A Photographic Life The United Nations of Photography

In this monthly conversation series Grant Scott speaks with editor, writer and curator of photography Bill Shapiro. In an informal conversation each month Grant and Bill comment on the photographic environment as they see it. This month they reflect on where the magazine industry and editorial photography are today from the photographer’s perspective.

Bill Shapiro
Bill Shapiro served as the Editor-in-Chief of LIFE, the legendary photo magazine; LIFE’s relaunch in 2004 was the largest in Time Inc. history. Later, he was the founding Editor-in-Chief of LIFE.com, which won the 2011 National Magazine Award for digital photography. Shapiro is the author of several books, among them Gus & Me, a children’s book he co-wrote with Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and, What We Keep, which looks at the objects in our life that hold the most emotional significance. A fine-art photography curator for New York galleries and a consultant to photographers, Shapiro is also a Contributing Editor to the Leica Conversations series. He has written about photography for the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, the Atlantic, Vogue, and Esquire, among others. Every Friday — more or less — he posts about under-the-radar photographers on his Instagram feed, where he’s @billshapiro.

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book is Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is on sale now wherever you buy your books.

Mentioned in this episode:
Patrick Witty: https://patrickwitty.substack.com
Amy Wolff: www.amywolff.com
Adeolu Osibodu: www.adeoluosibodu.com
Verena von Pfetten: Instagram @gossamer and @vonverena
Michael Young: https://mjyoungphoto.com
Jonas Cueinin: www.blind-magazine.com
Tag Cristof: www.tagchristof.com
Fiona Hayes: Instagram @theartdictator

Recommendations:
On Instagram:
@insomniamagazine
@timetobehave
@amareazul_
@magnificomagazine
@artofvisuals
@gordonparksfoundation
@c__l__o @theindependentphoto
@mr.oldschool_
@Thegourmand 
@Buffalozine
@wildsam
@diezeit
@deardavemag
@texasmonthly

https://www.rouleur.cc/pages/subscribe

Texas Monthly story featuring @richard_sharum’s photos: To Live & Die in Dallas

© Grant Scott 2024

In episode 311 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed reflecting on looking back and looking forward, the failure of AI photography and the importance of visiting local photography exhibitions.

Plus this week, photographer Chantel King 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?’

London-based Chantel King's work focuses on beauty and portraiture. She completed her art foundation at Middlesex University and then completed a degree in graphic design at Buckinghamshire New University. King worked as a photo assistant, before progressing to producer and studio manager. She describes her photographic style as being cinematic, dreamy and intimate. She has been commissioned by brands including Revolution REHAB, Fable & Mane and magazines such as Stylist, Grazia, Departures, Hunger, Tush and Schon! as well as Guardian Saturday, and The Sunday Times magazine. www.chantelking.com

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is now on sale.

© Grant Scott 2024

In episode 310 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed reflecting on the need to regularly replenish your cretivity and inspiration source and he reads from his new book Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories.

Plus this week, photographer Kyle McDougall 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?’

Kyle McDougall is a documentary photographer from Ontario, Canada, currently residing in the United Kingdom whose work is driven by a fascination with rural environments, quiet spaces, history, and time. After graduating from film school in the early 2000s, Kyle spent the first ten years of his career working as a cinematographer and director in the television industry, as well as running a commercial video production company. In 2017, he and his wife sold their house, left their jobs, and took off on a year-long road trip across North America, which ultimately inspired a new creative direction in his career. His focus has now shifted towards pursuing long-term photography projects and sharing creative and educational content through his YouTube channel. His first book, titled An American Mile, is a culmination of five years spent exploring and documenting small towns in the American Southwest and currently, he’s working on two projects—one documenting the Slate Landscapes of North Wales, the other focusing on the history of the Royal Air Force in WW2 and its lost airfields. www.kylemcdougallphoto.com

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is now on pre-sale.

© Grant Scott 2024

In episode 309 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed reflecting on the universal availability of post-production software, the siloed nature of photography and the continued thinning out of experience amongst photography commissioners.

Plus this week, photographer Mandy Williams 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?’

London based Mandy Williams uses photography, video and sound to expand traditional representations of landscape. She studied for a Graduate Diploma Communications Film, at Goldsmith's College, a BA (Hons) History of Art, Warwick University and a MA Photography at LCC, University of the Arts London. Williams approaches socio-political issues in an experimental, aesthetic style, seeking to comment on urgent narratives through unexpected, diverse visualisations. Her project, England, examines the exclusionary politics of contemporary England through the metaphor of landscape and includes video, a photographic series and a free newspaper with fold-out posters and interview texts. In the sequence of black and white photographs coastal landscapes are merged with alien geographies accessed from NASA, representing a landscape that has become unstable, and which causes harm. While some projects reference personal history, memory and the passage of time, others reflect on contemporary socio-political and environmental concerns. This includes her ongoing photographic series, Disrupted Landscapes, and video, Chalk, both of which explore contemporary politics in England through the metaphor of landscape, specifically focusing on the landscape of the Kent coast. https://mandywilliams.com

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is now on pre-sale.

© Grant Scott 2024

In this monthly conversation series Grant Scott speaks with editor, writer and curator of photography Bill Shapiro. In an informal conversation each month Grant and Bill comment on the photographic environment as they see it. This month they reflect on where the magazine industry and editorial photography are today from the photographer's perspective.

Bill Shapiro
Bill Shapiro served as the Editor-in-Chief of LIFE, the legendary photo magazine; LIFE’s relaunch in 2004 was the largest in Time Inc. history. Later, he was the founding Editor-in-Chief of LIFE.com, which won the 2011 National Magazine Award for digital photography. Shapiro is the author of several books, among them Gus & Me, a children’s book he co-wrote with Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and, What We Keep, which looks at the objects in our life that hold the most emotional significance. A fine-art photography curator for New York galleries and a consultant to photographers, Shapiro is also a Contributing Editor to the Leica Conversations series. He has written about photography for the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, the Atlantic, Vogue, and Esquire, among others. Every Friday — more or less — he posts about under-the-radar photographers on his Instagram feed, where he’s @billshapiro.

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book is Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is on sale February 2024.

Mentioned in this episode:

Jake Chessum: https://jakechessum.com www.farringdonprintshop.com
Instagram: @jakechessum

Erin Patrice O’Brien: www.erinpatriceobrien.com Instagram: @erinpatriceobrien

Chris Buck: www.chrisbuck.com Instagram: @the_Chris_Buck

Matt Weinberger: Instagram: @mweinbergerr

Arnold Newman: https://unitednationsofphotography.com/2022/12/04/bill-jay-archive-arnold-newman-a-personal-appreciation/

Elliott Erwitt created an alter ego, the beret-wearing and pretentious "André S. Solidor" (which abbreviates to "ass"), " a contemporary artist, from one of the French colonies in the Caribbean, I forget which one" to "satirise the kooky excesses of contemporary photography." The work was published in a book, The Art of André S. Solidor (2009), and exhibited in 2011 at the Paul Smith Gallery in London.

© Grant Scott 2024

In episode 307 UNP founder and curator Grant Scott is in his shed reflecting on photography and the 1990s, keeping ethemera that may or may not be important and the importance of making mistakes to creative success.

Plus this week, photographer Michael Robinson Chávez 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?’

Michael Robinson Chávez, is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winning photographer, who became seduced by photography after a friend gave him a camera to take on a trip to Peru. A native Californian who is half-Peruvian, Robinson Chávez is now based in the Washington DC region. He worked for the The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe and Associated Press before working as a staff photographer for fifteen years at The Washington Post. He has covered assignments in over 75 countries including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the collapse of Venezuela, violence in Mexico, California's historic drought, the Egyptian revolution, gold mining in Peru, climate change in Siberia, life in Brazil's favelas, and the US led invasion and occupation of Iraq. Robinson Chávez was named an iWitness Fellow, is a frequent lecturer and has taught photographic workshops with the Leica Akademie and Foundry among others, in over twenty countries. https://chavezphoto.com

Dr.Grant Scott
After fifteen years art directing photography books and magazines such as Elle and Tatler, Scott began to work as a photographer for a number of advertising and editorial clients in 2000. Alongside his photographic career Scott has art directed numerous advertising campaigns, worked as a creative director at Sotheby’s, art directed foto8magazine, founded his own photographic gallery, edited Professional Photographer magazine and launched his own title for photographers and filmmakers Hungry Eye. He founded the United Nations of Photography in 2012, and is now a Senior Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator: Photography at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, and a BBC Radio contributor. Scott is 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), and What Does Photography Mean To You? (Bluecoat Press 2020). His photography has been published in At Home With The Makers of Style (Thames & Hudson 2006) and Crash Happy: A Night at The Bangers (Cafe Royal Books 2012). His film Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay was premiered in 2018.

Scott’s next book Inside Vogue House: One building, seven magazines, sixty years of stories, Orphans Publishing, is now on pre-sale.

© Grant Scott 2024