Dianora Niccolini

Dianora Niccolini (born October 1936, Florence, Italy) is a fine art photographer who is widely considered to be one of the female pioneers in the photography of the male nude. She was President of Professional Women Photographers (PWP) from 1979 until 1984.

Niccolini's work has had multiple gallery showings and has been published in many magazines and over twenty anthologies. In November 2014, Emory University's Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library (MARBL) in Atlanta, Georgia acquired Niccolini's photographs, artwork, and papers.^[1]

Biography

Although Niccolini's specialty was in photographing the male nude, this was a style relegated to homosexual circles and was considered taboo at the time. In 1975, however, the Third Eye Gallery in New York City gave Niccolini a solo exhibition. The exhibition was titled The Male Nude.^[2] This was the first gallery exhibit of male nudes by anyone, and is thought to have legitimized and de-stigmatized the male nude in the art community.^[3]

Niccolini went on to be the first president Professional Women Photographers, serving from 1979 to 1984.^[3] Under her leadership, Professional Women Photographers became recognized as a leading professional organization for women photographers.^[3]

In early 2005, Niccolini began working with Mega Muscle Productions, a publisher of images of male fitness models.^[4] In 2011, the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts in Tampa, Florida, mounted a solo exhibition of Niccolini's photography. The exhibition, "Celebration of the Body: The Works of Dianora Niccolini," ran from November 17, 2011 through January 8, 2012.

References

External links

• Official Dianora Niccolini website
• Professional Women Photographers
• Dianora Niccolini papers at the Stuart A. Rose Library, Emory University