Scot Sothern Explained

Scot Sothern (born 1949) is an American photographer and writer. He has created controversial black and white photographs of prostitutes in Southern California, whom he photographed from 1986 to 1990. In 2010, he began photographing and writing about sex workers in Skid Row, Los Angeles.^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} Sothern described the photographs as exposés that expose both the women and also the artist behind the camera.^[5]

Biography

Scot Sothern was born to a portrait and wedding photographer in the Missouri Ozarks. He spent 40 unsettled years selling freelance photography in the US and abroad. His first solo exhibit, Lowlife, was held at the Drkrm Gallery in Los Angeles in 2010. His first book, Lowlife, was published in the U.K. by Stanley Barker in 2011 and as an ebook by powerHouse Books in 2013. The British Journal of Photography called Lowlife "The year's most controversial photobook". Curb Service: A Memoir, was published by Soft Skull Press in July 2013,^[6] and Streetwalkers was published by PowerHouse Books in 2016.^[7] Sothern has been in solo and group shows in NYC, Miami, and Los Angeles as well as Ottawa, London, Basel and Paris. In 2013 and 2014, Scot wrote 52 photo-illustrated columns for Vice Magazine: Sothern Exposure^[8] and Nocturnal Submissions.^[9] In 2017 Sothern's novel BigCity was published by Stalking Horse Press.^[10]

Reception

In 2011, The British Journal of Photography commenting on Lowlife wrote, "Scot Sothern makes this year's most controversial photobook".

Roger Ballen in 2021 opined, "Scot Sothern has bravely and empathetically entered a hidden world of humanity. A place where the human condition bares itself on all levels. This penetrating book of photographs and text will haunt and challenge the viewer".

Exhibitions

• 2022 These Days - Generations, a solo show, Family Tree Vintage Chibachrome prints; IDENTITY, antique ambrotype plates with contemporary archival transparencies^[11]
• 2018 The Door Gallery, Hollywood, CA. Group show and literary reading
• 2018 Cal State University, Dominguez Hills, CA, Flesh & Stone, Paired Photos, Scot Sothern & Andy Romanoff
• 2017 Noh/Wave Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, I AM a group exhibition, Vintage Prints and New Work
• 2016, Little Big Man Gallery, Los Angeles, CA - Streetwalkers, Vintage Prints^[12]
• 2015, Mindy Solomon Gallery, Miami, FL – Sad City - The Way We See It, Scot Sothern & Muir Vidler^[13]
• 2010, DRKRM, Los Angeles, US^[14]
• 2012, La Petite Mort Gallery, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada^{[2] [15]}
• 2012, The Great Eastern Bear, London, UK^[16]
• 2013, DRKRM, Los Angeles, US. A New Low^[17]
• 2015, Daniel Cooney Fine Art, NYC Lowlife, Vintage, 1985 – 1991^[18]
• 2014, Photo LA – A New Low & Lowlife – drkrm Gallery
• 2013, Space Eight Gallery, St. Augustine, FL – Rise of the Art Dorks, group show.^[19]
• 2013, Mindy Solomon Gallery, Miami, FL – Post Coital, group show^[20]
• 2013, Balzer ART projects – Basel, Switzerland, Subversive Narratives, group show^[21]
• 2012, Mindy Solomon Gallery, Miami, FL – Explicit Content, group show^[22]
• 2011 DRKRM Gallery, Los Angeles, Street Life, a group show^[23]
• 2011 BC Space Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA, Capital Crimes, a group show^[24]
• 2010 New Puppy Gallery, Los Angeles, Framed Stories, group show^[25]
• 1991 Marge Neikrug Gallery, NYC. Rated X, group show^[26]

Bibliography

• Sothern, Scot. 2011. Lowlife. London: Stanley Barker .
• Sothern, Scot. 2013. Curb Service, a Memoir. Soft Skull Press .
• Sothern, Scot. 2013. An American Lowlife, digital book.^[27]
• Sothern, Scot. 2015 Sad City Straylight Press
• Sothern, Scot. 2016. Streetwalkers. PowerHouse Books,
• Sothern, Scot. 2017. Big City. Stalking Horse Press,
• Sothern, Scot 2019 Little Miss. drkrm Editions,

References

• Scot Sothern - Little Big Man Gallery

External links

• Official Website
• "Virkelighetshunger" ("Reality Hunger"), interview in Natt&Dag, February 20, 2013 (in Norwegian).
• Interview on The Airship ("Follow Your Hard-On: An Interview with Scot Sothern", The Airship).
• Video Interview with Scot Sothern (Daniel Rolnik, August 18, 2013)
• Interview on GUP Magazine ("A New Low: An Interview with Scot Sothern", GUP Magazine, August 17, 2013).
• Interview on The Rumpus ("The Rumpus Interview with Scot Sothern", The Rumpus, January 15, 2014).
• Interview on L'Oeil de la Photographie ("Scot Sothern – Then and Now", L'Oeil de la Photographie, January 21, 2015).
• 1985 - Artist
• CURB SERVICE by Scot Sothern | Kirkus Reviews
• photo-eye | Magazine -- Lowlife
• Scot Sothern Issue Magazine 2017 Interview with Scot Sothern
• Scot Sothern : Sad City
• Scot Sothern VICE - Sothern Exposure - Nocturnal Submissions
• http://www.drinkswithtony.com/ep-14-scot-sothern-and-william-t-vollmann/ Podcast - interview with Scot Sothern
• https://www.amazon.com/Streetwalkers-Scot-Sothern/dp/1576877612/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1427152267&sr=1-4

Notes and References

1. Web site: Scot Sothern Hopes You Hate His Photos of Prostitutes. Bruno. Bayley. May 17, 2012.
2. Web site: American photographer has Canadian debut at La Petite Mort – The Charlatan, Carleton's independent newspaper. Emma. Konrad. September 25, 2012 .
3. http://beautifuldecay.com/2012/06/22/scot-sothern-shot-prostitutes-with-a-camera/ Beautifuldecay.com: scot-sothern-shot-prostitutes-with-a-camera 22.05.2012
4. Web site: Lowlife: The powerful and compelling photographs of Scot Sothern (NSFW). May 21, 2012. DangerousMinds.
5. Web site: Matthews. Katherine Oktober. A New Low: An Interview with Scot Sothern. GUP Magazine. August 17, 2013.
6. Web site: Curb Service by Scot Sothern. November 4, 2015.
7. Web site: Streetwalkers.
8. Web site: Sothern Exposure VICE United States . www.vice.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141116074636/http://www.vice.com/series/sothern-exposure . 2014-11-16.
9. Web site: Nocturnal Submissions. Vice.
10. https://www.stalkinghorsepress.com/product/bigcity-a-novel-scot-sothern/ BIGCITY: A NOVEL – StalkingHorsePress
11. Web site: GENERATIONS Scot Sothern . 2022-10-19 . THESE DAYS . en.
12. Web site: Scot Sothern Street Walkers at Little Big Man Gallery / Opening FEBRUARY 13 6-9PM. us8.campaign-archive.com.
13. Web site: The Way We See It // Scot Sothern and Muir Vidler . www.mindysolomon.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151109195611/http://www.mindysolomon.com/exhibits/ex_thewayweseeit/index.php . 2015-11-09.
14. Web site: Drkrm.com: Scot Sothern: Lowlife Photographs and Literary Vignettes 2011.
15. Peter Simpson, "Nothing pretty here", Ottawa Citizen, September 6, 2012.
16. http://www.greateasternbear.com/filter/past/Lowlife-by-Scot-Sothern Greateasternbear.com: Lowlife
17. Web site: A New Low | Scot Sothern. www.drkrm.com.
18. Web site: Daniel Cooney Fine Art.
19. Web site: Space:Eight. Space:Eight.
20. Web site: Post Coital: A Romantic Commentary (Ethereal, Afterglow, Love) . www.mindysolomon.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130308103831/http://www.mindysolomon.com/exhibits/ex_post_coital/index.php . 2013-03-08.
21. Web site: Exhibitions PAST | balzer projects.
22. Web site: Explicit Content at the Mindy Solomon Gallery . www.mindysolomon.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120709141806/http://www.mindysolomon.com/exhibits/ex_explicit_content/index.php . 2012-07-09.
23. Web site: Street:Life The Art of Street Photography. www.drkrm.com.
24. Web site: Coming Soon. bcspace.com.
25. Web site: Newpuppyla.com. www.newpuppyla.com.
26. Web site: Search results . www.google.com.
27. http://www.powerhousebooks.com/books/streetwalkers-2/ PowerHouse Books