Margaret Watkins

Margaret Watkins (1884–1969) was a Canadian photographer who is remembered for her innovative contributions to advertising photography.[1]

Early life

The daughter of an Ontario businessman and his Scottish wife, Watkins was born in Hamilton, Ontario on November 8, 1884.[2] In 1913, she moved to Boston, where she worked as an assistant in a commercial photography studio. Her interest in photography was consolidated by a course at the Clarence H. White Summer School of Photography in Maine, where she later taught.[3]

Career

Watkins opened a studio in Greenwich Village, New York City, and in 1920 became editor of the annual publication Pictorial Photography in America. She worked successfully as an advertising photographer for Macy's and the J. Walter Thompson Company and Fairfax, becoming one of the first women photographers to contribute to advertising agencies. She also produced landscapes, portraits, nudes and still lifes. While teaching at the Clarence White school from 1916 to 1928, her students included Margaret Bourke-White, Laura Gilpin, Paul Outerbridge, Ralph Steiner and Doris Ulmann.[4]

One of the earliest art photographers in advertising, her images of everyday objects set new standards of acceptability. From 1928, when she was based in Glasgow, she embarked on street photography in Russia, Germany and France, specializing in store fronts and displays.[1][3]

Watkins died in Glasgow, Scotland in 1969,[2] largely forgotten as a photographer.

Legacy

After Watkins' death, the executor of her will, Joseph Mulholland, found hundreds of photographs in her Glasgow home. As a result, several solo exhibitions were subsequently held in Britain and North America.[1][4]

In October 2012, a retrospective of Margaret Watkins' work titled "Domestic Symphonies" opened at the National Gallery of Canada[3]

A stamp depicting Watkins' photograph, The Kitchen Sink was issued on March 22, 2013 by Canada Post as part of their Canadian Photography series. The image is a still life of a sink with dishes.[5][6][7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Margaret Watkins", Robert Mann Gallery. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Margaret Watkins". National Gallery of Canada. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help);
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lori Pauli, "Margaret Watkins: Domestic Symphonies. National Gallery of Canada presents first major retrospective of this Canadian photographer’s work", National Gallery of Canada, 3 October 2012.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Watkins, Margaret", Canadian Women Artists History Initiative. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  5. ↑ "New photography stamp series gives an appreciation of Canada’s best". Canada Post. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  6. ↑ "Canadian Photography". Canada Post. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  7. ↑ "Photographer Margaret Watkins honoured with Canada Post stamp". BBC News. Retrieved 2 February 2014.

External links