Margrethe mather biography of martin

American photographer. Margrethe Mather, who was born around , lived in an orphanage until she was adopted by a mathematics professor and his common-law wife. She was unhappy with them, and as a teenager ran away to San Francisco , where for a time she earned a living through prostitution. Around , Mather began an affair with a wealthy woman identified as "Beau" who guided her cultural education.

Exactly when she began to study photography is not known, but it was probably sometime before , when she met noted photographer Edward Weston. They established an "essentially platonic" working and personal relationship that would last for nearly two decades, sharing a highly respected studio in Glendale, near Los Angeles. Producing portraits and other images as well as working with interior decorators, Mather was included in several photography exhibits in the late s and early s, and eventually took over the Glendale Studio.

This captivating biography reveals the previously untold love story of Edward Weston and Margrethe Mather.

Her photographs, which often featured isolated parts of the human body, exhibited a sense of artistry which is believed to have influenced Weston's work both during and after their collaboration. Despite her popularity and critical success, by the early s Mather all but abandoned photography. Although she continued to take occasional photographic portraits of her friends, she spent most of the last two decades of her life working in retail stores.

She died of multiple sclerosis in Rosenblum, Naomi. A History of Women Photographers. New York and London: Abbeville Press, Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. January 11,