Stefanie Braun is a photography consultant and mentor who enjoys directing and realising creative projects from conception through to final outcome. With over 20 years of experience of working in the arts in the UK, she has a wealth of knowledge to offer and approaches each commission with flair and dedication. Stefanie believes in the restorative nature of ‘making’ in all its forms and the power it has to create change and bring about positive action in our lives.
During her studies of Visual Theories at the University of East London in the late 1990s, Stefanie was drawn to photography through an internship at Creative Camera magazine which offered her an amazing insight into this increasingly popular art form under David Brittain’s inspiring editorship. For over a decade (2000-2013), Stefanie then worked as a curator at The Photographers’ Gallery in London, organising the prestigious annual Deutsche Boerse Photography Prize alongside many other solo and group exhibitions of historical and contemporary photography including collaborations with high profile artists such as John Stezaker, Thomas Demand and Sophie Ristelhueber. She also edited numerous catalogues and artist publications and recently co-published the journal NU Review together with the writer and journalist Wouter De Broeck.
Over the years, Stefanie has also built up an eclectic and highly personal vintage fashion collection with pieces ranging from the 1930s to 1980s. Her desire to make the collection accessible to others led her to launch Fraubraun (2009), a website where items from the collection were displayed through portraits of her friends modelling pieces they particularly liked and felt comfortable in. Part art project, part shop, Stefanie visited many festivals and events with her mobile photo studio and fashion collection, including at the Victoria & Albert Museum and London Fashion Week, where she invited guests to get dressed up and take self-portraits in her travelling photo studio with the help of a cable release. For several years (2014-2016) she also ran a studio space in Wimbledon which featured pieces from her collection alongside works by London-based portrait photographers creating an exciting dialogue and unique visual experience.