Positive Images

Jill Posener’s, series ‘Dirty Girls Guide to London' (1987), (image source)

In Framing the Questions: Positive Imaging and Scarcity in Lesbian Photographs, Jan Zita Grover discusses how gatekeeping positive images in lesbian photography is central to keeping the already “scarce” images from creating negative stereotypes in a marginalized subculture, but that it comes at the expense of identiy loss and exclusion within the subculture.(1)

Grover begins her argument by pointing out that photographs aren’t really meant to depict reality to begin with. Most often, photographs are an idealized version of reality that exaggerates its representation and “naturalise(s) the unnatural.” Commonly, photos are trying to sell us something whether it be a product or an ideal, and by thinking of photographs in this context it would follow that lesbian photography should be no different. What matters here is not the gatekeeping, but that lesbians are being represented. It is important that the representation be positive or it could damage the entire structure of the subculture.(1)

Grover then examines the idea that values or truths are reflected by both the viewer and photographer. That what we see is as important as what we don’t see. One cannot exist without the other whether they are both present or not. She is talking about the idea of forgetting being one and the same as remembering. Leaving out or “forgetting” doesn’t mean that there isn’’t complexity. You can’t simplify life no matter what culture or subculture you are dealing with.(1)

Further expanding on values, Grover takes a look at the portrayal of relationships and intimacy. For North Americans, sexuality was downplayed to both keep the patriarchal society from viewing them as deviants and to keep them away from falling prey to the male gaze. Showing sexual desire in lesbian photography can have an even heavier burder of expectation placed on them for this reason. The problem with leaving out sexuality is that it has no basis in reality, and it further marginalizes the subculture by alienating those whose identity is driven by sexual desire.(1)

The burden of scarcity is a concept that in under-represented groups one bad behavior can have extremely damaging consequences to the subculture. Here, Grover talks about the exhibit Kiss & Tell that used sexually explicit photos in an interactive exercise with the viewers. Only women were invited to write their reactions to the photos on the walls while men were relegated to ‘The Men’s Book.’ The responses were interesting in that they were more a projection of the person making the written statement than a description. Grover supposes that the negative reactions to the exhibit was because of the lack of lesbian photography in our society. If it was a normal thing to experience an exhibit such as this then the reactions would have been less extreme.(1)

The image above is by photographer Jill Posner. It is one in a series of edgy Lesbian imagery that was aimed at the legislation that banned queer discourse from classrooms and libraries in the UK in 1987. Section 28 was essentially trying to put queer people back in the closet during the height of the AIDS epidemic. Jill Posner was one of three artists chosen for this exhibition aimed at the insane political climate of the 80s. These images, while complicated, were meant to instill sexual positivity in the community.(2) During this time frame it would have been more important than ever to represent the queer community by using positive images.

Sources
  1. Grover, Jan Zita, “Framing the Questions: Positive Imaging and Scarcity in Lesbian Photographs,” 1991
  2. McLaughlin, Rosanna, “‘Join Lesbians United’: How Artists Shaped London’s Gay Culture, in Reviews, accessed November 11, 2021, https://www.frieze.com/article/join-lesbians-united-how-artists-shaped-londons-gay-culture