Private view: Friday 20th January 6:30 – 8:30
Born in East Sussex on the 27th April 1975, Marie became interested in photography at a young age. Studying photography at G.C.S.E. level and then a BTEC National Diploma at the Brighton College of Technology led, in 1993, to an offer of Assistant Photographer at Madame Tussauds.

Marie worked for two years at Madame Tussauds getting to meet a host of well known faces including the Dalai Lama, Joanna Lumley, Tony Blair, Linford Christie, Hugh Grant, Pierce Brosnan and Lenny Kravitz. Throughout her time at Tussauds Marie had also been building up her own portrait and wedding business and after two years took the bold step to start out by herself. So keen on not losing Marie’s abilities, Madame Tussauds kept Marie as their main photographer on a freelance basis, a role she still has today, sending her around the world to photograph such high profile celebrities as Morgan Freeman, Samuel L. Jackson and Serena Williams.

Marie Stone Photography, Marie’s photography business, went from strength to strength and, in June 2005, one of her prints was accepted into the Royal Photographic Society 148th International Print Exhibition.

In 2008, Marie retired as a wedding and portrait photographer to allow her greater time to focus on her passion for photography travelling to Uganda, Botswana and finally on to South Africa. On her return from her travels, Marie began preparations for what would be her first solo exhibition and book launch.

Opening on the 6th July 2010 in her home town of Hailsham, Marie’s ‘Beauty Is Within’ exhibition, and 188 page accompanying hard back book, showcased some of the incredible photographs taken by Marie throughout her career, starting in 1993 and moving through to May 2010. Featuring a wide variety of photos including photojournalism, animals, landscapes, architecture, nature and people, the exhibition and book received widespread praise.

Of all the thousands of photos taken throughout Marie’s career, it is her picture of five zebras, taken in Botswana, 2008, that is still the most talked about.