Mary Ellen Mark--Tiny: Streetwise Revisited

Lebanon Valley College’s newest exhibit in the Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery, Mary Ellen Mark—Tiny: Streetwise Revisited, provides a powerful education about one of the more complex sides of American life, as well as insight into the unique relationship that developed between artist and subject over 30 years.

Renowned photographer Mary Ellen Mark (1940–2015) began a project called Streetwise, which became a poignant document of a fiercely independent group of homeless and troubled youth who made their way on the streets of Seattle as pimps, prostitutes, panhandlers, and small-time drug dealers. Streetwise introduced several unforgettable children, including Tiny, who dreamed of a horse farm, diamonds and furs, and a baby of her own. 

Since meeting Tiny 30 years ago, Mark continued to photograph her, creating what became one of Mark’s most significant and long-term projects. Tiny: Streetwise Revisited incorporates the most powerful images from Streetwise, taking us from thirteen-year-old Tiny to the middle-aged mom of 10 we meet today. Exhibition texts and captions are drawn from conversations between Tiny and Mary Ellen Mark, as well as with Mark’s husband, filmmaker Martin Bell, who made the landmark film Streetwise, also included in the exhibition.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website

Whether or not you go, Mary Ellen Mark: Tiny, Streetwise Revisited is a significantly expanded iteration of the classic monograph. It presents the iconic work of the first edition along with Mark's moving and intimate body of work on Tiny, most of which is previously unpublished. Texts and captions are drawn from conversations between Tiny and Mary Ellen Mark as well as Mark's husband, the filmmaker Martin Bell, who made the landmark film, "Streetwise." "Tiny, Streetwise Revisited" provides a powerful education about one of the more complex sides of American life, as well as insight into the unique relationship sustained between artist and subject for over 30 years.Mary Ellen Mark (1940-2015) was a legendary American photographer known for her photojournalism and portraiture. Her work has been widely published and is included in public collections around the world. In 2014, Mark received the George Eastman House Lifetime Achievement in Photography Award.

Mary Ellen Mark: Tiny, Streetwise Revisited