Kicking off Women’s Month, we take a look back at some of the highlights from IMAGO’s female photographers showcased on The Game over the last year.
Celebrating IMAGO’s Women Photographers.
In the male-dominated photography industry, women are still fighting for acknowledgement. From social conflicts, documentary reportages to creative photography, we celebrate these women and their contributions to IMAGO and The Game.
Maryam Majd
Considered one of the first contemporary female Iranian sports photographers, Majd covers a range of topics and also spent much of her career documenting life in Afghanistan. Her insight and her photos have been a recurring guest on The Game.
Excerpts from Afghan Stories: My Photos are the voice for the silent community
“The skies of Kabul were silent and the sound of NATO helicopters flying in the sky could be heard…Afghanistan was not just a mission for me, I was looking for women who had the right to vote for the first time. And after election day, which was full of fear and time bombs exploded, I went looking for Afghan women athletes and found them.
I experienced a lot of things there. And the only thing I can say is that Afghan women who are looking for progress are growing like seeds wherever they are. They have been expelled from their country these days because of the Taliban, but in whatever country they are in, they will still try to make up for what they lost.”
Excerpts from Afghan Stories: A collection by Maryam Majd.
Excerpts from The Fight with an Unknown Opponent
“The situation of women’s sports and their problems in Iran is clear. Although this pandemic also presents an opportunity to rectify these inequities. Female athletes, whether they are national players, national coaches, or even famous and Olympic athletes, are no exception to this rule. The national camps are closed, the professional players are without a coach, the program set by the sports federations has not been written for them…”
“All of these reasons, or perhaps part of them, has resulted in the new surge of creative solutions from sportswomen in order for them to maintain their professional position and cope with social isolation at the same time. With the safest place being their homes or space out of reach of the public, these athletes have taken to rooftops, their homes and deserted beaches to train. Making their homes and cities their very own stadiums, studios and sports centers.”
Susanne Hübner
Specializing in photographing the football team VfL Wolfsburg of the German Women’s Bundesliga, IMAGO spoke to Hübner about the need for increased broadcasting of women’s football and the gender pay gap.
Excerpts from Women’s Bundesliga on the Rise
“There is a lack of sponsors in women’s football, and the number of photographers at the matches is quite small. It is significantly higher at men’s matches,” says Hübner, who has also photographed the men’s league. Wolfsburg’s manager Tim Schumacher has also expressed that the revenue from TV marketing is a major factor in the fight for equal pay, but steps are being taken to emerge from the dark-ages.
Along with changing their Twitter background to a mission-statement ‘together in support of more women and girls in football’, the German Football Association (DFB) has issued a press release stating that it will invest “massively in the visibility of the women’s Bundesliga.” It will be sharing the costs of increased airtime with Telekom, one of Europe’s largest telecommunications providers based in Germany.
Dominika Zarzycka
Zarzycka of NurPhoto recently documented the aftermath of the wildfires which ravaged the small Greek island of Evia. Imago spoke to Zarzycka about her work in Evia and the future of the climate crisis.
Excerpts from After the Scorch – An Interview with Dominika Zarzycka
“There are many people who claim they lost their livelihoods to the fire, their olive trees were burned, and their opportunities connected with tourism vanished. I must admit, though, I admire Evia residents. People that I met did not wish to go deep into frustration or despair. Their strength seems to come from strong communities, the togetherness and the connection they have with nature – with the soil and the sea.”
Alice Dias Didszoleit
Part of IMAGO’s Creative branch, Didszoleit’s travel photography brings an honest yet serene representation of the places she captures. Take a look at some of her images featured in a previous interview with The Game, from when she first joined IMAGO.
Excerpts from Muted Pallets and Minimalist Landscapes with Alice Dias Didszoleit
“I discovered my passion for nature through my first dog. Through having and traveling with a dog, I became a real love of nature and my enthusiasm only increased from there.”
“In principle, I want to make travel photography authentic so that travelers are not disappointed when they visit these places! And that’s why I don’t just take photos at sunrise and sunset!”
Allison Bailey
Bailey’s PhD in political science and specialization in civil conflict has given her a unique and experienced perspective in her coverage of protests in Washington DC. Recently interviewed about her photographs of the voting rights movement, which has always been at the forefront of racial justice activism in The United States, her photos show the different aspects of an issue entrenched in American socio-political culture.
Excerpts from Black History Month – The Fight for Voting Rights in The United States
“The singing of the civil rights era songs is a means of demonstrating peacefulness…One thing about the voting rights movement is that it has been consistent no matter what. It has been about nonviolent mass action..”
“For states to get away with basically telling certain groups of people that they can’t vote, once you do that, you’ve lost all claim to democracy … There is a geographical divide between where you can vote and where you can’t, and we probably wouldn’t worry so much about that if it was a state here and there. But for the most part those states are contiguous, meaning that there are huge chunks of the country where if you are a person of color, your right to vote may not be guaranteed.”
