I wrote a bit about the PhotoShelter Elevation 2008 student contest winner Matt Lutton last week, as I was extremely impressed with his portfolio and his persistence in covering a wide array of subjects. Today Lutton is featured on Flak Photo, as the other Elevation winners will be through the week, so I thought it an appropriate time to post an informal Q&A with Matt. I think his perspective is an interesting one; he's just starting out as a photojournalist, was inspired initially (like the rest of us) by Robert Frank, has already connected with his Magnum heroes, shot for the Fader, and is back shortly to Belgrade for another month of shooting. Also he has a blog.
Oh- and he wants all you editors to know he'll be in New York next week if any of you want to meet with him. This guy is in it to win it.
Matt Lutton, from Kosovo: On the Edge
You seem to have accomplished quite a bit (and certainly covered a lot of ground) in a very short period of time; How did you get started in photography, and how did you choose to explore Kosovo and the Balkans?
I joke that I got started in photography because of the arts requirement at my high school, and that because I couldn't or wouldn't sing, dance, draw, act, or paint, I had to take the photo classes. I ended up falling in love with the work, of course, and I eventually got started taking pictures of people rather than airplanes or architecture, probably with Robert Frank's The Americans. That book changed my life. Going back to a young age, I've always had a fascination with the Soviet Union and Russians and when I got to the University of Washington I knew I wanted to study in this field. The opportunity came up in the spring of 2007 to study abroad through my school to the Balkans (Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia), and I jumped on it. While I've always been interested in the region, the Kosovo story really came to be because I was nearby already. Last Spring was full of speculation that independence would come in June and I put myself in position to be there when it happened. As we all know, this ended up being pushed back by a half-year, but I still was able to do a story about what I consider the stagnation and challenges Kosovars of all ethnicities face.
Tell me about your Homeless in Seattle project. What is the culture of the photo program at your school; is this part of your life as a photographer, or are you largely independent?
While the University of Washington has a photo program, I've pretty much stayed away through my time here, as it is much more 'fine arts' based and I'm very much more oriented to documentary and journalism. I did work for the student newspaper for a number of years as a staff photographer and photo editor, and this was great training for dealing with deadlines and tough assignments, but most everything I'm proud of and show people has been very independently produced (New Orleans, the "I See A Darkness" project, Kosovo).
The Homeless story springs from a small commission by a local charity in 2006 to shoot some pictures for a slide show for a workshop they were having. For as long as I can remember I've been concerned about homelessness and in particular homeless veterans, and I took this as a great opportunity to actually get started on a proper photo essay on the subject. With some fits and starts, I've continued to work on this project in my spare time and am proud that it will be a major exhibition at Seattle City Hall this summer, if I can line up funding for the prints. I should also mention that the project was honored with a small grant by the Alexia Foundation last year, which has helped a little.
Matt Lutton, from Kosovo: Homeless in Seattle
My education came from photo books (I spent way too much of my money in college on these..) and from devouring the Magnum archive. I've joked that M. Scott Brauer is my favorite non-Italian photographer; my biggest inspirations are Alex Majoli and Paolo Pellegrin of Magnum. I actually had the chance to do a workshop with Paolo (and Jonas Bendiksen, and some other Magnum shooters) in Oslo in March. Great, crazy time that was.
Have you been doing any editorial work? Connecting with any editors in particular?
I've been to New York a couple of times now to make the rounds of editors and get my book seen, and it seems things are starting to pay off. I did shoot a portrait for The Fader a couple of weeks ago, which is a very cool thing because I consider that magazine as one of the finest displays of great photography around these days. Big thanks to Phil Bicker for that opportunity as well as his help in selecting me for the ELEVATION contest. I've been making some good connections with Newsweek actually, which I hope will eventually be a good outlet for a lot of my international story ideas, and also am close to shooting a major project in Moldova (Transdniester, to be specific) for ESPN the Magazine.
What's next for you? What would be a dream job?
Next for me is tying up the loose ends with the old projects and negotiating details about new assignments. First up is the Homeless project, which I'll shooting, editing and fundraising for right up until the opening in July. One of my most personal projects is the New York work in 'I See A Darkness', which I'll be soon be independently publishing with some friends, one a designer and the other an essayist, and I've got to finish the 35 more rolls of film I shot for it in New York last week. Upcoming is the story in Moldova, which hopefully will happen at the end of the summer. In the middle, I'm trying to negotiate a quick trip back to the Balkans later this month to visit friends, do research for my eventual relocation to Belgrade and hopefully shoot an assignment or two.
Matt Lutton, from I See a Darkness
My dream job actually is in my sights right now, as I've proposed it as my thesis project, and I'm working through oodles of grant proposals for that as I type. I don't want to give too much away, but it is to take place in Eastern Siberia and will be the ultimate confluence of my academic and personal interests in Russia and my documentary interests in the people and politics of underrepresented and critical issues. In this case, it is about rising nationalism, oil wealth and environmental and social degradation. Meaty stuff, stay tuned this fall to see how it all comes together!
Which image, from all your projects, do you like best?
Matt Lutton, from Homeless in Seatlle
"Michelle, on the streets after being kicked out of her apartment with her husband after complaining about unsafe conditions, investigates an abandoned paper bag for "food or
money", explaining that in her circumstance, she cannot afford to let go of even the slightest chance that someone left something valuable behind."
That was a very difficult day with an incredible woman in a very sad situation, I almost cried when she told me that. We were actually on our way to a park where they were handing out food, she knew she was going to get a warm meal, and she still felt the need to search that bag. Coldest day I've ever experienced in Seattle, and Michelle, who suffered some sort of mental illness and claimed to be pregnant, had to sit by the side of the road panhandling. Her sign said 'even a smile helps', and still by far the majority of people wouldn't even look at her. She had to send her younger children to live with her 21 year old son in Portland while she and her husband waited for a new apartment or to be let back in to the old one, in the meantime they slept at an emergency shelter at Key Arena downtown. The last picture in the homeless story is of the two of them cuddling while in line for food. I haven't been able to find her again after that day in January '07, but she is very much the reason why I've kept going with this project and am so committed to getting the project shown in City Hall, where the politicians will have to walk by a 48x48" print of her everyday. This picture was taken maybe 100 yards from the mayor's office.
Oh- and he wants all you editors to know he'll be in New York next week if any of you want to meet with him. This guy is in it to win it.
Matt Lutton, from Kosovo: On the Edge
You seem to have accomplished quite a bit (and certainly covered a lot of ground) in a very short period of time; How did you get started in photography, and how did you choose to explore Kosovo and the Balkans?
I joke that I got started in photography because of the arts requirement at my high school, and that because I couldn't or wouldn't sing, dance, draw, act, or paint, I had to take the photo classes. I ended up falling in love with the work, of course, and I eventually got started taking pictures of people rather than airplanes or architecture, probably with Robert Frank's The Americans. That book changed my life. Going back to a young age, I've always had a fascination with the Soviet Union and Russians and when I got to the University of Washington I knew I wanted to study in this field. The opportunity came up in the spring of 2007 to study abroad through my school to the Balkans (Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia), and I jumped on it. While I've always been interested in the region, the Kosovo story really came to be because I was nearby already. Last Spring was full of speculation that independence would come in June and I put myself in position to be there when it happened. As we all know, this ended up being pushed back by a half-year, but I still was able to do a story about what I consider the stagnation and challenges Kosovars of all ethnicities face.
Tell me about your Homeless in Seattle project. What is the culture of the photo program at your school; is this part of your life as a photographer, or are you largely independent?
While the University of Washington has a photo program, I've pretty much stayed away through my time here, as it is much more 'fine arts' based and I'm very much more oriented to documentary and journalism. I did work for the student newspaper for a number of years as a staff photographer and photo editor, and this was great training for dealing with deadlines and tough assignments, but most everything I'm proud of and show people has been very independently produced (New Orleans, the "I See A Darkness" project, Kosovo).
The Homeless story springs from a small commission by a local charity in 2006 to shoot some pictures for a slide show for a workshop they were having. For as long as I can remember I've been concerned about homelessness and in particular homeless veterans, and I took this as a great opportunity to actually get started on a proper photo essay on the subject. With some fits and starts, I've continued to work on this project in my spare time and am proud that it will be a major exhibition at Seattle City Hall this summer, if I can line up funding for the prints. I should also mention that the project was honored with a small grant by the Alexia Foundation last year, which has helped a little.
Matt Lutton, from Kosovo: Homeless in Seattle
My education came from photo books (I spent way too much of my money in college on these..) and from devouring the Magnum archive. I've joked that M. Scott Brauer is my favorite non-Italian photographer; my biggest inspirations are Alex Majoli and Paolo Pellegrin of Magnum. I actually had the chance to do a workshop with Paolo (and Jonas Bendiksen, and some other Magnum shooters) in Oslo in March. Great, crazy time that was.
Have you been doing any editorial work? Connecting with any editors in particular?
I've been to New York a couple of times now to make the rounds of editors and get my book seen, and it seems things are starting to pay off. I did shoot a portrait for The Fader a couple of weeks ago, which is a very cool thing because I consider that magazine as one of the finest displays of great photography around these days. Big thanks to Phil Bicker for that opportunity as well as his help in selecting me for the ELEVATION contest. I've been making some good connections with Newsweek actually, which I hope will eventually be a good outlet for a lot of my international story ideas, and also am close to shooting a major project in Moldova (Transdniester, to be specific) for ESPN the Magazine.
What's next for you? What would be a dream job?
Next for me is tying up the loose ends with the old projects and negotiating details about new assignments. First up is the Homeless project, which I'll shooting, editing and fundraising for right up until the opening in July. One of my most personal projects is the New York work in 'I See A Darkness', which I'll be soon be independently publishing with some friends, one a designer and the other an essayist, and I've got to finish the 35 more rolls of film I shot for it in New York last week. Upcoming is the story in Moldova, which hopefully will happen at the end of the summer. In the middle, I'm trying to negotiate a quick trip back to the Balkans later this month to visit friends, do research for my eventual relocation to Belgrade and hopefully shoot an assignment or two.
Matt Lutton, from I See a Darkness
My dream job actually is in my sights right now, as I've proposed it as my thesis project, and I'm working through oodles of grant proposals for that as I type. I don't want to give too much away, but it is to take place in Eastern Siberia and will be the ultimate confluence of my academic and personal interests in Russia and my documentary interests in the people and politics of underrepresented and critical issues. In this case, it is about rising nationalism, oil wealth and environmental and social degradation. Meaty stuff, stay tuned this fall to see how it all comes together!
Which image, from all your projects, do you like best?
Matt Lutton, from Homeless in Seatlle
"Michelle, on the streets after being kicked out of her apartment with her husband after complaining about unsafe conditions, investigates an abandoned paper bag for "food or
money", explaining that in her circumstance, she cannot afford to let go of even the slightest chance that someone left something valuable behind."
That was a very difficult day with an incredible woman in a very sad situation, I almost cried when she told me that. We were actually on our way to a park where they were handing out food, she knew she was going to get a warm meal, and she still felt the need to search that bag. Coldest day I've ever experienced in Seattle, and Michelle, who suffered some sort of mental illness and claimed to be pregnant, had to sit by the side of the road panhandling. Her sign said 'even a smile helps', and still by far the majority of people wouldn't even look at her. She had to send her younger children to live with her 21 year old son in Portland while she and her husband waited for a new apartment or to be let back in to the old one, in the meantime they slept at an emergency shelter at Key Arena downtown. The last picture in the homeless story is of the two of them cuddling while in line for food. I haven't been able to find her again after that day in January '07, but she is very much the reason why I've kept going with this project and am so committed to getting the project shown in City Hall, where the politicians will have to walk by a 48x48" print of her everyday. This picture was taken maybe 100 yards from the mayor's office.
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