I am thrilled to announce that Dazed has chosen three features I wrote for their top 10 list of the best photo stories of 2017. The stories include my tribute to Arlene Gottfried, a tribute to the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire as photographed by Brian David Stevens, and my conversation with Ryan McGinley that was easily two decades in the making. Each feature I’ve written for the site has been a true labor of love, and I’m delighted to have had so many amazing conversations this year. As I always say, the best part of writing is listening.

La Ventana. Photography Arlene Gottfried, courtesy of powerHouse Books.

How Arlene Gottfried Photographed NYC’s Truest Self

Arlene Gottfried was fascinated with New York and turned it into her life’s work to capture its true character. More focused on the person on the street corner than someone on a stage, Gottfried documented her adopted home up until her death at 66 from complications from breast cancer. In a touching tribute, her friends and art family paid tribute to her spirit. Read the full story at Dazed.

Red Mirror”, 1999. Courtesy Ryan McGinley and team (gallery, inc.) © Ryan McGinley.

Ryan McGinley Talks Coming Full Circle

Ryan McGinley’s polaroids are notorious, having captured the hedonistic essence of New York’s Downtown scene in the early 90s. Two decades on, with the release of a book and an exhibition which showed the seminal photographs that made him famous in 2003, we caught up with the photographer to reflect on his early works and gauge some advice. Read the full story at Dazed.

Photo: Copyright Brian David Stevens

A Touching Photo Tribute to Ensure We Don’t forget Grenfell

On 14 June 2017, fire engulfed Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey tower in London. It would take over 60 hours to fully extinguish it, within which 71 people would have lost their lives and many more their homes. The government’s response was shambolic and to this day, Grenfell victims and families, alongside Londoners, don’t have the answers they need. In the days following the fire, photographer Brian David Stevens took his camera to the streets to capture the many memorials that appeared in the hopes that we will never forget this terrible, tragic moment. Read the full story at Dazed.