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"Tunnel"
Art Model
Mia
UL : According to
The Wrap,
“The magazine industry has been
brutalized by the recession" and by
the print media’s losing battle with
Internet publishing. A recent ABC
survey showed “one in four magazine
publishers don’t believe that their
publication will be available in
print form five years from now.”
How do you see the future of NUDE ?
Carrie : I think NUDE will continue
to grow. Each issue sells more than
the one before it.
UL : Obviously, a computer could
never present art in the way you
present the photographic art in NUDE
– the Internet cannot begin to
simulate the same tactile
experience, the photo book quality
paper, ink, and printing.
Many of your readers
must regard the “magazine” as a
coffee table book because it has
that quality. Your presentation of
art makes us want to display and
enjoy it in day-to-day life as much
as a framed print hanging on a wall.
How did the high quality of the
materials used in publishing NUDE
come about ?
Carrie : When we interviewed
printers for the first Issue of NUDE
we found one that presented a vast
choice of materials to choose from.
He had a $2 million press that
printed from plates, the old style
of printing that allows the image a
quality that you can not find
anywhere except in galleries. He
also showed me hundreds of samples
of paper. I went through the process
of selection based on quality and
the ability of the paper to hold the
ink the way it needs to for the
depth of the art.
I test printed to smell the ink on
the paper and to hold a printed
image so that I knew that the ink,
the paper, and the style of printing
would produce the quality I wanted
for the magazine
UL : An article published in
The Wrap
on Oct. 6 delivers some bad news for
the magazine publishing industry.
According to Wrap writer Dylan
Stableford, “advertising pages for
consumer magazines plummeted 28
percent” in the first two quarters
of 2009, with about $2.5 billion
lost in revenue. This explains the
tragic closings of well-established
magazines.
Yet, NUDE has sold out all but three
issues in its first two years. How
do you explain its success ?
Carrie :I think that NUDE has found
an audience that is very loyal and
is growing. Also, most magazines
have been driven by advertising ;
NUDE is driven by quality.
When NUDE was created I wanted a
publication that could survive on
its own, without depending on
advertising.
I also wanted an art quarterly, much
like those of 80 years ago where
people look forward to an archival
style print publication. I believed
that there would be a positive
response to a quality publication
that featured high end art nudes.
Let's face it, everything is
available on the Internet. A
publisher needs to deliver something
you cannot get from the net... the
magazines of yesterday are still
trying to figure out what went wrong
and where to go.
First off, nothing went wrong. The
world changes, and they needed to
change a long time ago. They thought
that the advertisers would pay for
them forever ; this is not the case.
NUDE never depended
on advertisers, it depends on
quality.
Our business format is different,
and I think that basing our business
on quality has made us work.
UL :
The Magazine Publishers
of America revealed these magazine
closing stats in August :
"
In 2008, 54 consumer magazines
closed which, while not
unprecedented, shows a troubling
continued decline in the industry. "
However, the same article seeks to clear
up a misconception about these closings.
They are not consumer-driven. People
still want magazines and do buy them.
The problem has been the dependence of
the industry on advertising revenue, and
the sharp decline in advertising
dollars.
NUDE is perhaps the only magazine on the
newsstands that has a sum zero policy
regarding advertising – no ads !
While this may seem shocking and
foolhardy to other magazine publishers,
do you think this has been a factor in
not only NUDE’s survival but also in its
popularity with consumers ?
Carrie : This is the main factor in our
popularity.
We want to deliver 96 pages of fine
art, not 48 pages of art and 46
pages of ads.
We want to be collected by our
audience, not purchased and thrown
out a week or two later.
And, I think people are sick of
purchasing magazines that are
vehicles for advertisers.
The
magazine business is changing daily
and, as the buyer is getting more
selective, I think that you will see
more and more magazines going under
and a new style of magazine
surfacing.
Art Model
Chanonn
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UL : One of Stableford’s suggestions
to magazine publishers to survive
the current climate is to open their
magazine covers to ads. This is
remarkable when you talk about NUDE
refusing to publish any advertising
at all. Carrie, everything you have
done with NUDE seems to be the
opposite of what all the other
magazine publishers are doing.
Is that an accurate perception ?
Carrie : Yes it is.
UL : NUDE sells out virtually every issue,
and people end up buying them for exorbitant
prices on e-bay.
Do you intend to increase the number of
copies you print, or do you think this
supply-and-demand ratio works better for
NUDE ?
Carrie
: I think that I want NUDE to always be a
high end collectible and to keep it that
way. We need to keep the print run where it
is.
Art Model
Mia
After we have created a proof of the
magazine, which is usually 130 pages I
have printed out, we start working our
way down to 96 pages. Then
I lay it out on the floor and walk
around the pages looking for the places
where I feel the magazine can be
stronger. By using this visual process,
I can create a very strong 96 page
quarterly art magazine
Chris : I can see you... What a work !
So, what is a typical work day for you ?
Carrie : My work days depend on what I
need to do, and they are very full.
When I am shooting, I obviously devote
all my day to creating art. I still
prefer that I do the makeup for my
models; this helps with creating the
energy for the shoot. I select the
locations and pretty much spend two to
four hours shooting. I need to connect
with the models I work with on a
creative level so this takes time.
If the first day of shooting works, then
I will work with the model for a few
weeks at a time. If my work day is
focused on the magazine, then I spend a
lot of time looking at art and selecting
the photographers and artist I want NUDE
to exhibit.
Each Issue of NUDE needs to work as one
piece of art,
so this selection process is difficult.
It is very possible that a photographer
does not work in the issue I am working
on right now, but he or she may work in
the next issue.
Chris : Carrie, do you remember our long
conversations about the way you’re
preparing each issue ? All these
photographs on your walls and floor that
are waiting for their best places ?... I
would love to hear again the wonderful
adventure of the creation of a NUDE
issue !
Carrie : Yes, I do remember, and NUDE
still gets created in the same way.
I love looking at great art with the
ultimate goal of producing a magazine
that is a work of art all to itself.
Each issue of NUDE needs to be a
complete gallery exhibit that takes the
viewer, much like a classic movie,
through images that flow with each
other.
In other words, the first image in the
magazine needs to progressively work its
way to the last image.
Art Model
Ana
Chris : Two years later, how do you
think your actions have affected the
acceptance of fine art nude photography
in the world ?
Carrie : I think our actions have
created a new awareness of the fine art
nude art form. We have made it more
mainstream. It has had a strong place on
the Internet for a long time, but now it
has a place in a high quality print
magazine. This is something it has not
had since the 1930s - an art quarterly
it can call home.
Chris : Your love for the photographers
is so deep, your passion so strong !
What are the next challenges you're
preparing ? What do you envision for the
future of NUDE ?
Carrie : NUDE is growing on its own, and
I am still in awe of it. I envision the
future of NUDE taking a more active role
in promoting the arts. NUDE creates an
avenue that, prior to NUDE, did not
exist for the fine art nude photographers.
As for me, I am
finally starting my own
Gallery Tour
in February
in Chicago and am very excited about
this. I have put this off for two years
and now feel as though I can find the
time to do it.
Also, my book is almost complete, and
this is also something that I have put
off for two years. It should really have
been out by now, but I have so much to
do. It all takes a lot of time.
I do not know if anyone would understand
this, but to publish a magazine that you
care about is very difficult on those
responsible, and I take that
responsibility very seriously.
Everyone trusts me with their art, and
when they see NUDE they know I did their
art justice. Their work looks great.
But, to get to that point, when the
print is perfect, it is intense, and it
takes a lot of focus and determination
to create something that is timeless.
Chris : Now, let’s talk about you, the
photographer, the artist, and so much
more. For those who don't have the great
luck to know you, tell us who you are ?
Carrie : I am a wife, a mother, an
artist, and I like to believe a nice
person with a great heart, just like
you, Chris. I enjoy life as I know you
do.
One of my great pleasures of the journey
of NUDE was when Gary, my husband, and I
spent time with you in France. We would
never have had this opportunity without
NUDE.
NUDE has brought some very nice elements
into my life and though it is very hard
work, the joys that come with it are
incredible.
Chris : Thanks Carrie ! It was so
strong... and busy ! Remind me what
motivates you to photograph ?
Carrie : I love creating art. I never
shoot the same thing twice, and I am
always looking for something new. I love
to push my imagination to the next
level. This way I am always searching
and reaching, which I believe creates
growth.
Chris : Every photographer has his own
trademark we daily try to enlight. How
could you define yours ?
Carrie : I think my
trademark is
the fact that I use the camera as a
canvas for my eyes, and my eyes see
something new everyday. Also, I only
work in natural light so my work
reflects the mood of the day in which I
create it.
Chris : By the way, what in your opinion
makes a good nude art model ?
Carrie : A good model should first think
about the art and how it is she is going
to connect with the photographer to
create this art. I also believe that
there is a magical element to creating
great art, and it really does not matter
how pretty the model is if the
photographer and model do not connect on
another level.
Chris : And what advices would you give
to someone who might be starting to work
in your genre ?
Carrie : Be creative and forget what
they have been taught. Let your eyes and
your imagination be your guide.
Chris : Before we leave, maybe a message
you’d like to leave to our readers ?
Carrie : The recognition NUDE has
received on a worldwide basis is
extremely inspiring. To have
NUDE'S Photography
Contest
recognized by the International Press,
especially the
British Journal of Photography,
truly shows the influence of NUDE around
the world and this makes it all
worthwhile.
UL and Chris : Thanks a lot Carrie and
Gary for your so communicative devotion
and passion. Receive again our heartfelt
gratitude for your creation of a high
quality venue for fine arts nude
photographers
For more info visit
www.carrieleigh .com
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