Hannah Starkey knew she was pushing back against expectations when she unveiled a collection of seven images — large, color, constructed photographs exclusively depicting women — at her Royal College of Art graduation exhibition in 1997.

“As a young woman you’re supposed to be in front of the camera, not behind it,” Ms. Starkey said. “You’re kind of always on show to be looked at. I wanted to make photos of women where they weren’t on show, where they weren’t that easily consumed.”

The work quickly got Ms. Starkey a lot of attention. Within two years of her debut, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Tate collected her work, The Sunday Times and British Vogue gave her assignments, and Maureen Paley began representing her. But detractors took notice, too.