Unfiltered Life:

The Photography of Peggy Nolan on Display Through April 17th at The Do Good Fund –

We live in a world which can seem inundated with artificial representations of so-called life. Filters and edited photos have become the norm, often leaving people uncertain about what is real and what is fiction.

The photography of Peggy Nolan is, refreshingly, the opposite. Vulnerable and unapologetic, her images capture life in the middle of being lived. Un-posed, unfiltered, askew with remnants of the moment’s activity, Peggy’s photos remind us that life happens in the spaces between the milestones, and that time flows whether we notice or not. Peggy notices, and her noticing inspires us to stop and take a closer look.

A mother to seven, Peggy was handed a camera in her late 40s by her father, who suggested she take some photos of his grandkids. Peggy’s dreams of writing had been put on hold when she got married and became a mother, so she embraced the opportunity to explore a new hobby. Peggy quickly found that she had a natural eye for photography. She remembers one of the first photos she shot; her daughter was climbing in a tree, and Peggy had an instinct to leave the branches and leaves in the shot. When she developed the photo, Peggy realized her instincts had been right, and was happy with the results.

While raising seven kids in subsidized housing, Peggy found that the chaos of everyday life offered plenty of material for her photography. Originally Peggy shot with color film, which she admits she shoplifted because she couldn’t afford it. When she moved to black and white, it was because the film was more affordable.

She recalls turning her laundry room into a dark room and learning as she went, experimenting with exposure time and chemicals. “I was a total amateur,” she says, “But I had a desire to see the pictures.” A friend began helping Peggy learn to develop her own photos, and she eventually started taking classes at a college so she could utilize the dark room. She sat in on classes at Florida International University and got a job with the college changing chemicals in the dark room for pay. “At the end I had two degrees plus a lab manager job, and I taught classes every semester. I was in Heaven,” Peggy recalls.

Peggy has printed all of her photos herself since the beginning, and enjoys the process of seeing her images slowly come into view in the dark room. “The thing about film is, it’s a mystery. You have to trust your instincts,” she says. She’s currently printing old film she found from years ago, and has had fun discovering surprises in the photos that she didn’t notice when she took the shot. “I really am enjoying looking backwards,” Peggy says.

“I photographed everything,” Peggy remembers. “A picture is a formal description of something with a lot of complexity. All the details tell the story. The key is: don’t think too hard, shoot all the time.”

With camera in hand, Peggy juggled life, and the result is a memoir of images that remind us of the importance of noticing. The morning sun filtering through curtains, an angsty teenager on an afternoon car ride, somersaults in the front yard – seemingly mundane moments hit us when we look back on them and realize how all of those little pieces compile the whole of life.

Peggy recognizes that what started as a hobby has turned into important work. Her photos are relatable and lend a thread of humanity to quietly unite us all, and her work shows how a family can look and feel. “It’s important to witness your family life,” Peggy says. “If you relax and stop making pictures you’ve already seen, you’re going to learn something from the pictures you take. And if you use your instincts, your picture is going to describe how it feels rather than how it looks.”

The photos can be disarming: the viewer sees a glimpse of herself in the work, and feels safe enough to look closer. Seeing dishes piled on the counter, unmade beds, and piles of unfolded laundry lets us exhale and reminds us that real life is messy, un-posed, and unfiltered.

Peggy recalls a conversation with her son who saw a group of teenagers looking through her book at a store and told his mom about it. “The fact that they could relate makes me so happy,” she recalls. In a world of AI art and filters, the palpability of Peggy’s unapologetic images feels like a breath of fresh air.

Peggy’s photo book, “Juggling is Easy,” was published in 2023, and sold out so fast that she wasn’t able to make it to some of her scheduled book fairs. “It was a really great experience to print those photos and see them again,” she recalls. “That’s the best way to look at photos – in a book. Because then you’re reading them like a story.” Her book release has led to a rediscovery of her work and has opened up opportunities for it to be showcased around the world. Articles featuring Peggy’s story and her work have been published in Vogue and The Guardian.

The Do Good Fund, a local organization that showcases photography exhibits focusing on the culture of the American South, is showing an exhibition of Peggy’s work until April 17. “We’re really fortunate to have her show here,” Collection Manager Hallie Fivecoat says. The Do Good Fund’s mission is to support and nurture new and upcoming artists and to put together collections to share with the local community.

Take a look at her collection at The Do Good Fund, located at 111 12th St.

By Natalie Downey