Vivian Maier

Full-time nanny and amateur street photographer Vivian Maier spent her leisure time from the 1950s to the 1990s documenting the lives of Chicago's destitute people, as well as the city's historical landmarks and changing architectural landscape. In addition to her photography, Maier produced homemade documentary films and audio recordings.

Most of Maier's work remained undiscovered until 2007. She had stored her photos, as well as over 100,000 negatives, in a storage locker, which was auctioned off due to lack of payments. The contents of that locker eventually ended up in a thrift auction shop in Chicago and were given attention by a local historian. Since Maier's death in 2009, her photographs have received much attention and critical acclaim.