Diane Arbus was a photographer who was active during the mid 50s and 60s, who usually shot black and white portraits. She celebrated unique people, such as female impersonators, twins and circus people, as she saw a reflection of herself in them. All of them were anomalies, on the fringe of society, yet their presence here in New York during that time was so prevalent, they refused to be unheard.

Trapped in the confines of her past and her current state, she only ever said one thing before she moved from the fashion-photography enterprise that she and her husband founded to becoming a flaneur, “I can’t take this anymore.”

There is a running theme throughout all her photos, children and entertainment and they capture a specific time in New York, post World War 2. Somehow even only through portraits, she is able to capture the era very well in a stripped, and raw perspective, giving the viewer a different angle to look at. Female Impersonators were typically shot backstage in between performances, with their makeup and eyelashes on, and the feather boa slung across the door, ready to be taken out onto the stage.

Her style of photography is also unique because of the way she approaches the subject. Her career in fashion photography and photo journalism gave her a head start in taking these photos, which were usually completely front facing to the people on the other side of the lens. The way that she took them made it look very confrontational, and the way that she diverges herself from these people has always been something that has been discussed amongst many people.

“A photograph is a secret of a secret. The more it tells, the less you know.”

Most of the photos that she takes have stony-faced glares staring straight into the lens, daring Arbus to continue taking the photo of them, but her nature was to stare straight back, and to continue whatever she was doing. Perhaps she believed that getting the perfect photo was more important than humility.