I was censored for a long time': the woman who photographed Chile's sex workers and dissidents
Briefly

Paz Errazuriz, an 81-year-old Chilean photographer, gained prominence for her work documenting marginalized communities, including trans sex workers, psychiatric patients, and the homeless. Her early career began with skepticism, reflected in a past critique that a housewife could never be a photographer. Significant projects like Adam's Apple capture the trust and bond she formed with her subjects, resulting in empathetic depictions of life beneath Chile's military dictatorship. Her work is showcased in a major solo exhibition at MK Gallery, emphasizing the importance of outsiders' narratives in art.
Between 1982 and 1987, Paz Errazuriz spent time photographing life in the brothels of Santiago, as trans sex workers fixed their hair, shifted their stockings, refined their makeup and killed time waiting for male clients. It was, she says, a beautiful experience. We talked or we'd have a glass of wine or a coffee. They trusted me.
Her work documenting life on the fringes of Chilean society sits in the collections of Tate Modern and MoMA in New York and in 2015 she represented Chile at the Venice Biennale.
My idea is not to shock, she states. But shock she did. I was censored for such a long time.
Other subjects of the 171 photographs on show include psychiatric patients, circus performers, boxers, political activists and the homeless, highlighting the humanity of those living under duress during the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
Read at www.theguardian.com
[
|
]