Lisa Saltzman : The perfect image doesn’t exist !
In the cities, most encounters on the street are fleeting. People appear and disappear almost before we have a chance to be aware of their presence. There may be a moment when we clearly perceive this fortuitous subject, but the image is already blurred by the previous instant and further degraded by the speed at which this subject becomes a memory never fully known. For Lisa Saltzman, a New York photographer influenced as much by Impressionist painting as by abstract art, this very impenetrability is a bittersweet source of wonder. Her subjects, captured in this way, are rendered extraordinary, unusual, and strangely sculptural.
Renowned for her street photography style, Lisa Saltzman draws her primary inspiration from the daily lives of New York’s passersby and its varied environment. Her parents, passionate collectors and patrons, strongly influenced her love of art. Her artistic influences include Impressionist painting, abstract art, and figurines. Early in her career, she ran an advertising and promotional merchandise company, designing works for clients such as the Guggenheim Museum, Estée Lauder, MAC Cosmetics, and HBO. She studied and was certified at Christie’s and the International Center of Photography.
In the digital age, photography faces its future under the competing signs of ubiquity and obsolescence. While technology has allowed amateurs and experts alike to create high-quality photographs in the blink of an eye, new electronic formats have broken the original photo-chemical link between image and subject. At the same time, recent cinematographic photography has expanded the concept of photography and raised questions about its real value as a documentary medium. Despite this situation, photography remains a substantial and stubborn form of evidence: referenced by artists, filmmakers, and writers as a powerful emblem of truth, it has found its place in other media at the very moment of its own material disappearance.
Awarded multiple times (including First Place at International Color awards, Tokyo International Foto Awards, Prix de la Photographie, B&W Spider Awards, and LensCulture editors pick portrait awards competition among many others), and selected for international exhibitions, Lisa Saltzman’s images also feature in numerous prestigious collections and with several renowned collectors. She is on the board of the Center for Photography at Woodstock. Her series City anonymity has been featured internationally and numerous publications have covered her photography
Instagram : @lisasaltzmanphoto
Website : www.lisasaltzmanphoto.com
Your first photographic trigger ?
Lisa Saltzman : I was 9 years old I set up my tripod that was almost as tall as I. I photographed portraits of friends. I remember liking connecting with my friends through my camera and it felt really good.
The man or woman of image who inspires you?
Lisa Saltzman : Lillian Bassman.
The image you would have liked to take?
Lisa Saltzman : Photographs from the civil war.
The one that moved you the most?
Lisa Saltzman : Civil rights photographs.
And the one that made you angry?
Lisa Saltzman : Also civil rights photographs.
A key image in your personal pantheon?
Lisa Saltzman : Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
A photographic memory from your childhood?
Lisa Saltzman : My family.
According to you, what is the necessary quality to be a good photographer?
Lisa Saltzman : Being very open, looking everywhere all the time and focusing pun intended when you nail it.
The secret of the perfect image, if it exists?
Lisa Saltzman : Does not exist but one that conveys emotion in a robust way.
The person you would like to photograph?
Lisa Saltzman : Abraham Lincoln.
An indispensable photo book?
Lisa Saltzman : The Edge of Vision: The Rise of Abstraction in Photography by Lyle Rexer
The camera of your childhood?
Lisa Saltzman : Konica prized possession.
The one you use today?
Lisa Saltzman : Sony a 7R
How would you describe your creative process?
Lisa Saltzman : I have several processes a lot of abstraction.
An upcoming project that’s close to your heart?
Lisa Saltzman : I will announce soon it is a documentary series, this is new for me.
Your favorite drug?
Lisa Saltzman : No drugs, my camera is my drug.
The best way to disconnect for you ?
Lisa Saltzman : The beach.
Who would you like to be photographed by ?
Lisa Saltzman : Annie Leibovitz.
How would you describe your personality?
Lisa Saltzman : Energetic, intense, fun.
Your latest folly?
Lisa Saltzman : Silly conversations with friends that are so much fun.
The job you would not have liked to do ?
Lisa Saltzman : Anything sad.
Your greatest professional extravagance?
Lisa Saltzman : Buying an excessive number of sd cards because I really like to click click click.
What question gets you off track?
Lisa Saltzman : Questions that are too personal.
The city, the country or the culture you dream of discovering?
Lisa Saltzman : Japan.
The place you never get tired of ?
Lisa Saltzman : NYC and France.
Your biggest regret ?
Lisa Saltzman : I am good at making sure I don’t have them.
Color or B&W?
Lisa Saltzman : Mostly B&W.
Daylight or artificial light?
Lisa Saltzman : Both but definitely like artificial light
Which city do you think is the most photogenic?
Lisa Saltzman : NYC.
If God existed would you ask him to pose for you, or would you opt for a selfie with him?
Lisa Saltzman : I would ask him to pose.
If I could organize your ideal dinner party, who would be at the table?
Lisa Saltzman : Leonardo Da Vinci, Pablo Picasso and Lillian Bassman.
What is missing in today’s world?
Lisa Saltzman : Simplicity, human contact.
If you had to start all over again?
Lisa Saltzman : No regrets I like where things are.
What do you like people to say about you?
Lisa Saltzman : That I am creative, smart and funny.
The one thing we absolutely must know about you?
Lisa Saltzman : That art is foundational for me.
