Richard Tuschman
About
Richard Tuschman (www.richardtuschman.com) experimenting with digital imaging in the early 1990s, developing a style that synthesized his interests in photography, painting and assemblage. Tuschman’s work has been exhibited at galleries and museums nationally and internationally, including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, Poland, AIPAD in NYC, and the Prix de la Photographie, Paris. His photographs have been published in numerous online magazines/journals including Slate, LensCulture, The Guardian, Huffington Post, and der Spiegel. Tuschman’s projects have twice been selected to the Photolucida Critical Mass Top 50, he was a finalist for the New Orleans Photo Alliance Clarence John Laughlin Award in 2015 and 2016, and was named a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow in Photography in 2016. Richard Tuschman currently lives and works in New York City.
Gallery
LACP Interviews Richard Tuschman
LACP asks Richard Tuschman ten questions about his background, career in and beliefs about photography.
Los Angeles Center of Photography: What kind of photographer are you?
Richard Tuschman: Primarily fine art, but I also do commercial commissions from time to time, most often book jackets.
LACP: How long have you been photographing?
RT: I have been incorporating photography into my work in various media for the past thirty odd years. For about the past ten years I have focused strictly on photography.
LACP: Where did you get your training?
RT: Even though I studied painting and printmaking at the University of Michigan back in the 1970s, I always incorporated photographic imagery into my paintings and prints. I did take one darkroom class there, but I did not have much success with it. I learned Photoshop on the job working as a graphic designer at HBO in the early 1990s and that was a turning point for me.
LACP: When did you know you wanted to devote your life to photography?
RT: I knew I wanted to spend my life making art since I was in my late teens (which was a long time ago!), but my commitment exclusively to the medium of photography goes back about ten years.
LACP: Did you ever come close to giving up?
RT: There were difficult years, but the short answer is no, never.
LACP: Have you sacrificed anything by being a photographer?
RT: I suppose at times financial security, but for me it has never felt like a choice, it is just who I am.
LACP: What have you gained by being a photographer?
RT: Knowing that when I wake up in the morning I will be spending the day doing something that deeply reflects who I am.
LACP: What classes do you teach at LACP?
RT: The Staged Poetic Image.
LACP: What do you love most about teaching?
RT: Forming relationships with students, the subsequent give and take of ideas, witnessing and contributing to their creative development, all of this is very exhilarating and inspiring.
LACP: What advice would you give someone who is thinking about making a career in photography?
RT: It is not an easy path, but is also an exciting time for photography, there are so many possibilities. While there is no shortage of photographers, I think there is always room for quality. Just give it all you’ve got, try to learn from the best, and make every day count.