Magnum Collection Photograph in Comparison

Bruno Barbey, ITALY. ITALY. Liguria region. Town of Genoa. 1966.
Magnum Photos, BAB750.jpg. ©Bruno Barbey / Magnum Photos. 

Ruth Orkin, An American Girl in Italy, 1951. 

I chose this photograph because it reminded me of a well-known photograph by Ruth Orkin titled, An American Girl in Italy, 1951. This iconic photograph by Orkin portrays a young woman on a street corner while a surrounding group of men ogle at her as she walks. The photograph I have chosen from the Magnum collection brought Orkin’s photograph to mind as the central figure captured by Barbey is a lone woman leaning up against a building and is surrounded by men. The main difference between these two photographs can be seen in Barbey’s image as the men seem to be distracted by something out of the camera’s frame; rather than ogling at the beautiful woman their attention has been pulled elsewhere. While the two photographs differ greatly I was drawn to the method in which both photographers chose to capture a lone female figure surrounded by men: as either the center of attention or unnoticed in the backdrop.