A Conversation: Rona Chang & Hee Jin Kang

It's almost July 4th and for the holiday Rona had a conversation with Hee Jin Kang, who is participating in the exhibit A Declaration of Immigration -- which opens on Independence Day at the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago. You can read the interview and see some of Hee Jin's work over at the Nymphoto blog.


Sandy's Deli (after Walker Evans) © Hee Jin Kang

And Tim Walker

And if you are in London this summer, I recommend the Design Museum and the Tim Walker show - Mr. Walker who I mentioned before, is one of my favorites.
James Danzinger has a nice post about the show titled Anglomania.

Garie Waltzer

If you are in Cleveland, OH this summer, I recommend taking a look at the extraordinarily beautiful work of Garie Waltzer (tx, Jane).

June 23 - Sept. 5, 2008
Humphrey Atrium Gallery at University Hospitals
11100 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH

Sally Mann Remains

Sally Mann remains one of my favorite artists. She gained a lot of attention with "Immediate Family" around the time that I became seriously interested in photography and I am glad to say that her images from that series mean as much to me today as they did then.
A few days ago I watched "What Remains: The Life and Art of Sally Mann" which developed out of the Academy Award nominated short "Blood Ties: The Life and Work of Sally Mann" by Steven Cantor.
Like Jhumpa Lahiri in her writing, Ms. Mann's work comes from the everyday and comments on universal themes such as family, death & life -- and does so with an unflinchingly romantic eye, which I find courageous in many ways.
In the movie the viewer sees Sally Man photographing her husband - something she has done since the beginning of their long relationship. She has not yet published these images and she refers to them as her 'artistic savings account'. From a glimpse at the work (via the documentary), I suspect it might turn out to be a body of work as moving & important or even more so than "Immediate Family".
I like that she chooses to photograph what she knows or is experiencing and I love her process. I like the 19th Century cameras and the now antiquated techniques of capture and printing she employs. To me that is what true photography will always be about: the processes and the capturing, enhancing & translating of what you see.
You can take a look at the trailer for 'What Remains' and youtube. The movie is available for rent or purchase.

Ruth Van Beek

Via Zoum Zoum I came across the collages of Ruth Van Beek. And I love them. Go check them out here: www.ruthvanbeek.com; my favorite is the 'photo reconstructions' section.

Will Steacy & Hank Willis Thomas

Will Steacy's Project "The Photographs Not Taken" concludes powerfully with an essay by Hank Willis Thomas.
You can it read here.
I have never met Will, however I am proud to say he is a fellow Tisch Alum as are my dear friends Hank, Emily & Wyatt -- among many others. As I have become older and hopefully wiser I came to the perhaps obvious conclusion that school is very much about the people you connect with, the friendships you make, the peer group you build. Because I lived a few places I attended a few schools, and I was fortunate enough to attend some very good ones. My parents let me choose my last high school (UNIS) and were supportive of my choice for higher education (NYU, twice) and while at times it might not have been clear to me whilst attending, I was very privileged to attend both institutions, which are probably among the most diverse schools in the world, partially due to their location: New York City.
Both schools led me to people who are deeply committed to making the world a better place (yeah, I am talking about you Andrea , Hank , Mere & co) , to people who think outside the box (the husband) and to many very good friends (too long a list).
Anyway, add Will's blog to your RSS feed. It's a gem.


Pink Face, New Orleans, LA 2006 © Will Steacy

Charlotte Dumas

Tema participated in the HIV Law Project Exhibit & Auction while I was away, through the auction's website I was introduced to the work of Charlotte Dumas, which like the work of Arno Schildlowski is of course right up my alley, take a look here and here.

Opening Reception for Paul Fusco @ Danzinger

Tonight is the opening reception for Paul Fusco's "RFK Funeral Train - Rediscovered":

Danziger Projects
521 West 26th Street
NY, NY 10001
6-8 PM

So on this occasion I wanted to take the opportunity to also direct your attention to two pieces about this exhibit. First up is James Danziger's blogpost titled "Pictures from a Train" and The New York Times' article by James Stevenson "R.F.K., R.I.P., Revisited".
This work is incredibly powerful and it absolutely restores my faith in the power of photography.
On a technical note, if you see these photographs take a look at that color and the quality of the images. Hard to imagine doing this with digital. Sorry to be pedantic, but after reading Emily's post yesterday, I am again very concerned that we will see the absolute disappearance of film sooner than later.

Back in Town

The posts have been few and far between because I returned to The Bahamas to attend a wedding on (one of) the most beautiful beach(es) in the world.
The sand was pink, the water turquoise and the bride wore a romantic yet edgy Morgane Le Fay white feather dress and the groom a beautiful white linen suit with a blue & white small-checker-print shirt and a pink& white small-side-striped tie.

We returned to sweltering heat and a sweaty city and I am still trying to catch up with all that happened while I was away.


While we were away Sentaor Obama won the nomination © Nina Buesing

I will post some images from my trip soon. One of the things I definitely reaffirmed while away is that I like to shoot analog. Digital has it uses and is great for commercial work and some documentary work. But analog is so much more beautiful and I also must say that my Pentax 67 & my Hasselbald once again performed perfectly, while my 5D had a little hiccup and decided to stop working for a little while (The heat and humidity was just too much for it).
It will be a few days until I have some images. I am actually holding off on processing my film today, because they said the power grid is at full capacity and just in case we have another power outage I do not want my film to be stuck in the processor if that happens.
Oh the joys of analog photography -- but you know what?It's so worth it.
I leave you with a Polaroid taken during my trip.


Beach towel / Mane's cottage © Nina Buesing

The Last Iceberg

There is something about the cold that I really like. I love all seasons , but I think if I lived in Southern California year round I would go a little bonkers. I love the crisp & clean air of a cold winter morning and the sound of footsteps on snow (ergo my love for Lisa M. Robinson's series Snowbound).
Camille Seaman (what a perfect name for this photographer!) exhibit Where There Should be Ice opened today at Candace Dawn Gallery in New York and will run through June 21, 2008.
If you cannot see the show in New York, take a look at The Last Iceberg on Ms. Seaman's site:
Hauntingly beautiful landscapes (or portraits as Ms. Seaman regards them) of icebergs, that on closer reflection reveal environmental tragedy --not unlike the desert work of Richard Misrach.

Maria Passarotti: Regarding Arcadia

Concealed Vista © Maria Passarotti

This Thursday night Susan Eley will host the opening reception for "Regarding Arcadia: Rural Viewpoints" , which features the work of my dear friend Maria Passarotti.

Opening Reception
Thursday May 8, 2008
6-8 PM
Susan Eley Fine Art
46 West 90th Street
2 nd FloorNew York, NY

Herd © Maria Passarotti

Yola Monakhov @ Sasha Wolf

Tonight, from 6- 8 PM is the opening reception for the exhibit of the work of photojournalist YolaMonakhov -- at one of my favorite venues Sasha Wolf Gallery.
Ms. Monakhov's images from Russia are the most compelling in this series.

Yola Monakhov
Once Out Of Nature
@ Sasha Wolf
10 Leonard Street
Tribecaa, NY
May 1- June 21, 2008

Hyeres Photography Festival 2008 & More

First prize at Hyeres 2008 went to Audrey Corregan, whose backside portraits of birds I find mesmerizing. The second prize went to Amira Fritz , who has an amazing palette and subtlety to her work. I love the light at dusk and dawn and she captures the magic of those hours and that light beautifully.Her work reminded me of a series of fashion photographs taken in the woods by Catherine Servel. Read more about Ms Fritz and Ms. Corregan on Conscientious.

Also a finalist at Hyeres was the work of Diana Scherer, which I found disturbing - not just the imagery of the dead animals as you would probably expect of me - but much of the macabre atmosphere in her work tugged at me.
I don't know how she went about creating her images depicting dead animals, but I would like to know. I will not just dismiss work because a dead animal is pictured and I am well aware of the complexity of the issue. I furthermore think that Ms. Scherer's photographs work well aesthetically, I am just wondering if they work for my personal ethics too. I like the work of Polly Morgan (who works with donations of animal bodies), but because of recent events Ms. Scherer's work, kept bringing my mind back to the 'starving dog art piece' which turned out to be a hoax much like the Yale student's recent hoax - or is it a hoax (artistically speaking) when it provokes this much discussion?

Joerg Colberg and Tema Stauffer both wrote about the (hoax) incident(s) as they were reported and unfolded. Mr. Colberg wrote a log entry titled "So what is art? (cont'ed)" after it became evident that the Yale student performance art piece was a stunt and Tema reflected on the internet & the information that we obtain via it, after discovering that the South American artist in fact did not starve a dog to death.
When I earlier posted about the report of the man that regrew part of his finger, my gut was a bit uncertain of its authenticity for a second because of the recent 'hoaxes', but my brain decided that the combination of the subject matter and the source should be enough to accept this as truth. At least I hope it is really true, because this is pretty amazing (well, except for the pig bladder part, but I guess growing those in a petri dish sans pig is close at hand -no pun intended).

Jill Freedman - The Other Side of The Coin?

Also on view currently in New York is the work of reemerging photographer Jill Freedman. A must for any lover of New York City, this retrospective at the Higher Pictures Gallery shows Ms.Freedman's Gotham documentary work from the 60s, 70s & 80's -- a time when the city was much less safe but arguably much more interesting.
The New York Times yesterday published an article about Ms. Freedman, titled "Through Weeggee's Lens" (by Niko Koppel) and in it examines not only the work but also the life of Jill Freedman.
Avid photoblogger Amy Stein also commented in her post "Don't Call It a Comeback" on the fragility of a career in the arts and how even talent cannot secure one recognition.
Ms. Freedman never married or had children and also does not have much other family. She became ill with cancer and because she did not have health insurance (or family or wealth to lean on) had to subsequently struggle with real financial hardship. In many ways her story is an archetype of that of the suffering artist and her work certainly reflects the passion she had for her work.
Jill Freedman is of interest to me because I love New York, but furthermore I was affected by her life story. Particularly because I heard about Ms. Freedman's story on the same day that I heard about Jill Griffiths Belt's (see yesterday's post) life story. Both women share a passion for life and photography, were pioneers in their own right, yet their experiences could not be more different.
On the heel of my birthday week and the reflections that come with yet another year lived, it was poignant to hear about the contrasting lives of these two photographers. Clearly luck has much to do with how ones life turns out, but I keep wondering to which extend choices also affected the outcome.
And as I always like to say: you really don't know what kind of life you had or were dealt until the the moment it really is over ;)

Annie Griffiths Belt: A Camera, Two Kids and A Camel

This morning NPR featured a piece about National Geographic Photographer Annie Griffiths Belt. The segment was titled "Photographers Peripatetic Life Is a Family Affair" and you can listen to it here.
Ms. Griffiths Belt is a gifted observer and a photographer in the classic definition of the craft. She is accomplished and respected, but what made her stand out for me even more was to hear that she took her two kids with her on the road whenever she could. Career and family (regardless of what family is to you) is hard to balance for anyone, and thus I listened with great interest to her recounting how she traveled with her children on assignment.
Ms. Griffith Belt will be presenting her work and speaking about her experiences in Minnesota and Seattle next month. Find out more about that here.
Ms. Griffiths Belt is a charismatic raconteur and you can here her narrate a slide show of her work via the National Graphic site.
If you are interested in purchasing her most recent book, a retrospective of her work, titled A Camera, two Kids and a Camel, you can do it also via NPR and if you do your purchase will support NPR programming. Or you can use www.booksense.com to find a local store near you that carries her book.
(Fi --this one is for you)

Rachel Bank

I have always loved the photography of Rachel Bank-- I'm not totally sure why, I think it's something about the moments she chooses to capture and how real yet idyllic her vision is. Her imagery reminds me of Sofia Coppola's first feature film "The Virgin Suicides" which had a similar visually seductive and nostalgic vibe.

Print Out A Pinhole Camera!

Corbis just made available four different printable pinhole cameras on their site: http://pro.corbis.com/creative/readycam/ (via Photojojo).
To see more examples of pinhole photography, take a look at some of the work of this year's Guggenheim fellow Ardine Nelson.


"Look Ma, No Lens" : ) © Nina Buesing Corvallo

The Leaf: The First Photograph?

Read "An Image Is a Mystery for Photo Detectives" by Randy Kennedy for the New York Times, published April 17, 2008.

Exhibits

In New York - currently:

If you are into miniatures, this might tickle your fancy:
Dianne Blell @ Charles Cowles
537 West 24th Street
Through April 12, 2008

Poigant portaiture (like those of Susan Sontag & Candy Darling):
Peter Hujar @ Matthew Marks
523 West 24th
Through April 26, 2008

Beautiful palette & capture:
Fred Herzog @ Laurence Miller
20 West 57th Street
Through May 31, 2008

In Woodstock - currently:

Photography Now 2008 @ The Center for Photography at Woodstock (juried by Darren Ching)
59 Tinker Street
Through June 1, 2008


In New York - upcoming:

Sally Gall @ Julie Saul
535 West 22nd Street
May 13 though June 28, 2008


In London - upcoming:

See greats such as Rineke Dijkstra, Cindy Sherman, James Van Der Zee, Wolfgang Tillmans, Irving Penn, Diane Arbus, Henri Cartier-Bresson and more.
"Street & Studio: An Urban History of Photography" @ Tate Modern
Bank Side, London

Michael Kenna

If you are in Chicago you can see work by photographer Michael Kenna at the Edelman Gallery (through April 18, 2008).
I recently acquired my own copy of "Hokkaido" - a monogram with images taken by Mr. Kenna in Japan. My friend Pete introduced me to this work and I am revisiting it as I have become more interested in B&W & monochrome imagery again.