Ali Dent, who lives in Australia and writes the blog A Sydney Art Buyer, contacted me a while back about the Stockland Martel blog, which turned into an occasional email correspondence, which turned into her doing a sort of free-ranging email interview with Maureen.
The interview just went live on Ali’s blog. A couple of excerpts:
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AD: how did you get started as and agent and how long have you been producing for photographers?
MM: In the early ’80s, I was making a transition from being a schoolteacher and had decided that I wanted to work with artists and still make money. For me, commercial photography was about the blend between art and commerce. One of my transitional jobs was working at a color lab, and that’s where I met Bill. He was coming in to get prints for one of his two photographers. After meeting with commercial photographers and with other agents, I knew that the person I wanted to work with was Bill Stockland. I pursued him for what seemed to be an eternity, which was actually just two months. And then one day, we ran into each other in an elevator of a building in what was then the photo district [in the 20s near the Flatiron Building in Manhattan], and I collared him and told him that had to hire me that day. And he did! It was serendipitous.
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AD: what advice could you give photographers on improving their portfolio and what mistake/s with folios do a lot of photographers make?MM: Know your market, know who you’re speaking to, and have a unique voice. Also, your portfolio has to speak a clear message—it has to stand on its own, and people have to understand who you are by looking at it. If I don’t know who you are by looking at your portfolio, then your book is not doing its job.
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Read the complete interview here.
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One Comment
I couldn’t agree more with Maureen about portfolios. Too many photographers try to be all things to all people, thinking that will give them an edge. But photo editors and art buyers want to see your special way of viewing the world. Have the courage to let your book show who you are. After all, if you don’t believe you have something unique to offer, and are willing to edit and sequence your book to show that, why would a potential client hire you?