Jordanna Kalman
Jordanna and the Masters of Photography
Nov 3 - Dec 10, 2022
In my formal education in photography, 99.9% of the work I was introduced to and studied was made by men. When we’re taught by example, that this is the IMPORTANT AND CORRECT work to emulate; a male point of view, where does that leave me? How can I honestly express myself as a woman when nearly all of what I’ve seen/learned from is what men have made? If I'm ever able to unlearn the rules of male photography, truly express myself as a woman, (and I don’t mean the ‘female gaze,’ a condescending, pigeon-holing term) would that work be rejected?
In the series Jordanna and the Masters of Photography, my photographs are seen through a window cut into photographs made by some of my favorite (male) Master Photographers. I wonder if my work will always be constrained by the male dominated history of photography, and forever be considered less than or unimportant because it wasn’t made with an 8x10 or an American poet’s (male of course) prose as inspiration or of New Topographics (which are like, so old by now) or uninteresting because the nudity isn’t sexual and therefore useless to a male viewer or irrelevant because I’m over 35 and have children.
Zoom Artist Talk: Wed, Dec 7, 2022
Jordanna Kalman’s (American, b. 1977, she/her) practice revolves around femininity, individuality, and the effects of social media on photography. With personal emotions at its core, she’s interested in speaking visually about the intricacies of womanhood. Jordanna has had her work shown nationally, internationally and extensively online. She works on many different things very slowly all at once.