ALL OF THIS IS ROCKET SCIENCE

A studio visit with Osma Harvilahti

Mon, 13 May 2013 20:35:27 +0200

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?
My studio is located at the district of Kamppi in Helsinki, Finland. I live literally across the street so it’s not unusual for me to spend the whole day at work and only use my apartment as a place to sleep. I started working here last year.

What are the pros and cons of your studio?
I must say there aren’t many downsides here, maybe I could squeeze out one thing and it would be the lack of natural light during the winter months but then again it’s the same everywhere here in northern Europe. Oh well, it gets a bit cold here on winter and quite warm during the summer. I really like the space and it’s good for any kind of projects since it’s spacious, clean but also cozy. Also the studio feels like 1 big space even though it’s divided in 3 sections so there’s enough room and privacy even for bigger amount of people & big productions. There’s a supermarket and a nice japanese restaurant close by so can’t complain.

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?
Sometimes a weekly average might turn out to be 60-70 hours. I travel a lot and this obviously changes my routine but while in Finland I really try to stick to normal hours. It’s specially hard while working on both personal and commercial work at the same time and it’s also difficult to tell the difference between work and free time since I really enjoy what I’m doing.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For exemple, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?
Usually and during the week I start with having a cup of coffee and maybe some breakfast. The second thing to do is going through my emails and trying to prioritize the ones that require a quick response. Emails have turned to be an ever growing work load and it takes a lot of my time to keep everyone happy. Then, depending on if I’m having a shoot or not, I’ll spend some time editing or planning future projects. Usually I prepare my lunch at the studio and it’s about 2 o’clock at this point. A big part of my routine is going through magazines and favourite blogs & websites and I do this almost daily. Before I leave the studio I usually take another snack or prepare a small dinner. During the weekend it’s good to grab a couple of beers or watch a movie with friends here.

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?
Not really, it feels natural to mix things together but sometimes it feels a bit dangerous to spend too much time here as things might get too comfortable. It’s good to get out of the space to get some fresh air but then again filling the fridge with food allows me to keep working with less breaks and interruptions caused by lunch & coffee breaks etc. If there’s a lot of work I try to stay late and even work overnight as that seems to be the most productive time for me.

Do you sometimes wish you had your own studio? What are the pros and cons of sharing your workspace with someone else?
It’s really good to share the studio with some of my best friends and there’s always someone to give you an advice or a hand. I think it’s nice to have people around but if it gets noisy I usually just turn up the volume a bit. Music is essential to keep me focused and happy.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?

for more of Osma’s work, please visit www.osma.fi

more info on this soon (i’m excited)

Wed, 08 May 2013 23:48:52 +0200

more info on this soon (i’m excited)

A studio visit with Shen Wei

Mon, 06 May 2013 20:35:00 +0200

photographs by Amy Lombard

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?

My studio is in the Financial District of Manhattan, a few blocks north of Wall Street. I have been living and working here since 2007.

What are the pros and cons of your studio?

The location is very convenient, easy to get around the city. My studio is also a part of my apartment, so it is also very convenient to get to work, but that also means sometimes I can get distracted easily.

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?

I spend most of my day here. If I am not out I am either on my computer or at the drawing desk. My photography work is mostly shot on location and I love to travel. I am on the road for almost 4 months every year.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For exemple, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?

I am truly a night person. I work the best at late night, usually until 4 or 5 in the morning. So I wake up quite late in the day and then I have my breakfast tea while answering emails. In the afternoon I usually arrange to meet people, go to museums and galleries, and make phone calls, etc. My real production hour starts after dinner.

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?

I am a super neat person so I can’t work in a messy environment. Everything has to be placed properly in my studio. I always clean up my desk after a night of work.

Do you sometimes wish you shared your studio with one or a few other artists?

I used to share a working studio with another artist in Tribeca. But right now I prefer to have my own space. I often invite artist friends over to my place for gatherings, to exchange ideas, and to discuss each other’s work.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?

Most of the time I either listen to classical music or French Chanson when I am working.

geordiewood: This month, in our annual Photo Issue, The FADER...

Mon, 06 May 2013 18:04:57 +0200

geordiewood:

This month, in our annual Photo Issue, The FADER is publishing a feature on the epidemic of youth violence in Chicago, photographed by Daniel Shea. It’s no exaggeration to say this has been one of the most fulfilling projects that Daniel and I have ever worked on.

The feature is live online today. Over the duration of the week four extended edits will be posted along with conversations between Daniel and I.

This essay was a deviation from past photo issues. Instead of publishing preexisting work we decided to commission one large essay with ambitious goals. Our choice to shoot on the ground in Chicago stemmed from the idea that the violent rhetoric that permeates contemporary rap music has a human cost that is too often overlooked. The FADER and many other magazines covering new music feature musicians that propagate cultures of violence (like Chief Keef, who Daniel shot for The FADER’s cover less than a year ago). With the magazine’s audience of young people in mind, we wanted to face that head on.

What resulted is 16 pages of photographs and a Q&A with veteran Chicago reporter Alex Kotlowitz. We aimed to depict what life in the South Side is like for young people, through individuals affected by violence, those participating in it and the grassroots effort to curb the spread of retaliatory crime which seems to have no end.

I would like to personally thank Daniel, my friend, for his incredible effort and determination working on this project, as well as the staff and publishers of The FADER for believing in it and to the men and women of CeaseFire who opened countless doors for us. Please spread the word and consider donating to their incredible effort.

“The picture from Denver was different, as far as...

Sat, 04 May 2013 00:02:46 +0200

“The picture from Denver was different, as far as investment. I spent a cloudy afternoon with the small group. As we walked the woman explained that she had travelled with the last of her savings from Ohio to Colorado in search of her estranged mother. When her journey ended on the doorstep of her mother’s home she was refused entry, and in the process her mother renounced her. Afterward, she walked the streets of Denver until she found consolation in the company of strangers. That’s when I came across them. Coincidentally, the crying man in the background was dealing with the death of his mother, who had passed that very same morning.”

Curran Hatleberg (via)

Esquire Russia published my series Missing to accompany an...

Wed, 01 May 2013 17:19:41 +0200

Esquire Russia published my series Missing to accompany an article on kidnapped people, all I have to do now is finding someone who can translate the article.

new project coming soon

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:58:10 +0200

new project coming soon

troisxtrois: Olivia Locher on Trois x Trois

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 16:11:30 +0200

troisxtrois:

Olivia Locher on Trois x Trois

escapetowhichmountain: ETWM guest curates ‘Another Escape’...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 18:49:13 +0200

escapetowhichmountain:

ETWM guest curates ‘Another Escape’ Volume 1

Hello, Samuel here. It’s been very quiet here at ETWM for a while now but we are pleased to announce that we recently collaborated with Another Escape Magazine.

Myself, Sam. A. Harris and Alex Catt selected a photographer each to feature in a dedicated ETWM section of the magazine. I wrote a short introduction about us and put it all together in some spreads which then got sent off to the guys at Another Escape.

A big thank you to our chosen contributors Brendan Barry, Pauline Magnenat and Louis Perreault.

We couldn’t be more pleased with how everything turned out. Things are slow here, but still active and there will be a second volume of ETWM and some updates in the future.

We hope you continue to enjoy everything we have put out so far. Please check in every now and then and remember we are still accepting submissions via our flickr group.

Buy ANOTHER ESCAPE VOLUME 1 here.

A studio visit with Jamie Hawkesworth

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 18:01:43 +0200

photographs by Harry Mitchell

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?
I have a small darkroom inside Rapid Eye, on Leonard Street, London. I have been here about a year… Prior to that I was taking trips down to Brixton to print. When I first moved to London, I was assisting a photographer who used to pay me by letting me use his darkroom in East Acton; he would teach me to colour print there. It a was a brilliant place to learn, and it feels great to now have my own place.

What are the pros and cons of your studio?
It’s so brilliant having the facilities to hand print so close to where I live. I really love working with film and having the experience of being in the darkroom. Using my hands to make my photos makes everything really tactile, and kind of feels like I’m making a really great object.

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?
It kind of depends on how work is, and how large the job is that I’m printing. If I have the time, and I’m working on something personal, I tend to spend all day here, working on into the evening… You can get carried away and loose track of time.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For example, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?
Not really, well I guess I make a cup of tea and wait for the machine to warm up, then I just get down to contacting and printing…

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?
No, nothing in particular really. I sometimes waste a bit of time on the computer though. I also love trying to make huge prints, and then love trying to make very small prints… Sometimes I cant make up my mind, which actually isn’t that productive either!

Do you sometimes wish you had your own studio? What are the pros and cons of sharing your workspace with someone else?
I’m very lucky with my studio, as there are very experienced printers around me who have been in this industry for over 20-30 years. It’s strange as I find myself talking to the guys here about colour casts, thickness and quality of paper and how the tone of an image looks… It’s brilliant to really look at these finer details of an actual physical object.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?
I’m really obsessed with playing these too songs:

for more of Jamie’s work, please visit www.jamiehawkesworth.com

troisxtrois: Coley Brown on Trois x Trois today

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 21:12:11 +0200

troisxtrois:

Coley Brown on Trois x Trois today

I got featured on the awesome CULT website the other day, check...

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:42:28 +0200

I got featured on the awesome CULT website the other day, check it out - all the features are pretty brilliant.

A studio visit with Jason Nocito

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:39:16 +0200

photographs by Andrew Musson

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?

It’s on the south side of Williamsburg, right over the bridge and really close to where I live. I’ve been working there for the past 2 years.

What are the pros and cons of your studio ?

The pros are getting out of my house and creating space and structure for me to work away form my comfort zone. The view is awesome too. I can sit and stare at clouds rolling over the Empire State needle. It’s really cool when a storm rolls in. Cons: I tend to eat shitty because Pies ‘n’ Thighs is a block away. I really love fried chicken.

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?

It really depends on what I’m up to. When I’m in the city, I’ll spend anywhere between 3 and 8 hours a day. Most of my practice has been out of the studio but as of late I’m changing that up a bit and I’m making some pictures there. I like to shoot where I spend time.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For exemple, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?

Yes, the first thing I do is plug my phone into my speakers and listen to Howard Stern. I’ve listened to him since I was in high school. His Long Island accent is really soothing to me. Then I just try and focus on what I’m working on.

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?

No, I actually find it to be the one place where I shouldn’t forbid myself. No matter what I do there, it ends up being work related.

Do you sometimes wish you shared your studio with one or a few other artists ?

No but I do like visitors! I would never want to share my space with anyone. It’s my escape.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?

for more of Jason’s work, please visit www.jasonnocito.com

Another Escape published my Silver Wedding series in their first...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:50:29 +0200

Another Escape published my Silver Wedding series in their first issue - get a copy here, the whole magazine is great.

Congratulations to Alec Soth and Christian Patterson for being...

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 19:02:18 +0200

Congratulations to Alec Soth and Christian Patterson for being both awarded a 2013 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship.

In 2011, I interviewed Alec Soth for my BFA thesis on the subject of “How Joel Sternfeld and Alec Soth develop a contemporary practice of documentary photography beyond the editorial system and how narrative is conveyed within Sternfeld’s series American Prospects and Soth’s Niagara and Sleeping By The Mississippi”.

You can download the whole essay here.

A studio visit with Christian Patterson

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 19:37:26 +0200

photographs by David Brandon Geeting

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?
My studio is in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, which is located about five minutes from my home.

What are the pros and cons of your studio?
Pros: Location, size and space.
Cons: The internet.

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?
30ish.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For exemple, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?
I start by turning on my computer, playing some music and answering e-mail. The rest of the day depends to a large extent on various ongoing projects and what other people need from me. For the past several months I also have spent a lot of time traveling, going to exhibitions, doing book signings, giving artist talks and leading workshops. But I am now finally, slowly turning my attention to what I hope will be my next big project.

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?
I am obsessive and self-motivated enough to not have to worry too much about distractions. If I am not being productive I am not happy.

You had your studio to yourself for a while but you’re now sub-letting a portion of it to a friend. What are the pros and cons of sharing your workspace with someone else?
I like to be alone. My friend and I say hello and chat with each other but we mostly keep to ourselves. We are both busy with our work, and that is what makes the situation work for us.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?

for more of Christian’s work, please visit www.christianpatterson.com

Rocket Science turned 5 years old today! Below is a list of everyone (with a link to their feature)...

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 19:35:29 +0200

Rocket Science turned 5 years old today!

Below is a list of everyone (with a link to their feature) who contributed to it and its side project, Trois x Trois. Thanks guys and girls!

François Coquerel (+ mixtape), Amy Lombard, Anya Jasbar, Alex Goss, Ariane Schrack, Lewis Chaplin and Alex F. Webb, Jan Postma, Raoul Gatepin, Andrew Musson and Randall Phenning, Shane Lavalette, Patrick Tsai, Nicholas Hance McElroy, Randall Phenning (again), Hin Chua, Daniel Augschoell, Bryan Schutmaat, David Luraschi (+ mixtape), Adam Golfer, Eddie Geisinger, Alejandro Cartagena, Bobby Doherty, Aaron Fowler, Cyrille Weiner, David Brandon Geeting, Julien Magre, Jake Dow-Smith, Mark Peckmezian, Rafa Castells, Estelle Hanania, Ben Alper, Keith Davis Young, Sophie Morner, Daniel Shea (+ a studio visit), Glen Erler, Thomas Prior, Jesse Hlebo (+ a studio visit and a mixtape), Elinor Carucci, Steven Brahms, Guy Archard, Robin Schwartz, Emiliano Granado, Nathanael Jonas Turner, Romke Hoogwaerts(+ mixtape), Jason Hanasik, Tema Stauffer, Jody Rogac, Kevin Charles, Joe Nigel Coleman, FMJ Botham, Trevor Clement (+ mixtape), Raimond Wouda, Andreas Till (+ mixtape), Bruno Zhu, Christopher Schreck (+ mixtape), Ace Kieffer, Romain Courtemanche, Alex Howard, Sasha Kurmaz, Alex Martinez, Max Marshall, Elizabeth Weinberg (+ a studio visit), Letha Wilson, Asger Carlsen, Johnny de Guzman, Charlie Engman, Adam Kremer, Francesco Nazardo, Brendan Baker, Dimitri Karakostas, Graham Walzer, Jeff Luker, Jeff Hamada, Maciek Pozoga, Oscar Mendoza, Philippe Gerlach, Osma Harvilahti, Sam A. Harris, Winslow Laroche and Julian Berman.

troisxtrois: Sam A Harris is inspired by Lucas Blalock on Trois...

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 18:52:04 +0200

troisxtrois:

Sam A Harris is inspired by Lucas Blalock on Trois x Trois

A studio visit with Elizabeth Weinberg

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 23:54:23 +0200

photographs by Nathanael Turner

Where is your studio exactly and how long have you been working there?
My studio is in my house in Eagle Rock, Los Angeles. I have been working here since I moved from Brooklyn at the end of November 2012.

What are the pros and cons of your studio?
Pros: amazing light, lots of room, a private space. Can’t really think of any cons, maybe this carpeting that I’ll eventually get rid of…

How many hours do you usually spend there per week?
Depends on if I’m shooting or not: generally I am here when I wake up and it’s the last place I go before bed. Sometimes I work late into the night and other times I get it all done during the day. That’s the benefit to Los Angeles to me—I can go on a hike when it’s light out and then come home to finish up working. I love the flexibility.

Do you have your own daily routine within the studio? For exemple, do you usually start by answering your emails then get to work etc?
Usually I wake up, make some food, go get an iced coffee, and head to the computer. I usually check my emails on my phone right when I wake up, because a lot of things happen on east coast time. So then it’s to the computer to go through emails, and editing/color correcting shoots, or digging through files for various projects. I don’t really shoot much in here, but this is where I do all of my desk/computer which ends up taking the vast majority of my time, as any working photographer knows! I have so much more space now than I did in New York so I shoot a lot in my backyard or around the neighborhood.

Are there things you deliberately forbid yourself to do/have within the studio in order to be more productive?
Not really - I think it’s such a treat to be able to make my own schedule that I have been pretty good about getting to work when needed.

Do you sometimes wish you shared your studio with one or a few other artists?
When I was living in Brooklyn and had an office in my apartment, I really wished I could have had a shared space with others. I even looked into it for a while. There’s something about New York that made me really feel like I needed to be around other people all the time. Now that I live in LA, you spend way more of your time at home, so I don’t mind being solo at my studio. You also have to make way more of an effort to go out, so there is less distraction and I find myself being far more productive here in LA than in NYC.

What is your favorite track to edit photos to?

for more of Elizabeth’s work, please visit www.elizabethweinberg.com

A mixtape by Julian Berman

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 21:08:19 +0200

Nothing much to lose, a mixtape by Julian Berman

LEECH - ALISON’S HALO
BECKY’S BACK - WILD HONEY
TAKE ME - CHELSEA GIRL
BABYDOLL - MEDICINE
AWKWARD CONSCIENCE - BLACK BEACH
SUPERNOVA - LIZ PHAIR
MALLORY - THE HISTORY OF APPLE PIE
WRITTEN WORD - GODSPEED
INHALE - TWELVE HUNDRED
WHAT YOU WANT - MY BLOODY VALENTINE
DINOSAUR - OYAMA
WAS NOT - LAYMAN
IF YOU STILL WANT ME - VERONICA FALLS
UNTOGETHER - LUSH
BACK DOOR - CLAN OF XYMOX

download it here