The photographer Marianne Bernstein ’74 reveals four decades spent capturing decisive moments in Theatre of the Everyday. 

Throughout her life, Marianne Bernstein ’74 has had a knack for peering into difficult places. Sometimes it’s an emotionally charged space; sometimes it’s more literal, like a dangerous neighborhood abroad. But it is always an arena where she wants to learn. This motif of entering difficult places permeates her photography.

After graduating from college—first at Vassar and then at the University of Michigan—with a degree in English and film, Bernstein worked at a commercial film production company and did some freelance film work, including advertising campaigns with the legendary Maysles Brothers, before committing fully to photography. She started as an assistant to John E. Barrett, who was famous for his work with Jim Henson and photographing the Muppets. There, she earned her chops in commercial work and portraiture as well as a facility with 8x10 cameras, 4x5 cameras, and the renowned Hasselblad, known for its exceptional image quality.

After discovering her own voice and style, Bernstein began to exhibit her work and teach photography to others along the way. Her photographs have been exhibited nationally, and her earlier book, Tatted, focused on Philadelphia’s tattoo culture, was published in 2009. She was a 2011 finalist for the Pew Fellowship in the Arts and was awarded a 2013 Independence Foundation in the Arts Fellowship. Her latest book is Theatre of the Everyday (studio FM milano, 2024), a retrospective of Bernstein’s four decades behind the camera. 

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ON SIDWELL FRIENDS:

I fell in love with photography as a young girl. My parents visited Montreal in the 1960s and brought me back a World’s Fair brownie camera, which I wish I still had. Growing up, I was constantly taking photographs, mostly of my family. For my senior project at Sidwell Friends, I created a photo-based slideshow with music. We had a memorable class and surprised everyone by camping out overnight on the front lawn. Many photos came from that adventure, as well as from a party at my farm. I’ve been photographing ever since.

ON CREATING HER BOOK:

The book spans 40 years of my life. I wasn’t sure initially how to connect so many personal and professional images in a way that made sense. But I finally realized, everything connected because it’s my life’s trajectory. That’s why it doesn’t matter that the images jump around in time and space. The juxtapositions are meant to create a new reality, not in a linear way, but emotionally.

ON THE TITLE:

Theater is a mirror. It allows us to both see and transcend ourselves in our everyday life. We each have a diverse cast of characters who live in our psyche. The wounded inner child, the hopeless romantic, the bold creator, the fierce fighter, the grounded adult. Our emotions and narratives inform our reality. In a way, every photograph is a self-portrait, a reflection of who we are at a given moment, what catches our attention; an attempt to understand ourselves in relation to the world. By paying attention to the present moment, we become more connected to our agency and possibility. Connecting to our senses reminds us that we are a part of the larger landscape. When we drink in life slowly, the magic all around us intensifies.Every photograph is a self-portrait.

ON THE TRANSITION TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY:

For years, I lugged heavy cameras around and sometimes they got in the way of creating images. Especially for spontaneous street photography. It was a relief to transition to digital, and I’m happy that everyone now has easy access to photography with their iPhones. The difference between an artist and an ordinary user, however, is that there is a distinction between snapshots and a photograph with resonance. One can gradually understand how to compose, to look at light, to know when to take out your camera—and when not to. Eventually, the camera becomes a natural extension of oneself.

When I taught photography, on the first day of class we always gathered around a large table with pages of Aperture Magazine strewn about. Everyone was asked to choose four images and to share why they liked them. This was a way to talk about technique in general, but mostly to allow them to question why they responded to certain photos. Throughout the semester, I encouraged each student to think about what places, people, or situations in their lives had resonance for them; also to be playful, experiment, to photograph in various types of weather and different vantage points. On the last day, we’d discuss 10 of their favorite prints to help them notice repeated patterns of specific shapes, colors, hue. They began to recognize that each possessed a personal oeuvre, worth exploring. Even with different subject matter, their images made sense when viewed together.

I also tried to get students to understand composition. Scrolling on Instagram, we often don’t see photographs composed thoughtfully or artfully, taken at an interesting angle or in interesting light. But that’s easily learned. I like to encourage people to think about everyday moments in their life, to not take them for granted, to cherish them. It’s very empowering to notice little things, even the grapefruit you’re eating for breakfast. To slow down and observe carefully. It’s a creative process open to everyone.

ON HER EYES:

One of the reasons for creating this book was that I’ve had some eye trouble. The vitreous lining in my right retina pulled away, a tear that required laser surgery. If the retina had detached, I could have gone blind. A year later, the same thing happened to my left eye. The truth of the matter is that I had a real emergency with my eyes, and as a visual person, I no longer took my sight for granted. It became essential for me to acknowledge and be grateful for the fact that, for all those years, I had eyes to see. There’s the theater of the everyday, and there’s also the theater of the mind. Probably if you go blind, your life is still theater because your mind is so theatrical. It’s all theater.

ON THE NEXT GENERATION:

Students sometimes say to me: “I wish I could become an artist but my parents want me to have a real job.” You know what? The world needs you. There are so many ways to be creative, not just in the arts. Mostly it’s thinking outside the box, finding our way in the world, doing what we love, and trusting our intuition.

Many people are afraid of leaping into the unknown. That they will fall short. This idea of failure—what is that? It’s nothing. It is a fallacy if you’re giving your best. Sometimes you have to dig down under the surface and hibernate for a while before you can come back up and do something brave.

I hope this book encourages people to embrace the fullness of their life, its suffering and its joy. To dive underneath surface appearances and connect with people and places in meaningful ways. To tell their story.

Time is such a strange phenomenon. When I’m dying and my life flashes before my eyes: What will I recall? It feels good to pay attention. I photographed moments because they called to me, and some of them may be the last images I remember.

Buy Theatre of the Everyday here.

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Photos by Marianne Bernstein ’74