director of the School "Donna Fotografa", lectures about her 30 years experience as a women's teacher.

Mrs. Anna Cutrone, photographer, presents the video " 100 years of photography seen by women" realized by women photographers' group "Athena".

Mr. Lanfranco Colombo, photographer and gallery manager, lectures about international women photographers who had expositions in his gallery "IL DIAFRAMMA", in Milan during last 30 years.

NAMES OF THE PHOTOGRAPHERS WHO JOINED THE CENSUS:

1. ALESSANDRA CAPODACQUA (ITALY)
2. ALESSANDRA DRAGONI (ITALY)
3. ANITA ANDRZEJEWSKA (POLAND)
4. ANITA MARAMGONI (ITALY)
5. ANNA CUTRONE (ITALY)
6. ANNA FORCELLA (ITALY)
7. ANNA HALM-SCHUDEL (SWITZERLAND)
8. ANNALISA CODIGNOLA (ITALY)
9. ANNALISA SONZOGNI (ITALY)
10. ARABELLA FRANCHI (ITALY)
11. ARCANGELA REGIS PIZZETTI (SPAIN)
12. BLANCA BERLIN MIRAVETE (SPAIN)
13. BRUNA GINAMMI (ITALY)
14. CARLA CERATI (ITALY)
15. CARMELITA IEZZI (ITALY)
16. CARMA CASULA' (SPAIN)
17. CATERINA GERARDI (ITALY)
18. CEU GUARDA (PORTUGAL)
19. CLAUDIA PROVENZANO (ITALY)
20. COLOMBA D'APOLITO (ITALY)
21. CRISTINA MARMIROLI (ITALY)
22. CRISTINA OMENETTO (ITALY)
23. DANA KYNDROVA' (CZECH REPUBLIK)
24. DANIELA FACCHINATO (ITALY)
25. DANIELA TARTAGLIA (ITALY)
26. EDITTA CAMPELLO (ITALY)
27. ELEONORA OLIVETTI (ITALY)
28. ELIANA MAFFEI (ITALY)
29. ELIZABETH GARVEY (From U.S.A., she lives in ITALY)
30. ELSKE KOELSTRA (From Holland, she lives in FRANCE)
31. EMANUELA SALTI (ITALY)
32. EPHIE TSAKRAKLIDOU (GREECE)
33. FANNY SARRI (GREECE)
34. FEDERICA DE ANGELI (ITALY)
35. FRANCESCA PATELLA (Italian, she lives in HOLLAND)
36. FRANCESCA SCIARRA (ITALY)
37. GABRIELLA MERCADINI (ITALY)
38. GIANNA BONACINI (ITALY)
39. GIOIA BOTTEGHI (ITALY)
40. GIOVANNA BORGESE (ITALY)
41. GIOVANNA DAL MAGRO (ITALY)
42. GIULIANA TRAVERSO (ITALY)
43. GIUSI SPINA (ITALY)
44. GRAZIELLA ALMASIO (ITALY)
45. HANA JAKRLOVA' (CZECH REPUBLIK)
46. HANA KUBIKOVA' (CZECH REPUBLIK)
47. HELGA VENDT (GERMANY)
48. IDIT GREENBERG (from Israel, she lives in ITALY)
49. ISABEL FLORES GONZALES-MORO (SPAIN) 5
50. ISABELLA BALENA (ITALY)
51. ISABELLA COLONNELLO (ITALY)
52. KLARA STRETTIOVA' (CZECH REPUBLIK)
53. LAURA RIZZI (ITALY)
54. LAURA SALVATI (ITALY)
55. LETIZIA BATTAGLIA (ITALY)
56. LIA STEIN (ITALY)
57. LIBUSE RUDINSKA' (CZECH REPUBLIK)
58. LIDIA BAGNARA (ITALY)
59. LISA FERRO (ITALY)
60. LOLA ANGELA GRAMM (GREECE)
61. LORENZA LUCCHI BASILI (ITALY)
62. MANUELA METELLI (ITALY)
63. MARCELLA CAMPAGNANO (ITALY)
64. MARGARET COURTNEY-CLARKE (From South Africa, she lives in ITALY)
65. MARGHERITA FANTUZZI (ITALY)
66. MARGHERITA SPRIO (Italian, she vives in ENGLAND)
67. MARGHERITA VERDI (ITALY)
68. MARGRIET SMULDERS (HOLLAND)
69. MARIALBA RUSSO (ITALY)
70. MARIANNE BOUTRIT (From France, she lives in ITALY)
71. MARISTELLA CAMPOLUNGHI (ITALY)
72. MAURA PARODI (ITALY)
73. MELANIA MESSINA (ITALY)
74. MERI GALLO (ITALY)
75. MICHI SUZUKI (Japanese, she lives in ITALY)
76. MONIQUE JACOT (SWITZERLAND)
77. NANCY MOTTA (ITALY)
78. PAOLA AGOSTI (ITALY)
79. PAOLA MATTIOLI (ITALY)
80. PAOLA ZUCCHELLO (ITALY)
81. PATRIZIA LANNA (ITALY)
82. PATRIZIA MUSSA (ITALY)
83. PATRIZIA NUVOLARI (ITALY)
84. PATRIZIA PIERI (ITALY)
85. PATRIZIA PULGA (ITALY)
86. PATRIZIA SAVARESE (ITALY)
87. PAULINE PRIOR (HOLLAND)
88. PETRA FENDEL (GERMANY)
89. RAFFAELA MARINIELLO (ITALY)
90. RAFFAELLA CAVALIERI (ITALY)
91. ROBERTA BRUNO (ITALY)
92. ROSSELLA MURGIA (ITALY)
93. SABINE KORTH (German, she lives in ITALY)
94. SABINE KOTHES (GERMANY)
95. SAMANTA SNIDARO (ITALY)
96. SANDRA ROCHA (PORTUGAL)
97. SEBASTIANA PAPA (ITALY)
98. SHERRY LOTFY (BELGIUM)
99. SHOBHA (ITALY)
100. SILVIA LELLI (ITALY)
101. SIMONA CALI' COCUZZA (ITALY)
102. STEFANIA BERETTA (SWITZERLAND)
103. STEFANIA RICCI (ITALY)
104. TERESA BIANCHI (ITALY)
105. THEA VAN DEN HEUVEL (HOLLAND)
106. VALERIE BERTEAU (BELGIUM)
107.  ZLATUSE (CZECH REPUBLIK)
     
     A HUGE thank you to Patrizia Pulga for being involved with this project and providing WIPI the information found in this article. Patrizia is a valuable contributor to the success of women photographers internationally.

Information provided by Patrizia Pulga
emai:l  pulga@patriziapulga.it

TV, MAGAZINES AND NEWSPAPERS REVIEWS:

LA REPUBBLICA: 17/02/2000 and 25/11/2000

RAI 3 TV; Emilia Romagna Region Channel: 17/02/2000

WEB Magazine / DIRE AGENCY n. 03 on 11/02/2000

IL RESTO DEL CARLINO: 21/11/2000

VOGUE ITALY- November 2000

IL DOMANI DI BOLOGNA 23/12/2000

PORTICI December 2000