Nick Turpin, Trent Parke, Alex Webb, Joel Meyerowitz, Martin Parr
Matt Stuart (1974) is a British street photographer, a member of the In-Public street photography collective and a nominee member of Magnum Photos. As well as making his personal work, street photography, he works as an advertising photographer, and leads street photography workshops.
Stuart's book of street photography, All That Life Can Afford (2016), includes photographs made in London from 2002 to 2015. His work has also been published in a number of survey publications on street photography, and exhibited in solo exhibitions in Britain and the US; as well as included in group exhibitions in Britain (including at the Museum of London, which acquired his work for its permanent collection, and which travelled to the Museum of the City of New York), France, Bangkok and Stockholm.
In 2005 Photo District News considered Stuart one of their 30 "New and Emerging Photographers to Watch".
Life and work
Stuart was born in Harrow, north west London, in 1974. In interviews he has described his life as having been spent singularly and obsessively devoted to one interest after another, including skateboarding from 1986 to 1994, and kung fu, before taking up photography working as an assistant to a photographer for three years, then turning professional by working for himself from 2000. His personal street photography work is his main focus, predominantly in London, but he also works commercially as an advertising photographer, and leads street photography workshops. Stuart became a member of the In-Public street photography collective in 2001 and a nominee member of Magnum Photos in 2016.
Publications by Stuart
All That Life Can Afford. London: Plague, 2016. ISBN 978-0-9935090-0-1. With an essay by Geoff Dyer, "Why does he do this every day?". First edition of 1000 copies and 100 limited editions; second edition of 1000 copies and 100 limited editions.
Publications with contributions by Stuart
Publication #1. London: Nick Turpin Publishing, 2009. Essays by Hin Chua, David Gibson, Michael David Murphy and Nick Turpin. Photographs by Stuart, Narelle Autio, Martin Kollar, Joel Meyerowitz, Tod Papageorge, Trent Parke and Garry Winogrand. Edition of 2000 copies.
Photography in 100 Words: Exploring the Art of Photography with Fifty of its Greatest Masters. By David Clark. London: Argentum, 2009. ISBN 978-1902538570.
10 – 10 Years of In-Public. London: Nick Turpin Publishing, 2010. ISBN 978-0-9563322-1-9. Includes an essay by Jonathan Glancey, "Outlandish Harmony"; a foreword by Nick Turpin; and a chapter each by Stuart, Turpin, David Gibson, Richard Bram, Andy Morley-Hall, Trent Parke, Narelle Autio, Jesse Marlow, Adrian Fisk, Nils Jorgensen, Melanie Einzig, Jeffrey Ladd, Amani Willett, Gus Powell, Christophe Agou, Otto Snoek, Blake Andrews, David Solomons, George Kelly and Paul Russell.
Street Photography Now. London: Thames & Hudson, 2010. ISBN 978-0-500-54393-1 (hardback). London: Thames & Hudson, 2011. ISBN 978-0-500-28907-5 (paperback). Edited by Sophie Howarth and Stephen McLaren.
London Street Photography: 1860–2010. London: Museum of London; Stockport: Dewi Lewis, 2011. ISBN 978-1907893032. Selected from the Museum of London collection by Mike Seaborne and Anna Sparham. Published to accompany an exhibition at the Museum of London.
The World Atlas of Street Photography. New Haven and London: Yale University Press: 2014, ISBN 978-0-300-20716-3. Edited by Jackie Higgins. With a foreword by Max Kozloff.
The Street Photographer's Manual. London: Thames & Hudson, 2014. ISBN 978-0-500-29130-6. By David Gibson. Includes profiles on Blake Andrews, Matt Stuart, Nils Jorgensen, Trent Parke, Jesse Marlow, David Solomons and Narelle Autio; also includes contributions from Paul Russell, Nick Turpin, Richard Bram, Andy Morley-Hall, Gus Powell, and others.
Failed it!: How to turn mistakes into ideas and other advice for successfully screwing up. London: Phaidon, 2016. By Erik Kessels. ISBN 978-0714871196.
Solo exhibitions
On The Way, main post office, Helsinki, Finland, October–November 2004.
KK Outlet, London, February 2010.
Look Both Ways, Leica Gallery San Francisco, February–April 2015; Leica Store Washington DC, May–? 2015;
Exhibitions with others or during festivals
Onto the Streets, Photofusion, London, 21 July – 16 September 2006, then toured with the British Council. Curated by Stephen McLaren and Sophie Howarth.
in-public @ 10, Photofusion, Brixton, London, 28 May – 9 July 2010. Travelled to Les Ballades Photographiques de Seyssel, Seyssel, France, 12–23 July 2011; Included photographs by In-Public members Stuart, Nick Turpin, David Gibson, Richard Bram, Andy Morley-Hall, Trent Parke, Narelle Autio, Adrian Fisk, Nils Jorgensen, Jesse Marlow, Melanie Einzig, Jeffrey Ladd, Amani Willett, Gus Powell, Christophe Agou, Otto Snoek, Blake Andrews, David Solomons, George Kelly and Paul Russell.
Street Photography Now, Third Floor Gallery, Cardiff, 10 October – 14 November 2010. Photographs from the book Street Photography Now (2011).
Street Photography Now, shop windows throughout the Canal Saint-Martin area, part of Mois de la Photo-OFF, Paris, 5 – 28 November 2010. Gallery Lichtblick, Cologne, 2010; Uno Art Space, Stuttgart, 2 April – 25 June 2011. With work by Stuart as well as Narelle Autio, Maciej Dakowicz, Bruce Gilden, Thierry Girard, Markus Hartell, Nils Jorgensen, Martin Kollar, Jens Olof Lasthein, Frederic Lezmi, Jesse Marlow, Jeff Mermelstein, Trent Parke, Gus Powell, Otto Snoek, Nick Turpin, Alex Webb, Wolgang Zurborn.
Derby Museum and Art Gallery, Format 11 Photography Festival, Derby, England, 4 March – 3 April 2011. Exhibition of photographs by In-Public members, Stuart, Christophe Agou, Blake Andrews, Narelle Autio, Richard Bram, Melanie Einzig, Adrian Fisk, David Gibson, Nils Jorgensen, George Kelly, Jeffrey Ladd, Jesse Marlow, Andy Morley-Hall, Trent Parke, Gus Powell, Nick Turpin, Paul Russell, Otto Snoek, David Solomons, Amani Willett, and the film In-Sight (2011).
London Street Photography: 1860-2010, Museum of London, London, 18 February – 4 September 2011. Included work by Stuart as well as In-Public members Richard Bram, Adrian Fisk, David Gibson, Nils Jorgensen, Paul Russell, Nick Turpin, and others. Travelled to the Museum of the City of New York, 27 July – 2 December 2012.
iN-PUBLiC: An Exhibition of Street Photography, Thailand Creative and Design Centre, Bangkok, Thailand, February–March 2013. In conjunction with the British Council. Photographs by In-Public members Stuart, Agou, Andrews, Autio, Bram, Einzig, Fisk, Gibson, Jorgensen, Kelly, Ladd, Morley-Hall, Marlow, Parke, Gus Powell, Turpin, Russell, Snoek, Solomons, and Willett.
In Public, Snickerbacken 7, Stockholm, Sweden, May–June 2013. Photographs by In-Public members Stuart, Agou, Andrews, Autio, Bram, Einzig, Fisk, Gibson, Jorgensen, Kelly, Ladd, Morley-Hall, Marlow, Parke, Gus Powell, Turpin, Russell, Snoek, Solomons, and Willett.
Pedestrians, Photomonth festival, Leica Mayfair, London, October 2015.
The Magic Lantern Show, Deadhouse, Somerset House, London, during Photo London, May 2016. Exhibition of prints by Stuart accompanied by projections of work by Marina Sersale, Bredun Edwards and The Lurkers.
Award
2005: One of Photo District News's "PDN 30 2005: New and Emerging Photographers to Watch"
Collection
Stuart's work is held in the following collection:
