By Camille Clech

Camille Clech and Andres Serrano

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Last month, Aperture’s Work Scholars had the profound pleasure of visiting Andres Serrano‘s studio. The space boasts an eclectic atmosphere; a sixteenth-century Madonna sculpture, for example, faces one of Serrano’s cinematic portraits of a Ku Klux Klan member.

We conversed with the artist on a variety of subjects, covering everything from his childhood in Williamsburg to the controversy surrounding his famous Piss Christ. Serrano collects Renaissance art and explained the importance these pieces have in his working environment, and how they affect his work. Preferring to be called an artist rather than a photographer, he also shared his opinions on current culture, the importance of the image, and the immediate nature of modern news. We were captivated by the story of his artistic rise, and his description of how the art world has changed since the beginning of his career. In closing, he answered questions about his influences, his artistic process, and the current state of photography.

After our group visit, I had the opportunity to take part in a photo shoot with Andres Serrano. Currently working on painterly reinterpretations of iconic religious scenes – such as Virgin with Child, or the Last Supper – he invited me to pose for his take on the Madonna. Supported by his wife and his assistant, he set up the background and lighting, and then took some polaroid tests to find the perfect angle and luminosity. Cloaked in the Madonna’s iconic blue veil, I posed for several shots.

I am looking forward to see which image Mr. Serrano will select during his developing and editing processes. It was an incredible experience, and I am so grateful to the Work Scholar Program for giving us all this one-of-a-kind opportunity!

Camille Clech is Aperture’s Website and Video Production Work Scholar. She is a student at the New York Institute of Technology-Old Westbury, and can’t believe she posed for an Andres Serrano portrait!

To learn more about Aperture’s Work Scholar program, click here.

By Stephanie S. Yee

above: Kit Baker, Aperture's Associate Director of Development, and Work Scholar Stephanie Yee

As a non-profit organization, the Aperture Foundation is funded by the generous support of individual donors and grants from foundations and government institutions. Aperture’s development department is responsible for researching, securing, and managing the contributed income that makes so many of the Foundation’s exciting book, exhibition, and event projects possible.

As a Work Scholar in the development department, I’ve become familiar with the preparation of grant applications. I’ve found this to be an especially interesting process because the development of a grant application is a highly collaborative process. Before a grant takes shape, it requires discussion and meetings with various departments at Aperture—like editorial, exhibitions, marketing, and events—in order to collect applicable information and statistics for the grant’s narrative.

Under the guidance of Associate Director of Development Kit Baker, I had the opportunity to assist with the preparation of Aperture’s 2012 grant application to the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA). The DCA provides city funds to support and strengthen New York City’s vibrant cultural life. In the preparatory stages, we held a senior staff meeting during which we spoke with DCA officer Evans Richardson. Mr. Richardson answered our questions about the grant process and walked us through the specific details required by the application. After a grant is submitted, the grantee is required to provide a detailed report of the funded activities with updated budgets or project changes. To this end, Kit and I recently attended a reporting process seminar at the DCA’s offices at City Hall, which walked us through the ins and outs of the final report that must be submitted before Aperture receives its grant money.

For the DCA grant, it was particularly inspiring to report on the numerous activities and programming Aperture will celebrate in observance of its sixtieth anniversary in 2012. One exciting example is the upcoming publication of The New York Times Magazine Photographs, which contains images I remember seeing as a child flipping through the Sunday Times. Personally, I found the research and information-gathering aspects of grant preparation to be a satisfying process. Watching the different elements of the grant come together and take shape afforded me a better understanding of Aperture’s scope and mission.

Prior to working in development, I never realized the considerable amount of effort it takes to see these projects come to life. I will never look at an exhibition or art book in the same way, or fail to acknowledge all of the hard work and funding that goes on behind-the-scenes to make a beautiful concept a reality.

Development Work Scholar Stephanie S. Yee is a graduate of the University of Southern California where she received a B.A. in History and a minor in Architecture. Her favorite Aperture publications are Rinko Kawauchi’s Illuminance and Penelope Umbrico’s (photographs). Stephanie can be found supporting projects on Kickstarter, reading up on architectural theory, wandering a museum, or dancing front row at a concert. Follow what she’s up to @stephasy.

Click here for more information on Aperture’s Work Scholar Program.

*Above photo shot with a SONY a33 DLSR Camera and Lens, generously donated by Sony USA.

One of the treats of being an Aperture Work Scholar is the opportunity to meet and work with the many celebrated photographers, artists and writers going in and out of the Aperture office to look at proofs, review portfolios as well as discuss and propose projects. Most recently photographer Richard Misrach whose book Destroy this Memory was recently released by Aperture, stopped by for a quick visit!

Earlier in the week the photographer was honored at Aperture’s Benefit and Auction, gave a talk and book signing at The Strand to promote Destroy this Memory, and spent some time signing more books for Aperture Bookstore’s stock. To move things along, Richard, a few Aperture staff and I formed an assembly line and were able to quickly get through 100 or so books. Thank you Richard!

Just as Richard was getting ready to leave Hank Willis Thomas, author of Pitch Blackness, made a special appearance at the office, and the two esteemed Aperture photographers got to meet each other for the first time. Each of them signed their books for each other and got to share a brief but momentous occasion.

This Work Scholar post is by Communications intern Avril Kuo.

Avril is a recent graduate of Wellesley College where she studied art history and economics. Her favorite Aperture books are New York Rises and Black Passport. Avril enjoys figuring out how to use her Mamiya medium format camera and raiding her mother’s closet for vintage finds.

From the Work Scholar’s Desk is a new series on the Exposures blog presenting a behind the scenes look at Aperture’s many events, projects, the book making process, the Aperture Portfolio Prize and more from the perspective of Aperture’s Work Scholars. The Work Scholar program at Aperture places individuals of promise in the midst of Aperture’s various departments, engaging interns in the day to day activities of the institution.

Upcoming Events with these two Artists:

Lecture and Book Signing with Richard Misrach at SF Camerawork
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 7:00 pm

SF Camerawork
657 Mission Street 2nd floor
San Francisco, California

Conversations Among Friends with artists Hank Willis Thomas and Leslie Hewitt in conversation with curator Eva Respini at MoMA
Tuesday, November 30th, 7:00pm

MoMA
11 West 53 Street, Theater 2
New York, New York