Update on my July 1st 2021 post.
The AIPP, Australia’s only representative professional photography organisation has closed. In the AIPP letter sent out by Les Morrison one hour before closing states that there are several causes for its demise.
These being
Covid,
cheaters and
former members narratives in public space.
Firstly, Covid is a timely and convenient excuse. The organisation has been struggling financially for well over a decade. I know this as I was on many committees over the 20+ years I was a member.
Cheaters and former members causing headaches for the organisation are not the cause of the organisation collapsing, but the result of the AIPP’s mishandling of those issues.
In my opinion the reason the Institute collapsed can be see in the following:
Too much emphasis on awards and not enough advocacy and promotion of the importance of the logo and the accreditation.
Lack of embracing the gender shift to women in photography when digital came into prominence in early 2000’s when the membership started to reflect that change.
Disbanding the mentoring program
Lack of gender, cultural, regional and business diversity in leadership and the Board. The Board should have included members of business not just photographers.
Lack of establishing systems and timelines that enable women and other diverse photographers to participate
Lack of diversity of Honours recipients
Lack of succession planning within the Honours Committee
The cost of running Honours Committee meetings every year to travel to Bruny Island and to APPA.(Having said that I think that the AIPP have always had champagne tastes on a beer budget. In my mind AGM‘s, Board Meetings, policy and planning meetings should have all been organised around the same time as APPA to reduce cost to the membership.)
Mishandling of the Reflections veterans project and it’s finances. Has the money promised to RSL and Legacy been fully paid?
Treating members in breach of the Code of Conduct by the inequitable response within the public space eg Lisa Saad vs Ryan Schembri
But, the nail in the coffin for me was having a male member send a long mansplaining manipulative and sweary letter to me because I challenged the status quo.
