“I was in panic mode. It was fight or flight. I needed to hustle. I needed to do something”
Ruth Medjber has 2020 all mapped out. The award-winning music and portrait photographer was covering Glastonbury for the BBC, had an exhibition in Australia and was touring in the US. In March, however, it all fell apart. However, using some of the entrepreneurial zeal she inherited from her parents, the Dublin photographer launched an online store and a range of t-shirts. However, it was her series, Lockdown Portraits in a Window, that caught international attention and landed her a book deal with Penguin Random House. In this podcast with Alison Cowzer, Medjber talks about pivoting her business as a result of the crisis, and about the impact of Covid-19 on the creative industries. Medjber, who trades as Ruthless Imagery, also talks about touring with Hozier, the importance of developing an online following, why artists should never be too proud to take a job, and the racism and sexism she encountered in her career.
