ABSTRACT
In the early 1950s, three new groups of photographs of pregnancy came into being to serve specific persuasive, instrumental agendas: instructional photographs for expectant parents, advertisements for maternity clothing and public policy photographs. All these photographs had roots in the social changes of the 1930s and '40s. Instructional photographs were connected to interest in natural childbirth methods imported from Europe, advertisements to the nascent maternity clothing industry, and public policy photographs to major social programs. These photographs of pregnancy specifically addressed female viewers for the first time, bringing pregnant women into the public sphere as well as identifying them as consumers.
