Gerald Slota
About
Gerald Slota is a fine artist and photographer who has been widely exhibited across the US and abroad. He has had solo shows at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY, and Langhans Galerie in Prague, Czech Republic, as well as been shown at Recontres D’ Arles in Arles, France. Slota has had multiple solo exhibits at Ricco/Maresca Gallery in NYC and is represented by the Robert Berman Gallery in Los Angeles. His images have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times Magazine, Vice, The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Harper’s, and Scientific America, as well as in BOMB, Artforum, ARTNEWS, Art in America, and Aperture. Gerald Slota has garnered many awards including a Polaroid 20”x24” Grant, a MacDowell Artist Residency, and a Mid-Atlantic Fellowship Grant in 2001, 2009 and 2021. Slota’s photographs are in collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, NYC, New Mexico Museum of Art, Santa Fe, NM, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA, Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, FL, George Eastman House, Rochester, NY.
Gallery
LACP Interviews Gerald Slota
LACP asks Gerald Slota ten questions about his background, career in and beliefs about photography
Los Angeles Center of Photography: What kind of photographer are you?
Gerald Slota: not sure still exploring
LACP: How long have you been shooting?
GS: since 7/ 8 years old my father bought an expensive SX70 polaroid camera and he was bad at photographing [cutting off heads] so I became the family photographer, ironically, I made a living with cutting off heads
LACP: Where did you get your training?
GS: informal …. Movies, literature, music and just looking – Formal … SVA in NYC
LACP: When did you know you wanted to devote your life to photography?
GS: when I realized I couldn’t do anything else
LACP: Did you ever come close to giving up?
GS: NEVER! but many family/friends thought it was time to get a “real” job so when I had my first solo exhibit in NYC … many red dots and my first cover on the New York Times magazine. things changed ?
LACP: Have you sacrificed anything by being a photographer?
GS: Everything
LACP: What have you gained by being a photographer?
GS: Everything
LACP: What classes do you teach at LACP?
GS: An Alternative Vision: Reimagining the Photo
LACP: What do you love most about teaching?
GS: stealing ideas from my students
LACP: What advice would you give someone who is thinking about making a career in photography?
GS: this is an easy one …
You have to believe in your work and be 100% loving it and enjoy the struggles as much as the triumphs!