December 2009
23 posts
“This is the photoblog equivalent of your local underground college radio station. They may not always play your favorites but they’re guaranteed to stretch your taste.”
—
B: 2009 Recap: Prime Photoblogs
Blake Andrews’ description of the excellent La Pura Vida is one I think Mr. Formhals will be happy with.
“A photographer’s best pictures are from deep inside him, and also some of the worst. Some photographers enjoy distinguished careers without ever taking personal photographs. Others, audaciously and arrogantly and courageously discharge their most private feelings through photography. Trouble is, sometimes it all adds up to baloney.”
—Burk Uzzle
La Pura Vida | November 2009 →
lapuravidagallery.com
This is probably my favourite LPV show so far. Olivier McGuinness did a wonderful curation job, splitting the show into three distinct parts that each take on a unique identity within the wider theme. There are some really strong images here, but it is interesting to note that, according to McGuinness himself, only five of the final thirty shots were submissions to the group pool, whilst the rest were invited as he built the narrative for the show. What this means within the wider context of a curated group show culled from Flickr submissions is unclear, but the hand of the selector weighs heavier on this edition of LPV than perhaps it has done in the past. In this case, for the better, I feel.
“Larry Sultan, a highly influential California photographer whose 1977 collaboration, “Evidence” — a book made up solely of pictures culled from vast industrial and government archives — became a watershed in the history of art photography, died on Sunday at his home in Greenbrae, Calif. He was 63.”
—Larry Sultan, California Photographer, Dies at 63 - Obituary (Obit) - NYTimes.com (via lapuravidagallery)
“The photography world is now filled with scores, if not hundreds, of “photography book” publishers. Shane Lavalette, with his brilliant Lay Flat photography magazine, is a “publisher.” Companies like Hassla Books, Rathole Books, Errata Editions, Radius Books, Nazraeli Press, Twin Palms, J&L Books, Fraenkel Gallery are all “publishers” and they are *all* one or two or three person collectives; hardly “traditional” publishing and hardly the ones that are making a fuss about the “future” of books. It’s the bigger houses that are lamenting the future of the only thing they’ve known—large offices in Manhattan with as large company rosters putting out titles that used to appeal to 100s of thousands of customers, customers who are now a little more selective and might just buy a book from those kids from Brooklyn than from the big house in the City.”
—The Future of Photography Books (discussion) « DARIUS HIMES (via lapuravidagallery) (via curdiogenes)
“To be able to see in concrete terms what was created in a fraction of a second is a rare luxury. Even though fixed in time, a photograph evokes as much feeling as that which comes from music or dance. Whatever the mode – from the snapshot to the decisive moment to multi-media montage – the intent and purpose of photography is to render in visual terms feelings and experiences that often elude the ability of words to describe. In any case, the eyes have it, and the imagination will always soar farther than was expected.”
—Ralph Gibson
Albany For The Next Four Days
I’m going to be in Albany for work until Friday, so posting will be light, if not entirely non-existent. I’ll be trying to fit in some shooting time, of course. Usually, when I’m on these work trips, I take my D90 and shoot whatever/whenever I can, This time I’m going to shoot entirely with film; the Bessa R2 will be coming along for the ride, and I have a few rolls of Neopan to keep it company. Should be different.
