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The nurse map - as the apron strings are untied and the paper nurse pulled out, a journey unfolds: through the deepening layers of research Margaret White the photographer is revealed as the time-worn nurse of her self portrait. -
Digital print on varying paper stocks un-extended 185mm across, 380mm in depth. Fully extended 520mm in length. -
Digital print on varying paper stocks including dress making pattern paper, butter paper and white and navy blue cotton fabric with interfacing. These sections were assembled with glue and hand stitched together. -
Mounted on a copy of an original catalogue back ground from White’s photographic studio, this pull-out map was made to the shape of White’s self portrait. -
Amelia Carter, as nurse. Explanation to follow, please continue reading.
My student brief for 2011 was to make a physical connection with my surroundings in building one of Unitec – built in 1865 and formerly known as the Avondale Mental Hospital. Looking back through the history of the building I found an interesting photograph of a nurse: what particularly interested me was her unusual time–worn body language, stare, and general manner, which did not seem to fit with the characteristics of the time.
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Margaret Matilda White (1868 - 1910), the nurse with the unusual body language. After some investigation this nurse was revealed as the photographer Margaret Matilda White. -
Group of female assistants, photograph by Margaret White. -
Group of female assistants, photograph by Margaret White. -
Nurses with Mr Hodson smoking, photograph by Margaret White. -
Nurses sitting in Victorian parlour, photograph by Margaret White.
After some investigation this nurse was revealed as the photographer Margaret Matilda White (this is a common belief not a proven fact). The photograph was, in fact, a self portrait taken in 1890 when White worked at the Hospital as a ward sister, this proved to be the driving inspiration for my work from 2011.
The self portrait of White is featured in Sandra Coney’s book “Standing in the Sunshine”. A book which tells the personal and celebratory stories of our strong New Zealand women. Fortunately, I didn’t know this until the end of my project or the photograph would not have had the same appeal and would not have held the same air of mystery and fascination for me.
White is most well known for the photographic portraits she took of her workmates while working at the Auckland Mental Hospital as a ward sister in the mid 1890s. White is a great example of a women of that time who contributed to the questioning of women’s roles, today she is increasingly seen as one of the important pioneering figures in the development of New Zealand photography. Auckland Museum has a large collection of White’s glass plates, donated by her son Albert Sherlock Reed in 1965.
Click here for the Margaret Matilda White Photography collection, Auckland Museum
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Margaret Matilda White dressed as Maori. -
Amelia Carter dressed as nurse. -
Amelia Carter dressed as nurse.
The above photograph of Margaret Matilda White dressed as a Maori inspired me to pursue a strategy of play through dressing up as means to explore the cultural, physical, historical, environment of Carrington Mental Hospital. The photograph seems to be about the relationship between a person and how they experience the environment they are in – and not just the physical space but also the culture at a given place and time. At the time of this photo, of White dressed as a Maori, the Irish born White was also photographing local Maori and clearly trying to better understand and connect with her environment.
It is redolent of Winnicott’s, ‘Playing and Reality’ theory “the place where cultural experience is located in the potential space between the individual and the environment (originally the object).” And Winnecott goes further – that the same can be said of playing: “cultural experience begins with creative living first manifested as play.” This last point that playing can be a cultural experience is one I continued to pursue in my future work (see July 2011 and the story of the ‘pioneer girl’)
I employed a similar strategy to White of make-believe when I made the historical costume of a Carrington Mental Hospital nurse, dressed my daughter Amelia up and took photos in various parts of the modern building. Locations were chosen that gave the photos a timeless historical mood and gave me a better insight and sense of connection with the building – past and present. The apron, head-dress, cuffs and collar were all designs based on historical photos from Margaret White’s time as a nurse. This was all sewn by myself, except for the blouse and skirt which were bought from a local op shop and helped complete an authentic look.
I would like to thank my Unitec tutors: Susan Jowsey and Nicholas Spratt.