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Sensitive, Liberated, Observant
Sensitive, Liberated, Observant
April 3, 2026
Ruth Orkin: Jinx and Justin on Scooter, Florence, Italy, 1951
Urban scenes, portraits, moments of everyday life: Ruth Orkin’s photographs are brimming with stories – of the economic upswing of post-war America, the outlook of a society on the rise, and of women who were forging new roles beyond housewife and mother. With a keen sense for movement, timing and composition, she created finely detailed images that conveyed her humorous yet thoughtful perspective of the world.
Ruth Orkin (1921–1985) started to take photographs at the age of ten. At seventeen, she crossed the United States with only her bicycle and a camera – travelling from her home in L.A. to see the 1939 World’s Fair in New York. The pictures she took along the way would culminate in her first major body of work. Orkin subsequently moved to New York in 1943. Two years later, the publication of one of her pictures in Star Magazine launched her career as a freelance photographer. In 1951, she was commissioned by Life Magazine to travel to Israel. She documented the young country and life on the kibbutz, before spending several months exploring Italy and several other European countries – later describing the trip as one of the richest experiences of her life.
The journey also gave rise to one of Orkin’s most famous images, American Girl in Italy. Shot in Florence in 1951, it depicts fellow solo traveller Jinx Allen (Ninalee Craig) striding past a cluster of men. Jinx became Orkin’s muse and model for a playful series on what it was like to travel alone as a young woman in the 1950s. The resulting photo essay was published a year later in Cosmopolitan Magazine, accompanied by tips for the female traveller.
Throughout her life and career, Ruth Orkin observed, reflected, and challenged society’s expectations. In an industry dominated by men, she created photographs that were modern, liberated, and perceptive commentaries on her time. The exhibition at the Photobastei Zurich was curated by Katharina Mouratidi of the f3 - Freiraum für Fotografie gallery in Berlin.
Katrin UllmannRuth Orkin (1921–1985) started to take photographs at the age of ten. At seventeen, she crossed the United States with only her bicycle and a camera – travelling from her home in L.A. to see the 1939 World’s Fair in New York. The pictures she took along the way would culminate in her first major body of work. Orkin subsequently moved to New York in 1943. Two years later, the publication of one of her pictures in Star Magazine launched her career as a freelance photographer. In 1951, she was commissioned by Life Magazine to travel to Israel. She documented the young country and life on the kibbutz, before spending several months exploring Italy and several other European countries – later describing the trip as one of the richest experiences of her life.
The journey also gave rise to one of Orkin’s most famous images, American Girl in Italy. Shot in Florence in 1951, it depicts fellow solo traveller Jinx Allen (Ninalee Craig) striding past a cluster of men. Jinx became Orkin’s muse and model for a playful series on what it was like to travel alone as a young woman in the 1950s. The resulting photo essay was published a year later in Cosmopolitan Magazine, accompanied by tips for the female traveller.
Throughout her life and career, Ruth Orkin observed, reflected, and challenged society’s expectations. In an industry dominated by men, she created photographs that were modern, liberated, and perceptive commentaries on her time. The exhibition at the Photobastei Zurich was curated by Katharina Mouratidi of the f3 - Freiraum für Fotografie gallery in Berlin.
Ruth Orkin: Jinx and Justin on Scooter, Florence, Italy, 1951
Ruth Orkin: American Girl in Italy, Florence, Italy, 1951
Ruth Orkin: Geraldine Dent, Cover of McCall’s, New York City, 1949
Ruth Orkin: Boy Jumping into Hudson River, Gansevoort Pier, New York City, 1948
Ruth Orkin: Central Park South Silhouette, New York City, 1955