"50s Gossip," Marc Schmidt, Miami Pride Parade 2024, April 14, 2024 (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
“It’s been an interest meets an addiction. Since I was a child, I was always taking my camera everywhere.” – photographer Marc Schmidt
What do you call a formally trained doctor who spent time on the frontline of an African refugee camp providing medical care and who later became an award-winning street photographer amid all of Miami’s glitz and glamour?
Many call him a dear friend. For those who don’t know him, meet Marc Schmidt, a German American born photographer based in Miami Beach whose penchant for visual storytelling is matched by his exceptional talent in doing so.
"Thank You For Smoking," Wynwood mural with 70s Cadillac Eldorado, Nov. 9, 2015, Marc Schmidt (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
I recently spent an afternoon in conversation with Marc at the Little Big Gallery (LBG), the gallery he currently operates in Miami Beach to showcase his work. As always, it’s interesting what you learn about people you already know.
Marc is a friend, as is Leah, his lovely and supportive girlfriend, and has been since I met him in 2013 at CU1 Gallery, the photography gallery he opened in Miami’s historic Security Building. At the time, I was with a small team that managed a photographer’s archive and we also had a project space there. My husband and I were married in Marc’s gallery, truly one of the most unique exhibiting spaces Miami has ever had.
Here's our recent conversation, which has been edited and condensed for clarity.
miamiartzine.com: Glad we are finally connecting for this. As always, a good place to start is the beginning. While I know what brought you here in 2013, I’m not sure I know the full backstory.
Scene shoot in Sean Baker's movie "The Florida Project," from left Brooklynn Prince, Lauren O'Quinn, and Willem Dafoe, Aug. 4, 2016. (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
Marc Schmidt: I had been contemplating various business ventures for around a year prior, when I got a call from friends in Miami about a potential gallery space in downtown. I was in Chicago at the time, where it was snowing, of course, so the thought of coming to Miami was very appealing. I did a stopover here to see the space while en route to Capetown and Mozambique and that was it. Once everything was lined up, I came back. I was only supposed to stay for three months to build up the gallery and never left.
miamiartzine.com: Yes, the allure of the Magic City.
Marc Schmidt: I had a photography and film production company in Hamburg then, too, so very familiar with the European photography market and felt Miami, as a city of the arts and with Art Basel Miami Beach, was a great place to feature such work. We really did some interesting programming at CU1, from our exhibitions to collaborations with others, such as Raul Guerrero’s Salon series and movie nights with the German Consulate’s office.
miamiartzine.com: I can attest to that. It’s just too bad you didn’t have a longer run.
"Spider Girl," girl in Overtown dressed for Halloween, Oct. 31, 2015, Marc Schmidt (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
Marc Schmidt: Yes, the opportunity downtown was ahead of the curve. I stayed until the building sold and I had to vacate.
miamiartzine.com: Let’s dial it back even more. What about your love affair with photography?
Marc Schmidt: It’s been an interest meets an addiction. Since I was a child, I was always taking my camera everywhere. This continued through my elongated education, as my medical school training took eleven years because I was always traveling, and always with my camera.
miamiartzine.com: But it was in Miami where you first started exhibiting your own work, yes?
Marc Schmidt: I was always motivated to take my photographs for personal reasons and not commercial purposes. I like to bike, and in exploring Miami that way I found the traditional camera heavy and cumbersome, especially to capture moments timely, so I started to use my iPhone. One day, another artist who you know well, David Datuna, was looking at my images and said I should do something with them. This eventually led to my first public exhibition, which was with you guys when you were showing (William John) Kennedy’s photography and David’s multimedia work in the Design District during Miami Art Week in 2013.
"Hernia," guy working on at Miami Beach's Muscle Beach, July 19, 2015, Marc Schmidt (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
miamiartzine.com: I remember it well. Particularly, I recall how positively your work was received, along with people’s surprise when learning it was taken with your iPhone. As we’ve talked before, that’s because it’s your eye and the way you frame what you’re capturing more than the equipment you’re using. And of course, they loved your subject matter too, and the way it embodied Miami. How do you describe your work?
Marc Schmidt: It’s about storytelling. People look at my images with their multi-level stories and are drawn in. Given the medium, it’s easy for viewers to create their own stories without that mirroring the story I may have intended. It actually inspires them to do so, even with no knowledge of the subjects themselves.
miamiartzine.com: There’s so much diversity in your work. Do you have a favorite theme or subject?
Marc Schmidt: I’d say rather than a favorite, what interests me is pretty broad, other than I tend to look at issues. I like to watch comedies, I like to watch dramas, and I like to watch documentaries ~ it’s all in the individual story. So in looking at issues, it really comes down to the human experience behind them.
"Bubblegum," ladies strolling along Ocean Drive, March 18, 2017, Marc Schmidt (Photo courtesy of Marc Schmidt)
miamiartzine.com: I know since you’ve been in Miami you’ve done some commercial work for others too, like your installation of Lennie Kravitz’s 2015 photography exhibit. More significantly though, you were the BTS (behind the scenes) photographer for “The Florida Project,” Sean Baker’s 2017 film starring Willem Dafoe. What can you tell me about that?
Marc Schmidt: I was in Capetown and got an email from his assistant saying he loved my photography and was interested in me doing the BTS work on his next film. We then had a call once I was back and he agreed.
miamiartzine.com: Sounds like it was all pretty casual and happened quickly.
Marc Schmidt: It was. When I arrived on set the first day, I was already aware he had shot “Tangerine” with his iPhone, which had caused quite an uproar. He asked me where my camera gear was and I pulled out my iPhone 6. He grinned and there was no more discussion. All the BTS work, including the image for the movie posters, was taken with it.
miamiartzine.com: Is there anyone’s work that inspires you?
Marc Schmidt: There is one particular street photographer, Suzanne Stein, who I’ve been following for a long time. She dedicates her life to street photography, with no problem in putting herself into difficult situations in her own storytelling. She’s even gotten beaten up to tell stories about the homeless and drug addicts. She’s just wow…on another level and has dedicated her life to her work . . . . I’ve been in a few dangerous scraps myself, too.
miamiartzine.com: Oh really? Do tell.
Marc Schmidt: There’s a few, from being captured by the military in China to having to bribe a policeman in India. Even here in Miami, when I was at the MLK parade in Liberty City. It was at the end of the parade, and all of a sudden people start running towards me because someone was shooting. And what’s my nature? It was to go running towards it.
Photographer Marc Schmidt in Miami near the federal courthouse in June of 2023 during Donald J. Trump arraignment for classified documents. Republican Kari Lake of Arizona can be seen in the photo.
The Little Big Gallery is open seven days a week at 760 Ocean Dr., Miami Beach, FL 33139. Online Marc Schmidt’s work can be found at www.marcschmidtphotography.com
