Creative trio launch new Sheffield podcast

A Sheffield creative business has launched a new podcast bringing together leading figures from fashion and photography to explore the power of images.

Sheffield-based Cultura Creative has developed The Image Makers, a ten-part series featuring former supermodel Heather Stewart-Whyte, photography expert Stephen Mayes and entrepreneur Christina Vaughan.

Filmed in the city’s Kelham Island district, the podcast explores subjects including beauty standards, social media, artificial intelligence and the impact of visual imagery on society.

Stephen recently relocated to Sheffield after 25 years in New York, where he built an international career in photography, including serving as senior vice president and group creative director at Getty Images.

Heather was a prominent figure in the 1990s supermodel era, appearing on the covers of Vogue, Elle and Harper’s Bazaar and working with fashion houses including Chanel, Dior and Versace.

Christina, who founded Cultura Creative, previously established international image library Image Source, earning a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade.

She said: “Images have an extraordinary influence on our lives, often in ways we don’t even realise. 

“They shape how we see ourselves, how we judge other people and increasingly what we believe to be true.

“Between us, we’ve spent decades working in very different parts of the image industry and witnessed some extraordinary changes.

“But this isn’t a podcast just for photographers or people working in fashion.

“It’s about issues that affect everybody, particularly when social media and artificial intelligence are changing our relationship with images almost daily.

“We want to share our experiences, challenge some assumptions and encourage people to think differently about the images they encounter every day.”

The series also examines the pressures facing young people in an image-conscious society, the realities of the fashion industry and ownership of photography.

Having launched yesterday (Tuesday, October 20), with a second episode tomorrow (Wednesday, October 22), The Image Makers will release new episodes weekly on Tuesdays.

It will be available on Spotify and Audible, with filmed episodes on YouTube.

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