Eye To Eye: Portraits of Lesbians

by Joan E. Biren

Audre Lorde states: "As we need to share our words for power, so also do we need to share the contours of our faces, and the visual shapes of our loving and of our lives. The splendid vitality captured within Eye to Eye makes this possible."

Genres: Lesbian, Nonfiction, Photography, LGBT, Queer, Art, History

72 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[J. Robin Whitley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gorgeous book. There are many ways it speaks to me. First, it reminds me that as a youth of the 70s, I wasn't as alone then as I thought. There simply were not enough pictures, art, books of us. Jeb also shows the beauty of black and white photography as a strong way to show a face and a body. Hard to articulate what I hoped to say there. In addition to also giving me comfort as an aging butch, seeing these beautiful women made me glad to be one of their tribe.

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pre-ordered this months ago and forgot all about it. It arrived today and i was stunned—the images and stories filled parts of my soul that i didn’t even realize were empty. Reprinted for the first time in 40 years, I hope JEB’s “Eye to Eye: Portraits of Lesbians” is spread far and wide to show the world that we have always been here and we aren’t going anywhere!

[Catarina Lobo · Rating 5 out of 5]

começando o ano bem com essa coletânea de fotos e ensaios feitas por uma lésbica militante no auge dos anos 70 e retratando a vida das lésbicas da época. é muito legal ver que ela tentou abarcar várias interseccionalidades no livro, e que todo esse imagético foi construído há mais de 50 anos atrás. tenho orgulho de fazer parte da comunidade e esse livro me lembra disso ✊🏻

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Years ago when we were a more hidden people, we used eye searching to find each other; we dared to look longer than we should and, through this brave journeying of our eyes, we found one another.

[s · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love lesbian history and lesbian history loves me

[zoe (˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧ ﾟ · Rating 4 out of 5]

women!

[Shoshanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful in so many ways. Know that there is nudity, but not in a prurient way. The words chosen to go with each photo are so striking. I'm inspired to find some of the books referenced in this. Like so many contemporary books of the past, it has in it trappings of that era. I love that all these books are published by Lesbian presses and that the spellings of "womon," "womyn," and "Lesbian" are used (though maybe you think I shouldn't love this).

I should look at more of her books of photos, but also, I should read some of those books referenced, especially the books of poetry! And assuming nothing is changed, I shall purchase the republished edition of this work as well!

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book, and love Jeb’s work. Phenomenal. Her photographs mean the world to me. The images still feel groundbreaking today (regardless of how many images we now get on social media!). It’s just really heartwarming and hopeful.

[Cécile. · Rating 5 out of 5]

still revolutionary so many years later, it is such an important part of lesbian culture and i feel so lucky to have discovered it

[Thijs Werkman · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 sterren voor dit prachtige stukje fotografie van lesbiennes. Een stuk geschiedenis met foto’s waar het woord trots zichtbaar.

[Charlie Summers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful depictions of lesbians in love. Very true to life.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/10. We have always been here.

[Beatriz Miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

eu amo tanto mulheres fogo... e ver à minha frente fotos de mulheres lésbicas nos anos 70, completamente à vontade, fortes, lindas, felizes e com muito amor deixou-me mesmo com o coração quentinho.

mulheres a namorar, solteiras, casadas, throuples, mulheres racializadas, com diversidade funcional, mulheres velhas, novas, mães e filhas, avós, nuas ou com as roupas mais gays de sempre. pelos, mamas, celulite. mulheres desportistas e mulheres caseiras, mulheres empreendedoras e mulheres agricultoras. enfim, mulheres. amo-vos

o detalhe de alterarem a linguagem para dar ênfase à mulher também é muito <3 (exemplos: womyn em vez de women, herstory em vez de history)

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intimate and full of life, with short quotes and a few longer essays from lesbians photographed in the 70’s. Lovely to see now, and I imagine incredibly validating and breathtaking when it came out. I appreciated the inclusion in photography and quotes of women from a variety of classes and races, something that isn’t always a guarantee.

[CharlieC · Rating 5 out of 5]

I smiled the whole way through. This work really makes you feel like lesbian joy is the ultimate revolution. Truly a testimony to the transformative capability of lesbianism.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love lesbians

[Erica Pettersson Juntti · Rating 5 out of 5]

”I couldn’t picture being a lesbian, life as a lesbian, because there were no lesbians living out lives to see.” otroligt rörd över att denna gavs ut första gången -79

[Dorthe Sofie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As beautiful and heartwarming as the pictures were, I couldn’t help but feel there was huge emphasis in the essays on lesbians being women rather than non-men, making it exclusionary :( especially as this was republished in 2021…

[Amélie · Rating 5 out of 5]

what a beautiful book, so simple and yet so effective in the way it shows you who you are

[Tay☆✿ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been wanting to get my hands on this book for so long and it’s even better than I was hoping it would be. An absolutely beautiful book that I am so glad to own <3

[Ambre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seeing lesbians is just what everyone needs. Just really look at them. Feel their lives, their power, their beauty. Enjoy the way they flee the male gaze and its definition of beauty. Anyways you need this book

[tegan · Rating 5 out of 5]

ohhhhh being a lesbian is the most special gift i’ve ever been given

[Janet Hildebrandt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book! It was originally published in 1979, so the photos (taken in 1978-9) took me back since that was the year I moved to NYC at the age of 22 to pursue dance. The hairstyles, glasses frames, comfort with body hair -- one forgets these details. Also loved the essay on lesbian photography at the beginning of the book, which introduced me to several photographers I hadn't know about, but whose work I found online and pored over for a long time.

[Ava · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received the reprint for my birthday by my lovely friend. This piece of work brought tears to my eyes. Such an intimate look into the simple, beautiful, complex, hard, devastating, hopeful and proud lives of lesbians. So often we go unnoticed, even in our own community, but to witness such a piece of history is something special. I will cherish this book forever.

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black and white photographs of women with quotes from some of them and poetry excerpts. Great! I really liked it. I wish this was twice as long at least!

[maddie good · Rating 5 out of 5]

read with Lila

[Morgan Heckerd]

gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous

[Jenny Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

So incredibly beautiful.

[kghgte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love lesbians!!

[Lu]

My beautiful ancestors 🤍