Have you heard of SPIN magazine? They kicked off back in 1985 as the cool, alternative answer to Rolling Stone. Founded by Bob Guccione Jr., SPIN ran strong until 2012 when they stopped printing physical issues. Well… they’re back! About a year ago, they started publishing a print edition again — and honestly, that made me so damn happy. I miss magazines big time.
Now here’s the wild part — back in July 2025, SPIN published an article about me. Yep, you read that right. Editor Matthew Thompson interviewed me and ran a full feature. I’ve done a ton of interviews over the years, but they’ve always been about my music photography and my life behind the camera. This one was different — it was about my alter ego, Richard Avery, and how I created him way back in 2000.
To explain… I’ve used aliases forever — partly for fun, partly for privacy, and sometimes just to separate creative worlds. Richard Avery was born when I started a new business with a close friend shooting porn stars, fetish models, and more. It wasn’t something I’d done for over 30 years, but this time it was different — it was art, business, and creative freedom all rolled into one.
I did that work for 23 years and honestly, I had more fun than anyone. The Richard Avery era produced some of my best work — wild, raw, fearless, and beautifully human. I did more than people realize… and probably more than I can even remember. But I’m proud of every bit of it.
In 2023, I decided to kill Richard Avery and move on to the next chapter — exhibitions, books, and legacy projects. There’s so much material, it’s ridiculous.
This is just a quick post — I’ll be sharing more stories and behind-the-scenes details in the months ahead. If you want to check out his work, visit RichardAveryPhoto.com. He was the GREATEST ever.
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