Rosalie Thorne "Rollie" McKenna (November 15, 1918 – June 14, 2003) was an American photographer. Writers photographed by McKenna include Sylvia Plath,

Robert Frost Robert Lee Frost (March26, 1874January29, 1963) was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in the United States. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloq ...

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

, and Truman Capote. McKenna had a long-term friendship with John Malcolm Brinnin, who helped her come in contact with many of the people she photographed. In addition to portraiture, McKenna also had an interest in architecture, particularly the architecture of

Stonington, Connecticut The town of Stonington is located in New London County, Connecticut in the state's southeastern corner. It includes the borough of Stonington (borough), Connecticut, Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, Pawcatuck, Lords Point, and W ...

Early life and education

Rosalie Thorne was born to a wealthy family shortly after World War I in Houston, Texas. When she was three years old, her mother and father separated, and sent her to live with her grandparents in Mississippi. A portion of her childhood was spent growing up in the resort her grandparents Henry Brown and Mabel Marks Bacon owned, called The Inn by the Sea, where she encountered a wide of variety of individuals. Several years later, when Rollie was eleven, her mother came back into her life after being remarried and spent some time running the business with her family. Shortly after the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

started, the family's life altered greatly and, as a result, Rollie ended up being sent from relative to relative for years to come. She went on to pursue a degree at Vassar College in American history in 1938 and proceeded to earn a master's degree in art history in 1948. Between degrees, she took some time off and joined the U.S. Navy and, shortly after, married Henry Dickson McKenna in 1945. The couple divorced in 1950.

Career

McKenna's first literary portrait was of Truman Capote, in Florence in 1950. Included among her subjects were W. H. Auden,

T. S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National Biogr ...

, Edith Sitwell, Seamus Heaney, Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes, John Minton,

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an expatriate American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Fascism, fascist collaborator in Italy during World War II. His works ...

, Eleanor Roosevelt,

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

, the actor James Earl Jones and the United States poet laureate Richard Wilbur.

Exhibitions

From March 1 through March 13, 2001, McKenna's portraits including but not limited to: W. H. Auden,

, Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes and artists including Bill Brandt, Laura Gilpin, John Minton and

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi- abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. As well as sculpture, Moore produced ...

were displayed in the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

at St. Martin's Place in London, England. ''Rollie McKenna: Artists & Writers'', was McKenna's first European exhibition. An accompanying book featuring the portraits was also sold during the time of the exhibition. McKenna's work is also featured in the

at the

Smithsonian Museum The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

in Washington, D.C., United States. Her portrait of

Elizabeth Bishop Elizabeth Bishop (February 8, 1911 – October 6, 1979) was an American people, American poet and short-story writer. She was Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1949 to 1950, the Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry in 1956, the N ...

, a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

winning poet from Worcester, Massachusetts, was taken in 1951. In 2018, The

Stonington Historical Society The Stonington Historical Society is an organization in Stonington, Connecticut. It operates a museum at the historic Stonington Harbor Light and it operates the Capt. Nathaniel B. Palmer House, a U.S. National Historic Landmark. See also *Li ...

, created an exhibition in her honor. McKenna, who formerly lived and worked in the town, took many photos aside from her famous portraits. ''A Village Love Affair: A New Photography Exhibit & Publication Featuring Rollie McKenna's Images of Stonington'' displays her documentary-style black and white photography of people, places and events in the town. Along with the physical exhibition, the Stonington Historical Society also published a 100+ page book of her photographs titled, ''A Village Love Affair: Rollie McKenna's Stonington''. This book is a broad collection of the photography of small-town Connecticut, a place McKenna quietly lived and used to express her personal photographic creativity.

Later years and death

McKenna spent a majority of her life photographing a vast array of subjects well into the 1980s before settling down in Stonington, Connecticut. She spent the latter half of her life photographing Stonington, capturing the essence of the town and the people who lived there, along with the historical architecture that surrounded the area. She also published multiple books before her death, including a memoir titled ''A Life in Photography'' in 1991, and another about her close friend, the poet

, titled ''Portrait of Dylan: A Photographer's Memoir''. McKenna died in

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence and Leeds) was 29,571. Northampton is known as an acade ...

, on June 14, 2003, at the age of 84. In 2018, the

created an exhibit called "The Village Love Affair", which featured interviews with her, some work never seen before, and some of her past work that featured photographs of Stonington.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKenna, Rollie 1918 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American photographers Photographers from Texas Photographers from Connecticut Vassar College alumni 20th-century American women photographers Artists from Houston American portrait photographers People from Stonington, Connecticut 21st-century American women