We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Bedford Towers a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Bedford, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I would have to say the zines and photo books I’ve been able to self publish or publish alongside some really amazing zine publishers. I look at it as a musician releasing an album. When I found that posting on Instagram stopped bringing me any kind of creative satisfaction I was searching for other ways to put my work out and then I had the idea of publishing zines. Since then I have have the privilege of having my zines in bookstores all across a England and the United States and soon Australia and Japan, Working closely with small independent zine publishers and enthusiasts has opened my eyes to a sub culture of people who truly care about their community and the arts.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Matthew Montella but I go by the name bedfordtowers. I started taking photography seriously around 2016/17. Starting by having art shows in small coffee shops in my hometown I expanded slowly to galleries and art shows all over the country and then two shows in Greece, After that I started working the artists Fantasy Camp and Wicca Phase Springs Eternal which opened a massive amount of doors for me. From there I began working with musicians and traveling back and forth to LA. Working with Jon Simmons of Balance and Composure, Ethel Cain, Tigers Jaw, Zubin, Smrtdeath, Anothony Green, and Picture Plane just to name a few. I continued on doing this while living in my hometown of Scranton Pennsylvania and then in the past year moved to New York City. While living here I have still been working with upcoming artists in New York and publishing zines and photo books,
What I’m most proud of is the service I can provide for my clients. My photoshoots are quick and fast paced so I don’t make people feel like they have to pose for hours and hours for me. I don’t like to waste time by shooting multiple photos in the same spot or location. I like to keep the vibe as fresh as possible and change locations after one or two pictures and move on, I find it keeps things interesting and moving so that nothing becomes stagnant.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I have never read any books on photography or art and I rarely watch documentaries on the subject. I have watched the documentary on Vivian Maier which I encourage anyone who is interested in photography to watch. Other than that I have personally avoided consuming ay kind of literature or documentary on photography because I don’t want my style to be influenced by anyone I want my style to come from my imagination as purely as possible,

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

That even if there is no immediate financial reward it’s never a waste of money, the goal should never be to make money. If you are considering investing time and money into something your are passionate about just focus on how it will benefit your mental health and how it will fulfill you. Never think about they money,

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @bedfordtowers
• Twitter: @bedfordtowers
• Other: Tumblr: @pitofpain