Sally Mann

Sally Mann rose to fame with her exceptional photographic abilities, but before getting into her photographic abilities, It is crucial that her background is discussed. Sally was born in Lexington Virginia and she was the last to be born into the Munger family.  Robert S. Munger, who is her father, was a general practitioner. Her mother, Mother Elazabeth Evans Munger Owned a bookstore in Washington Lee University. Robert S. Munger were Atheists which is why Sally was raised as an atheist. Rober S. Munger was the one to introduce Sally Mann to photography, he was also very supportive of her photography. 

Sally Mann’s introduction to her glamorous career in photography was a photo of her Nude classmate in Putney highschool. One of the things that makes Sally Mann fascinating was the fact that she has never attended a proper photography class. However she did graduate from Hollins college, and after she graduated. She started working where her mother owned a bookstore in Washington and Lee University as a photographer. 

Sally Mann got into some great controversy when she released her work titled “Immediate Family,” in the spring of 1992 at Houk friedman. She received this criticism because she took nude pictures of her three children. Despite being heavily criticized, she received some praise by a few, some even called it “ an honest exploration of the complexities of childhood.” (britannica.com N:P) Her Photographs of her children are something that I disagree with. But her work is interesting to me. 

The reason I chose Sally Mann as the photographer to write about, is because I thought that her work was thought provoking and it portrays themes that resonate with me. There are a variety of themes that are conveyed in Sallys photographic work. The themes can vary from “desire, mortality, family, and nature’s overwhelming indifference towards mankind. She explored architecture, landscape and still life, but she is best known for her black-and-white portraits of her immediate family and documentation of the American South.” Sallys work stuck out to me because she used themes that genuinely matter to me. Family is very Important to me and I believe that its one of the things that give this bland life color, Because in order for us to have a family, we must fall in love with a person and have a true connection with another human being just to bring life to yet another life to this beautiful blue ball we live in. 

This Photo specifically pierced my heart with emotion. 

The main focus of this photo is two of her daughters who she holds very dearly, and her daughters are doing something that they would normally do. They’re outside with no shoes and are not even focused on the camera. The thing that stuck out to me was the fact that the girls had no shoes, yet they’re outside.

I relate to this photo because it reminds me of my childhood with my sisters. We lived on the mountain and we frequently left our house barefoot. Sally is trying to portray her family in the photo. ` 

“Sally Mann.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 27 Apr. 2023, www.britannica.com/biography/Sally-Mann.