Marilyn Stafford

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Marilyn Stafford (born 1925) is a British photographer.[1][2] She worked mainly as a freelance photojournalist based in Paris in the 1950s and early 1960s, then in London, travelling to Lebanon, Tunisia, India and elsewhere.[3][4][5] Her work was published in The Observer and other newspapers. Stafford also worked as a fashion photographer in Paris, where she photographed models in the streets in everyday situations, rather than in the more usual opulent surroundings.[3]

Stafford has published two books of photographs, Silent Stories: A Photographic Journey Through Lebanon in the Sixties (1998), and Stories in Pictures: A Photographic Memoir 1950 (2014) of Paris in the 1950s. She has had solo exhibitions, some being a retrospective and some being of a single subject: Indira Gandhi, and Parisian slum children. A retrospective is being shown at Farleys House in East Sussex from 12 August to 31 October 2021.[6]

In 2020 she was awarded the Chairman's Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 at the UK Picture Editors' Guild Awards in London.

Life and work[]

Stafford was born Marilyn Gerson[7] in 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.[3][8]

At age seven she was selected to train to be an actor with the Cleveland Play House.[9] Later she moved to New York City to act and had small roles Off-Broadway[5][8] and in early television.[10][9]

In 1948, Stafford went with friends interviewing Albert Einstein for a documentary film. In the car they handed her a 35mm camera—she had never used one before—and gave her a quick lesson on how to use it. She took several photographs and gave the film to her friends, who sent her a couple of prints.[11][3][10] In order to gain experience in photography, she worked as an assistant to the fashion photographer Francesco Scavullo.[10]

In December 1948[8] she joined a friend in moving to Paris.[10] For a short while she sang with an ensemble at Chez Carrère, a dinner club off the Champs-Élysées.[4] There she met and became friends with the war photographer and photojournalist Robert Capa.[5] She carried a camera and took what she later described as "happy snaps", but, working as a singer, had no thought of becoming a professional photographer until she lost her voice and could not continue singing.[11] She asked Capa for advice on becoming a photographer; he suggested war photography, but this did not appeal to her. Her friend the writer Mulk Raj Anand introduced her to another photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson, who she also became friends with.[5] Cartier-Bresson encouraged her to take photographs on the streets of Paris,[4] so she took buses to the end of the line and made photos such as of children (some candid, some not) in the slum of Cité Lesage-Bullourde (near Place de la Bastille, and since cleared to make way for Opéra Bastille); and in the neighbourhood of Boulogne-Billancourt,[4][3] in 1950.[12] In 1956 she married Robin Stafford, a British foreign correspondent for the Daily Express working in Paris.[7] In 1958, whilst five or six months pregnant with their daughter,[10] Stafford went on a personal assignment to Tunisia to document and publicise the plight of Algerian refugees fleeing France's scorched earth aerial bombardment in the Algerian War.[8] Back in Paris she showed the pictures to Cartier-Bresson, who made a selection and sent them to The Observer, which published two on its front page.[4][3]

In Paris Stafford also worked as a fashion photographer for a public relations agency, photographing various types of clothing.[13]:37 Fashion photography of haute couture (custom-fitted) clothing at that time was normally modelled in opulent surroundings so as to convey a sense of luxury. In photographing the new ready-to-wear clothing of the time, Stafford instead took a documentary approach, photographing models out in the streets, suggesting more down-to-earth situations.[3]

In the late 1950s her husband's work sent the couple to Rome,[12] then in the early 1960s to Beirut for over a year. Stafford travelled extensively in Lebanon, photographing people and places, later collected in her book Silent Stories: A Photographic Journey through Lebanon in the Sixties (1998).[14]

Stafford and her husband separated.[7] In the mid-1960s she moved to London, working as a photographer in various roles. She worked freelance as an international photojournalist for The Observer on both commissions and self-assigned projects,[3] one of few women photographers working for national newspapers at that time.[8] In 1972 she spent a month photographing Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India.[15][16] She worked as a stills photographer on feature films and commercials, including on All Neat in Black Stockings (1969).[17]

Throughout her career she has made portraits, including those of Cartier-Bresson, Edith Piaf,[4] Italo Calvino, Le Corbusier, Renato Guttuso, Carlo Levi, Sharon Tate, Donovan, Christopher Logue, Lee Marvin,[18] Joanna Lumley, David Frost, Sir Richard Attenborough, Sir Alan Bates, and Twiggy.[19]

She now (2017) lives in West Sussex, England.[3][10]

Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award[]

The Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award was launched on International Women’s Day 2017. It is to be granted annually to a professional woman photographer working on a documentary photo essay which addresses a social, environmental, economic or cultural issue. The winner receives £1000 and mentoring by Stafford and FotoDocument, an organisation that uses documentary photography to draw attention to positive social and environmental activity.[20][21]

The 2017 winner was Rebecca Conway, with honorable mentions for Ranita Roy, Monique Jaques, and Lynda Gonzalez.[22]

The 2018 winner was Özge Sebzeci and the runners up were Mary Turner and Simona Ghizzoni.[23]

The 2019 winner was Anna Filipova.[24]

The 2021 winner was Isadora Romero and the runner up was Stefanie Silber.[25]

Publications by Stafford[]

  • Silent Stories: A Photographic Journey through Lebanon in the Sixties. London: Saqi, 1998. ISBN 978-0-86356-099-6. With a preface by Vénus Khoury-Ghata, "Marilyn Stafford's Theatre of the Unexpected".
  • Stories in Pictures: A Photographic Memoir 1950. Shoreham, UK: Shoreham Wordfest, 2014. ISBN 978-0-9930446-0-1. With a foreword by Simon Brett and an introduction by Nina Emett. Edition of 50 copies.
    • Second edition. Shoreham, UK: Shoreham Wordfest, 2016. Edition of 100 copies. ISBN 978-0-9930446-0-1.
  • Photographic Memories – Lost Corners of Paris: The Children of Cité Lesage-Bullourde and Boulogne-Billancourt, 1949-1954. 2017. Texts in English and French by Julia Winckler and Adrienne Chambon, photographs by Stafford. Exhibition catalogue.[n 1][12]

Solo exhibitions[]

  • Indira and Her India, Nehru Centre, London, November 2013.[9][15][16]
  • Arundel Museum, Arundel, UK, December 2013.[9] A retrospective of work from the 1940s to 1960s.[19]
  • Photographic Memories of Lost Spaces: The Children of Cité Lesage-Bullourde and Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris 1949-1954, Alliance Française de Toronto, Toronto, Canada, March 2017. Curated by Julia Winckler.[26][27][28][29][30]
  • Marilyn Stafford - Stories in Pictures 1950-60, Lucy Bell Gallery, St Leonards-on-Sea, UK, May–June 2017;[3][8][31][32] Art Bermondsey Project Space, London, June–July 2017.[4][33]
  • Silent Echoes – Portraits from the Archive, After Nyne Gallery, London, October 2018. Curated by Nina Emett.[34]
  • Marilyn Stafford – Fashion Retrospective 1950s-1980s, Lucy Bell Gallery, St Leonards-on-Sea, UK, 27 October – 17 November 2018.[35][36]
  • A Life in Photography, Farleys House, East Sussex, 12 August – 31 October 2021[6][37]

Films[]

  • I Shot Einstein (2016) – eight-minute documentary film about Stafford, directed by Daniel Ifans[38][n 2] and Merass Sadek, produced by We Are Tilt.[n 3][39] Shown at the Artemis Women In Action Film Festival 2017 (Santa Monica, CA);[40] Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival 2017 (Middlebury, VT);[41] FilmBath 2017 (Bath, UK);[42] Paris Lift-Off Festival Online 2017;[43] Ethnografilm 2018 (Paris, France);[44] Cine-City 2017 (Brighton, UK);[45] Cleveland International Film Festival 2017 (Cleveland, Ohio).[46]

Awards[]

Collections[]

Stafford's work is held in the following permanent collection:

Notes[]

  1. ^ A PDF of the exhibition catalogue can be viewed here within the website of Julia Winckler.
  2. ^ As Dan Evans
  3. ^ The film can be viewed here at Vimeo

References[]

  1. ^ Willsher, Kim (4 December 2017). "How a chance meeting with Einstein led to the accidental start of a unique photography career". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  2. ^ Solomon, Saskia (1 December 2019). "A veteran photojournalist reflects on her itinerant career". The Caravan. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j Thorpe, Vanessa (30 April 2017). "The photographer who captured a time of change". The Observer. London. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g Whitmore, Greg (29 April 2017). "The chic and the shabby: Paris in the 1950s by Marilyn Stafford". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Marilyn Stafford – Stories in Pictures 1950-60". International Times. 27 April 2017. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b Jones, Jonathan (20 August 2021). "Yoko Ono's broken pottery and the fragility of love – the week in art". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Robin Stafford, Journalist – Obituary". The Daily Telegraph. London. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "Lucy Bell Gallery exhibits works by photo-journalist Marilyn Stafford" , 11 May 2017. Accessed 30 May 2017
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Photo-journalist's portraits go on show". Shoreham Herald. Shoreham-by-Sea. 1 December 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Gilson, Edwin (21 April 2017). "The extraordinary life of photographer Marilyn Stafford". The Argus (Brighton).
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b Willsher, Kim (3 January 2018). "Marilyn Stafford's best photograph: Albert Einstein in his lounge (interview)". The Guardian.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b c Julia Winckler (2017). Photographic Memories – Lost Corners of Paris: The Children of Cité Lesage-Bullourde and Boulogne-Billancourt (PDF). Alliance Française de Toronto or Julia Winckler.
  13. ^ Marilyn Stafford (2014). Stories in Pictures: A Photographic Memoir 1950. Shoreham Wordfest. ISBN 978-0-9930446-0-1.
  14. ^ Børre Ludvigsen (26 November 1998). "Marilyn Stafford: Silent Stories: A Photographic Journey through Lebanon in the Sixties". Al Mashriq. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b "On the occasion of Indira Gandhi Birth Anniversary TNC Presents: Exhibition: Indira and Her India- India Remembere 1971 to 1981 - Marilyn Stafford" Nehru Centre, London. Accessed 30 May 2017
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b "Madam and Marilyn: access all areas". The Telegraph (Calcutta). Calcutta. 24 November 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  17. ^ "All Neat in Black Stockings (1969)" IMDb. Accessed 31 May 2017
  18. ^ "Portraits". marilynstaffordphotography.com. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  19. ^ Jump up to: a b "A glimpse into history at Arundel Museum's exhibit". Littlehampton Gazette. Littlehampton. 19 December 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  20. ^ "FotoReportage Award" FotoDocument. Accessed 31 May 2017
  21. ^ "Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award in association with FotoDocument" Photoworks, 9 March 2017. Accessed 1 June 2017
  22. ^ "Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award Winner" FotoDocument, 16 June 2017. Accessed 19 June 2017
  23. ^ "2018 FotoAward Winners Announced / Rebecca Conway 'Valley of the Shadow' launch". FotoDocument. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  24. ^ March 2020, Louise Carey 11. "Winner of the Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award announced". digitalcameraworld. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  25. ^ "Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award 2021 Winner – FotoDocument". FotoDocument. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  26. ^ "Photographic memories of lost spaces : The Children of Cité Lesage-Bullourde and Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris 1949-1954" Alliance Française de Toronto. Accessed 1 June 2017
  27. ^ Julia Winckler. "Marilyn Stafford, Alliance Francaise". Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  28. ^ Mouch, Lila (13 March 2017). "Pour que les enfants du Paris de l'après-guerre ne soient plus "invisibles"". L'Express (Toronto). Toronto. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  29. ^ Mouch, Lila (3 April 2017). "Quand les rues du Ward appartenaient aux enfants". L'Express (Toronto). Toronto. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  30. ^ "Exposition de photos rares de la photographe américaine Marylin Stafford". CBC.ca. 7 March 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  31. ^ "Marilyn Stafford - Stories in Pictures 1950-60: 6th May - 24th June 2017" Lucy Bell Fine Art. Accessed 30 May 2017
  32. ^ "Marilyn Stafford - Stories In Pictures 1950-1960". The List. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  33. ^ "Marilyn Stafford: Stories in Pictures 1950 – 1960: June 27 @ 11:00 am - July 8 @ 6:00 pm". Art Bermondsey Project Space. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  34. ^ "Exhibitions". After Nyne Gallery. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  35. ^ Willsher, Kim (4 November 2018). "The big picture: prêt-à-porter on the gritty streets of Paris". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  36. ^ "Marilyn Stafford - Fashion Retrospective - 1950s -1980s". Lucy Bell Gallery. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  37. ^ "Retrospective exhibition of photographs by Marilyn Stafford opens at Farleys House & Gallery". artdaily.com. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  38. ^ "Daniel Ifans - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  39. ^ "I Shot Einstein (2016)" IMDb. Accessed 2 June 2017
  40. ^ "2017 Streaming Schedule - Artemis Women in Action Film Festival". Artemis Women In Action Film Festival. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  41. ^ "2017 Festival Schedule". Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival. Retrieved 9 October 2017.
  42. ^ "2017 Schedule - Visages Villages". FilmBath. Retrieved 9 October 2017.
  43. ^ "Paris Lift-Off Online 2017". Lift-Off Festivals. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  44. ^ "Past Festivals". Ethnografilm Paris. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  45. ^ "Brighton Screenings Documentary". Cine-city. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  46. ^ "I Shot Einstein - BUNGAROOSH - Cleveland International Film Festival :: March 27 - April 7, 2019". www.clevelandfilm.org. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  47. ^ "Winners! UK Picture Editors' Guild Awards - see the winning images - view the event". UK Picture Editors' Guild. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  48. ^ "RIBA Architecture Image Library". RIBAPix. Royal Institute of British Architects. Retrieved 3 June 2017.

External links[]

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