Imogen Cunningham was born in Portland, Oregon, on April 12, 1883. She was the daughter of Isaac and Susan Cunningham. One of ten children, Cunningham was named after a character in William Shakespeare's Cymbeline. The favorite child of Isaac Cunningham, she was educated at home by her father before enrolling in school at the age of eight. Cunningham was said to be interested in photography since childhood and was given art lessons, a luxury her family could barely afford.
Acquired First Camera
Cunningham graduated from Broadway High School in Seattle, and entered the University of Washington in 1903. She paid for her own education by working as a secretary to a professor and making lantern slides for a botany class. Her interest in photography deepened when saw the work of Gertrude Kasebier, a professional photographer who Cunningham greatly admired. In 1906, Cunningham acquired her first camera for $15, and took a portrait of herself in the nude.
Studied in Germany
Cunningham studied printmaking and its technical aspects in Germany on a scholarship from her college sorority and a loan from the Washington Women's Club. She attended Dresden's Technische Hochschule under the tutelage of Robert Luther from 1909 until 1910. Her coursework included art history and life drawing, but she focused on platinum printing. Important to her development as a photographer, was the International Photographic Exhibition. This exhibit featured both American and European photographers, and gave her an opportunity to see the development of different styles.
After Cunningham's studies were completed, she traveled through Europe and returned to the United States at the end of 1910. On her way home, she met Gertrude Kasebier, the woman who inspired her to become a photographer. In New York she met another important photographer, Alfred Stieglitz.
Opened First Studio
Before 1910 was over, Cunningham had returned to Seattle and set up her own portrait studio. She also became active in the local art scene. Cunningham was a charter member and only photographer in the Seattle Fine Arts Society. For five years Cunningham took romantic photos of several artist friends who maintained studios nearby. The photos were inspired by some favorite writings, especially William Morris and mythology. Most were taken in a soft focus.
On February 11, 1915, Cunningham married Roi Partridge, a Seattle etcher, photographer, and print specialist. They had three children, Gryffyd, Rondal and Padraic. Cunningham caused a local scandal in 1915 when she published nude photographs of her husband, taken on Mount Rainer. They moved to San Francisco in 1917, at Cunningham's insistence.
Blossomed as an Artist
Cunningham's most creative period came in the 1920s and 1930s, when she was recognized as an innovator. Her refreshing, yet formal and sensitive floral images ultimately became her most acclaimed images. Cunningham soon turned her attention to both the nude as well as native plant forms in her back garden. The results were staggering; an amazing body of work comprised of bold, contemporary forms. These works are characterized by a visual precision that is not scientific, but which presents the lines and textures of her subjects articulated by natural light and their own gestures. Her refreshing, yet formal and sensitive floral images from the 1920’s ultimately became her most acclaimed images.
Worked for Vanity Fair
Since the 1910s, Cunningham had been fond of the photographs featured in the magazine, Vanity Fair. By the late 1920s, Cunningham began submitting photographs for publication, but all were rejected. In late 1931, Cunningham's persistence paid off when she took portraits of the dancer, Martha Graham. This led to more work from the magazine. Cunningham was sent on assignment to take pictures of film stars in Los Angeles.
In 1934, Cunningham was offered a job in New York by Vanity Fair. Cunningham experimented with taking pictures on the street in New York, calling them "stolen pictures." Cunningham's work also appeared in other major American magazines. In 1937, she was included in her first big exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, in "Photography, 1839-1937."
Awarded Guggenheim Fellowship
In 1970, when she was 87 years old, Cunningham was granted a Guggenheim Fellowship. She used the money to print and organize her work. Three years later, at the age of 90, Cunningham had two major exhibitions in New York City. In 1975, Cunningham took the extraordinary step of creating a trust so that her work would be preserved, exhibited, and promoted. She did not need to worry. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Cunningham's work was exhibited in the United States and throughout the world. Her photographs appeared in prestigious museums and galleries across the U.S., including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
At the age of 92, Cunningham began what would be her last book, After Ninety. The book featured portraits of the elderly, many of whom were her friends. The project was cut short by her death in San Francisco on June 23, 1976. After Ninety was published posthumously in 1977, and from 1978 until 1981 an exhibit, based on the book, traveled throughout the United States.
Allison Valenzuela - My fascination with photography has been going on as long as I can remember. I love taking pictures, being behind a lens helps you see ...
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