Artists I Like: Marc Baptiste

I've been meaning to blog about Marc Baptiste for years now, and I still haven't. Marc is one of my faourite photographers, and when you see some of his work, I'm sure you'll understand why. Haitian by birth, this man's work is often emotive- but then again, what's the point of a photograph if it's not emotive?

Anyway, so Marc has shot for a gazillion magazines including Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, Harper's Bazaar, Trace and (my favourite magazine) Clam.He's shot more celebrities than I want to fit into this post and has also worked with various clients including Nike and Reebok.

Marc's work caught my eye around '07 when I was paging through a Clam magazine - and then even more a few months later when I heard about his book Beautiful. The book challenges the same old boring stereotypes of nudity of black women in the media: draped semi-naked across cars, grinding against a man, fighting with another woman over a man who probably doesn't care about them (Flavor of Love, For The Love Of Ray Jay) and all the other depictions of black women in magazines like King, XXL, The Source as well music videos.

In his book Beautiful, he's photographed some of the most beautiful women in different phases in their lives. Some of the models are very well known, while others might not be immediately recognisable.

You can see more of his images and profile on his website and his blog.