I mentioned in an earlier post that the inspiration for my current body of work, “We Will Be Sisters: Stories of Female Textile Mill Workers” came from a photo taken by Lewis Hine in 1909.
More specifically, it was the young woman in the middle of this group photo of textile mill workers. I saw her face, her posture, her eyes and thought “oh, I want to recreate her emotion and attitude in a drawing.”
And so it began. Not very skillfully at first. I felt my drawings were rather crude, her face too angular and that she looked more male than female.
Then something clicked. The more I looked at her face, I began to see small nuances. The downward tilt and slight angle of her head. The upward looking eyes. Her slanted shoulders. I cropped the photo so she was the only person in it. On my iPad this allowed me to enlarge the photo, to play with values and tones.
The more often you draw a person, you begin to develop a relationship with them. I wanted to know her name. Where she came from. What job she had at the mill. How long she worked there. What happened to her when she left.
Unfortunately, Lewis Hine did not leave documentation on all these photos. Some have notes that might include a name (though not always their true name or correct in spelling), the person’s age (again, not always accurate), the location and year.
During a research session, as I was looking through more photos taken by Hine, I discovered another photo of this young woman. She is part of a larger group of workers; children really. In it she is standing next to a young boy that could be her brother. Here I learned that these photos were taken at the Bibb Mill Manufacturing Company in Macon, Georgia, on January 19, 1909. The textile mill produced cotton products; sheets, comforters, towels, curtains, bedspreads. It was founded in 1876.
In the series of pictures taken at the Bibb Mill Manufacturing Company, I came across another photo of older women. In that particular photo is a woman that bears a slight resemblance to this young girl. It made me wonder if they were related. Could this woman be an older sibling? A cousin?
Sadly, I don’t have any answers to my questions. I can only speculate.
Through my art, I can create these potential relationships using these photos to tell a story about female textile mill workers. Through research, I can read their stories, some told in their own words, and “hear” their voices. Through my art, I hope to honor their memories.