Frances Benjamin Johnston is another photographer that helped in the process of paving the way for queer artists like Alice Austen. Her work is some of the earliest to show cross-dressing women and document the lives of women doing what is seen as culturally appropriate. I really value her work because it is quite possible that without her view of the world and the women around her, other photographers would have never "come out of the closet" so-to-speak. Aside from what she has done for future artists, her work alone is stunning. Her portraits of women show a different side that I don't think many ever saw in her time. Photos of women dressed in men's clothing and the documentation of working women wasn't exactly what people expected at that time - or now for that matter. I definitely plan to keep an eye out for her work and continue to draw inspiration from her photography.
