Mobile Photography & Art – ‘Intimate Interview’ with Manuela Basaldella from Offenbach, Hessen, Germany
Our fifty first interview in this new series of intimate interviews is with talented mobile photography and artist, Manuela Basaldella from Offenbach, Hessen, Germany. This is an interview demonstrating clearly originality of thought mixed with stunning expression through her images. Enjoy!
To read the other published interviews in this series including artists, Adria Ellis, Rino Rossi, Mehmet Duyulmus, Alexis Rotella, Lou Ann Sanford Donahue, Irene Oleksiuk, Kerry Mitchell, Filiz Ak, Dale Botha, Lisa Mitchell, M. Cecilia Sao Thiago, Deborah McMillion, Rita Colantonio, Amy Ecenbarger, Jane Schultz, Anca Balaj, Joyce Harkin, Armineh Hovanesian, Kate Zari Roberts, Vicki Cooper, Peter Wilkin, Barbara Braman, Becky Menzies, Sukru Mehmet Omur, Sarah Bichachi, Michel Pretterklieber, Alon Goldsmith, Judy Lurie Whalberg, Andrea Bigiarni, Sean Hayes, Oola Cristina, Kathleen Magner-Rios, Linda Toki, Deb Field, Emilo Nadales, Lydia Cassatt, David Hayes, Jean Hutter, Frederic Deschênes, Mark Schnidman, Fatma Korkut, Fleur Schim, Rob Pearson-Wright, Dieter Gaebel, James Ellis, Marco P Prado, Jeronimo Sanz, Manuela Matos Monteiro, Bleu Chemiko and myself, go here.
All images ©Manuela Basaldella
What was your earliest childhood ambition?
I was always in search of harmony, iIn color, form, smell, movement, in all senses, feeling.
Finding and maintaining harmony has remained an ambition until today.
First Recognition?
In the first school class, the art teacher’s clear enthusiasm for a painting I painted: a monkey cub in a golden cage.
First Job?
In Summer mowing the lawns of the neighbourhood, cleaning their cars and also in the winter to eliminate snow.
Private or State school
State School. Many State schools because my dad was often sited elsewhere. It was hard to find good friends for a long time.
University or work?
Both. I worked to finance my studies and my life.
Who was or still is your mentor?
In 1978 I started studying photography. In 1980 I met Joseph Beus and was allowed to accompany him for 2 semesters. He taught me to take different perspectives. These lessons changed my life.
How physically fit are you?
I am happy every day for a day when the sun is shining. I’m getting old and that’s sometimes clear, but I can choose my own life.
Ambition or Talent. What matters more to success?
It is important to define what is success?
I succeed if I feel good about a something that I try do, when I reach a goal and I am/ we are happy.
How politically committed are you?
Actually not at all. I feel completely helpless about the incredible number of things that build people and destroy people as well.
What would you like to own that you don’t currently possess?
I would like to have a Beamer. This is an invention of science fiction to move in a short time to any location.
What is your biggest extravagance?
My biggest extravagance is to want to be what i am and to expect other people to handle it without complaint.
In what places are you happiest?
I am happiest at the sea. It has everything I need.
What ambitions do you still have?
I want to make my life positive and surround myself only with people who want that too.
.. to become a bit happier ,
.. to finally do what I want, only.
What drives you on?
My inner clock works and runs and runs …
What is the greatest achievement of my life so far?
my greatest achievement is to help other people with my knowledge and my hands.
What do you find most irritating in other people?
Cunning and deceit, liars, deliberate manipulation, I cannot understand.
If your twenty year old self could see you now, what would she think?
I would be jealous of my carefree life. Living without fear. Experiencing what is coming, no matter what tomorrow is. It is wonderful.
Which object that you have lost do you wish you still had?
.. a little bit of lost money.
What is the greatest challenge of our time?
… to stop the destruction of our world …
Do you believe in the afterlife?
I think we as an energy form are not lost. I would like to believe in a rebirth, but I do not.
If you had to rate your life satisfaction so far, out of ten, what would it be?
7 Points.
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Joanne Carter
Joanne Carter is a British photography journalist, editor, curator, and the founder of *TheAppWhisperer.com*, one of the world’s leading platforms dedicated to mobile photography and art. Since its launch in 2009, TheAppWhisperer has become an international hub for artists of all levels to discover, learn, exhibit, and engage with contemporary photographic practice.Built on principles of inclusivity, accessibility, and artistic excellence, Joanne has spent almost two decades championing mobile photography as a serious artistic medium. Through interviews, critical essays, exhibitions, competitions, and education, she has helped shape and document the evolution of mobile art on a global scale.Her work has taken her internationally, lecturing on photography and mobile art at institutions and events including the Museum of Art in Seoul, South Korea, alongside appearances in the UK and Europe. She has served as a juror for international photography and mobile art awards across Portugal, Canada, the United States, South Korea, Italy, and the UK.Joanne is also the founder of *TheAppWhispererPrintSales.com*, one of the first online galleries dedicated exclusively to collectible mobile art, connecting artists with collectors across Europe, the United States, and Asia.Before founding TheAppWhisperer, Joanne worked extensively in print journalism and photographic publishing, including roles at a paparazzi photo agency and as deputy editor of a leading photography magazine. Her freelance journalism, criticism, and commentary have been published widely in both the UK and the US, with bylines in *The Times*, *The Sunday Times*, *The Guardian*, *Popular Photography*, *NikonPro*, *DPReview*, *Which?*, *Vogue Italia*, *LensCulture*, the *BBC*, and more recently, the *Financial Times*, where her published letters on photography continue to contribute to wider conversations around the medium.Alongside her editorial and curatorial work, Joanne’s own photographic practice has been exhibited internationally across the UK, Europe, South Korea, and the United States. Her work increasingly explores themes of grief, loss, death, memory, and the body.Her current research interests centre on grief, death, and poverty, with forthcoming postgraduate study leading towards doctoral research in these areas.Joanne is currently developing new long-form writing and photographic projects and is available for commissions, editorial projects, speaking engagements, and collaborations.Contact: joannetheappwhisperer@gmail.com)
