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Women [Paperback]

Annie Leibovitz , Susan Sontag
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)

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Book Description

October 17, 2000
The photographs by Annie Leibovitz in Women, taken especially for the book, encompass a broad spectrum of subjects: a rap artist, an astronaut, two Supreme Court justices, farmers, coal miners, movie stars, showgirls, rodeo riders, socialites, reporters, dancers, a maid, a general, a surgeon, the First Lady of the United States, the secretary of state, a senator, rock stars, prostitutes, teachers, singers, athletes, poets, writers, painters, musicians, theater directors, political activists, performance artists, and businesswomen. "Each of these pictures must stand on its own," Susan Sontag writes in the essay that accompanies the portraits. "But the ensemble says, So this what women are now -- as different, as varied, as heroic, as forlorn, as conventional, as unconventional as this."

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Women + Annie Leibovitz at Work + A Photographer's Life: 1990-2005
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Each of the extraordinary portraits made by photographer Annie Leibovitz for her book Women stands on its own. Looked at together, these "photographs of people with nothing more in common than that they are women (and living in America at the end of the twentieth century), all--well almost all--fully clothed," writes Susan Sontag in the book's preface, form "an anthology of destinies and disabilities and new possibilities." Leibovitz, who in her years working for Rolling Stone, Vogue, and Vanity Fair magazines has photographed hundreds of celebrities, turns her lens on a wide range of ordinary and extraordinary female subjects: coal miners, socialites, first ladies, artists, domestic-violence victims, an astronaut, a surgeon, a maid. What she creates is a reflection of contemporary American womanhood that mirrors both women's accomplishments and the challenges they still face individually and as a group.

Leibovitz demonstrates her own range as a photographer in this body of work, shooting in the studio and natural settings and working in both black-and-white and color film. She depicts model Jerry Hall wearing a little black dress, a fur coat, and high heels, staring frankly at the viewer from a velvet chair in a plush red parlor while her naked infant son nurses from her exposed right breast. Schoolteacher Lamis Srour's eyes--the only part of her face visible behind her heavy black veil--illuminate a dark black-and-white portrait. Leibovitz frames actress Elizabeth Taylor and her dog Sugar by their shocks of snow-white hair. She captures four Kilgore College Rangerettes, a drill team, at the apex of their kicks--white-booted legs pointing up, obscuring their faces and revealing the red underpants beneath their blue miniskirts. There are many more wonderful and unexpected images here, over 200 in all. The delight in discovering them awaits readers. --Jordana Moskowitz --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

-To look upon the faces of the women photographed in this collection of more than 200 portraits is to marvel at and admire the intensity and dignity of the personalities represented. The subjects depicted encompass every imaginable field of endeavor. There are aerialists, writers, coal miners, battered women, and socialites, to name a few. They range from anonymous to well known. Leibovitz has become a celebrity in her own right since starting her career at Rolling Stone and then moving on to work at Vogue and Vanity Fair. She is well known for her photographs of some of the icons of 20th-century culture-rock stars, movie stars, politicians, athletes, and novelists, as well as many other famous figures, often posing her subjects in unconventional and surprising ways. Sontag's thought-provoking essay gives further insight and explanation. Young adults will be inspired, challenged, and moved both by the accomplishments and situations of the women photographed, as well as by the skill and eye of the artist who captured their images.
Turid Teague, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Random House; Reprint edition (October 17, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0375756469
  • ISBN-13: 978-0375756467
  • Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 0.8 x 12.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #109,415 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

ANNIE LEIBOVITZ is one of the most celebrated and admired photographers of our time. She began her work photographing for Rolling Stone magazine and quickly established a reputation as a chronicler of popular culture, eventually becoming a contributing photographer at Vanity Fair and Vogue. Her first book, Annie Leibovitz: Photographs, was published in 1983. In 1999 she published the bestselling Women, with a Preface by Susan Sontag, for which the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington exhibited a selection of portraits in conjunction with the hardcover publication.

Customer Reviews

Take a look, and see what you think! Donald Mitchell  |  3 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
72 of 77 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A surprise treat January 28, 2000
By KMY
Format:Hardcover
I was browsing through a bookstore, waiting for my kids to get done with Boy Scouts, not looking for anything in particular, when I spied "Women" on a shelf near an easy chair. The plain cover of this large book intrigued me so I started to skim through the book. After about a minute, I sat down and spent 45 more minutes going through the book, page by page. I had never heard of the book and only vaguely know the authors from popular culture, but I'm hooked now. As a busy working mother I don't usually have the time to spend enjoying fine art, photography, or coffee table books. I have to say that this is an inspiring piece of work that had me so engaged in some of the photos that I conjured up my own life stories for these women in my mind and thought about what their real life is like, how to meet them, etc. Annie's photographs really spoke to me.

I heartily recommend this book -- it's food for the soul. I only regret that I paid so much for the book that night (I had to give it to my best friend the next day).

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75 of 82 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars "WOMEN" is Challenging, Purposeful January 6, 2000
Format:Hardcover
I'd give Leibovitz four stars for the sole reason that she tackled "WOMEN" as a concept.

How does one portray "WOMEN" completely? It's as daunting and impossible as stating that one can portray "ETERNITY" or "LIFE" or "TRUTH" in their fullest senses.

There are those that have argued that Leibovitz's book gives preferential treatment to some subjects, while demeaning or diminishing others. For example, the photos of famous women are often glossy, flattering, and classically "pretty," while the photos of non-famous women are more often stark, harsh, and jolting to the senses.

I do not disagree.

What comes into question, however, is our definition of beauty. Society tells us that Drew Barrymore sprawled on the ground is beautiful. A group of coal-blackened female miners is not. That's society talking, not Annie Leibovitz - and certainly not the individual reader/viewer.

Instead, I choose to think that what Leibovitz was trying to do with "WOMEN" was to challenge these stereotypes and expectations. On every page, she attempts to portray the essence of the women she is photographing. For a Hollywood actress, that may very well mean a glamorous, "pretty" setting. For Helene Grimaud, it's a piano. For Wendy Suzuki, it's a scientific laboratory, and for Lenda Murray, it's a Ms. Olympia costume. Instead of labeling and sorting these images, (as society is often apt to do), Leibovitz presents them one after another in a colossal photographic accomplishment she calls "WOMEN."

No, she doesn't manage to express the concept completely. I doubt if anyone could. But she does manage to challenge, enlighten, and empower her readers/viewers with her portrayal of the diverse women she selected to photograph.

For me, that in itself is beautiful.

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65 of 73 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Sontag and Leibovitz have created a paean to womanhood! October 31, 1999
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
I purchased a copy of this book as a gift for a family member, but when it arrived, I could not resist removing the shrink wrap. The rest is history; I was profoundly moved by the selection and editing process which must have gone into this book. While not one given to femi-babble, I have to say that this splendid photography and essay empower every American woman to be and do whatever it is that she wants to be and do. What a wonderful way to start or end a millennium! (Of course, I had to come back to Amazon for additional copies!)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Book on women
I got this book to replace my origional copy that was distroyed by fire. The book came in great condition, and it is everything I had wanted.
Published 1 month ago by Rita A Walker
3.0 out of 5 stars Damage to book
There were black/gray smudge markings on the inside blank page. Disappointed as this was a coffee table display purchase and it was supposed to be pristine.
Published 17 months ago by Sung Lee
5.0 out of 5 stars Be Embraced, Know Thyself
The common belief of the emotional aspects of warm, nurturing, heart on their sleeves, empathetic, and more in reference to women are explored and shared. Read more
Published on May 20, 2011 by Mama Rifkah
5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful
I bought this book for my xmas gift for my mom and she loves it! It's a great coffee table book and one you can look at over and over again. Read more
Published on January 10, 2011 by Chiweenie Lover
5.0 out of 5 stars Women
This treasured compilation of photographs is a masterpiece. Annie Leibovitz and Susan Sontag created a beautiful piece of art that continues to bring me to tears each time I flip... Read more
Published on November 11, 2009 by Stacey Cohen
4.0 out of 5 stars i know a better book
Check out: "goddesses don't buy green bananas" [...] great book for a person who is scared and wants to connect to other women with cancer. Read more
Published on August 19, 2009 by Lesley Daley
5.0 out of 5 stars actually reviewing gift wrapping
I haven't opened the book yet because it's a gift for someone else. I'll give it 5 stars for the benefit of the doubt. Read more
Published on June 9, 2009 by Vanessa Main
5.0 out of 5 stars a wonderful collection
This is one of the better collections of Annie's works. There are some absolutely amazing photographs of women from all over the world... from all walks of life. Read more
Published on January 3, 2008 by H. Evans
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Images
Beaufiful and inspiring images for a photographer like myself. Her environmental portraitures are just as strong as studio ones even though, through interview, she prefers to... Read more
Published on November 23, 2007 by Thomas J. Wu
5.0 out of 5 stars These are the women who made us
This book of portraits is just stunning. To page through and consider that the world today was made by these women... Read more
Published on June 3, 2007 by Jacqueline Wales, author of When the Crow Sings
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