<i>The Mondine</i> and Other Photographic Projects: The Portrayal of Women and Female Labor in Jacqueline Vodoz’s Photographs from the 1950s to the 1970s

Abstract This article analyzes the representation of women and female labor in postwar Italy through the lens of Jacqueline Vodoz, a photographer who remains relatively unexplored. By utilizing archival materials, the article aims to examine Vodoz’s work within two distinct contexts: the first pertains to Italian photojournalism of the 1950s, primarily focused on the city of Milan; the second centers on the theme of female labor, with particular attention to her famous series on the mondine of 1954. In the 1970s the photographer fully collaborated with the Rivolta Femminile group, founded in 1970 in Italy by Carla Lonzi, Elvira Banotti, and Carla Accardi. A new representation of women emerges from Vodoz’s images, one that diverges from traditional photographic canonization, emphasizing the importance of relational bonds formed in female activities.