Getty Museum & Research Institute — What They Saw Reading Room

[8 April – 11 May 2025] This pop-up reading room surveys a global history of photobooks by women photographers from the Getty Library. As part of an international series showcasing the 10×10 Photobooks’ publication What They Saw: Historical Photobooks by Women 1843–1999, it offers an inclusive revision and remapping of the photobook canon. Curated in collaboration with Getty Research Institute Photography Curator Isotta Poggi, the reading room presents a diverse selection of 117 historical photobooks by women, complemented by 22 notable photobooks by Southern California women artists after 2000. https://www.getty.edu/exhibitions/what-they-saw/

[April 11 at 6-8pm PST] Celebrate the opening of the Getty Research Institute exhibition What They Saw: Historical Photobooks by Women, 1943–1999. Artists Catherine Opie and Melodie McDaniel will be joined by 10×10 Photobooks co-founder Russet Lederman and exhibition co-curator Isotta Poggi to explore photobook publication and how the process highlights themes of collaboration, storytelling, politics, identity, and resilience. https://www.getty.edu/calendar/photobooks-by-women/

The discussion will be followed by a reception and gallery viewings.

The conversation will be available on the Getty Research Institute YouTube channel following the event.

The What They Saw: Historical Photobooks by Women Reading Room is realized with supported from Richard Sun.