Biography of Dorothea Lange



Dorothea while photographing for a job.



 

Dorothea Lange was born May 25^th, 1895 in Hoboken, New Jersey to proud parents, Heinrich and Johanna Nutzhorn. Dorothea had one brother, Martin, who was born when she was six. A year later, Dorothea contracted polio which crippled her right leg for life. From then on, she walked with a permanent limp that heavily embarrassed her mother, a very self-conscious woman. Regarding to her limp, Lange said, “[It] was the most important thing that happened to me, and formed me, guided me, instructed me, helped me and humiliated me.” When she was twelve, her father unexpectedly walked out on the family and was never heard from again. Dorothea dropped her father’s name and used her mother’s maiden name, Lange.



Example of one of the portraits
taken in her first studio.

Soon after her father left, Dorothea’s mother got a job as a librarian. After school, Dorothea would go to the library and study photographs in all of the books available to her. This is where she decided what she wanted to do after high school. After graduating, Lange took a position in a photography studio working with famous photographer, Arnold Genthe. After learning everything she could from Genthe, she studied a year with Clarence White. In 1918, she left New York to leave for San Francisco and opened her very first portrait photography studio. By 1928, Dorothea was married to Maynard Dixon and had two sons, Daniel and John.



Lange taking photographs during
the Dust Bowl migration.

Between 1932 and 1934, Lange spent the majority of her time photographing many of the millions affected by the Great Depression. It was around this time she felt her marriage collapsing. She was also struggling to find a balance between work and being a mother to her sons. Paul Taylor, a huge fan of her work, helped to get Dorothea a job with the government as a “typist,” the only title available for hire. Together, Paul and Dorothea traveled the nation. With Paul speaking to and supporting the poor American’s, Dorothea was photographing them. They would report back their findings to the U.S. government.

"Migrant Mother"

After the Dust Bowl, Dorothea and Paul captured photographs of the migrants in California. The most well-known photograph of the time and from Dorothea came from this trip. The photograph titled, “Migrant Mother” was taken in 1936 in Nipomo, California. Dorothea was driving home alone and saw a sign for a “Pea Pickers Camp” but didn’t want to stop. About twenty miles later, she turned around and went back to the site. When she arrived, there were about 2500 other men, women, and children. Dorothea took six photographs of the 32 year old woman and her seven children. This photograph became a nationwide symbol for all the suffering families across America. It showed other families that they were all in the same situation and that they were not alone. Dorothea went right home and sent copies to the government and a San Franciscan newspaper. Almost immediately, the government responded and sent twenty-thousand pounds of food to the California fields. Dorothea Lange’s photography had saved thousands of people.

Dorothea and Paul on the job.

Meanwhile, Paul and Dorothea had fallen in love, separated from their spouses, and joined their families together. After the Great Depression, photographing rural American’s and educating others of suffering continued to be her main concern. In March 1941, she became the first woman and third photographer ever to receive the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship award.

Japanese-American family evacuating.

The government hired her to document the evacuation of Japanese-Americans into internment camps following the Pearl Harbor attack. In 1964, Dorothea was diagnosed with terminal cancer at age sixty-nine. She helped produce two television films about her life and started a national project to help young photographers document American city life. Dorothea also helped plan a one-woman exhibition of her art for the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Another major accomplishment she made was being co-founder of Aperture, a high-end photography magazine.

On October 11, 1965, Dorothea died from esophageal cancer. She passed peacefully and surrounded by family. Lange left such an impact on the nation and specifically on the photography world. A picture really can change or influence an entire nation.

“One should really use the camera as though tomorrow you’d be stricken blind.”

Even in old age, Dorothea was capturing moments.

Works Cited

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Partridge, Elizabeth, and Dorothea Lange. Restless Spirit: The Life and Work of Dorothea Lange. New York, N.Y., U.S.A.: Viking, 1998. Print.

Sills, Leslie. In Real Life: Six Women Photographers. New York: Holiday House, 2000. Print.

"Subjective & Sensational Photography by Jonathan Van Smit." A Photography Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Aug. 2013.