Virtual discussion and exhibition tour with Mariette Pathy Allen and Elaine Huang, moderated by Allen Frame on March 25th, 2021, regarding Mariette Pathy Allen’s exhibition “Transformations” at ClampArt from February 25th to April 10th.

Mariette Pathy Allen received an Honorable Mention in the Portrait Series category of the Julia Margaret Cameron Awards for three photographs from her series “Transcendents: Spirit Mediums in Burma and Thailand.” 

The 14th edition of the Julia Margaret Cameron Award was juried by Elizabeth Avedon, Rebecca Robertson, and Analy Werbin. A total of 805 photographers from 67 countries have submitted 6,240 photographs for consideration of the pre-selection team of the Worldwide Photography Gala Awards, and the final selection of the jurors.The selected photographs will be included in an exhibition at FotoNostrum in Barcelona from March 4 – March 28, 2020.

For more information, visit The Photography Gala Awards website.

(Link to article HERE)

(Link to article HERE)

‘Her archive consists of thousands of photographs, interview transcripts
and materials related to a career dedicated to supporting and
documenting trans and gender-variant communities. In the exhibition,
curated by Lissa Rivera, the main focus is on work created from the
late-‘70s to the mid-2000s.’

-Zoe Sinclair

(link to article HERE)

Rites of Passage 1978-2006, on display at The Museum of Sex, exhibits Pathy Allen’s photography and
ephermera over this span, revealing all that has changed and all that tragically remains the same. Central to Pathy Allen’s work however, lie certain imperatives—resistance via collectivity, visibility, and resilience.

-Clara Malley

Opening for “Rites of Passage” Exhibition, on display at the Museum of Sex from March 28 - September 8

The selection largely highlights a time before the internet, when often hard-to-find newsletters and magazines were essential lifelines, and protests and in-person conferences were one of the few safe spaces to be ‘out.’ On display, you’ll find a record of Pathy Allen’s process before digital photography: darkroom work prints, photographs from color slides, hand-written notes, DIY programs for events—all records of a time far more limited, yet extremely passionate in the hope for a more equal future.

Four decades of photos show American trans communities living and loving

“There are many markers that make Pathy Allen’s pre-internet era ephemera a powerful historical source for the progression of gender equality. Her close ties to her subjects affirms their authentic representation, while her pledge to photographing them in mundane settings (simply living life) illuminates the humanism at the heart of the battle at a time when these communities were largely stripped of their humanity.”

-Lexi Manatakis

25 Scenes Spanning 40 Years of Trans* History by Mariette Pathy Allen

“It is clear that Pathy Allen has been there for her subjects on a deeply emotional level, as they have been there for her. A great many of the individuals she photographed became as close as family.”

-Christopher Harrity

Mariette Pathy Allen Photographs Identity into Visibility at the Museum of Sex

“When you look at Mariette Pathy Allen’s photographs, what really stands out is the texture of her work,” exhibition curator Lissa Rivera explains to CR. “The care she feels and the depth of the relationships she has with her subjects is evident in the personal feel of her images.”

-Jennifer Sauer

Recent article “Beyond the Binary” in March 2019 issue of The Pennsylvania Gazette featuring an interview and selected photographs

Photography on a Postcard (POAP) is back for its second year as the official charity partner of Photo London. POAP presents a unique chance to own a signed mini masterpiece by a well-known photographer. We aim to democratise the Photo London experience by placing all the photographers on a level playing field and starting off the bidding at the same price. Each 10 x 15cm work will be up for anonymous auction with photographers’ names revealed the day after the auction ends meaning the buyers will be in for some happy surprises. 100% proceeds donated to The Hepatitis C Trust to help them in their aim to eliminate hepatitis C in the UK by 2025. Auction runs 8th - 22nd May 2019 on Paddle8. Info on how to register to bid coming soon.

“Toby at the End of the Day” (1978) included in recent Aperture Exhibition, on display at the Aperture Foundation Gallery from February 14 to April 18.

Recent feature in C☆NDY Magazine, 12th Issue:

“Mariette has been photographing the transgender community for 40 years, and indeed, her portraits are perhaps the most heart-warming we’ve ever seen. There’s so much beauty and kindness and respect in them, and yet they feel so very raw and honest. Through her artistic practice, Mariette has been a pioneering force in the spread of gender consciousness, contributing to many very important cultural and academic publications and lecturing around the world.”

-Luis Venegas

Recent article detailing the impact of “Transformations” and “The Gender Frontier,” in conjunction with the inclusion of these projects on Getty Image’s online archive. Click to read the full article on Getty Images: FOTO.

Recent review of “Transcendents: Spirit Mediums in Burma and Thailand” published in Zeke Magazine Spring 2018 issue. Digital version of review available online here: ZEKE Digital Edition Spring 2018

4/12/18: How Spirit Mediums Blur Gender Lines in Southeast Asia

From April 12 to April 15, I had the opportunity to take over The Photographers’ Gallery Instagram page, sharing images from my archive as well as writings on past bodies of work. I chose to highlight selections from my “Transformations; Crossdressers and Those who Love Them” and “The Gender Frontier” books, as well as images of activists such as Sylvia Rivera and Vicky West.

TRANSCENDENTS: SPIRIT MEDIUMS IN BURMA AND THAILAND

Available on Amazon and other book stores

Photographs by Mariette Pathy Allen
Essay by Eli Coleman, PhD
Preface by Zackary Drucker

DAYLIGHT BOOKS / NOVEMBER 14, 2017

“As a westerner, I will never understand or experience the mystery,
or the spirituality of mediums, or how they know things that I can never
know. They are otherworldly when possessed, impenetrable,
transgressive. I search for their spirits through my camera lens. I
watch and learn, and suspend disbelief.”

– Mariette Pathy Allen

Aperture Magazine
#229, Winter 2017

Available Now on Aperture

Future Gender
The Winter edition of Aperture magazine is a landmark issue

dedicated to the representation of transgender lives, communities, and

histories in photography. Guest edited by Zackary Drucker, the artist,

activist, and producer of the acclaimed television series Transparent,

“Future Gender” considers how trans and gender-nonconforming

individuals have used photography to imagine new expressions of social

and personal identity, from the nineteenth century to today.

12 x 9 1/4
inches
144 pages
978-1-59711-421-9

12/25/17: Christmas feature on Hyperallergic

Transcendents: Spirit Mediums in Thailand and Burma features photographs by Mariette Pathy Allen of the gender variance of participants in spirit cults.

By Allison Meier

11/12/2017: Celebrating Gender Variance In Burma’s Spirit Cults

A photographer sheds light into the anthropological and sexological perspective of spirit cults in Burma and Thailand.

by Kelly Caminero