Axel Kustner discovered the blues in 1970 at the age of fourteen. Two years later he started
meeting blues greats like Big Joe Williams, Doctor Ross, Sunnyland Slim or Robert Pete Williams
while they were touring Germany. A self-taught photographer, he has also produced a number of
blues albums in 1978 and 1980: Big Joe Williams ('Back to the Roots" and "Field Recordings')
and, along with his friend Ziggy Chrismann a total of fourteen volumes of 'Living Country Blues
USA. Axel met Tim Duffy in Meridian, Mississippi in 1991. Axel has been visiting Tim every
year since and taking photographs of Music Maker artists. Axel has created the most extensive
and important collection of country blues photographs in the last 20 years.
Tim Duffy began taking photographs with his father at the age of 13. He has maintained his
interest with the camera documenting his cultural adventures through Appalachia, Africa and
his deeply personal experiences with blues artists since 1988.
Mark Austin is a professional photographer that has been in partnership with Duffy since 1997.
Duffy introduced Austin into the blues subculture of the Southeast. In the short time they
have worked together Austin has built a substantial collection of photographs of Music Maker
artists. Mark also spent many years working as a commercial fisherman and has an incredible
collection of photographs from that period of his life.