03.20 — 07.06.2015
The origins of women's liberation
in her vintage photographs
Opening: Thursday, March 19, 7:00 p.m.
Curators: Victoria Giraudo and Agustín Pérez Rubio
The show features a selection of ninety vintage photographs—many of them on exhibit for the first time—from the thirties to the sixties. On the basis of feminist theory, the exhibition focuses on the more intimate and personal work of Annemarie Heinrich (Darmstadt, Germany, 1912– Buenos Aires, 2005).
“Argentine and Latin American art history has addressed Annemarie Heinrich’s production almost solely in terms of technique and medium; the way she, as a feminist creator, went about constructing the image has been largely neglected. In its attempt to analyze Heinrich’s work, this exhibition formulates a hypothesis informed by feminist theory: Can her production be understood as an early expression of the women’s liberation movement that would emerge in later years? Are her images a proto-feminist construction? Some of her work—and her own life story—would seem to suggest so,” states Agustín Pérez Rubio, artistic director of MALBA and co-curator of the exhibition.
Secret Intentions brings together vintage photographs—that is, prints made by the artist herself—from Annemarie Heinrich’s archives, the MALBA collection, and private collections. The museum’s holdings already include three works by Annemarie Heinrich: Autorretrato con hijos [Self-Portrait with Children] (1947), Autorretrato con Ursula [Self-Portrait with Ursula] (1938), and La mano [The Hand] (1953). The last two were purchased at the 2014 edition of arteBA thanks to the museum’s Acquisition Program.
Annemarie Heinrich
Darmstadt, Germany, 1912 – Buenos Aires, 2005.
Heinrich began experimenting with photography in a makeshift darkroom in her home. In 1930, she opened her first studio and, in 1933, she began working with local gossip magazines. During the same period, she began her career as a portraitist of important figures associated with the Teatro Colón. For forty years, she provided all the cover images for the magazines Antena and Radiolandia. In the forties, she became known for her portraits of Argentine movie stars, specializing in the portrait and the nude genres. In addition to her professional photography, she did more experimental work with the photographic image, especially during her travels. Heinrich was a pioneer in envisioning photography as an art form.
Her first solo exhibition was held in Chile in 1938 and it was followed by a great many exhibitions in Argentina and abroad. She was the founder of the Carpeta de los Diez and of the Consejo Argentino de Fotografía, and the director of the Asociación de Fotógrafos Profesionales. She sat on the jury of the Federación Argentina de Fotografía and the Foto Club de Buenos Aires. The awards she was granted over the course of her lifetime include an honorary excellence distinction from the Federation Internationale de l'Art Photographique. She lived and worked in Buenos Aires from 1926 until the time of her death in 2005.
