Twists of fate

Marilyn Stafford’s talk at this year’s Hull International Photography Festival (HIPFest) was one of the highlights of the show. After watching the 93-year-old legend of photography command the stage like a woman half her age, if not younger, it was further privilege to sit down with the inspirational figure for a chat.

Considering Stafford didn’t really want to be a photographer – harbouring early ambitions to be a ‘great American actress’ – the Ohio native has had an extraordinary career. Now living near Brighton, her life and work seem to have followed a serendipitous path of incredible opportunities.

Amazingly, it all started with a photograph of none other than Albert Einstein. Having a camera thrust into her hand on the car journey over to Einstein’s house in New Jersey, where he was working in 1948 at the Ivy League Princeton University, it would be Stafford’s first professional photograph, and