Freshly posted: Archival video of the JJA Photography Master Class, with Lauren Deutsch, whose innovative experiments in fine arts photography and journalistic work have often focused on jazz, responding to it, since the 1970s.
A Chicago native who was the executive director of the Jazz Institute of Chicago from 1996 to 2018, and in 2021 interim executive director of the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, Deutsch discussed her career and images, which she says have been inspired by the music and philosophies of local legends such as founding members of the AACM, the Freeman family (Von, George, Chico), and today’s rising talents. An overview exhibition of her photography is currently hung at Chicago’s Old Town School of Music.
This second episode of Seeing Jazz: JJA Photographers Master Classes was held Saturday, July 23, and hosted by Hrayr Attarian. JJA Award-winning Luciano Rossetti was featured in the third segment of the monthly series, held August 20. A video of that session will be posted.
Photojournalist Marc PoKempner is next up to give a Master Class, in a session to be moderated by Howard Mandel, JJA president, longtime friend of and frequent collaborator with the photographer, at 1 pm ET on Saturday, September 24. (Registration is required, but not yet enabled. Admission is free to JJA members, $10 to the public).
A non-profit arts leader and consultant, Lauren Deutsch was the executive director of the Jazz Institute of Chicago from 1996 to 2018, and in 2021 interim executive director of the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic. Lauren’s work is published in several books including The Freedom Principle: Experiments in Art and Music 1965-Now; The City Was Yellow: Chicago Jazz and Improvised Music 1980 to 2010, and Jazzography, documenting 30 years of the Chicago Jazz Festival, as well as in DownBeat among other publications, on album covers, and exhibited in Europe and the U.S.
In 2008 Lauren received the JJA’s A-Team/Jazz Heroes Award in recognition of her community service. Her photos featuring in-camera evocation of people’s sounds in motion have been Photo of the Year Awards nominees. A selection i on view at her website laurendeutschphoto.com.
Lauren Deutsch’s JJA Photographers Master Class was the second of a monthly series of interactive presentations by photographers involved with jazz among other subjects, discussing their careers, techniques, and approaches to current professional issues. She was interviewed by Hrayr Attarian, photographer and chair of the JJA’s Photo of the Year Award committee. Attarian spoke with JJA Award-winning photographer Luciano Rossetti for the third of the series; a video of that Seeing Jazz episode will be posted shortly.
Attendees to Lauren Deutsch’s Master Class were enabled to ask questions of her: Steven Pope, Lou Jones, Stuart Brinin and Marc PoKempner did so.
