ABOUT SISTERS OF THE LENS

Sisters of the Lens, founded by Terence Pepper and George Mind in 2018, currently consists of five additional researchers; Grace Lee, Hannah Marynissen, Imogen Lyons, Vivien Hamley and Megan Stevenson. Our mission is to celebrate the work of unknown or little-recognized amateur and professional women photographers working between the 1850s and 1950s. 

 

By shining a spotlight on phenomenal female photographers, we hope that their work will be recognized within the canon of historical photography. We bring exposure to their oeuvres by sharing our research on various platforms:

 

Instagram 

Our main platform is Instagram (click here), as it allows us to reach international audiences that extend beyond the research community. We post a series of three images at least once a week highlighting one photographer, one subject photographed by various female photographers or key acquisitions for the Sisters of the Lens Collection. 

 

Collection 

Terence Pepper worked as Curator of Photographs at the National Portrait Gallery from 1978 until 2014. During those years his interest in women photographers lead to the acquisition of many works by females from the 1850s to the present day. On retirement he additionally donated many further items (the details of which can be found here).

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A significant portion of Terence Pepper’s private collection forms the basis of the Sisters of the Lens Collection. The collection is now owned by a charitable trust. The Sisters of the Lens team are collectively working towards growing this group of photographs into a significant separate collection that focuses on female photographers only. We hope that material from this collection could be used as the foundation for future Sisters of the Lens projects, such as exhibitions or publications. 

 

Website

The purpose of this website is multi-faceted. Firstly, by giving an overview of the individual women photographers we research, we hope that his platform acts as a springboard for the research of others interested in historical photography. 

 

Secondly, we hope to draw the interest of others passionate about female photographers. If you are a specialist that can share further information on any of the photographers featured on this website or if you would like to discuss possible new acquisitions with us, please do not hesitate to contact us here. 

 

Finally, through our website blog, we hope to delve deeper into our rapidly expanding collection and share more detailed information on new acquisitions, thereby enriching everyone’s knowledge of female photographers from the 1850s to the 1950s!