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• 1 media/japanese_women_ironing.jpg 2020-11-13T09:18:51-08:00 “Ironing—From the washing room the Japanese women proceed to the ironing room which is right next to the washing room at Santa Anita Assembly Center,” January 14, 1943 5 The two Japanese women depicted in this photograph are not portrayed in their homeland; but rather, they are shown in an American internment camp. plain 2020-11-22T09:37:34-08:00
  This photograph connects closely to the context of the early photography of foreign entities. Though it was most common for foreign entities to be photographed within their native land during the late nineteenth century, the early twentieth opens a new window for them to be shown in photography and distributed through mass media. The two Japanese women depicted in this photograph are not portrayed in their homeland; but rather, they are shown in an American internment camp. James Ryan’s Picturing Empire connects the relationship of the photographing experience to the larger experiences of colonial conquest, but these subjects are separate from the traditional colonial environment. These women are expected to comply with efforts to limit their freedom while within a foreign land itself. Ryan’s theme of continued invasiveness through this style of photography proceeds one step further through the forcing of an unfamiliar location upon the subjects.
  
  Ryan recalls the objectification of several groups through photography. The depiction of indigenous individuals to suggest an “exotic fantasy” (as in Francis Galton’s portrayal of African women), and the classification of indigenous people into generalized types exemplifies the ethnic discrimination practiced by global powers. In this photograph, the process of assimilation is an additional obstruction to the customs of the subjects. The women are shown wearing dresses that reflect the American style of clothing while performing a domestic task often assigned to American women during the World War II period. The specific coupling of Japanese individuals with the American customs of dress and work creates a new “type,” which can be used for political intimidation and humiliation. Though the photograph does not focus on human pathology or sexualize the subjects through nudity or sensual posing, their depiction has its own set of ethnographic and social consequences. The two women are limited to regimented actions approved for Japanese prisoners and closely tied to the expectations of the American woman. They are symbolic of new attempts to mitigate both foreign political influences and cultural identities in America.