Bill Jay: 1940-2009 « Marketing Photos With Mary Virginia Swanson Sad news today that photo historian, publisher, author and photographer BILL JAY passed away in his sleep on Sunday in his recently adopted hometown of Samara on the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica. I received the news from colleagues at Arizona State University and have yet to learn more from Bill’s family. Born in London in 1940, Bill was the first director of the Institute for Contemporary Arts in London, and was the first editor of Creative Camera Magazine. He came to the US to study with Van Deren Coke and Beaumont Newhall at the University of New Mexico, and joined the faculty at ASU in 1972, where he founded the Photographic Studies program. After retiring in the late ’90’s, Bill moved from Mesa, Arizona to Ocean Beach near San Diego, to the great delight of the photography community surrounding MoPA and beyond (how lucky were they to have him in their community!). MoPA curator Carol McCusker shared that “People from Ocean Beach are proud of their community. Bill writes about it in his intro for “Men Like Me” (Nazraeli, 2005). The town fit his temperament perfectly – independent, laid back, against corporate & government influence, and feisty.” From the Nazraeli Press entry on Bill’s intro to the book: “In 2003 Bill Jay moved to a small seaside town in Southern California. It is a laid-back, tolerant kind of place where an assortment of ex-hippies, surfers, bikers, Vietnam Vets and old men make the beach and the alleys their home. His daughter, regarding his new surroundings, remarked: “You fit right in here, Dad, there are a lot of old geezers here who look like you.” In other words, over-the-hill, sartorially-challenged men with abundant facial hair. So began the wonderful project that is MEN LIKE ME. But these are not voyeuristic images snapped by a detached observer. There is a great deal of warmth and respect in these pictures, and a humor that conveys the spirit of both the photographer and the photographed. Whenever possible, Jay gave his sitters a copy of their portrait; one day he was led to an ally room near the beach, often used as a refuge. There were all the prints, taped to the wall for an exhibition self deprecatingly entitled ‘The Wall of Shame.’ An immensly readable introductory essay by Bill Jay tells the rest of the story.” During his years in California he made portraits and continued critical writing; he maintained a column for Lenswork called EndNotes, each installment eagerly anticipated. It was during this period that Bill began a project that is an extraordinary gift to of us: www.billjayonphotography.com, accomplishhed with the generous assistance of John Brinton Hogan. It is on this website that you can read Bill’s words, see his amazing portraits of photographers, and read in PDF format all issues of his landmark publication ALBUM MAGAZINE which he launched in 1970 (twelve issues were produced) and more. Within this section of his website, Bill refers us to read his reflections on publishing within “Essays and “Articles.” Carol McCusker had been in close touch with Bill since his move to Costa Rica last fall, and shared that he had been happy, healthy and looking forward to visits this summer from family and friends; he recently told her that he’d finished writing his memoirs, wishing to share stories of his childhood in England with his three daughters and his granddaughter. Bill published many books, and had the pleasure of working with former student Chris Pichler, founder and publisher, Nazraeli Press to release his most recent titles Bill Jay’s Album, Men Like Me, Occam’s Razor: An Outside-In View of Contemporary Photography, Sun in the Blood of the Cat and the One Picture Book #09: Bill Brandt. Chris has confirmed with me that Bill had given him a considerable archive of his 50 years of writings from Nazraeli has promised future publishing offerings.
of his 50 years of writings from Nazraeli has promised future publishing offerings. Bill’s research archive is housed at the Center for Creative Photography; click the link to download a 65page “Finding Aid for the Bill Jay History of Photography Archive, which consists of 177 linear feet of “papers, writings, research files, teaching materials, audiovisual and photographic materials, books, periodicals, and computerized database of photographer and educator Bill Jay.” An earlier post on this blog features a link to an interview with Bill conducted by Darius Himes; he and I attended the 2008 ICP Infinity Awards where Bill received the Writing award; a gallery of his portraits had been mounted in the reception area. I will post images from that evening, and the transcript of his acceptance speech in the coming weeks on this blog; Darius’ photos are remembrances of our conversations are posted here on his blog.As a teacher, Bill’s passion for photography was infectious. He taught us about how scientific and artistic invention was ripe for photography to arrive on the scene; the culture of the arts was enriched by innovation in his eyes. He drew amazing people to our community; his dear friend David Hurn would visit frequently (they co-authored “on being a photographer“), and Helmut and Alison Gernsheim spent a semester with us. What a time we had! One of our fellow ASU students has built quite a collection of Bill’s photographs and shares this link to reproductions of 132 of the images – portraits, and more. Enjoy! Brooks Jensen from LensWork has posted a link on the home page with this message: “If you would like to add a few words, an anecdote, a remembrance, a memory, a thank you, or a goodbye we are gathering them for a community tribute in LensWork. Email to billjayremembered@lenswork.com. Bill was a mentor to me, introducing me to the rich history of our medium and the joys of engaging in a dialogue with photographers, setting me on my professional path. He inspired so many of us, and will truly be missed.