A Modern Hair Study Format: Hardcover

In 2011, during a visit to Paris' Bibliothèque nationale, Tara Bogart saw the photograph Marie Laurent (1865) by Nadar and was immediately intrigued. The photograph, taken from behind, was of a young woman whose hair was held up by an ornate clip. Five months later, she began the series that became A Modern Hair Study. Photographer's statement: "While certain ideals are often relevant to different generations, the ways in which women adorn and modify themselves often indicate the struggles of a young adult with their own ideology and individuality. After photographing these young women, I can imagine these struggles are timeless."

Tara Bogart has exhibited at Elizabeth Houston Gallery, Hous Projects, Aperture, New York, Catherine Edelman Gallery, Chicago, and other venues. Her work is in the J. Crew Art Collection, collection of the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, among others.

Héloïse Conesa (born in 1983) is curator for contemporary photography at the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

Caroline Weber is author and Professor of Eighteenth Century French literature and cultural history at Columbia University’s Barnard College, NY.