Interview with Photographer David Hughes
London-based photographer David Hughes produces portraits, landscape, and still life images. Whatever the subject matter, his work carries a distinctive aesthetic, and is renowned for intricate details in prop styling. David is represented by M.A.P. and has worked with clients ranging from Burberry and Dunhill to the Tate Gallery. We collaborated with him recently on the photoshoot for the spring/summer 2009 campaign for made-to-measure menswear line Scabal. David took time out of his busy schedule recently to answer a few burning questions we’d been waiting to ask him.
Base: State your full name, and date and place of birth.
David Hughes: No! What kind of question is that?! 32” waist, 7.5 shoe size… A naughty Libra, trying to find the balance in my life.
B: What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
DH: I can’t tell you that! The same thing the rest of the world does, I hope…
B: Describe your typical day.
DH: I don’t have a typical day; that’s the beauty and the nightmare of what we do. To be honest, sometimes I crave typical days.
B: Why did you choose photography as your profession? And when did it all start?
DH: I used to work on a production line in an oil drum factory. Funny things, production lines, and very typical days. I also left the UK and made a living repairing yachts in Jersey and Gibraltar. So photography was far from a reality.
Then I went back to the UK at the age of 22. I found myself with no job and was forced to sign up to a back-to-work scheme, a state-generated program that encourages unemployed people to find work. That’s when a career advisor suggested that I enroll in an arts foundation course, which sounded great because I figured there would be more girls there than in an oil drum factory, so it all made sense. Photography was part of the course. They gave me a 35 mm camera and a bulk of film, a direction, and an outline, and I went along with it and learned through my mistakes. Then the teachers on the course pushed me to do more courses, until I did a BA, and they funded my portfolio.
From there, I went on to being an assistant at the Click Studios in London, where I was earning £25 per day and assisted several photographers. That was 12-13 years ago. I did it for myself. Everything fell into place and felt natural. I enjoyed doing photography and had finally found a way of expressing myself. I was finally able to express all the nonsensical ideas.
From the start I knew I didn’t want to be in the oil drum business but photography wasn’t on the radar. I just had to find it, or it had to find me. Today I have slightly evolved into other disciplines such as sculpture and 3-D work/animation. It’s more abstract than what I do in photography.
B: Would you say that you have a specific style? How would you describe your work?
DH: I don’t know! People seem to think I have a style. There is definitely a change in what I do; for example, the use of lights, the long exposures, etc. And the evolution into other disciplines has also changed my style.
B: Who are your favorite photographers? Who would you say inspires you the most? Any other influences?
DH: A huge influence would be Raymond Moore, a British photographer who started his career as a painter. His main interest/focus was landscapes, a sense between reality and fantasy. Although there are no people physically there he manages to create a sense of presence, which is an interesting emotion. Years ago I used to go to the V&A [Victoria and Albert Museum], and at the time, you could request boxes full of Moore’s prints. They would give you a pair of gloves, and I would go through the box, looking at each image for hours.
Of course, I am open to all influences, whether they be films, books, art, or everyday life. It can come from anywhere or be anything; I just tend to go with the flow. I tend to surround myself with nice people—people I can work with, a team, the right team. You also need the right tools because you simply cannot do it on your own. Having said that, I do like my solitude. I believe it is essential to disappear and “have a word with myself.” It gives you time to breathe and put things into perspective. Collaborations take time, but are worthwhile in the end.
B: Analog versus digital photography?
DH: I enjoy the process more than the end result. The most exciting part is working out the problems, solving them. I can’t say that I prefer argentic to digital photography methods. I suppose there was magic when I developed my first print back at the art school. I simply have a romance for beautiful things, which doesn’t stop at that.
B: I read that you exhibited your work at Flowers Gallery in London. Is photography for exhibitions something you would like to push?
DH: This was the starting point in my career, when I went from being a photographers’ assistant to being recognized as my own photographer. It’s basically what launched my career. In 2002 I did a series of pictures in the Cammel Laird, UK, over a period of 18 months. Costa Classica, although not very publicized, turned out to be a financial scandal, which always attracts attention. I then went to the Telegraph, a British newspaper, with my series, and they entered it into the exhibition Then Things Went Quiet, curated by Charlotte Cotton at the Flowers Gallery in London. Then the Victoria Albert Museum bought a piece to have a historical memorandum of the event.
I’m currently working with John Cook in his 3-D studio in Village Green, making some crazy animations, which I am art directing. And as for my sculptures, I would love to exhibit them at some point. For the moment, I managed to sneak a few pictures in the latest series I did for Vogue Nippon for Men, out in September’s issue. I think that one needs to be completely confident when they show their work, understanding what you want to say and when to say it. I guess that’s all part of the learning curve of finding out who I am.
B: Where do you see yourself in 20 years?
DH: On a golf course! Seriously, no idea. Somewhere nice…
B: Describe the craziest photo shoot you’ve ever been on.
DH: Ah…That would be when I was shooting the cover of Nick Cave’s album The Lyre of Orpheus. Tom Hingston, a good friend of mine, Nick Cave himself, and I, came up with a concept: that we would use both aesthetically beautiful images and others that would tend towards the slightly macabre. So we went to the south coast, UK, and were taking pictures of featherless birds when we saw this buff, sweaty man wearing a burgundy V-neck.
He sparked our intrigue so we approached his house, and it was full of parrots enclosed in individual incubators. His partner, a very large woman, was nursing these baby parrots between her rather generous breasts to keep them warm. A very rare and bizarre situation. When we developed the pictures, the birds looked like singing penises. So we opted for pictures of flowers for the album cover.
B: Who do you dream of photographing?
DH: No one in particular. I love people who have character, no matter how it manifests itself. I love people who make me laugh; they’re my favorite.
B: What do you think of the Irish?
DH: I think I answered that in the previous question. I love them. Where I grew up you couldn’t get enough of them.
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