The Art of the Personal Project: Kevin Arnold

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Kevin Arnold

Kevin Arnold – Tombstone Series

Located in the Yukon Territory of Canada’s far north, Tombstone Territorial Park is a truly prehistoric landscape. Its mountains, cliffs and valleys are largely unscathed by the omnipresent scars of industrial human activity. Places like this are few and far between, but they are important because they offer us a glimpse of what the earth might look like without us. They offer us a fresh perspective that might, if we are lucky, draw us away for a moment from our human-centric view of the world.

Each of the wild places that I have tried to capture seems to call for their own unique approach. In Tombstone, I found that the immensity of the landscape and its unique textures and colors needed to be captured from the above. I created this series out of the door of a small two-person fixed-wing aircraft with a high-resolution medium format camera. At first, the landscape of Tombstone feels barren and vast: dramatic cliff faces, sweeping mountainsides, and rocky river ways. But, as we look closer and closer, we realize that this is a landscape literally teaming with details that tell the story of how the land was – and is being – formed. I think we tend to see places like this mountain range as standing against test of time, immovable and unchanged. In reality, the patina of the earth is ever shifting with the whimsies of water and weather.

Bringing these massive landscapes to life required shooting in extreme resolution and also presenting the work in very large prints. Standing next to the prints, the viewer can see the pathways etched into the earth by the daily movements of animals, the folds and grooves left behind by constantly moving water, the piles of rock formed by eons of crumbing hillsides. Like all mountain ranges, water plays a key role in in forming the Tombstone landscape and I also wanted to capture this. Depending which side of the mountains you are on, the melt water from Tombstone peaks travels either down into the Yukon River towards the Bering Sea of the North Pacific, or into the great Mackenzie River into the Beaufort Sea and out to the Arctic Ocean. The waterways are like umbilical cords that literally connect this land to the rest of the earth.

I created this work in the fall when the spectrum of color blanketing the hills and valleys is truly spectacular. In post, I wanted to make sure that this color came across as both surreal – because in person it truly is – and completely natural at the same time. The way the blues and yellows play off each other in the images speaks to me deeply, providing a visual calm that I find soothing at the most basic level. My soul. After months of working with these images from capture to print, the thing I love the most about the work is that I am still finding new textures, patterns and details that surprise me. The complexity of this seemingly simple landscape continues to astound me. My hope is that the viewer will come away with a sense that there are still places on this earth that are powerful and mysterious on a scale that we have yet to fully comprehend.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Ryan Schude & Kremer|Johnson

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Ryan Schude Kremer | Johnson

We’ve greatly admired the work of Ryan Schude since we picked up cameras in 2012. Being in the same artist collective with Ryan, a dialogue that sounded something like this ensued; “hey, we’re really bored and there’s no work out there because of Covid 19. We’re reluctant to spend any money right now but we want to make something. Yeah, I know what you mean. We should pool our resources and make something together. Ok, how about creating a series that is loosely blocked like a movie. Ok, sounds like a good personal project, let’s do it.” We discussed some of the things that we all love about Los Angeles and what makes it special to each of us. We spoke of calming winter days on the sand and the diverse groups of people that spend their time at any of California’s many public beaches. From that point, Ryan found the location that we agreed would be perfect and we were off and running.

We went to work on the story first. The large Tableau was to be the establishing shot that set the tone for the project and offered the viewer a quick understanding of the series while supplying enough detail to create intrigue. We wanted people to see the tableau and desire a closer look. That leads us to vignettes that dig a little deeper. We developed the vignettes based people and groups that we’ve observed collectively.  The aggregate of the vignettes would make up the bigger picture and the bigger picture would lead the viewer to want to know the individual stories. With a plan in hand, we went to work on casting, wardrobe and props.

Imagine our surprise when we received a couple thousand responses to our casting call. Once we made selects and secured the cast, we created mood-boards for our wardrobe stylist, Kaitlyn Lusk and then started working with the permit office to schedule a date. To reduce the headcount on set, rather than brining on an art department, we chose to source all of the props ourselves. We leaned on Amazon and several Goodwill stores for most of the props. For the food scene, we invited the super talented photographer and friend Linnea Bullion  to help with the food styling. She’s not really a food stylist but she did a great job and also played the part of our on-duty lifeguard very well.

In December, the sun comes up late, the shadows get long very early and, we had a lot to achieve in one short day. To prepare, we planned the composition of each shot prior to shoot day and created a tight schedule that was shared with our stylists and crew of 4 assistants.

Keeping the talent form getting bored was a concern. Although it’s a vacation destination and the skies are lovely, it’s still a long day at the beach when wearing mask and the temperature is hovering around 60 degrees. To keep everyone busy, we invited another photographer Patrick Ryland to create additional portraits of everyone. I think it worked because there was a line of people waiting to work with him all day long.

Covid safety was paramount on set. We followed Covid production guidelines and we believe everyone was safe. Except for talent, I honestly didn’t see a single person’s face the entire day.

The day went off without a hitch and we are rather proud of the results. We hope you enjoy the series.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Cam Camarena

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Cam Camarena

The concept behind the “Awkward” series was to explore the Inner Awkward that each of us experience. Sometimes it’s an alter ego, sometimes it’s a feeling we express or experience either by choice or involuntarily within certain situations. I believe the human condition we all share includes those moments when we either say the wrong thing, laugh at the wrong moment, or make an attempt at a joke that nobody else seems to relate to. We have all been there.

My artistic objective of “Awkward” is to visually recreate some of these emotions. Finding that precise moment of having just put my foot in my mouth, the butterflies created when that pretty girl looked at me in such a way, or that struggle of faking my way through a conversation in which I am totally lost. These are all occasions we feel vulnerable or maybe even disconnected. However these experiences do not always have to be uncomfortable, they can be exploratory and even liberating, and many times down right funny.

Central to my work and process is connection. There has to be a human connection to the process of creating these images, and that’s where my job becomes important and for me one of the best elements. I truly enjoy working with people, connecting with them and letting each do their thing/be themselves with some guidance and instruction. Through this process I guide my subject, they guide me, somewhere something will get Awkward, and together we create our images. It’s my goal for the viewer to possibly identify with something within this series as it invokes an awareness to a visceral moment in time, remember that time, and smile about it.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Will Templeman

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Will Templeman

Despite the vastly different complexities in each of our lives, there is a unifying light that shines through us all – something showing us there is far more connecting us than bringing us apart. I have never been able to truly describe this with words, so I try my best to capture it through my work. I have met so many amazing people on the streets of Richmond, Virginia and hope to help share their stories and spread their light.

To see more of this project, click here.

 

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Eric Axene

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Eric Axene

I am Small Business is a “personal project” not only because it’s self-assigned, but because it’s just as much of a journey of self-discovery as it’s an exploration of neighborhoods and small shops. Raised by a single mom who ran her own jewelry business, I’ve seen first-hand the balancing act required to keep things moving. I’ve been running my small photography business and working closely with my clients to create their visions for years. This project has allowed me to readdress who I am as a photographer mid-way into my craft and develop a new methodology for expressing how I experience the world.

I began my project a year ago, in a vibrant and popular neighborhood of Northeast Los Angeles. Highland Park is known as a trendy destination, but if you look closer you find a wonderful mix of old and new. I walked up and down the two major streets that transect the neighborhood (Figueroa and York) pushing my cart of gear and asking in every store if the owner was willing to be photographed. The resulting portfolio is a peek into some of the many worlds that co-exist along the avenues of Southern California. Turns out that the Cinemascope format is closest to what I was experiencing when standing in a store, so I recreated the super-wide framing by piecing together 5 photos for each image.

I’m looking forward to expanding the project, exploring small businesses across America and sharing their stories. I was recently commissioned by my hometown of Glendale to produce 7 small business portraits for an online exhibition titled Art Happens Anywhere. For that, I wanted to create extremely detailed images, and I ended up making photo-collages with over 200 shots used per store. I’ve begun interviewing my subjects, and maybe that will eventually lead to a documentary.

In LA we’re facing another round of restrictions just ahead of the holidays, bookending a critical and defining year. Small business is a big deal to me, and I’m thrilled that especially now, with everything going on, people have been receptive to the project. I’m psyched to advocate for small businesses, and I hope that my photos will continue to bring awareness to the wonderful establishments I’ve discovered and the people who are working hard to keep the doors open. I’ve learned a lot this year about tenacity, readjustment, and my own process through photographing them.

The Juicy Leaf– Felix is selling DIY kits based on his unique succulent arrangements. The kits come with everything you need to create an arrangement at home, including a QR code to access video tutorials. On Friday evenings he goes on Instagram Live and shows how to put together the “kit of the week” in real time. The Juicy Leaf is also hosting private Zoom parties where you can buy kits and he ship kits anywhere in the world.  You can then schedule a live Zoom session where Felix will personally guide the group through the project. Private parties can be up to 20 people.    https://thejuicyleaf.com/pages/planting-parties

Mi Vida  Noelle sells unique handmade clothing and gifts inspired by “nuestra Vida, Arte y Cultura” in Los Angeles. Mi Vida’s website is fully running, and they ship anywhere.

Bob Baker Marionette Theatre-    A recent addition to Highland Park, the Bob Baker Marionettes have been around since 1963. They had just opened their newly renovated theater when they were shuttered in the Spring. They’ve gone online with their Holiday on Strings show at the link below: https://playhouselive.org/programs/holidayonstrings?categoryId=45020&mc_cid=8545e1d7af&mc_eid=f81310abbd

Le Petite Cirque–   Le Petite Cirque is offering Zoom training sessions for all different ages (4- up) and abilities. From beginner handstands and dance to advanced choreography and acrobatics. Group sessions are just $10-$15 each and are 45mins.

Once Upon A Time Bookstore   Located in Montrose, CA, Once Upon a Time is America’s oldest children’s bookshop. Maureen and her daughter Jessica will ship anywhere, and their website offers recommendations and hosts author discussions and readings. If you can’t find what you are looking for, or want a personal recommendation for a great gift, they answer the phone and emails.

Mario’s Italian Deli-Mario’s Deli makes the best sandwiches in Glendale! They make all their pastas, sausages, and salads in house. They stock vintage Italian wines and stock all the cheeses and charcuterie of Italy as well as imported olive oils.

Call ahead for quick service: 818-242-4114

Monsivais & Co.   Damian designs and creates caps, clothes, and accessories inspired by the early 1900s. He uses antique machinery and tools to make them as authentic as possible. His e-commerce site is fairly extensive, and he ships worldwide.

To see more of this project, click here.

 

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Paul Ernest

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Paul Ernest  (originally posted in 2018)

Claimed as the 21st century Norman Rockwell, Paul Ernest’s photographic work has been received as a soulful interpretation of timelessness in today’s evolving informational and technological culture. Using the camera and his appreciation for American Realism, Paul has developed a style he calls Mise En Scene Realism. His focus on composition and lighting are primarily drawn from painters such as Wyeth, Rockwell and Johnson but with an influence from his former career as a Creative Director and designer. “We are a people of storytelling, parables and fables. Our perception of the aesthetics in life are absorbed and interpreted in a way that is no different than any style or technique that have ever been in existence. We learn from stories and the adoption of them into our way of thinking and living.”

Since 2011 Paul’s work has earned him awards from WPPI and PPA, including Diamond Photographer of the Year in 2012 and 2015 and earning his Craftsman and Master Degree. Paul’s work has been accepted in galleries such as Craighead Green and premiere arts festival throughout the state of Texas. His commissioned work hangs in restaurants, hotels and private collections including the lobby of his alma mater where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts. He also has developed his style into a line of home interior products sold nationally.

Paul’s passion for education and continued growth in himself and others is evident in his teaching and mentoring which he does in his home state as well as across the U.S. He lives just outside of Dallas, Texas with his wife and children.

 

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Michael Grecco

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Michael Grecco

Days of Punk, The Punk and Post Punk Era

I moved to college in the mid-seventies in Boston a music elitist. My New York upbringings had created a music snob, into only the coolest rock, Bowie, The Velvets, the Ramones, Pattie Smith and a hatred for hair bands including Alice Cooper, Sabbath and Motley Crue. Especially after enjoying Jazz in NY also, the music being produced by the mega music industry went nowhere and said nothing interesting.

I knew it all, all there was to know about music, except what was coming around the corner. One day I took the short walked into the Rat in Kenmore Square, a few blocks from my dorms and my life changed. That night was a battle of the bands, but they were all punk bands. They played a musical extension of sounds and riffs I was familiar with from early groundbreaker, but yet it was new. I also realized that I would have never heard this bands on record or on the radio of the day. This was the outlet for them, the dark, smelly seedy underground. That night changed my life and led me on over a 5-year journey of sex, drugs and punk.

I was the club kid out every night, shooting bands, partying with the bands and then getting my shit together to as a photographer for the Associated Press during the day. I would disco nap at to 6 PM after work, have dinner at 10 PM and then back out to the clubs by midnight: Spit, The Underground, The Rat, The Channel, and The Paradise Club and Cantones. The music was starting to erupt and with it the first college punk radio show, The Late Risers Club. This was my life until a staff job at the Boston Herald made the drinking and drug and staying out all night impossible.

This is the recorded history of that world and that time, the story must be told.

Lead guitarist Poison Ivy (born Kristy Marlana Wallace) of the punk rock band “The Cramps” is backstage before performing at a theater in 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Musician Billy Idol poses for a portrait back stage one month after his debut solo album release of ‘Billy Idol’ in Boston, Massachusetts on August 01, 1982.
Punk rock band lead singer Wendy O Williams and the Plasmatics performing on stage on November 13, 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Members of the punk rock group “Bow Wow Wow” performing on stage at the Paradise Theater in Boston. Members include Annabella Lu Win (lead singer), David Barbarossa (Dave Barbe) on drums, Matthew Ashman (guitar), Lee Gorman on bass in Septemeber 1981 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Lead singer Lux Interior (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) of the punk rock band “The Cramps” performing on stage at a theater in 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Members of the pop music group “Human League”, Susan Sulley, performing on stage at a theater in 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts.

To see more of this project, click here.

To purchase the book, click here

 

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Hugh Kretschmer

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Hugh Kretschmer 

PLASTIC “WAVES”

PURPOSE: Plastic “Waves” is a chapter of my ongoing project, Mirage— a visual commentary on the effects of human behavior on our natural water systems. Each image is constructed using recycled, repurposed or rejected plastic; a foreign element that is now, unfortunately, ever-present in our natural water systems. For these examples, I used recycled garbage bags.

My intent is to engage my audience with the alluring beauty of these images. But upon closer examination a deeper awareness of their intended message is revealed; a future where bodies of water, in their purest form, may only be seen through artificial means— something like a museum diorama.

These examples are the early stages of a long and in-depth exploration of sculpture and photography. My philanthropic purpose is to benefit a nonprofit organization devoted to water conservation through proceeds generated from gallery print and book sales.

INSPIRATION: Initially influenced by Robert Longo’s Epic Wave charcoal drawings they now include Wave Photographer @raycollins artwork as inspiration.

PROCESS: The construction of the water effect starts with a recycled chipboard base that is formed and teased into the basic shape. Then repurposed pillow batting is spray mounted to the surface and shaped in a way to give the wave visual volume. An aluminum screen is the next layer and is tacked down in certain points using hot glue. On top of that, a recycled paper pulp with a binder is applied and shaped in three layers, consecutively adding more detail with each application. Lastly, two varieties of recycled garbage bags were applied to the sculpture— a black lawn bag style for the waves’ base and a thin translucent type was used to represent sea foam. The blur effect of the sea foam was captured using a combination of a long exposure, enhanced by a variable neutral density filter, and a compact electric leaf blower.

 

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Marsha Bernstein

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Marsha Bernstein

I’ve always been drawn to collage work, particularly the decollage work of French artist Jaques Villegle, which is more about subtracting and revealing layers than assembling and building. A lot of my professional work is fashion reportage – backstage at New York Fashion Week – so I thought those images would be fun to work with and explore my own collage style. I thought I would try something in the style of Villegle but I ended up just playing around and doing my own thing. I haven’t been in a darkroom in years so this is a way for me to create art in a tactile way. It’s nice to work away from a screen.

The process is very relaxing and meditative and a way for me to stay creative during periods where I’m not busy (but I’ve also enjoyed making collages during very hectic times as a way to unwind). I don’t have a fixed method – instead, I’ll just pick one of my own fashion images that I think will be interesting to work with – it might be because of a shape, a face, the colors – what draws me to it is always different. I’ll then often print the image in different sizes to play with scale. Other times I’ll use a singular image and bring in some sort of paper ephemera (a vintage French color palette poster, for example) or another image of mine as a backdrop (a London street, the Seine river, and the interior of the Louvre are a few examples). Then I’ll usually rip the images and paper and play with placement.

I’ve also experimented with digital collages in a similar way – using my own fashion images and playing with repetition and scale against a backdrop of something else I’ve photographed. More recently, because I wasn’t able to shoot this past fashion season due to the pandemic, I used images of mine from previous seasons and placed them in vintage scenes with televisions as a play on how we’d all be watching the digital shows. I also incorporated screenshots of a digital fashion show from Paris Fashion Week against a photo of mine of Paris rooftops. I missed shooting shows and this was a way for me to be in that world again.

I don’t spend too much time on an individual collage, as I like it to feel organic. (I think if I spent too much time planning one out it wouldn’t have the rawness that some of them have). Cross training, so to speak, is an important part of being an artist, in my opinion. Actually, I think it’s important for any profession or hobby – it’s good to work different parts of the brain in order to strengthen and grow the ones you use all the time. Or maybe I’m thinking too much about it – I just enjoy it.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Kremer Johnson

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Kremer Johnson

I grew up in a house where my parents worked with their hands.  Both had regular jobs, but each had a side business that they ran out of the house to make extra money.  My mom had an upholstery shop in our basement, and my dad did engine & auto bodywork in the garage.  There was constantly something being crafted around me.

Despite my parents’ best efforts to involve me, that genetic code apparently skips a generation & the skill sets never stuck.  I did, however, learn a healthy respect for the skills & maintain a proper appreciation for a well-crafted final product.  As the project was forming, it was great to have a business partner who was on board to grow this project with more creators.

Living in a largely digital world where most things are mass-produced and available for delivery to your door at a moment’s notice that level of care & craftsmanship seems to be in short older today.  This series celebrates the makers & creators who still take the time & care to create custom goods by hand.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Jeff Lipsky

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own. I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before. In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find. Please DO NOT send me your work. I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist: Jeff Lipsky

It was back in 2015 when I was on assignment for Outside Magazine where I first got the inspiration to do the father son personal project. The job was to shoot the best-selling author Norman Ollestad and his son Noah surfing together. Ollelstad’s book “Crazy for the Storm” was a true survival/ plane crash story with a father son relationship. I wanted to capture Norman’s passion of surfing and how he passed it to his son like his father had done to him. Not an easy thing to get. What is that exact moment that conveys that feeling? I was hooked.

After that assignment I decided to keep going. While shooting the late Chris Cornell’s album “Higher Truth” I had the chance capture him sharing his passion for playing the guitar with his son. It’s continued with an artist, golfer, writer, skater, and wine maker. Being a dad myself of two boys and girl I continually look for those inspirations. A dad and daughter project is currently in the works!

 

 

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s. After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty. Follow her at @SuzanneSease. Instagram
Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it. And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Taylor Roades

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Taylor Roades

A RIBBON OF HIGHWAY – BETWEEN THE EAST OF MY YOUTH AND THE WEST OF MY FUTURE.

A Ribbon of Highway is a personal retrospective and an exploration of a Canadian Identity. It is a collection of photographs taken between 2010-2020, a decade of my twenties where I moved and travelled extensively across the country, coming of age and questioning both my own value systems, and what being Canadian might mean. The photographs depict my individual lived experience, visiting landscapes that vary drastically in geography, history, and socio-economic status, and overarching lifestyle.

I have photographs from every province and territory except Newfoundland, and Nunavut. I took three trips across the country on a greyhound bus over this time, and travelled on photography assignments to some extremely remote locations.  These photos were not taken with a final goal in mind; the scenes were interesting to me in the moment. I’ve always been deeply intrigued by the cultural threads that hold Canada together, and though I won’t claim this collection to be all encompassing of “Canadianness”, it is a reflection of the place and the person I was when I took the images.

The title of this project: “A Ribbon of Highway” is a lyric in a song called This Land is Your Land. It is an American tune and was re-made by a Canadian band called the Travellers (originally named The Beavers). Naming this project a Ribbon on Highway was an analogy for how we are constantly defining ourselves as separate from the Americans, and yet are still so influenced, for better or worse, by our southern neighbour.

Canada, as we know it emerged from a series of outposts, and in a sense still operates this way. Kindness here is born out of a season of scarcity. We are a vast landmass with incredible differences and we cling to the similarities because they give us something to identify with.

Our patriotism is steeped in contradictions. We are friendly even if we don’t want to be friends. We are hardy people, but complain about scraping the caked ice from our windshields at the break of dawn. We have feelings of moral superiority to the USA with a robust public healthcare system, and yet we have a history of deeply unequal and morally horrific policies when it comes to the treatment of Indigenous peoples on this land.

Some of these photos are stereotypical, and some are personal. It is my hope if you have spent time in this country you will see your own experience, even if only partially. This thread of shared experience is what holds us together, in the space between the places that make up most of this Country.

To see more of this project, click here.

Behind the scenes video

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Joe Pugliese

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Joe Pugliese

This year has been a most unusual time for photographers that are accustomed to a busy calendar, frequently engaging with human subjects. For me, the slowdown of work gave me space to really witness my three and a half year-old son Lucian. 

Being at home for much longer periods of time made me see his energy in a new way, and I wanted to document it somehow. I thought of the old corny comic strip Family Circus where the sporadic path of a child’s day was marked with a dotted line to show how much ground he covered. I was really impressed by the way Lucian occupies his spaces, playing in every inch of wherever he finds himself. It made me reflect on how sedentary we become as adults unless we’re intentionally partaking in an activity.

I also enjoyed infusing a motion element into this still work, extrapolating a narrative from the confines of a single frame. Often in my commercial work, compositing and stitching together frames is a way to solve problems and fix mistakes. It was nice to approach this series with the purpose of making an entire group portrait of one singular energy, claiming his surroundings and seizing each day.

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Billy Delfs

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Billy Delfs

Detroit to Niagara is a series I thought about a lot while growing up in Cleveland (my home town). Having spent the majority of my life along the southern coast of Lake Erie, the smallest of the Great Lakes, I always wondered what was on the other side.  In what could take 4 hours to drive from coast to coast, these 5 days traversing in and out of the coastline became a valuable study of light and making better pictures in unknown territory.

I gravitated toward the landscape and noticed how the farm fields have all been converted to wind farms, the coastlines are pristine, the camp sites in the national parks system I stayed were some of the best taken care of I have been, and the people pleasantly soft spoken.

 

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Bob Stevens

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Bob Stevens

An agent pal of mine in NY, reached out to me because he had gotten wind of a potential bid opportunity. He knows that I like to shoot personal, self-assigned images as often as possible, so thought I would be interested. He had few details except for these: the women needed to be 55+ years of age and photographed without any makeup. No clue who the client was, etc. And he wanted samples within a couple of days.

I called my bestie in the talent agency biz, shared the specs and had an online gallery to view within an hour. She offered me her casting room to shoot in. A 10’x10’ ‘studio’ was not my ideal scenario, but hey, that ‘Necessity/Invention” saying comes to mind.

Driven by logistics and a desire to make the environment as intimate as possible, I used one light, a fill card and a small canvas backdrop. My objective was to keep things simple and compact.

I invited these women to pose for me with no makeup, clothed in a way that would allow me to show them ‘discreetly naked’,  to increase the vulnerability of the setting.

The draped, gray fabric was inspired by classic sculpture and paintings (’Venus de Milo’ for example), and the lighting is “3/4”, the way Rembrandt he lit all his painted portraits.

I created a private atmosphere, where I spoke to each of them personally and individually before each session. As we spoke, each subject opened up in a remarkable way. I realized that their stories needed to be told with motion, because there was so much to relate.

I wrote a list of questions, and my plan was to ask each individual the same ones so that in editorial I could create the voice of ‘Woman’.

What I discovered is just how much these ladies had to say, and how powerfully they related to the questions I asked them: ‘Who are You?”, “How is your life different now than it was 20-30 years ago?”, “What does it feel like to be you at this age?” among others.

I was after personal moments, simply executed. I chose a very simple lighting setup and a black backdrop to feature my subjects. This was not ‘about me’, and I wanted to make sure that technique and production value took a backseat to the message.

An unexpected part of my experience is how vulnerable and candid they were, at times, breaking down. Not so much because of what they were saying, but my perception was that they were being ‘listened’ to and were moved that someone cared enough to ask.

The working title of the still shoot was ‘Authenticity’. After I shot the film, I changed it to “I Am” in honor of their statements.

I am grateful for the Vulnerability, Courage and Power of these amazing women.

Video Link

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Cade Martin

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Cade Martin

I have a strong affinity for Mexico, the place and its people. I have been traveling there since I was a little boy and have returned numerous times for personal and professional photography projects.

I visited the state of Tamaulipas for a couple of days and created this series of photographs on farm workers.

On a ranch just north of Tampico, I came across migrant workers harvesting onions from the fields. This part of Mexico, just south of the Tropic of Cancer and a few miles from the Gulf of Mexico, is ideal for growing onions, hot chili peppers, and soybeans – its rich, tropical soil yielding multiple crops year-round. The onion harvest is a hectic operation that involves picking the onions by hand. Once cut, they are left in the fields to dry before being trucked to a shed to be sorted, packed and ultimately shipped to market. To work the fields, a nomadic group of Tamalín Indians makes a yearly journey here from the tropical state of Veracruz.  Their weather beaten faces tell a story of many years of hard work in the fields under the relentless sun. I made these images in a shed, close to the fields where they worked – in the middle of their day.

As a “commercial” photographer, I really enjoy what I do. Of course, there are great characters and stories to capture in any shoot – but I continue to be intrigued by real, every-day people.  I try to seek them out whenever possible, like I did the migrant workers on this ranch.  You can’t make any of it up – the authenticity of their faces, their culture, how they carry themselves or what they face in the reality of their day is endlessly rewarding for me.

 

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Jasmin Shah

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Jasmin Shah

After being based in Chicago for decades, in July of 2019, I branched out and started a nomadic photography journey to pursue more of the work I love around the world. I had nine wonderful months of travel and adventures before COVID-19 changed my plans.

My story is a story of pivoting—of having a plan that needed to change but sticking with what is true to me. Like so many people, I have not had the 2020 I originally envisioned, but I am grateful to be healthy, to have generous friends, and to have found new faces to photograph and ways to experience the world around me, wherever that may be.

I have started a new project, and I’m calling it “Reintroducing America.” From 1935 to 1944, the US government-sponsored FSA program hired photographers and writers to “introduce America to Americans.” Those photos today work as a time capsule of that era. While I do not fancy myself as being at the level of those famed photographers, I do feel the need to document this strange time. We are a divided nation—there is no arguing that—but as I’ve been traveling around and talking to people, I find that even when we have completely different points of view, we are still living through this crazy time together, and we always find some way to relate. I am one person and currently sponsored by no organization, but I am going to do my best to document the many faces and stories that make up our country, one person at a time.

I love people. I love people’s stories—their joy, their pain, and the many realities of life. I will always keep telling these stories.

Eileen’s Caption: 

When planning my drive out west, I looked at campgrounds and Airbnbs between Kansas and California, and I stumbled upon an Airbnb in a ghost town in Cisco, Utah. It had no running water and looked rustic, but obviously, I was intrigued because I wanted to photograph it. I booked myself a spot.

When I arrived, I met Eileen, the visual artist who is the sole year-round resident of Cisco, Utah. She acquired the land in 2015 and has been rebuilding since then. Fun fact: Eileen is from the Milwaukee area and was living in Chicago just blocks from me before she left. But we never met until I arrived at her ghost town.

I admire Eileen, as this does not look like an easy place to live. While I was here it was over 100 degrees, and in the winter it gets really cold. But she is working to create an artist-in-residence program so others can come and be inspired. I spent some time photographing and talking with her. Then I went to my cabin and watched the sun set and the stars come out. I realized if I had another few days, I’d want to stay here too. (I included some photos of my “hotel” and the land because I really did love it.)

The best place to find the project is: here

(It is on my website but I’m in the process of changing my site so I don’t want to link to it if the direct link changes)

To support the project:

https://www.patreon.com/jasminshah

 

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.

 

The Art of the Personal Project: Stephen Wilkes

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

 

Today’s featured artist:  Stephen Wilkes

Stephen is known for his masterful ability to capture the heart of what makes this country what has always has been, a mixing bowl.

While things may feel unsettled right now, it’s a moment to reflect, to look at images that reinforce what makes us all uniquely American.

We are a strong nation, we are a resilient nation and we are a caring nation.

  

To see more of this project, click here.

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world. She has been involved in the photography and illustration industry since the mid 80s.  After establishing the art buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999. She has a new Twitter feed with helpful marketing information because she believes that marketing should be driven by brand and not by specialty.  Follow her at @SuzanneSeaseInstagram

Success is more than a matter of your talent. It’s also a matter of doing a better job presenting it.  And that is what I do with decades of agency and in-house experience.