short[er] photo-ographie

yeah! atlanta photography

2008-09-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

Artadia Website

Fun and exciting times here in Atlanta!!

We are on the brink of ACP [Atlanta Celebrates Photography]. This means lots of shows, artist talks, and parties. It also means a ton of calls for entries around the area. Check out their website for a recent list of calls, as well as a downloadable pdf of all the events.

Also, you'll notice about a link to Artadia, a grant for artists in the Atlanta area. The grant amount ranges from $1500 to $15,000. I've never applied for a grant before because the applications are always daunting and our tiny college doesn't currently have a grant writer (someone who is supposed to help professors write their grant applications), but this application looks simple, to-the-point, and is all online! I love that people are getting out of requiring slides. They never made sense to me. Who wants to have their work judged on a miniature representation of it [because we all know, no one actually took the time to use a projector].

Speaking of projectors... yesterday was the first day I had to use a projector in class. And I'm talking about the old-school slide projector. I use a digital variety every day, but for yesterday's class, I needed to display 2 images side by side. [not possible with digi] It took me 8 minutes to locate the slides I wanted to use in our slide cabinet and place in a wheel, 10 minutes to figure out how to get the thing not to automatically change the slide every 2 seconds, 4 minutes to get the lens adjusted, what seemed like 20 hours (but was probably only 7 minutes) to get the cords untangled because no one ever uses them... and then, when I put up the slide projection next to the digital projection, it was so dark you could barely see the image. To those "purists" who say slide are so much better... you're straight silly.

SPE - National - Scholarships

2008-09-10T14:49:00.000-07:00

Image by Tyler Robbins

Don't forget... next year's SPE conference is in Dallas, TX. March 26-29.

There are scholarships available for students who want to go, as well as conference fee reimbursement for volunteering at the conference.

Here's the info from their website. Click on the link to view the information about scholarships.

"Sprawl"
46th SPE National Conference
Dallas, Texas
March 26 - 29, 2009
Fairmont Dallas Hotel

The city of Dallas provides an informative and imaginative backdrop for the conference theme. Like other metropolitan areas since the 1960s, Dallas has seen suburban sprawl reshape its civic geography and identity. Sprawl then is a physical manifestation of civic growth and population migration, housing developments and ‘big-box’ retail parks. But the concept of sprawl also prompts discussions of environmental conservation, the appropriate use of land and resources, the loss and/or renewal of city centers and close-knit neighborhood communities. Cultural depictions of sprawl have long been a mainstay in popular culture, including the 1970s photo movement New Topographics, William Gibson’s cyberpunk fiction, the music of Sonic Youth, and in TV shows, such as “Weeds,” with its ‘burb’-inspired theme song “Little Boxes.” Sprawl—suburban landscape and life—serves as both cultural inspiration and critique. The organizers of the 2009 SPE National Conference invite imagemakers, historians, critics, and curators to submit proposals illuminating the visual and cultural complexities of Sprawl as a defining concept and reality of our twenty-first century public experience.

Our Host City of Dallas
Dallas is situated on rolling plains near the Trinity River, midway between the Piney Woods of east Texas and the vast landscape of the Great Plains. It is a sprawling metropolis shaped by the confluence of diverse cultures and communities. Today, civic ambitions have created a dynamic cityscape in which urban flight has been reversed and a municipal footprint of inner city idealism is being reestablished. Thus Dallas blossoms with cultural and social renewal from its urban center to its far flung suburban neighborhoods, as seen in new building construction designed by noteworthy architects such as I.M. Pei, Rem Koolhaas, Renzo Piano and Phillippe Stark. Public art works revitalize planned residential and commercial districts, like Victory Park with its multiple, moving video screens streaming programming into the wee hours of the morning. Beyond these exciting civic features, SPE conference goers will find ready access via the Dallas Metroplex to a plethora of museums and cultural institutions: Amon Carter Museum; Nasher Sculpture Garden; the Fort Worth Modern; Dallas Museum of Art; Dallas Contemporary; the DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University; and the McKinney Avenue Contemporary. So mark your calendars for March 26 – 29, 2009 and join colleagues and friends at the SPE National Conference in Dallas!

Call for images

2008-09-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

AXE Proximity presents
UnScene Atlanta

HOW IT WORKS: We are looking for your "unscene" images taken in Atlanta or the surrounding areas. We are looking for a story, a collection - a strong body of work - not just one great shot. You can upload up to 20 photos for $25.00 for a chance to be selected as one of the five local finalists from a professional judging panel. If selected as a winner, you will work with Mason Murer Gallery on your own exhibit to launch sometime in the Fall of 2009.

THE THEME: Your untold stories - people, places or things taken in and around Atlanta.

THE LOCAL EVENT: The date of the event is September 17th and the location will be W Atlanta Midtown. The five local finalists selected will be invited to show off their 10 best photographs for this special one-night gallery event. Their prints will go on sale for a one night only event with 40% of the proceeds benefiting a local charity and the remaining 60% directly into your pocket. At the conclusion of the evening, the local winner will be announced.

WHERE: W Atlanta Midtown
September 17, 2008
7-9pm

THE SUBMISSION DEADLINE:September 10th 2008, 7:00pm PST.

SUBMISSION FEE: $25.00 for up to 20 photo uploads

THE BASIC RULES: You have to be an Atlanta resident or surrounding suburbs (or sometime within the last 5 years) and must be at 21 years of age or older. Please read the terms of the contest before uploading your photos. If chosen, you will be responsible to print and mount your own work.

new photographers and galleries

2008-09-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Just so you know, I just added a heck load of new photographers that I am interested in as well as some new photo galleries. Let me know what you think. Who do you like?

michaela and collin [or, why i question having another kid]

2008-09-01T16:49:00.000-07:00

Rita Bernstein, Michaela and Collin, 1998

I absolutely love this image. This is a great example of using humor in your images to captivate your audience. Bernstein has composed a beautiful image, that captures that defiant wonder of childhood and brotherly love (which I have only recently been able to understand through my brother-in-laws, being an only child, myself). That sibling torture that only happens with love. That love that makes parents both infuriated and tickled at the same time. Thanks for making me laugh today, Rita.

four women

2008-07-23T08:18:00.000-07:00

Carrie Mae Weems

FOUR WOMEN
Kianga Ford, Jessica Ingram, Carrie Mae Weems, Deborah Willis
JULY 18TH, 2008 - AUGUST 30TH, 2008 Jackson Fine Art, Atlanta

I got a chance to go to the opening for this show with one of my best friends from college. It was an incredible show, and it was wonderful to be able to do this kind of thing again with an old friend.

This piece in particular stuck out, and in particular, this artist, above and beyond the others on the white gallery walls. Why, over all the other work, would this stick out in the gallery, and have me stare at these images for way longer than the others?

Let's pretend, for a minute, that we're in class, critiquing this as it was a fellow student's work. So, as always, we start with a technical critique. Composition, craft, etc. Then move on to the conceptual critique. What do you think the artist is trying to say? Why are they making this image?

i'm a dirty dish

2008-06-30T08:39:00.001-07:00

Jessica Bruah, Untitled #4 from "Stories", 2003

Artist Statement - "My body of work titled “Stories” began when I decided to merge my love for fiction with my interest with photography. I began to see each image as its own visual narrative. Because the scenarios depicted are vague and bizarre, the viewers have to interpret each story for themselves. Each photograph contains an anonymous character, seemingly unaware of the lens, whose face is never shown. Although I am playing the dual role of photographer and subject, these self-portraits do not concern the notion of self but rather the idea of constructing reality. Every image is carefully assembled, aided by costumes, props, studio lighting, and posing. All these elements, along with the manipulation of a view camera, bring a surrealistic and often amusing quality to the images. In addition to fiction, I draw inspiration from film and any work that discusses gender, identity, and/or domesticity." - Jesica Bruah.

I love the notion of creating stories with photographs, and especially when the I relate to the stories on a personal or psychological level. This type of photography is probably the most intriguing to me, especially when the photographs are beautiful, as are all of Bruah's images. This image, in particular, seemed to not only catch my eye with it's beautiful composition and bright green colors [my favorite color], but seemed to tell a bit of my story at my current position in life. As you all know, I am a professor, which means summers off. I know, some of you are thinking, how could that be bad, right? Well, summers off is wonderful, yes, but as it turns out, summers off also includes eating more meals at home. Now, I love this. We have an amazing garden this year, with lots of fresh veggies, so I enjoy being able to cook a lot [as opposed to the school year when life is crazy and my hubby and I do most of it together]. However, I have come to find out, that all of this eating at home, also requires a lot more dishes to clean. I've realized that I'm cleaning the kitchen at least three times a day now. It seems like it's all I am ever doing. Eat, clean. Eat, clean. Eat, clean.

This image is a wonderful representation of that story. Is it possible for a domestic chore [be it dishes, ironing, whatever] to so consume our daily life that we in a way "become" that chore? Am I becoming a dirty dish? [oh no, look out world. art professor turns dirty dish. can she still maintain her career?]

February Events with APG

2008-01-31T08:00:00.000-08:00

February 8 – February 16, 2008
Opening February 8, 2008, 7:30 - 10:00 pm

Join APG as it begins a year long celebration of its 21st anniversary. Photographers are invited to showcase their latest visual creations by bringing their un-matted images and pinning them up in the gallery. Prints are attached to the wall with push pins in this freeform exploration of the photo arts.

APG’s doors will remained locked for the opening until 7:30 pm. No pictures will be put up early. Wall space is available on a first come basis. Keep in mind that the amount of wall space per photographer is limited to an area equal to 3 - 16"x20" prints or about 960 square inches. Also, all images can be for sale*.

(*APG does not charge commission on sales from the Push Pin Show.)

Admission for this annual fundraiser is only $10 for the general public. Admission is FREE if you become a new member or renew your APG membership at the door. APG members are admitted for $5.

Feb. 29 — April 11, 2008
Opening: Friday February 29, 2008 - 7:30 p.m.

Don't miss this chance to view and collect images from some of Atlanta's finest photographers. Each is represented by an image he or she has personally selected for inclusion in this annual exhibition.

Past shows have included images later selected for inclusion in APG's exclusive Collector Prints. The Collector Prints is hand-picked every year from work seen in exhibitions or critiques that deserves special recognition.

Download the entry form.

Interview with Alec Soth

2008-01-13T11:29:00.001-08:00

Garden of Selves

2007-10-23T19:40:00.001-07:00

Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison are incredible image-makers whose playful images tell a wonderful story of life after what we now know occurs. Thier images are full of wonderfully dreamlike characters that live in a world that resembles ours, but tends to shift towards the fantasy and dream world. They each tell a different chapter of the story. The elaborate constructions draw us in… to this made up world full of hope and devastation, reality and fantasy, peace and conflict.

This is ParkeHarrison’s image, Garden of Selves. An image where a man dressed in a common black suit with a starched white dress shirt awakens out of an open box to his astonishment, surrounded by a sea of boxes containing what seems to be exact replicas of himself, all in a state of slumber, all ready in a sense to have the same experience only at a later time.

Will each of these selves in the garden be the same person, with the same aspirations, the same goals, the same personalities and experiences, or is each one differently conformed into their own unique individual by their separate experiences which seem to be only different by the time separating their awakenings? Is our life, personality, and character traits, controlled solely by our genetic makeup… by a code, a predetermined blueprint…or is it our surroundings, our family, our experiences and time that control who we ultimately are? One hopes for the latter… that we can each create our own destiny, our own person… to do and think and create as we choose…

This image also offers a great juxtaposition between that being contained verses that being freed… the numbers and numbers of men being contained and restrained, hidden in a way from the reality of what lies outside of their box… sheltered form the truth, unaffected by the devastation surrounding their pod-like containers. This is contradicted with the lone man stepping out. It’s as if he has awoken from years of slumber, years of veiled knowledge, and in a moment, he has become enlightened to the world, to this garden of others, others that resemble himself… It’s as if he’s eaten the fruit, or taken the red pill, and been enlightened to a knowledge that he wishes he could forget, a knowledge with a devastating truth full of questions…who are these others? Why have they not been released? Will they receive enlightenment? When? Questions that could only be answered by time… only to be asked by the next in line…

why even bother?

2007-10-23T19:26:00.000-07:00

Why is it that some of the most talented artists fail to get recognized as such?

As an art professor, this can be quite discouraging at times. There are moments when you just want to grab your said student by the shoulders and shake them into understanding... that even though their work didn't get into the show, didn't get an award (because those awards all went to painting even though they were by far not the best in the show, but that is what the juror liked), didn't get a scholarship, or recognized for great artistic achievement...that despite all of those things, they are indeed amazing. That they have produced some of the most beautiful and insightful pieces of work you have seen in a long time. That they inspire you and challenge you to work harder. That the world of art can be terrible, and unfair and make you want to give up.

So here's my soapbox of encouragement:
Don't give up. Don't give up on challenging yourself. Make that frustration a part of your work, instead of inhibiting it. There is a time for you to shine. There will be that moment of recognition, when someone connects with your work... whether it be a juror, or an award, or a quiet moment of a person that notices your work as more than just pretty or well executed, that moment where your work has changed thier life forever... that is why we make art, that is why we can never give up making it, no matter how many shows we get rejected from, no matter how discouraged we get... because we are making it for that one moment.