A Photographic Life

In episode 150 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering the demands of studio based portraiture and what constitutes a studio, buying into an aesthetic, and online access to contemporary art practice.

Plus this week photographer Gary Calton takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Born in Sheffield, in 1967, Gary Calton trained and later worked as a teacher in London until 1990 when he enrolled on a course in Photojournalisim at the London College of Printing. His first documentary project on Young Offenders in the UK was published by The Observer in 1992 and he continues to work with The Observer and The Guardian publications today. Calton has travelled extensively in Russia, the African continent, USA, Japan and the UK to produce his stories for editorial publications, as well as many leading NGOs and has produced numerous personal projects including Working Mens Clubs, which received a discretionary grant from the W.Eugene Smith Memorial Fund and his project Tuberculosis: Captain of the Armies of Death was awarded the Fifty Crows International Award for Documentary Photography and Medal of Excellence. Calton is currently working on a long term mixed media portrait project Citizens of Our Time, documenting the Anti Fracking Campaign in the UK. He was an Associate member of Network Photographers; a participant in the World Press Masterclass 2000 and his work has been exhibited at Visa pour l’Image, France in San Francisco and the UK. He is based in Yorkshire, UK. www.garycalton.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 149 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering unrealistic expectations, visual fitness, being recorded on Zoom and 'remote' portrait photography.

Plus this week photographer Norman McBeath takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Norman McBeath (pronounced McBeth) is a photographer and printmaker who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. His creative collaborations with poets include Plan B with Paul Muldoon, The Beach with Kathleen Jamie and Simonides with Robert Crawford. Simonides was shortlisted for the Ted Hughes Award and exhibited at Yale and the Poetry Foundation in Chicago. McBeath's latest book Strath is a further collaboration with the poet Robert Crawford. His work has been shown as part of exhibitions at the Leica Gallery in New York, the National Portrait Gallery in London, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh, the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh and the Royal Academy of Arts in London. In 2015 he was awarded a Fellowship at the Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Co. Mayo and subsequently invited to show work from the Fellowship in the exhibition Between the Land and the Sea 2016 at the Keeper’s House, Royal Academy, London. In 2019 the Scottish National Portrait Gallery held a major exhibition of The Long Look, a collaboration with the painter Audrey Grant. Collections which hold his work include; the British Library; the National Library of Scotland; the British Council; Harvard University and Yale Center for British Art. www.normanmcbeath.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 148 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering what makes a professional photographic practice, the importance of reading to photography, making friends and what a small world the photographic world is.

Plus this week photographer Hugh Hales-Tooke takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Hugh Hales-Tooke studied painting at art school before completing an MFA in 1981 at Syracuse University, New York. After graduating, he moved to New York and found work as a photo assistant, which is when he began learning about photography. In 1989 he returned to England to find work as a photographer and was hired by the designer Paul Smith. He worked for Paul Smith for several seasons in the 1990s photographing his main clothing collection as well as additional projects in Japan. This led to him working for Manner Vogue and Details magazine in America who offered him a contract, The New York Times magazine; G.Q., Vanity Fair, Interview, Newsweek, Rolling Stone and many more magazines. He made portraits for the Guggenheim Museum and the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival and was nominated for a Grammy for the photography used in the CD package of Jewel’s Pieces of You. Recently he has been making videos for musicians such as Emma Swift, Robyn Hitchcock and Laura Cantrell. www.hughhales-tooke.net

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 147 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering the ethics of guilt and digital documentation, commenting on two worlds of photography, and the importance of embracing new technology, thinking and practice.

Plus this week photographer Endia Beal takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which she answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Endia Beal is an African-American visual artist, curator, and educator. She graduated from the University of North Carolina with a double bachelor's degree in Art History and Studio Art and as an undergraduate student attended the Studio Art Centre International in Florence, Italy focusing on classic Art History of High Renaissance period. In 2013, she completed a master's degree from Yale School of Art in Fine Arts and Photography. During this time she created her first body of work exploring the struggles of women of colour in the professional field, in the corporate space in particular. Since 2014 Beal has worked as the Director of Diggs Gallery at Winston-Salem State University and is an Associate Professor of Art at the university. Her work has featured in several online editorials including NBC, the Huffington Post, Slate Magazine and the National Geographic. Her work has been exhibited in several institutions including the Charles H. Wright Museum in Detroit, Michigan, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Art and Culture based in Charlotte, NC, the Aperture Foundation of New York, and the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art at the State University of New York. https://endiabeal.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 146 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering the past, present and possible future for editorial photography.

Plus this week photographer Ana Caroline de Lima takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which she answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Ana Caroline de Lima is a Brazilian photographer, journalist and anthropologist whose work focuses on the documentation of cultural, social and environmental issues from an intimate perspective. Her work has been awarded both nationally and internationally and has been exhibited in more than 20 countries, in places such as the Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Ana is an Eddie Adams Workshop alumna and a member of Diversify Photo, Authority Collective, Women Photograph and Everyday Brasil. After years working in Andean countries, she founded Everyday Andes in 2019, to build a community of photographers working in the region and showing the Andes without stereotypes. Her clients as an anthropologist and photographer include Amazon Conservation, ActionAid and Care International. Currently based in São Paulo, de Lima is trained on how to work in extreme environments. https://en.antropologiavisual.com.br

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 145 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering the death of editorial integrity, academic photography book publishing and the need to create a photographic print.

Plus this week photographer Mark Klett takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Arizona based Mark Klett studied Geology at St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY before completing his M.F.A. in Photography at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Klett states that he is interested in making works that respond to historic images; creating projects that explore relationships between time, change and perception; and exploring the language of photographic media through technology. He has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Pollock-Krasner Foundation, and the Japan/US Friendship Commission. Klett's work has been exhibited and published in the United States and internationally for over thirty-five years, and is held in over eighty museum collections worldwide. He is the author/co-author of fifteen books and he lives in Tempe, Arizona where he is Regents’ Professor of Art at Arizona State University. www.markklettphotography.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 144 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering what makes a magazine cover photographer, Irving Penn the photojournalist, the importance those who came before us, and Covid lockdown independent initiatives.

Plus this week photographer John Bulmer takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

John Bulmer was born in 1938 in Herefordshire, the grandson of the founder of the Bulmer cider company. While still a student of engineering at Cambridge he had photographs published in Varsity magazine as well as a magazine he co-founded, Image. He also completed photo-stories for the Daily Express, and Queen magazine, whilst working as an assistant to photographers Larry Burrows and Burt Glinn. Expelled from Cambridge six weeks before his finals Bulmer got a job with the Daily Express and stayed there for two years. Bulmer is most often associated with his documentation of the North of England which he began with his first assignment in 1960, for Town. In 1965, Bulmer first photographed the north of England in colour, for the Sunday Times magazine the magazine who he worked for until 1973. However, Bulmer continued working for other publications, including the British edition of Geo, as he combined photography with film commissions for the BBC and Discovery Channel. As Bulmer moved away from photography to film, his earlier photographic work until it was included in a 1983 exhibition at the Photographers' Gallery, British Photography 1955–65: The Master Craftsmen in Print. Bulmer's career in film continued to the mid-2000s, when he retired and turned to digitising and cataloguing his earlier photographs. The resulted in two books of his work being published by Bluecoat Press, The North and Wind of Change. www.johnbulmer.co.uk

*In this episode Grant incorrectly suggests that John Bulmer is married to the film director Mai Zetterling, this is incorrect. Bulmer worked with Zetterling but is married to Angela Bulmer, a sculptor. A full apology for this error will be included in next week's episode.

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 143 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering how we are all publishers now, photographic connection and presenting testimony from the frontline of photojournalism.

Plus this week photographer Jasper Goodall takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Photographer, senior lecturer and former illustrator Jasper Goodall came into the public eye through his illustration work in the early 2000’s. Best known for his editorials in The Face magazine and his creation of ethereal imagery for the English rock band Muse, he was widely published and much referenced. In 2014 he left the world of commercial illustration and spent several years training as a counsellor at the Psychosynthesis Trust in London. This hiatus provided Goodall opportunity to take stock and re-imagine his creative output in a new and very different form; exploring the landscape at night. Goodall’s nocturnal series Twilight’s Path has been described as being at once beautiful and terrifying. In addition to his photographic practice Goodall teaches creativity and visual communication and he is a senior lecturer at the University of Brighton where he has taught visual communicators for almost 20 years. www.jaspergoodall.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

In episode 142 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering the role of the documentarian, working on the frontline, Zoom based photography, and the need to record as evidence of experience.

Plus this week photographer Joseph Szabo takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which he answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Joseph Szabo is a teacher, photographer and author. He taught photography and art at Malverne High School on Long Island for 27 years and for over 20 years at the International Center of Photography, New York. His 1978 book, Almost Grown, featured many of his students and was acclaimed as one of the 'Best Books of the Year' by the American Library Association. In the book’s forward, legendary photojournalist and Founder of the International Center of Photography Cornell Capa, wrote that “in Szabo’s hands, the camera is magically there, the light is always available, the moment is perceived, seen, and caught.” Throughout the 80s and 90s, Almost Grown attained cult classic status in the fashion world, prompting Vogue fashion editor Grace Coddington to notice that “all the young fashion photographers were looking at Joe’s photographs as their bible.” In 2003, Szabo released Teenage his more complete view of adolescents coming of age. His most recent book Jones Beach captures his forty year exploration of summer at New York’s most popular beach. Szabo’s evocative black and white images have won him worldwide recognition and admiration, from photographers including Bruce Weber and filmmakers Cameron Crowe and Sofia Coppola. He is the recipient of a photography fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts and his images reside in the collections of the Bibliotheque National in Paris, The George Eastman House Museum in Rochester, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the San Francisco Museum of Art, among many others. His photographs have been published in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The London Times, French Vogue, Women’s Wear Daily and exhibited at galleries in Paris, London, Japan, New York, Atlanta and Los Angeles. https://josephszabophotos.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021

In episode 141 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed considering whether your most recent work is your best work, the importance of childhood experiences within creative practice and what shape a camera has to be for it to be called a camera!

Plus this week photographer Buku Sarkar takes on the challenge of supplying Grant with an audio file no longer than 5 minutes in length in which she answer’s the question ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’

Buku Sarkar is a photographer and writer who grew-up between Calcutta and New York whose photographic work is centred on the Park Circus Basti, the largest Muslim Slum in Calcutta. Sarkar writes mainly fiction although her first screenplay was due to go into production in 2020 and both her writing and her photographs have appeared in various magazines and journals. She lives between Calcutta and New York with her Ridgeback Julius and cat Izme and her photographs have appeared in Documentum Journal issue 1, guest edited by Stephen Shore, the NYT Lens Blog and the Huffington Post. Her most recent ongoing body of work is titled The Containment Diaries and her work has been exhibited in Los Angeles, New York and Miami. www.bukusarkar.com

Grant Scott is the founder/curator of United Nations of Photography, a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, a working photographer, and the author of Professional Photography: The New Global Landscape Explained (Routledge 2014), The Essential Student Guide to Professional Photography (Routledge 2015), New Ways of Seeing: The Democratic Language of Photography (Routledge 2019).

His book What Does Photography Mean to You? including 89 photographers who have contributed to the A Photographic Life podcast is on sale now £9.99 https://bluecoatpress.co.uk/product/what-does-photography-mean-to-you/

© Grant Scott 2021