Photographers

Photographer

Susan B. Anthony

Biography

Susan B. Anthony (born 1940 in Brooklyn, New York) is an acclaimed contemporary American fine-art photographer, painter, and educator celebrated for her intimate, long-form documentary essays focusing on industrial communities and architectural decay. Raised in New York City, Anthony pursued a comprehensive multidisciplinary arts education, graduating from the Cooper Union School of Art before completing a Bachelor of Arts at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Fine Arts and Art Therapy from New York University. For several decades, she maintained a dedicated career as a painter, printmaker, and art educator within public schools, while also working within major art publications like Art in America and ARTnews. Her creative path shifted profoundly when she inherited a vintage Hasselblad camera, recognizing the mechanical eye as the perfect medium to expand her interest in geometric composition, texture, and urban archaeology.

Anthony achieved significant critical and institutional acclaim with her monumental decade-long visual survey tracking the socioeconomic landscape of upstate New York, culminating in her landmark debut monograph, Collar City: A Photographic Portrait of Troy, New York. Moving between Manhattan and her secondary home in Columbia County, she embedded her lens within the historic city of Troy, once a thriving nineteenth-century center for iron, brick, and shirt collar manufacturing. Utilizing her traditional Hasselblad film setup alongside sharp Canon digital frameworks, her photographs systematically capture the stark contrasts of the post-industrial town, juxtaposing graffiti-covered, decaying factory facades with grand 19th-century mansions featuring colorful Tiffany glass windows. Bypassing commercial and detached journalistic tropes, her environmental views and candid street portraits serve as an empathetic, humanistic tribute to the residents who preserve and restore the community against a backdrop of industrial decline.

Operating across portrait critique, visual ethnography, and material sociology, Anthony has consistently brought her local documentations to prominent metropolitan art audiences. Her continuous artistic practice extended into the mid-2020s through successive standalone features and print exhibitions. Her prolific Troy series has been showcased across high-profile regional galleries and alternative institutions, including solo exhibitions at the Sanctuary for Independent Media, mass exhibitions at Collar Works Gallery, and competitive prize selections at the Baxter Street Gallery and Station Independent Project. Her master vintage color and silver-gelatin prints are highly sought after by regional collectors and historical registries documenting the physical erosion, architecture, and changing identities of the American municipal landscape.

Photobook Library editorial summary · AI-assisted Independent summary

Photobooks

1 photobooks

Career timeline

11
  1. 2013–2023

    Series

    Start of the Troy / "Collar City" Photographic Series

    Anthony first visited Troy, New York in 2013 and returned regularly over the following decade with a Hasselblad camera, forming the long-term photographic series about the city later titled "Collar City."

    Source: Susan B. Anthony Photography Verified Sep 13, 2026

  2. 2017

    Exhibition

    ‘What Is That Leaping in Your Chest?’ at Collarworks

    Anthony exhibited eight photographs from the Troy Project in the group exhibition “What Is That Leaping in Your Chest?” at Collar Works in Troy. It is an early public presentation of the project and establishes its circulation before the later solo shows. The Times Union is a major regional newspaper, and its contemporaneous exhibition review identifies Anthony, the works, venue, and exhibition context.

    Source: Times Union Verified Sep 13, 2026

  3. 2018

    Exhibition

    Fourth Annual Group Show catalogue

    Davis Orton Gallery included Anthony’s Troy Project image “Xenia with Orchids” in its fourth annual group-show catalogue. This represents commercial-gallery exposure for the developing body of work. The gallery’s own exhibition catalogue is authoritative institutional documentation and supplies the artist, portfolio, medium, edition, and work details.

    Source: Davis Orton Gallery Verified Sep 13, 2026

  4. July 2 – August 29, 2020

    Exhibition

    "TROY" — Solo Exhibition at Slag Gallery, New York

    Slag Gallery in New York presented Susan B. Anthony's solo photography exhibition "TROY" from July 2 to August 29, 2020, drawn from her multi-year photographic project about Troy, New York.

    Source: SLAG&RX Verified Sep 13, 2026

  5. December 2, 2023 – January 13, 2024

    Exhibition

    "Rural America" — Solo Exhibition, Rue des Quatre Fils, Paris

    SLAG&RX presented Susan Anthony's solo exhibition "Rural America" at its Paris venue on Rue des Quatre Fils from December 2, 2023 to January 13, 2024, with photographs of upstate New York's rural communities.

    Source: SLAG&RX Verified Sep 13, 2026

  6. 2025

    Award

    Finalist, AAP Magazine Portrait 2025 Photography Contest

    Susan B. Anthony was named a finalist in the AAP Magazine Portrait 2025 photography contest organized by All About Photo.

    Source: All About Photo Verified Sep 13, 2026

  7. 2025

    Award

    IPA 2025 E-book

    “Collar City: A Portrait of Troy, New York” received second place in the International Photography Awards’ Analog/Film, Portrait category. It is a significant external award for the project and specifically recognizes Anthony’s analog portrait work. The International Photography Awards’ own 2025 publication is the award body’s primary record.

    Source: International Photography Awards Verified Sep 13, 2026

  8. September 1–30, 2025

    Exhibition

    "Rural Life in the Hudson Valley" — Online Solo Exhibition

    All About Photo presented the online solo exhibition "Rural Life in the Hudson Valley" by Susan Anthony from September 1 to September 30, 2025, after selecting her as winner of its September 2025 Solo Exhibition competition.

    Source: All About Photo Verified Sep 13, 2026

  9. July 1–30, 2025

    Exhibition

    "The Contemporary Portrait" Virtual Exhibition

    Anthony's photograph "Chef at Ale House" was selected by juror Aline Smithson for the SE Center for Photography's virtual exhibition "The Contemporary Portrait," on view from July 1 to July 30, 2025.

    Source: SE Center for Photography / Susan B. Anthony Photography Verified Sep 13, 2026

  10. November 18, 2025

    Photobook

    Monograph "Collar City" Published by MW Editions

    Anthony's monograph "Collar City," gathering a decade of photographs made in Troy, New York, was released by MW Editions on November 18, 2025.

    Source: Susan B. Anthony Photography Verified Sep 13, 2026

  11. 2026

    Exhibition

    Book Signing at SLAG & RX

    A selection of photographs from “Collar City” was placed on view at SLAG & RX in New York in conjunction with Anthony’s March 14, 2026 book signing. This shows the monograph’s transition into renewed gallery display and sales presentation. The artist’s official news page supplies the exhibition context, venue, and exact event date.

    Source: Susan B. Anthony Photography Verified Sep 13, 2026

Continue exploring

Based on shared publishers in this library—not a popularity ranking.

COMMUNITY DISCUSSION

Discuss this entry

Share interpretations, reading notes, and source-aware questions. For catalog corrections, use the feedback form below.

My discussions

No discussion yet. Start the first focused conversation.

Sign in to join the discussion.

Follow Susan B. Anthony

Optionally receive a digest when related photobooks are added to the catalog.

Sign in to follow