To Be by Lois Conner

At the age of 17, Lois Conner was given an opportunity by her older sister, Susan, to photograph her. Lois was struck by the vivid display of veins and capillaries that traced Susan's pregnant form, detailing her arms, abdomen, and breasts in such a way that the growing child seemed almost visible beneath her pale skin.

As the millennium turned, Lois found herself surrounded by pregnant women—colleagues, family members, and friends. This prevalence sparked a compelling urge to capture their images, possibly driven by the fleeting nature of pregnancy, which typically spans only around nine months. The desire to photograph these women before childbirth paralleled other ephemeral moments she wished to capture, such as the last moments of a loved one's life or the fleeting light of day, all of which are expressions of the vital life force.

Drawing inspiration from altar paintings of the Italian Renaissance, Lois employed a 7”x17” panoramic camera for standing portraits. Recognizing some subjects' difficulties with balancing, she also created horizontal compositions, reminiscent of the recumbent poses found in Francisco de Goya’s "Naked Maja," Edouard Manet’s "Olympia," and André Kertész’s "Satiric Dancer." She amassed a collection of paintings, drawings, and photographs for inspiration, encouraging subjects to interpret their own gestures or contrapposto stances. The collaborative process involved in these sessions was deliberate and intimate, involving rearranging furniture and props within home studios or outdoor landscapes, sometimes joined by partners, dogs, or cats.

Lois mentions the Venus of Willendorf, the oldest known depiction of pregnancy, dating back to around 25,000 BC and discovered in Austria in 1908. This limestone figurine, notable for its pendulous breasts and fertile hips, resonated deeply with her.

In these portraits, Lois observes not only the physical transformations associated with pregnancy but also the spiritual essence of the Venus figure, embodying fertility, hope, and the continuous cycle of life. These images became a medium through which she explored and expressed the profound themes of fertility, fecundity, hope, birth, precarity, and the passage of time.