Why write about your photography?

Aren’t your pictures supposed to say it all? Ideally, but written cues can offer viewers helpful entry points into your work. And here’s a benefit that might surprise you: just as making images cultivates your eye, writing can help you refine your artistic vision. Aligning your visual and written expressions clarifies both.

Project statements, artist statements and/or biographies are necessities for every type of photographic submission or proposal. Are you preparing the introduction for your upcoming exhibition or book? Perhaps you are applying for an artist residency, grant, or fellowship. Whatever your goal, writing eloquently will illuminate the intention and process that sparked your imagery.

Writing with authenticity and panache elevates your work. But why struggle alone? Even seasoned authors seek feedback from their peers. We offer a variety of instruction and support, from lively group workshops led by both of us to one-on-one consultations. Choosing the most comfortable way to build a writing habit into your creative life is an investment in your career.

Online Offerings Include

• Joint Consultations
• Individual Consultations
• Five-Session Workshop – Wednesday evenings
• Two-Session Workshop – Saturdays
  Writing About Photography: Online Weekend Workshop with Elin Spring & Suzanne Révy
  Saturday, October 26th & Saturday, November 9th, 2024
  Offered through the Griffin Museum of Photography
  Link to information and registration HERE
• Single-Session Special Prep Workshops:
  1. Critical Mass
  2. Applications: Grants, Fellowships & Artist Residencies

To inquire about any of our offerings:
Contact Us Here

Testimonials from our workshop participants

The Griffin Museum is offering a class I’d like to recommend that people consider taking.  Speaking as someone who asks people for writing about their art so that I can write about their art, this is a skill that many people could use.
~ Diana Nicholette Jeon (Photographer, Independent Curator & Writer, Hawaii)

Being able to articulate your work is so important for us as curators to be able to talk about your work with the same passion you have for making it.
~Crista Dix (Executive Director & Curator, Griffin Museum of Photography, Massachusetts)

I too endorse Elin and Suzanne’s writing class at the Griffin. They totally helped me find my words to describe the work. This class is a gift!
~Rita Nannini (Photographer, Author “First Stop Last Stop”, New York City)

This workshop experience has given me new insights and directions for my work and it all happens efficiently. Elin and Suzanne’s tag-team editing style turns the normally awkward zoom class experience into a critical and supportive workshop success. Now I get compliments for my writing as well as my photographs.
~John Hesketh (Photographer, California)

I struggled with writing artist and project statements despite having years of experience creating presentations for work. I found it a challenge to express my thoughts and emotions about my art so that it makes sense not only to me, but also to the audience viewing my images. Elin and Suzanne have extensive experience and provided valuable insights into how to structure statements and proposals that would appeal to people in the industry. They taught me to articulate my thoughts in a more concise and impactful way. During the workshop, I was inspired by other participants’ work and writing, as well as their comments about mine. I also found it extremely educational to hear Elin and Suzanne’s feedback on other participants’ writing. There were many learning opportunities packed into this short workshop! I highly recommend working with Elin and Suzanne.
~Xuan-Hui Ng (Photographer, Japan)

Highly recommend! I use the guidance I got from your class every time I write an artist statement for a new project.
But thanks to your help, it now requires less exertion than climbing a mountain.
~Shelby Meyerhoff (Photographer, Massachusetts)

Thank you both for guiding me with writing an artist statement that I love. The workshop was a delight! The words “be ruthless, and repeat” are forever etched in my mind.
~Diane D. Hemingway (Photographer, Maine)

Thanks for your good suggestions, and perhaps most importantly, the reasons for making them. It was also helpful to sit in and occasionally comment on my classmates’ sessions. I met nice people and very good photographers, By the way I will get this project statement on my website to replace the mess I have there now.
~Skip Smith (Photographer, Washington)