During a discussion of how women are treated in traditionally male-dominated fields, paleobotanist Ellen Currano lamented to filmmaker Lexi Jamieson Marsh that, as the only young and female faculty member in her department, she was not taken seriously by her colleagues. If only she had the right amount of facial hair, she joked, maybe they would recognize her expertise. The next morning, she saw a message from Lexi saying: Let’s do this. Let’s get beards. That simple remark was the beginning of the Bearded Lady Project.
Challenging persistent gender biases in the sciences, the project puts the spotlight on underrepresented geoscientists in the field and in the lab. This book pairs portraits of the scientists after donning fake beards with personal essays in which they tell their stories. The beautiful photography by Kesley Vance and Draper White—shot with a vintage large-format camera and often in the field, in deserts, mountains, badlands, and mudflats—recalls the early days of paleontological expeditions more than a century ago. With just a simple prop, fake facial hair, the pictures dismantle the stereotype of the burly, bearded white man that has dominated ideas of field scientists for far too long. Using a healthy dose of humor, The Bearded Lady Project celebrates the achievements of the women who study the history of life on Earth, revealing the obstacles they’ve faced because of their gender as well as how they push back.
- Table of Contents
- Foreword, by Lexi Jamieson Marsh
- Part I: Why Challenge the Face of Science
- 1. “Pictures in Our Heads”: Challenging Stereotypes of Scientists and Science, by Amanda Diekman
- 2. What’s in a Name?, by Amy K. Guenther
- 3. Sex, Science, and Beards, by Kimberly A. Hamlin
- 4. What Is Paleontology?, by Ellen Currano
- 5. Spaces Paleontologists Inhabit, by Ellen Currano
- 6. The Lost Legacy, by Ellen Currano
- 7. The Power of Contradiction, by Catherine Badgley
- Part II: Women in Paleontology
- Stereotypes
- 8. “Fitting In”: Freedom in the Field, by Carole S. Hickman
- 9. A Female Paleontologist in the 1970s and 1980s, by Anna K. (“Kay”) Behrensmeyer
- 10. From Microfossils to Museums: Reflections on My Journey as an Earth Scientist, by Lisa White
- 11. Can You Be a Paleontologist Without a Ph.D.? (The Answer Is Yes) , by Ashley Hall
- 12. The Path Is Not Always Straight, by ReBecca Hunt-Foster
- 13. A Less Traveled and More Meandering Path, by Karen Chin
- Women
- 14. Definition: Woman, by Amy K. Guenther
- 15. The Moments When I Am Not a Woman, by Leslea J. Hlusko
- 16. My Love-Hate Relationship with Waders, by Andrea D. Hawkes
- 17. The Balancing Act, by Patricia H. Kelley
- 18. Being Brave, by Bonnie Jacobs
- Gender
- 19. Definition: Gender, by Amy K. Guenther
- 20. Just a Paleontologist, by Denise F. Su
- 21. Performing Gender in Paleontology, by Amy K. Guenther
- 22. Taking Off the Beard for Good, by Sara B. Pruss
- Part III: Behind the Lens
- 23. Behind the Lens: Filming a Documentary, by Lexi Jamieson Marsh
- 24. Being with Artists in the Field, by Ellen Currano
- 25. Creating Portraits for The Bearded Lady Project, by Kelsey Vance
- 26. Field Notes, by Lexi Jamieson Marsh
- Why Diversify Science
- Pledge for Equality in the Sciences
- Bibliography
- Acknowledgments
- The Photographers
- Portraits
- Marieke Dechesne
- Kristine Zellman
- Dr. Ellen Currano
- Dr. Carole S. Hickman
- Dr. Anna K. (“Kay”) Behrensmeyer
- Jenna Kaempfer
- Dr. Penny Higgins
- Dr. Lisa White
- Dr. Emily Orzechow and Dr. Caitlin Boas
- Tripti Bhattacharya
- Camilla Souto and Lucy Chang
Text
Audio
Adobe DRM
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