JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast today?
CHELSEA PFOHL: Today I had coffee, oatmeal, and a banana. I have a banana for breakfast almost every day.
JC: Any emerging photographers inspiring your practice at the moment?
CP: Dana Goldstein, a friend of mine who I’ve done some assisting and retouching for. I saw her work and had to reach out to meet her and see her process. She’s so conscious of everything that she does and all her work is cohesive and well thought out. Plus most of her work is just formally beautiful.
JC: What is your current project all about?
CP: I am focusing on light, and how light ties everything together. SIght is light, and sight is the main way we perceive the world around us. There is no well thought out “project,” but light is the one thing that I am always focused on when taking a shot.
JC: Any exciting plans for the rest of 2010?
CP: I will be starting my senior year in the studio art program at NYU. I’ll be getting a studio in the art building which is exciting. Hopefully I’ll produce a lot. I also will be turning 21 in less than a week, so thats something exciting, in America at least.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
CP: In my opinion, an interesting subect makes a successful portrait. Many portraits are interesting soley because the subject is interesting. I think thats a more journalistic type portraiture. I think truly successful portraiture shows a moment between both the subject and the photographer. And good lighting of course.
JC: Why do you shoot black and white?
CP: I started shooting black and white because I was taking a black and white photo course at school. I continue to shoot black and white because I feel like its a little bit more of challenge. You have to think about composition and lighting more or else you get flat images.
JC: What does photography mean to you?
CP: Photography for me is a means of showing the world the way that I see it. It sounds corny or weird but I always think of how my photos would look to my children in the future. Like how they would think of me through my photographs. I guess thats an interesting thought with strangers too. It also means expensive film and equipment and fees and a cooky old greek film process man named george (maybe) and his mean wife.
JC: Any other thoughts?
CP: Im from Northern California so the first thing that comes to mind with “any last thoughts?” is PEACE AND LOVE.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What are your plans for the next six months?
JAMES BOWDEN: I try and make a plan for my next six months everyday, but then with a phone call or email it all changes again. So to be completely honest, I have no real idea what’s in store for me in the next six months, but I can tell you it’s going to involve going to some cool places, and I’m so excited about that.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
JB: From my perspective, a great portrait is one that begs me to find out more about the subject … one that opens a book of questions, and doesn’t answer them.
JC: When you are not photographing what can you be found doing?
JB: I pretty much always have a camera on me, but when I’m not shooting, I’m most likely to be found in the sea, on a bike or with my spaniel, Vincent.
JC: You took a overland trip to China fairly recently - any poignant moments?
JB: Gosh, that was some trip, dream stuff for me. I think one of the most poignant moments was stepping off a 6 day long train ride into -20C, and saying goodbye to some great people I had got to know. Close behind was breaking my beloved rollei in Moscow, then the jubilation when I managed to fix it with a butter knife and small screwdriver. God bless analogue cameras.
JC: What is your favourite thing to photograph?
JB: Amazing people in amazing places.
JC: What is your current project about?
JB: Personally I’m planning a joint exhibition later this year, entitled ‘quit your job’ and then another collaborative project with my good friend and writer George Foulds, that will involve spending a month on a small sparsely populated island off southern Australia. Both I’m very much excited about.
JC: What do you enjoy most about using your Hasselblad?
JB: The sound!
JC: Any closing thoughts?
JB: If I can take one photograph that inspires one person get up from behind their desk, and go out into the world and follow a dream … well that would be successful picture and I would sleep happy.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What is your favourite colour?
ANDREW D MUSSON: Depends on my mood I suppose … either a bright red or a full, almost emerald green I think.
JC: Why did you make the work Leisure?
AM: I visited my girlfriend/fellow photographer Megan Leonard and a college friend in Michigan for a week and usually when I travel somewhere I attempt to make some sort of series out of it. It turned out to be a mini-project of sorts as my 220 back for my RZ67 broke and ended up ruining 30 exposures (thus the project only features 6 photos). Every time I undertake a new project I try to push myself in a new direction. This time I played around with a lot of flash, inside and outside, but unfortunately all of those photos were among the ruined 30. I still feel proud of it despite the equipment failure. I’m happy the way it fits next to my previous (and ongoing) project Eulogy.
JC: I have always been drawn to the image of the red car … what is it all about?
AM: I appreciate it! The car is a Monte Carlo that I walked by while I was exploring the very strange place that is Rockaway Park, NY during my first several months of living in New York. This photograph was for New Familiar and I was pushing myself to take photographs of “scenes” rather than just singling out one subject like I did in my previous efforts. This photo was successful in a weird way (at least for me) in the sense it’s really a close up, but the details and lines make it work and give it depth.
JC: Do any other emerging practitioners inspire your work?
AM: Most definitely. Randall Phenning, Pauline Magnenat, Jacob Mooty, Sofia Torres, Alex Goss, Thomas Prior, and Joe Leavenworth are all fellow photographers I admire and I’m glad I know. Randall Phenning probably most of all, since we’ve known each other we’ve really pushed each other’s photography to a better place. The main reason for that is we aren’t afraid to harshly/honestly critique each others work. Honest critiques will help a friend more than saying “that’s rad” or “amazing colors” every could.
JC: What particular methods do you go through when making portraits?
AM: Patience in waiting for the right moment; even if it means missing a photo all together (which happens sometimes). I just dislike compromising between the photograph I know I can get and the version I see in front of me.
JC: What is your current project all about?
AM: Haha. This is the first time I want to keep my project details rather secret! I’ll tell you that it’s going to be very big, with at least 35 photographs and at a major location. At least that’s how I’m challenging myself this time. Up till now the largest series I’ve done is 16 photographs maximum. So going big is the next step for me. Also it’s the first thing I’m doing that isn’t about me or from my particular perspective.
JC: What is it that draws you to photography?
AM: I’m not sure I’ve figured that one out for myself. I’ve been taking photographs since high school (not all of them good obviously) and I thus far I know I really enjoy every part of the process. I used to draw quite a lot, but the past several years I’ve stopped, and the scenes I take photographs of are similar to the quiet/slightly surreal drawings I used to do.. I thought it was laziness, but going out and finding the right photographs to take is just as much work as any other art form. So I’m still figuring this one out.
JC: Any other thoughts?
AM: Nah, I’ve rambled enough. Thanks for the interview Jonathan, I’m happy to be a part of MULL IT OVER.
Really pleased to have Evan Baden MULL IT OVER with me … I have been a fan since I first saw his project The Illuminati. Hope you all enjoy this one as much as me.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What is your favourite breakfast meal?
EVAN BADEN: 3 egg omelette with ham, green pepper, onion, tomato, and cheese. Toast with peanut butter. Glass of orange juice.
JC: I noticed you were featured in a recent issue of Foam … how did that come about? Were you pleased with the quality of the printed images?
EB: I am not exactly sure where the people at FOAM found my work. One day I got an email from their managing editor asking if they could present my work for their Peeping issue. I am not a frequent reader of the magazine, but I knew of it and jumped at the chance to have my work published in it. And having the opportunity for someone else to write about it was really excellent.
I was pleased with the printing, although some of the colors were not right on. There always seems to be problems with my images when they head to the printers. Many times they appear too dark, which also makes them look over saturated. But overall I was pleased.
JC: With regards to your recent project Technically Intimate - was it ever a little awkward while photographing? Were the models friends or strangers? If any were indeed strangers how did you find them?
EB: In the beginning it was awkward. I did not really know how to go about finding models for my images. I began with asking friends if they knew anyone that might be interested, which took a long time.
I ended up making the image of the couple (Alice and Ryan) first. I met the young woman in the image through my old roommates girlfriend. I liked that because I had someone to vouch for the work that I had done in the past and for the work that I wanted to make. After that first image, I began to search for strangers to model. I used CraigsList (which is a place to post online classifieds) to search out models. I was really looking for people that hadn’t done much, if any, modeling.
I would say that for about 3/4 of the images in the project, the models were strangers. The other 1/4 were people that I had some sort of connection with.
I still have trouble, after all of the lighting tests are done, asking the model to undress. I just never really know how to go about doing that.
JC: Your previous project The Illuminati have been rather successful in the photographic world - why do you think this is?
EB: I think that viewers just really have a connection with the characters in the images. The viewer can so easily put themselves in place of the figures. I have seen other photographers make images that are similar to mine, but I don’t feel that connection. There is just something very intimate about the images that I made for that project.
I think the other thing that makes The Illuminati special is the light. The way that I lit those images really gives the viewer a sense of place. It helps to ground the characters. With the other images that I have seen, the backgrounds are usually very dark, or the image just appears to be a floating face. The images that I shot just have more context to them, which I think is a big key to their success.
What I can’t figure out is why they have been so popular in Europe as opposed to the U.S.
JC: How important has promotion and exposure been with regards to The Illuminati? Any tips?
EB: I have always thought that promotion was 50% of being an artist. It’s maybe a bad way to look at it, but I see the artist and their work as a product. You can make the work, but if no one ever sees it, was there a point? For me, I make work not only for myself, but because I want to say something to others. That’s important to me.
Even before I have finished a body of work, I begin sending it out to all sorts of places. I send to museums a lot, but have now begun to send work to galleries as well. Also, whenever I travel anywhere, I always try and set up a meeting with the curator at the museum there. It is a great way to get some face time and actually talk about the work you are making.
And if you find a curator that likes your work, have them recommend places that you should send other portfolios. Recipients are much more likely to give the work a look if it is coming with a recommendation.
I also think that juried competitions are really great things to apply to. I always look at who is judging the show. If it is someone that I want to see my work, I usually apply. For me, juried shows are really only about getting something in front of one of the jurors. They have to see your work if you submit.
One final thing: if you are going to send out a portfolio of work to someone, make it memorable. I know a lot of people will send out discs or web addresses, but those require work on the part of the curator or whoever is receiving it. I always send contact prints of my 4x5 negatives. They are small, but give the receiver an idea of what the work looks like instantly, without the need for a computer. Plus, they are cool, unique, and something that many of the people I send them to end up keep for a long time. And sometimes they may be more apt to look at something like that because it is unique.
JC: What is next for you photographically?
EB: I have to finish Technically Intimate first. Then, I have become really interested in how porn is connected to the learned sexual behaviors of youths. I touch on it a little in Technically Intimate, but I would like to explore it more in depth and maybe a little different stylistically.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
EB: Connection with the viewer. The most successful portraits are those that the viewer connects with the subject.
JC: Any tips for recent photography graduates?
EB: I guess it is the same thing I would say to current students: Work, Work, Work.
Create as much work as possible and don’t ever let money be an excuse not to make work. Sometimes it really is a sacrifice to try and make work. For a while I had no money for 4x5 film, so I started shooting super 8 video film one frame at a time. That would get me over 3000 images to a roll. At least I could still make work. Now with digital there is really no excuse to not be exploring.
JC: Any other thoughts?
EB: If anyone asks you about the project you are currently working on, you should be able to sum it up in less then 3 lines.
I am really pleased to present Álvaro Sánchez-Montañés.
JONATHAN CHERRY: Where are you now and what is the weather like?
ALVARO SANCHEZ-MONTANES: Barcelona. It’s too hot and there’s a lot of humidity … and cloud.
JC: What started you off photographing Desert Indoors?
AM: A picture on a magazine of the buildings outside. It made me so curious about what there was on the inside.
JC: Are there any emerging photographers at the moment who inspire your practice?
AM: Many from Spain; Ruben Acosta, Ariadna Arnes and Txema Salvans.
JC: Who is your hero?
AM: Leonard Cohen.
JC: What is next for you photographically?
AM: I’m developing a project about the Gulf of Mexico in the USA. It’s almost finished. It has nothing to do with indoor desert; nothing at all.
JC: When exhibiting work from Desert Indoors what you be you ideal size and layout and why?
AM: I normally print in two sizes: 20x30” and 30x39” … I’d really love exhibiting it recreating a room like the ones in the photographs with painted paper on the wall and sand on the floor but I couldn’t find any galleries who wanted to make it.
JC: Any exciting plans for the rest of 2010?
AM: Not now. I want to travel to Japan … but I don’t know if I will have time!
JC: Any other thoughts?
AM: I’m hungry now and thinking about lunch.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast this morning?
LUKASZ WIERZBOWSKI: Porridge and a glass of orange juice.
JC: Are there any emerging photographers who are inspiring your practice at the moment?
LW: There are few emerging photographers whose work I truly love. Ren Hang is one of them.
JC: Who are your photography heroes?
LW: Jeff Wall, Wolfgang Tillmans and Martin Parr.
JC: How highly do you value the actual experience of photographing?
LW: Every session is a kind of a journey. A process I like to cherrish in a way. I don’t carry my camera with all the time, I like to keep some kind of healthy distance from it. The moment I get to touch the camera feels more precious that way.
JC: What is your current project all about?
LW: It’s not really defined. I’m doing lots of personal stuff, working on a more fashion oriented projects and doing a few collaborations.
JC: What is in store for you photographically over the next 6 months?
LW: You never know what the future may bring. Besides I like suprises so I don’t make many plans in advance but I would love to release a book and do an exhibition this year.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
LW: It can be anything. Good lighning, models attitude or the right timing. And if you are lucky all these things at once.
JC: What does photography mean to you?
LW: It gives me pure joy. I consider myself to be a little depressed so photography is a kind of a therapy for me.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What is your favourite colour?
TONY LUGO: Blue/Green. The colors of the ocean I suppose.
JC: What is your current project all about?
TL: I am currently working on a series of photographs based on found images from various news/tabloid publications. These images will explore the fascination people have with celebrity culture and it’s relation to classical art narratives.
JC: Who are your photography heroes?
TL: Dash Snow, Juergen Teller, Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin, & a few others.
JC: Do any other emerging practitioners inspire your work?
TL: Jackson Eaton has some great work and I’m excited to see the direction his work will be taking.
JC: What particular methods do you go through when making portraits?
TL: Generally there’s alcohol involved, a loose concept, and a bit of improvisation.
JC: What are your plans for the rest of 2010 photographically?
TL: I’ll be putting together a large format newsprint zine this fall based on the series mentioned above … hopefully I can do a pair of short films before the year runs out.
JC: What is it that draws you to photography?
TL: Probably its ability to help shape how we perceive memories. There’s an intangible reality to photography versus the memories we keep in our minds that I find fascinating.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast this morning?
OLYA VIRICH: Nothing today
JC: Are there any emerging photographers who are inspiring your practice at the moment?
OV: Of course, I love works by Steven Beckly, Alba Yruela, Rafa Castells, Alec Soth, Ryan McGinley, Viviane Sassen very much.
JC: Who are your photography heroes?
OV: Photography heroes are war photographers, those guys who shoot war, death and all those terrible things of the modern world. I don’t understand how they do that. They really deserve to be respected
JC: How highly do you value the actual experience of photographing?
OV: I photograph only those things which I like; I never make myself to do something. The most important thing is to be sincere and honest. Photography is a simple and natural process, just like eating
JC: What is your current project all about?
OV: I have been photographing sea a lot lately; I love the theme of interaction of a human-being with nature. But actually I’ve never succeeded to make a whole project; still I really want to do that.
JC: What is in store for you photographically over the next 6 months?
OV: I don’t know; I have no plans. May be I plan not to be lazy, to photograph more and to make a project finally.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
OV: Just wait for a special moment in the process of communication when a person is relaxed or deep in thoughts and then push the button - that is how you can get a good portrait.
JC: What does photography mean to you?
OV: For me photography is a way to capture another side of things, which seems to be hidden, and then to show this to everyone. It is like letting out a secret)
JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast this morning?
MARYANNE CASASANTA: Granola, a couple of apricots, an orange and coffee.
JC: Are there any emerging photographers who are inspiring your practice at the moment?
MC: So many, it would be a mouthful! I am inspired by artists who don’t limit themselves, surprise me with their playfulness and are not solely aligning their vision with what is currently fashionable. I am always impressed by peers who can stimulate and challenge me, besides creating a thing of impressive beauty.
JC: Who are your photography heroes?
MC: Writers who have written extensively on the topic of photography have left a significant impression on me. I often refer back to Susan Sontag, Janet Malcolm, Roland Barthes or Walter Benjamin when I want to think more deeply about the process. Their examinations of the medium are so dense and complex. I gravitate towards the challenge of investigating new ideas and am interested in the task of forging connections between various concepts. Something about having these close to the surface of my conscious keeps me on alert for opportunities to visually explore them while I’m out shooting.
JC: How highly do you value the actual experience of photographing?
MC: I see myself as a visual artist who works with photography, so for me, the act of taking a picture has multiple meanings. When I am composing a photograph, I often see the camera as an extension of my body and question where I stop and the camera begins, especially for projects where I am both the photographer and the subject. Many of my photos function as documents of my installations, performances and geographical interventions. They exist as either a photograph or as a proof of something I did or made, which depending on the viewer, can alter its dimension. The experience of setting up and taking a picture is one of my favorite things to think about.
JC: What is your current project all about?
MC: My current project is called, Peace Bards. It consists of a small handmade wooden hexagonal box that contains 12 hex cards. The images on the hexagonal cards depict shapes and structures that I have sought out in natural environments. To be frank, I don’t know what this project is really meant to accomplish. A bard is a poetic oral tradition, a form of storytelling. I sense that this project has something to do with seeking out a space of peace and the featured scenes are like that of perhaps a fortune telling card, little narratives onto themselves or a longer narration that can be loosely strung together to teach or remind one of something. At least that is my currrent interpretation. I don’t want to think too hard about it at the moment but just let the meaning reveal itself to me in time and have the object organically manifest.
JC: What is in store for you photographically over the next 6 months?
MC: Hopefully some more collaborative efforts, not only with other artists and photographers but also musicians and designers. I’ve been thinking about revisiting older projects to see if after some time they can be transformed into a more defined work of art. At some point, I’d like to take a break and just be a participant for awhile rather than a voyeur.
JC: What does photography mean to you?
MC: It would be difficult for me to clearly summerize what photography means to me. I find photography to be very enigmatic and seductive. The experience of reviewing old photos is a dangerous one, because one can easily lose themselves in romanticizing that captured moment and project an interpretation of the event while distorting its actual reality. Photography is powerful in confusing memory, but sometimes it can also reveal realities over time. I think the role of a photographer is to anticipate the unexpected, which is really exciting because every time you go out to shoot, there is so much open potential. Besides taking my own pictures, I enjoy working with found photographs and appreciate the idea of the photo as a relic for nostalgia or as an art object that can be reinterpreted.
JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast this morning?
DAVID CORTES: This morning I was running a little late to work so I wasn’t able to make myself my usual scrambled eggs with vegetables and hash browns, so I ate the next best thing… cereal with a glass of orange juice.
JC: Are there any emerging photographers who are inspiring your practice at the moment?
DC: I live with my brother and close friend who are both artists who influence my work a lot. I have some friends which have really great work that influences me as well. At the moment, I am trying to get together a group of young photographers which have work that I really support and believe in. My ultimate goal with this group of young artists is to put on an exhibition next summer.
JC: Who are your photography heroes?
DC: I wouldn’t say that they are “Heros” of mine, just artists who I respect and admire. Artists like Man Ray, Paul Strand, Alfred Stieglitz, Patrick Tsai, Ryan McGinley, Alexander Binder, Tim Barber, John Clang. There are plenty of other artist’s work which has influenced me. I’m just terrible with remembering names.
JC: How highly do you value the actual experience of photographing?
DC: The experience is everything. I can sit in front of a computer screen or with a book in my face for hours looking at image after image but it’s not until I actually go out and shoot that I learn and evolve as an artist.
JC: What is your current project all about?
DC: Right now I have a few projects which I’m working on. I’ve never been one to really plan out everything that I do beforehand. I tend to just have an idea and run with it. I like for things to happen organically, and to leave a little room for spontaneity.
JC: What is in store for you photographically over the next 6 months?
DC: I’m really not too sure what’s in store for me. I’d like to do a few more exhibitions. I have a lot of work that I’m aching to get out for people to see. I have a few trips planned in the next few months which I’m really looking forward to. I’m just really focused on getting my work out for people to see.
JC: In your opinion what makes a successful portrait?
DC: I think that the approach that the photographer takes to creating the image along with the individual which the photographer is taking a photo of makes a portrait “successful”. Different situations require different approaches, and different people tell different stories.
JC: What does photography mean to you?
DC: Each photograph means something different to me. I really can’t narrow it down to just one emotion, or feeling. In retrospect when I look back on different photos or series of photos it reminds me of a different point in my life. A span of a few hours, days, months, or even years where I was trying to figure something out, or convey a certain message.
