Events in the Water

 

Bea Nettles is an American photographer known for her narrative, often autobiographical approach. Her formal training, in painting and printmaking rather than photography, informs her unconventional, multimedia presentation techniques. In the late 1960s, while still a graduate student, Nettles began to imbue her work with elements associated with women’s work. Drawing from her Grandmother’s quilting techniques, she started to machine stitch directly onto her photographs. Such unconventional, innovative and often then radical approaches to making photographs gained her early recognition. 

In the early 1970s, Nettles immersed herself in the production of limited edition books. This themed book from 1973 brings together a collection of spontaneous snap-shot-like images of everyday encounters with water. The people in these black and white reproductions are Nettle's family and friends or those who just happened to be in the direction of the artist's camera lens.