Special Guest: Jim Suero Interviewed by Julie Leopo Curator: Annabella Pritchard Theme: Celebrating Orlando Suero
Orlando Suero
(*1925) started snapping photos with the Kodak Jiffy his father gave him in 1939.
He later attended the New York Institute of Photography and worked at camera shops and photo labs, including Compo Photo Color, where he printed the images for Edward Steichen’s monumental exhibition The Family of Man. One of his first assignments was to spend five days in May 1954 with newlyweds Jacqueline and Senator John F. Kennedy at their Georgetown duplex, documenting their everyday lives. This was the beginning of a successful career during which he shot some of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood, among them Natalie Wood, Brigitte Bardot, Michael Caine, Paul Newman, Jack Nicholson, and Dennis Hopper. Because of his friendly and unaffected approach, his subjects opened up to him and his camera in a way that not many others have been able to accomplish.
Jim Suero
Mr. Jim Suero is the co-editor of the book Orlando Photography (Hatje Cantz, 2018). He is also a registered Professional Forester at California State Parks, Prescribed Fire Specialist, and former Peace Corps Volunteer. He is the creator and curator of the enormously popular Instagram account @orlando.suero, a page dedicated to highlighting Orlando Suero's most iconic portraits.
Julie Leopo
Julie Leopo is a California-based award winning photojournalist who explores culture, politics, identity, and social issues in her work. Julie’s photographic narratives center the lives and experiences of people and communities that are ignored or misrepresented by mainstream media. As a photojournalist rooted in the communities she documents, Julie began her professional career covering gentrification and displacement in downtown Santa Ana, and her most recent work illuminates the inequities of policing, unfulfilled political promises, and the pandemic’s devastating impact on local families. CCNMA just named Julie as one of “2021 California’s Most Influential Latina Journalist.”
Annabella Pritchard
Annabella Pritchard was born and raised in Orange County and has contributed to downtown Santa Ana's arts community for over seven years. She is a graduate of the Cours de Civilisation Française at the Sorbonne in Paris, France and is a self-taught photographer whose work has appeared in galleries throughout Southern California.
Pritchard began her career as an artist-member of the Orange County Center for Contemporary Arts where she helped organize art exhibitions, planned events, and raised funds. She participated in photography exhibitions where her work was displayed alongside prominent local artists. Pritchard coordinated a live reading and Q&A by a world-renown author at Orange County Center for the Contemporary Arts, and helped develop “Leonora Carrington: 101,” a birthday celebration and lecture for the iconic surrealist painter and writer at Makara Center for the Arts. She also co-hosts “Surreal Storytime” at Makara Center, which introduces the work of women surrealist artists to younger audiences through storytelling, arts and crafts. Annabella organizes the Keynote and Special Guests each year for Boca de Oro Festival.