Toni Frissell

Toni Frissell was born in New York City. After a brief apprenticeship under Cecil Beaton and with the encouragement of fashion editor Carmel Snow, Frissell was hired as a fashion photograph for VOGUE and Harper’s Bazaar in 1931. Her work was known for its images of active, athletic female models often posed in outdoor settings.
She followed her career in fashion by volunteering her services to the American Red Cross and later became the official photographer of the Women's Army Reserve, where her moving photographs were used to encourage public support for women and African Americans in the military. Some of these images were later published in LIFE Magazine.
Frissell became the first female staff photographer for Sports Illustrated magazine in 1953. She remained one of the few female sports photographers for several decades, and died in 1988.

Submitted by Staley-Wise Gallery