Submitted by The Evergreen State College
Women in the Trades showcases the strength, power, and perseverance of Washington State women working in the trades. Traveling throughout the Puget Sound region, Seattle Times photographer Bettina Hansen and writer Susan Kelleher sought to illuminate the stories of the many women working as ironworkers, linemen, heavy-equipment operators, and other trades which historically only employed men.
The series features women from diverse backgrounds who found work in the trades in many different ways. However, each describes her work as a point of pride – something that provides her with middle class financial stability, but also a sense of purpose and tangible accomplishment. One woman remarked that, like her grandfather before her, she would be able to ride through Seattle and point out all the buildings she’d helped construct.
Through stunningly detailed black and white portraits shot on 4×5 film, Hansen emphasizes the physical intensity of the work, but also the individuality of the subjects. Shot at job sites, the images place each person in the context of her trade, giving the viewer a hint into the daily lives of these hardworking women. Every portrait is paired with a vignette written by Kelleher, giving insight into the paths that led each woman to her trade, as well as the challenges of working in a male-dominated field.
Women in the Trades was created on assignment for the Pacific NW Magazine of the Sunday Seattle Times, and was published in the Labor Day weekend edition in 2015.
See the exhibit from March 4 through April 27 at Galerie Fotoland in the first floor lobby of the Daniel J. Evans Library at the Evergreen State College.
Galerie Fotoland was founded in 2010 with the intent of bringing work created outside the Evergreen community to the college in order to enrich students’ learning through providing a wide range of examples of contemporary photographic practice. Open daily, 9am-10pm
Galerie Fotoland is an exhibition space supported by Evergreen’s Photoland, photo.evergreen.edu.
