PHILADELPHIA, PA.- The Print Center announced the release of A Brand New End: Survival and Its Pictures, a book by artist Carmen Winant that explores, through visual culture and photographic representation, the crisis of domestic violence and the urgency of nonprofit advocacy to ameliorate it. Published by The Print Center in October 2022 in an edition of 1,000, A Brand New End brings together a diverse selection of writers, scholars, advocates, artists and practitioners, featuring essays and archival materials from Philadelphia’s Women In Transition and Denver’s National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, two organizations that support women who have experienced domestic violence. The book marks the final chapter of a multi-faceted project by Winant that began with a solo exhibition of newly commissioned works in the Spring of 2022 and comprised public interventions, a film and public programs – all of which incorporated historical and contemporary representations of oppression, liberation and self-expression drawn from the archives of Women In Transition (WIT) and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV).

“I’m thrilled to present the final chapter of my year-long project with The Print Center, WIT and NCADV which has knitted together photography and print archives to showcase how impactful these singular stories of individuals can be to society and culture at large,” states Winant. “I envisioned this project to examine how survivors become empowered and the systems of support that enable that process through lived, historical source material. The proximity and vitality of the subjects themselves radiate throughout this project in a way that I hope shines a light not only on the crisis of domestic violence, but also on the incredible work that is being done to empower survivors.”

A Brand New End pairs newly commissioned texts and archival materials (most of which are from the late 1970s), that illuminate the often invisible experiences of women, as well as feminist strategies for survival, revolt and self-determination. The book highlights the power of print to depict how women view themselves and how photography can serve as a tool in the struggle for individual autonomy and self-representation. Through its expansive consideration of imagemaking, domestic violence and the larger feminist movement, A Brand New End critically examines the problems and possibilities of visualizing domestic violence and survival. Text contributors include:




Irene Brantley, Suzanne Lacy and Laia Abril, on T-shirts from the Clothesline Project
Donna Ferrato, on her iconic Time magazine cover stories profiling survivors
Ruth M. Glenn, on lapel pins worn by advocates
Ksenia Nouril, on the photographic archives and 35mm slides
Catherine Opie, on photographs of WIT staff operating a domestic violence hotline
Elias Rodrigues and Paige Sweet, on newspaper clippings about abuse and support
Sangi Ravichandran, on 35mm slides from the archives of WIT and NCADC
Drew Sawyer, on photographs taken by survivors
Carmen Winant, on WIT’s job cards

A Brand New End: Survival and Its Pictures has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

“It is truly an honor to work with Carmen Winant and publish this incredibly impactful and important book,” said Elizabeth Spungen, Executive Director of The Print Center. “Since the start of the pandemic, The American Journal of Emergency Medicine has reported a 25%–33% increase of domestic violence globally. This is something that is often associated with a great deal of shame and in some cases, overlooked entirely. Carmen Winant’s approach to addressing the domestic violence crisis comes alive through powerful imagery that explores how women are supported in achieving personal agency with the help of organizations like WIT and NCADV. A Brand New End is a stunning collection of profound work by an artist who is making it her life’s mission to advocate for the many women who are rewriting their stories and finding strength to overcome unthinkable challenges.”

The launch of the book will be accompanied by a panel discussion held at The Print Center and on Zoom on Thursday, October 27 at 6pm (ET). During the discussion, Carmen Winant will be joined by the designer of the book Yoonjai Choi, partner, Common Name; Ksenia Nouril, former Jensen Bryan Curator, The Print Center; Drew Sawyer, Phillip Leonian and Edith Rosenbaum Leonian Curator, Brooklyn Museum; and Paige Sweet, assistant professor of sociology, University of Michigan.

Carmen Winant
Carmen Winant (born 1983, San Francisco, CA; lives in Columbus, OH) is an internationally recognized photography-based artist raised in Philadelphia who utilizes installation and collage strategies to examine feminist modes of survival and revolt. Winant's recent projects have been shown at ICA Boston, MA; Cleveland Museum of Art, OH; Patron Gallery, Chicago, IL; Wexner Center of the Arts, Columbus, OH; Sculpture Center, Long Island City, NY; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA; as well as Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen, Denmark, and Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, Høvikodden, Norway. In 2019, Winant mounted 26 of her billboards across Canada as part of the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival. Winant’s recent artist books include My Birth (SPBH Editions and Image Text Ithaca Press, 2018); Notes on Fundamental Joy (Printed Matter Inc., 2019); and Instructional Photography: Learning How to Live Now (SPBH Editions, 2021). Her work is part of the collections of Museum of Contemporary Photography (MOCP), Chicago, IL; Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Los Angeles; The Minneapolis Institute of Art, MN; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; as well as Henie Onstad Art Center, Høvikodden, Norway. Winant is a 2019 Guggenheim Fellow in photography, a 2020 FCA Grant recipient in Art, and a 2021 American Academy of Arts and Letters Honoree. She holds a BA from the University of California, Los Angeles and an MA and MFA from the California College of the Arts, San Francisco. She has been a Resident and Dean at Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Madison, ME.