The Exhibits Committee at the Tryon Fine Arts Center is pleased to announce an exhibition of almost 100 original photographs by noted photographer Hansel Mieth from Dec. 5 through Jan. 16 in Gallery I. The opening reception will be on Friday, Dec. 11 from 5 to 7 p.m.

These original photographs were created by Mieth herself and were in the collection of noted Tryonite Ralph Erskine. The collection now belongs to his grandson, Christopher Bartol. All prints will be for sale, with part of the proceeds going to TFAC.

Mieth (1909-1998) was a German-born photojournalist who worked on the staff of LIFE Magazine. She was best known for her social commentary photography which recorded the lives of working class Americans in the 1930s and 1940s. Raised in a strict religious family, she ran away from home at the age of 15 and did factory work before immigrating to the United States in 1930 to join noted photographer Otto Hagel, whom she married in 1940.

The couple found themselves in the midst of the Great Depression and worked as migrant farm laborers in California for several years. After acquiring a second-hand Leica camera, they began to document the plight of their fellow farm workers. In 1937 Mieth joined the staff of LIFE, only the second woman photographer to do so, and moved to New York.

About that time, she was assigned to create a photo documentary of the Tryon Horse & Hound Show and BBQ entitled “LIFE Goes to a Party.” Not only did she record show events and participants from the area, including Tryon, Asheville and Greenville, but all the attendees at the show and BBQ, especially the farm owners over whose land the Tryon Riding & Hunt Club hunted. Thus, there are many wonderful photos of children and farm families and several images of the Mountain Band.

The exhibit and opening reception are free and open to the public. For more information visit tryonarts.org or call 828-859-8322 during business hours, Tuesday – Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. TFAC will be closed for the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27.

-Submitted by Julia Calhoun