"We're seeing a tremendous increase in interest".
Lucia Degonda on vfg. and her exhibition «The Selection vfg.»
Lucia Degonda on the vfg. and its exhibition "The Selection vfg. "For the third time, the vfg. association of photographic designers is inviting entries for "The Selection vfg. All photographic works by professional photographers published in Switzerland or abroad in the year 2000 are eligible for this exhibition. The winner of the competition will receive the magazine photography prize worth 10,000 Swiss francs. vfg. member Lucia Degonda invites advertising photographers in particular to take part. What are the goals of your association?
Lucia Degonda: The vfg. association of photographic designers was founded in 1995 with the aim of creating a forum for professionals. At the moment, it has about 90 members who work in advertising, editorial and art photography. The vfg. is the first association to encompass the entire professional spectrum. In everyday professional life, these disciplines are mixing more and more: reportage photographers are asked to photograph advertising campaigns, fashion photographers are asked to do reportage. The disciplines can no longer be clearly distinguished. That's why we thought it would make sense to create an association that stands for all these photographic disciplines.
What specific services does vfg. provide?
Degonda: Through regular picture soirées, we encourage exchange and encounters among photographers. Then we promote young photography with the vfg. young talent award for apprentices, students of photography, self-taught photographers as well as young professionals and organize lectures and presentations that shed light on various areas of photography, such as its history or the image of man in advertising photography. In addition, we conduct educational practice-oriented workshops according to the needs of professionals and offer members their own website in collaboration with swissartwork.
What is the goal of "The Selection vfg."?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." wants to convey a picture of Swiss professional photography, to show its position and value. The idea of creating a selection show of Swiss professional photography already existed when vfg. was founded. The project is organized by a team of the vfg. and the office for cultural management d.o.k.. The vfg. team determines the content of the project in such a way that it is of benefit to professional photography. The d.o.k. office is responsible for the coordination, organization and project management of the event. "The Selection vfg." takes place annually and is intended to become a contemporary document of professional photography.
Since when does "The Selection vfg." exist?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." is being held for the third time. We have noticed an enormous increase in interest: while in the first year we received around 100 works, last year the jury already had almost 300 works to judge. The selected works will be shown in an exhibition in Zurich and other Swiss cities and documented in a catalog. Our goal is that this work book, like the Keystone picture catalog, will be in every advertising agency and picture editor's office. The catalog is not meant to be an art book, but a reference work that people use.
What judging criteria do the jurors use?
Degonda: vfg. has absolutely no influence on the judging, but only on the composition of the jury. It includes photographers, advertisers, picture editors and art historians who come from as many parts of the country as possible, as well as from abroad. Swiss professional photography cannot be considered in isolation from other countries, since many of us work with foreign clients. We want to include them because their judgment is relevant.
What is the role of the Federal Office of Culture?
Degonda: The Federal Office of Culture has taken over the patronage of "The Selection vfg. We were granted a start-up credit for last year's catalog. This year we are collaborating on the touring exhibition that we would like to show in Lausanne, Basel, Chur and possibly in Ticino.
What does "The Selection vfg." have to do with the magazine's photo night?
Degonda: I might have to explain this from the story. With the idea "The Selection vfg." we looked for partners in the photo industry for a year without success. Then, together with the d.o.k. office, we approached Das Magazin and proposed "The Selection vfg." as content for the magazine photo night. Tamedia and Das Magazin, which promotes new perspectives on Swiss photography, supported this idea. Das Magazin invested massively in the communication of "The Selection vfg.", which is certainly one reason for the rapid establishment of the Selection show. In addition, Das Magazin donates a photo prize worth 10,000 Swiss francs, which is awarded in each case to a participant selected by the jury.
What is the reputation of Swiss commissioned photography?
Degonda: Photography has generally gained in importance over the past ten or fifteen years. Especially art photography. After this upswing had already been noticeable in the U.S. for quite some time, photography has now also become firmly established in the European art world. Applied professional photography, on the other hand, which is created in the context of products and deals with everyday life, is less well perceived, even though a lot of great work is being done in this area in particular. It is a matter of concern to us that this part of photographic design is also generally perceived.
What is your photographic style?
Degonda: I have very broad photographic interests. I have been working as a freelance photographer for 14 years. I used to work mainly in the editorial field, but now I take pictures for architects and hospitals, as well as landscapes, and I do portraits. I also teach photography at the School of Design and Art in Zurich and at the MAZ in Lucerne, and like many other photographers, I have a personal theme: I photograph mountains. Interview: Ernst Weber
Lucia Degonda: The vfg. association of photographic designers was founded in 1995 with the aim of creating a forum for professionals. At the moment, it has about 90 members who work in advertising, editorial and art photography. The vfg. is the first association to encompass the entire professional spectrum. In everyday professional life, these disciplines are mixing more and more: reportage photographers are asked to photograph advertising campaigns, fashion photographers are asked to do reportage. The disciplines can no longer be clearly distinguished. That's why we thought it would make sense to create an association that stands for all these photographic disciplines.
What specific services does vfg. provide?
Degonda: Through regular picture soirées, we encourage exchange and encounters among photographers. Then we promote young photography with the vfg. young talent award for apprentices, students of photography, self-taught photographers as well as young professionals and organize lectures and presentations that shed light on various areas of photography, such as its history or the image of man in advertising photography. In addition, we conduct educational practice-oriented workshops according to the needs of professionals and offer members their own website in collaboration with swissartwork.
What is the goal of "The Selection vfg."?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." wants to convey a picture of Swiss professional photography, to show its position and value. The idea of creating a selection show of Swiss professional photography already existed when vfg. was founded. The project is organized by a team of the vfg. and the office for cultural management d.o.k.. The vfg. team determines the content of the project in such a way that it is of benefit to professional photography. The d.o.k. office is responsible for the coordination, organization and project management of the event. "The Selection vfg." takes place annually and is intended to become a contemporary document of professional photography.
Since when does "The Selection vfg." exist?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." is being held for the third time. We have noticed an enormous increase in interest: while in the first year we received around 100 works, last year the jury already had almost 300 works to judge. The selected works will be shown in an exhibition in Zurich and other Swiss cities and documented in a catalog. Our goal is that this work book, like the Keystone picture catalog, will be in every advertising agency and picture editor's office. The catalog is not meant to be an art book, but a reference work that people use.
What judging criteria do the jurors use?
Degonda: vfg. has absolutely no influence on the judging, but only on the composition of the jury. It includes photographers, advertisers, picture editors and art historians who come from as many parts of the country as possible, as well as from abroad. Swiss professional photography cannot be considered in isolation from other countries, since many of us work with foreign clients. We want to include them because their judgment is relevant.
What is the role of the Federal Office of Culture?
Degonda: The Federal Office of Culture has taken over the patronage of "The Selection vfg. We were granted a start-up credit for last year's catalog. This year we are collaborating on the touring exhibition that we would like to show in Lausanne, Basel, Chur and possibly in Ticino.
What does "The Selection vfg." have to do with the magazine's photo night?
Degonda: I might have to explain this from the story. With the idea "The Selection vfg." we looked for partners in the photo industry for a year without success. Then, together with the d.o.k. office, we approached Das Magazin and proposed "The Selection vfg." as content for the magazine photo night. Tamedia and Das Magazin, which promotes new perspectives on Swiss photography, supported this idea. Das Magazin invested massively in the communication of "The Selection vfg.", which is certainly one reason for the rapid establishment of the Selection show. In addition, Das Magazin donates a photo prize worth 10,000 Swiss francs, which is awarded in each case to a participant selected by the jury.
What is the reputation of Swiss commissioned photography?
Degonda: Photography has generally gained in importance over the past ten or fifteen years. Especially art photography. After this upswing had already been noticeable in the U.S. for quite some time, photography has now also become firmly established in the European art world. Applied professional photography, on the other hand, which is created in the context of products and deals with everyday life, is less well perceived, even though a lot of great work is being done in this area in particular. It is a matter of concern to us that this part of photographic design is also generally perceived.
What is your photographic style?
Degonda: I have very broad photographic interests. I have been working as a freelance photographer for 14 years. I used to work mainly in the editorial field, but now I take pictures for architects and hospitals, as well as landscapes, and I do portraits. I also teach photography at the School of Design and Art in Zurich and at the MAZ in Lucerne, and like many other photographers, I have a personal theme: I photograph mountains. Interview: Ernst Weber
