‘Silent, Defenceless Images’: Constrained Bodies in the Photographs of Madame d’Ora
Presentation Type
Event
Start Date
8-3-2026 10:18 PM
Description
This paper examines how Madame d’Ora’s photography confronts the ethical implications of photography’s often‑cited “silence and immobility.” Born Dora Kallmus in Vienna, d’Ora built a career photographing European high society before World War II., later turning her lens toward displaced persons camps and slaughterhouses. Drawing on her lived experiences of gendered and religious constraints, the paper analyses a 1922 portrait of dancer Anita Berber and a 1948 photograph of an elderly woman in a displaced persons camp to explore recurring strategies for representing constrained bodies. Comparing these images reveals compositional choices that evoke claustrophobia and vulnerability while raising questions about transforming subjects into “silent, defenceless images.” The talk probes the tension between this susceptibility and d’Ora’s empathetic engagement with marginalized sitters.
Nicole Entin is the 2025–26 Curatorial Graduate Intern in the J. Paul Getty Museum’s Department of Photographs. She holds an MSt in History of Art and Visual Culture from the University of Oxford, and an MA in Art History and English from the University of St. Andrews, where she received the Principal’s Medal. Her research focuses on late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century photography, especially women makers and intersections between literature and visual art.
Relational Format
Conference proceeding
Recommended Citation
Entin, Nicole, "‘Silent, Defenceless Images’: Constrained Bodies in the Photographs of Madame d’Ora" (2026). Women of Photography: A 24-Hour Conference-a-thon Celebrating International Women’s Day. 54.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/womenofphotography/2026/schedule/54
‘Silent, Defenceless Images’: Constrained Bodies in the Photographs of Madame d’Ora
This paper examines how Madame d’Ora’s photography confronts the ethical implications of photography’s often‑cited “silence and immobility.” Born Dora Kallmus in Vienna, d’Ora built a career photographing European high society before World War II., later turning her lens toward displaced persons camps and slaughterhouses. Drawing on her lived experiences of gendered and religious constraints, the paper analyses a 1922 portrait of dancer Anita Berber and a 1948 photograph of an elderly woman in a displaced persons camp to explore recurring strategies for representing constrained bodies. Comparing these images reveals compositional choices that evoke claustrophobia and vulnerability while raising questions about transforming subjects into “silent, defenceless images.” The talk probes the tension between this susceptibility and d’Ora’s empathetic engagement with marginalized sitters.
Nicole Entin is the 2025–26 Curatorial Graduate Intern in the J. Paul Getty Museum’s Department of Photographs. She holds an MSt in History of Art and Visual Culture from the University of Oxford, and an MA in Art History and English from the University of St. Andrews, where she received the Principal’s Medal. Her research focuses on late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century photography, especially women makers and intersections between literature and visual art.