MARY ELLEN MARK | Ward 81 - first edition

First printing of the first softcover edition of Mary Ellen Mark’s seminal work. 85 intimate black & white photos transport you beyond the clinical confines of a psychiatric institution's walls and into the raw humanity that perseveres within. Mark's striking black-and-white portraits expose the torment, resilience and authentic individuality that battle beneath the surface of those cast to society's margins. Her compassionate and unflinching gaze strips away stigmas to reveal the essence of lives being endured rather than lived. A profound meditation on human perseverance that will leave you forever altered, Mark’s book pulls back the curtain on the dignity, despair and eternal search for connection that unite all souls, regardless of circumstances.

Inside pages are clean and crisp. Cover has moderate rubbing and edge wear. Cover also has a few light scratches and creases. Good ++ condition.

“In 1975, photographer Mary Ellen Mark was assigned by The Pennsylvania Gazette to produce a story on the making of Milos Forman's film of Ken Kesey's 1962 novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, shot on location at the Oregon State Hospital, a mental institution. While on set, Mark met the women of Ward 81, the only locked hospital security ward for women in the state: The inmates were considered dangerous to themselves or to others. In February of 1976, Mark and Karen Folger Jacobs, a writer and social scientist, were given permission to make a more extended stay, living on the ward in order to photograph and interview the women. They spent 36 days in Ward 81.” - from the prologue

Introduction by Milos Forman and 7 page narrative by Karen Folger Jacobs is followed by many photos and portraits of the women of Ward 81.

10.9 x 8 inches