James Danzinger has posted a nice selection of photos from the Robert Frank show currently at SFMoMA. These are photos that didn’t make the cut for the book but are being used as an example of the editorial process Frank went through while putting it together. I am really looking forward to seeing this show when it comes to the Met.

Next Thursday marks the opening of a new gallery in Dumbo, and with it, a show from Corey Arnold. It seems that I have been hearing a lot about Corey’s work lately, and with good reason: it is completely, jaw-droppingly amazing. Be sure to check out his website.

Opening Reception: Thursday, May 14, 6:30-8:30 PM

Caption Gallery
55 Washington Street, Suite 802
Brooklyn, NY
718-504-7991

Piazza, by Beth Dow
from the show Ruins, at Jen Bekman Gallery

Ruins
Photographs by Beth Dow
At Jen Bekman Gallery
Opening Reception: Thursday, April 9, 2009 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m
On View: April 9th – May 16th, 2009

Be there or be ☐.

I’ve mentioned Women in Photography before, because they have been promoting some wonderful work, and now Cara and Amy have something new up their sleeves. Women in Photography, along with Lightside Photographic Services and LTI (my lab of choice in NYC), are sponsoring a $3000 grant to fund a new or ongoing photographic project. Application is open now through May 1.

Oh yeah, and if you’re curious about their spiffy new site, Amani Olu did the design and I did the web development.

I have written previously about photographs made at the sites of famous paintings, and about using Google Maps to investigate and record the locations of well-known photographs. A similar mash-up of art and technology has been developed by the Tate and Google, which demonstrates just how much the British landscape has changed since the time of Turner and Constable.

This article in the Guardian tells the story, or you could just skip straight to the slideshow. Seeing one of Constable’s pastoral images followed by the contemporary view is jarring, to say the least.

That moment of recognition reminded me very much of the feeling I got when I first saw these two photographs from Frank Gohlke’s Aftermath series.

Aftermath: The Wichita Falls, Texas, Tornado No. 10A and 10B - Maplewood Avenue, near Sikes Senter Mall, looking east, 1979/1980. Photography by Frank Gohlke

Within the context of the entire Aftermath series, these two images have an even stronger impact. Gohlke’s recent book Accomodating Nature features several photos from this series, and is very much worth a visit to the library.

If you’re bored of thinking of time on a scale of years and centuries, how about moving to a geological scale, as in Jem Southam’s Rockfalls of Normandy?

Vaucottes, November 2005, Vaucottes, February 2006, by Jem Southam

OK, that last pair are only a few months apart, but you get my drift.

Many thanks to Dr. Steven Zucker from the wonderful smarthistory.org for the heads up on the Guardian article.

I wanted to take a moment to highlight the work of a couple of friends who have prints for sale in Daniel Cooney’s third Emerging Photographers Auction. There is only a week left to get into the action on these affordable prints.

Berkley, 2007, Ellen Rennard

I first came across Ellen Rennard’s work on the Women in Photography website, and was pleasantly surprised when she dropped a line in the comments on my New Years post in 2008. We have since struck up an online friendship, and I highly recommend taking a look through the portfolios on her website. I am particularly fond of the “Horses on the Backside” series.

Tourists, Inlet, Point Wolfe, Nova Scotia, 2008, by Alexi Hobbs

I have been following Alexi Hobbs for a couple of years now, having first discovered him on Flickr. I was very happy to find that he had an image in the auction as well. And what a beauty, too; it reminds me a bit of the work of Timothy O’Sullivan, a modern yet timeless landscape image.

A few more photographs from the auction are posted below:

House Number, 2007, by Alan George

Spirit of Life, Wilmington in Jell-O, Elizabeth Hickok

Quilotoa Crater Lake, 2007, Ani Kington

The artist reception for New Directions, curated by George Slade, is this Thursday, February 5. I have four platinum prints from my Unified Theory of Absolutely Everything series in the show. Wall Space Gallery is in Seattle and unfortunately I won’t be able to attend, but the show looks phenomenal and I hope some of you will be able go.

If anyone does go, be sure and drop me a line, yeah?

I’ve been hearing a lot about people making preparations for Photolucida this spring. I did not apply, mostly because I have never been very clear on exactly what a portfolio review is and why I would want to go to one. Well, that, and the fact that I don’t have any money or a complete series of images that I am looking to show right now. As I saw people’s excitement building, however, I decided that it was time to start looking into the process and see whether or not I should be partcipating.

I am fortunate to have a growing network of friends online who have much more experience in the photo world than I do. I was twittering with Bill Vaccaro the other day, and he very generously took the time to write up an extensive email about his experience with portfolio reviews. I asked him if it was O.K. to post it here, and it is very much worth the time to read if you are considering jumping into the world of reviews.
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Humble Arts Foundation Collector's Guide to Emerging Art Photography

I got an exciting email yesterday from Amani Olu, founder of the Humble Arts Foundation. Humble is getting ready to release their new Collector’s Guide, a publication which includes images from 163 up-and-coming photographers. I am very pleased to be on the list of artists included in the book. A preview is also available on their site.

The book is mainly for industry professionals—gallery owners, photo editors, curators, etc.—but Humble is making a few copies available to the general public. It’s a small number, though, I would highly recommend getting over there and getting your copy before they’re gone.

I am very happy to announce that I have been selected to be a part of New Directions, Wall Space Gallery’s 2009 juried exhibition.

Wall Space represents a few photographers I admire quite a bit, including Aline Smithson and Joseph O. Holmes. I am not familiar with most of the other names on the list of participating photographers, but I would like to offer special congratulations to Bill Vaccaro, who I have come to know over email these last few months, and Lane Collins, who I met on Twitter, of all places!

The show runs from January 6 through February 7 with an artists’ reception on February 5. It’s unlikely that I will be able to make the reception—although my wife is suggesting we plan a super-quick trip—so I would love to hear from anybody in the area who is able to attend.