All posts by Photolucida Administrator

Awards, Critical Mass, Critical Mass 2019, Michael Reichmann Project Grant

Michael Reichmann Project Grant 2019 Recipients!

We are so excited to announce the very first recipients of our new Michael Reichmann Project Grant! Kristen Emack, Casey Jackson, and Annie Tritt have been selected from the 2019 Critical Mass Top 200 Finalists to each receive a $1000 cash award to go towards the development of a new or current project. Though this won’t always be the case, this year we decided to award photographers who are working to raise awareness and visibility to different social issues through their photographs. Congratulations, photographers – we cannot wait to see how this award helps advance the work you are passionate about!
Read about their projects below and visit their websites to learn more about their incredible work!


KRISTEN EMACK
Kristen’s series “Cousins” is a tender documentation of her daughter, Appaloosa, and her cousins as they navigate childhood. While it is not uncommon for mothers to photograph their children, Kristen’s perspective is unique because as her subjects have matured, they have begun to understand that Black girls lives are not well documented or represented. “My hope is that when they look back on this work, they will see the beauty of their childhood together, and when they look for everyday representations of themselves in the world, they will find themselves here, in this work we made together, reflected with love.”




CASEY JACKSON
In his series “Zarek: A Family’s Journey”, Casey is compelled to share every aspect of life his family faces raising his younger brother, Zarek. Zarek has been diagnosed with Autism, Epilepsy, and Cerebral Palsy and has struggled with normal daily activities his whole life. His parents bare the brunt of Zarek’s special needs, but with the strength and fierce love of a parent. What began as a way for him to escape the scary and emotional things he was witnessing but did not understand, Casey turned this series into a loving documentation of the beautiful moments of human compassion and unconditional love a parent or family member can harbor within in them. “My goal with this project is to give everyday people a glimpse into the world of raising a child with special needs but also inspire those who are going through it.”




ANNIE TRITT

“Transcending Self” is a portrait and interview series documenting transgender and non-binary youth aged 3-20 in the United State and Europe. Annie focuses on bringing the viewer into the heart of their experience, enabling a connection with the underlying humanity of each participant – instead of reducing the person to their physicality. The portraits and accompanying interviews focus on each subject as a whole person, unique beyond their gender identity. Through working on this series, Annie came to terms that they themselves are transgender/non-binary. “As much as I’m an advocate for the trans community, I had internalized transphobia and struggled to accept myself as transgender/non-binary. Recognizing this reaffirmed to me the importance of this work. In recent months, the project has inspired me to begin a series documenting my own life with surgery and hormones.”

This award is made possible by a generous endowment gifted to Photolucida by the Luminous Endowment for Photographers – an organization created by the late Michael Reichmann in 2007 to foster current and anticipated photography projects. Photolucida is excited to continue Michael’s legacy by providing this opportunity to emerging photographers.


Critical Mass, Matt Eich, Rauschenberg Residency, Residency Award

Matt Eich on his Rauschenberg Residency!

The Rauschenberg Residency came about via Photolucida’s Critical Mass at an important juncture in my life and work. For the past 14 years I have worked as an independent photographer, doing my best to support a family with the roller coaster schedule and income of a freelance photographer. My only prior residency experience was at Light Work, a photo-centric residency in Syracuse, NY in 2013. The Light Work residency allowed me to step away from the stresses of daily life and focus on preparing a solo exhibition and creating a maquette for an ongoing body of work.

In late 2017, I was teaching as an adjunct professor and received word that I had been selected for the Rauschenberg Residency. With more than a year to prepare, I eagerly anticipated my time in Florida, but tried not to overprescribe what I would do with the residency.

Shortly before the residency, I accepted my first full-time teaching appointment. This marks a major shift in my professional life moving forward, as I add a new responsibility to juggle in addition to family, personal projects, commissions, publications and exhibitions. The timing of the residency was perfect, as it allowed me to intently focus on creating and disseminating as much work as possible in the months leading up to the fall semester. 

  
Of course, as life goes, the year started slowly work-wise, and two commercial jobs came into play during the time of the residency. I turned down one, but had to take the other. In mid-June, I packed my studio into my Honda CRV and drove it to Saint Petersburg, Florida before hopping a flight to DC and jumping in a car with an assistant to drive to West Virginia. We worked 12+ hour days for a week, before I flew back to Florida, gathered my studio and finished the drive to Captiva Island. I arrived one week late into the 5-week residency, so my fellow artists-in-residence were already settled and acquainted with one another. I quickly set up my studio space in the Opal Studio in the Main Studio building and got to work. 

For my residence, I was situated in the Beach House with artists Derrick Adams and Felipe Castelblanco as my housemates. Stunning views at sunset are the norm from the back porch, if you are willing to battle the mosquitos. We settled into a nightly routine of hanging out and talking about the intersection of life and art. The Beach House became a gathering point for other artists, so we regularly had visitors.

In the Main Studio, I allowed my ADD to run wild, alternating between working on editing and sequencing photo projects, painting, reading poetry, and playing the beautiful grand piano. This sort of creative cycle felt very natural to me, instead of forcing myself to focus on the “one thing” I was trying to accomplish to the exclusion of other creative impulses.

During the course of the residency I finished editing, proofing and ordering a zine Seasonal Blues, V2. I worked on the edit and sequence of two books: The Invisible Yoke, Volume III: The Seven Cities and

Say Hello to Everybody, OK?

I used the digital lab to experiment with printing on different types of media, including silk and transparency. I also collaborated with the other artists-in-residence by photographing them. A lot of these photographs will appear in my forthcoming zine, Seasonal Blues, V3. I printed two rogue installations on Water Resistant Adhesive Polypropylene, which I installed in two impromptu locations in Columbus, Georgia as I drove back home from Florida to Virginia. 
All of the artists spoke of feeling Rauschenberg’s presence on the property, and permeating their interactions and creative output while there. I took a lot from the handwritten notes and letters that were framed and placed in various buildings on the property. One in the basement of the Beach House read, “Work should be recognized as indulgence or folly. A game between people. The picture doesn’t change and intellectualizing leaves the painting free to convince another mind of another fact.”
  
The four weeks spent in Captiva will doubtless continue to influence and shape my creative trajectory in the years to come. I am forever grateful for the opportunity to become more familiar with Rauschenberg’s practice and legacy through this incredible program.    – Matt Eich
Uncategorized

Critical Mass 2019 Finalists Announced!

2 Comments
Image: Kaja Rata, 2019 Scholarship Recipient
Today is one of our favorite days of the year – our Critical Mass Prescreening Team has finished jurying and have collectively selected the 200 finalists for 2019! Congratulations photographers!
If your name is not on this list this year, know that your work was seen and appreciated by 26 fantastic curators, publishers, and more! We know you worked hard on your photographs and we want to encourage you to keep putting it out there and making work that matters to you!

Rhiannon Adam
Chloe Aftel
Mary Aiu
Liz Albert
Linda Alterwitz
Liza Ambrossio
Mariam Amurvelashvili
Lewis Anderson
Matthew Arnold
Philip Augustin
Bob Avakian
Sue Bailey
Morgan Barrie
Alfonso Batalla
Uliana Bazar
Aimee Beaubien
Dave Beazley
Gary Beeber
Bremner Benedict
Sara Bennett
Swen Bernitz
David Bernstein
Anne Berry
Meike Bertrand-Paniza
Heather Binns
Christa Blackwood
J.T. Blatty
David Bloomer
Diana Bloomfield
Peter Bogaczewicz
Greg Boozell
Cecilia Borgenstam
Felice Boucher
Carl Bower
Judy Brown
Neil Buckland
Karen Bullock
Micah Cash
Brittney Cathey-Adams
Tracy L Chandler
Panos Charalampidis + Mary Chairetaki
Jo Ann Chaus
Natalie Christensen
Elizabeth M. Claffey
Marna Clarke
Troy Colby
Rachel Cox
Inês D’Orey
Sandi Daniel
Teri Darnell
Michael Darough
Robert Dash
Monica Denevan
Marcus Desieno
Norm Diamond
Virgil Dibiase
Benjamin Dimmitt
Rory Doyle
Jenny Ellerbe
Amee Ellis
Kristen Emack
Douglas Eng
Tim Engle
D. Clarke Evans
Madge Evers
Marina Font
Fran Forman
Annette Elizabeth Fournet
Amy Friend
Rich Frishman
David Gardner
Agustin Garza
Jennifer Garza-Cuen
Stephen Geer
Jennifer Georgescu
Judit German-Heins
Leslie Gleim
Steve Goldband
Daniel Gonçalves
Elizabeth Greenberg
Joshua Dudley Greer
Jeff Gros
Judy Haberl
Karen Healy
Jackie Heitchue
Max Hirshfeld
Sarah Hobbs
Sarah Hoskins
Kevin Hoth
Jodie Hulden
Evy Huppert
Casey Jackson
Ellen Jantzen
Glenna Jennings
Diana Nicholette Jeon
Ole Marius Joergensen
Jamie Johnson
Priya Kambli
Matty Karp
R. J. Kern
Tira Khan
Tom Kiefer
Jung S. Kim
Seido Kino
Heidi Kirkpatrick
Karen Klinedinst
Michael Knapstein
Brian Kosoff
Eric Kunsman
Galina Kurlat
Susan Lapides
Nate Larson
James Lattanzio
France Leclerc
Dongwook Lee
Sunjoo Lee
Christine Lenzen
Fritz Liedtke
Jennifer Loeber
Mark Lyon
Landry Major
Anthony Marchetti
Noelle Mason
Jeanette May
Molly McCall
Jennifer McClure
Moira McDonald
Forest McMullin
Ingvild Melby
Robin Michals
Bruno Militelli
Vincent Minor
Cecilia Montalvo
Michael Morris
Rebecca Moseman
Koji Murata
Karen Navarro
Zelko Nedic
Dan Nelken
Nancy Newberry
Charlotte Niel
Stanislava Novgorodtseva
Angel O’Brien
Mikael Owunna
Marcy Palmer
Catherine Panebianco
Rachel Papo
Mark Parascandola
Barbara Peacock
Bruce Polin
Steve Prezant
Osceola Refetoff
Astrid Reischwitz
Melinda Reyes
Adam Reynolds
Jesse Rieser
Paula Riff
Michelle Rogers Pritzl
Florina Romoser
Suzanne Rose
Susan Rosenberg Jones
Rojo Sache
Dotan Saguy
Mark Schoon + Casey McGuire
Leah Schretenthaler
Nathalie Seaver
Richard Sharum
Jennifer Shaw
Stephen Sheffield
Sara Silks
Aline Smithson
Catie Soldan
Agnieszka Sosnowska
Tamara Staples
Caleb Stein
Darcie Sternenberg
Håkan Strand
Barbara Strigel
Krista Svalbonas
JP Terlizzi
Prince Varughese Thomas
Bryan Thomas
Annie Tritt
Barry Underwood
Leticia Valverdes
Mette Hansen + Adams Van Aken
Ian Van Coller
Martin Venezky
Archana Vikram
Ira Wagner
Melanie Walker
Karey Walter
Anne-Marie Weber
Becky Wilkes
Cate Wnek
Reiko Yagi
Peter Ydeen
Yelena Zhavoronkova
Guomiao Zhou
Chiara Zonca
And congratulations to the eight fantastic faculty-nominated grad students who were awarded scholarships to Critical Mass this year: Dominika Gesicka, Lenka Grabicova, William Harris, Matt Kowalik, Andrés Mario, Kristen Matuszak, Jordan Putt, and Kaja Rata. All eight photographers will also go on to be juried in the finalist round!

Critical Mass 2019, Pre-screener notes

CM19 Prescreening – What Matters to Photographers Today?

Images: Critical Mass Student Scholarship Recipients

As Critical Mass prescreeners finish up their jurying (finalists to be announced shortly!), I would like to share some prescreening observations on the entries this year in some loose categories. This is not an all-inclusive list and no content has more weight than any other. The intent of this list is to show what topics and influences contemporary photographers find meaningful in this specific point in history. How are our societal shifts and current events being documented? How are artists pushing the limits of the medium? Many of the topics below are familiar ones – how are the artists bringing their own visual interpretations to the stories? Who are photographers influenced by?

Submissions from: United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Iceland, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, China, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, France, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Sweden, Portugal, Australia, Norway, South Korea, Russia, Israel.

Emotional States/Human Experience: Grief, Loss of Family Member, Abusive Relationships, Healing, Obesity, Miscarriage, Sexual Desire, Sexual Identity, Personal Mythologies, Death, Loneliness/Solitude, Betrayal, Separation Anxiety, Guilt, General Anxiety, Aging, Heartbreak, Depression, Postpartum Depression, Rape, Gender Experiences, Female Identity/Male Identity, Fatherhood, Motherhood, Inner Child, Childhood, Memories (people and places), Cult Identity, Dreams, Fear, Human Relationship Complexity, Faith/Lack of Faith, Inner Landscapes, Dementia, Pregnancy, Isolation/Belonging, Solastagia, Therapy, Addiction

Specific Topics: Illegal Mining, Campfires, Oceanscapes, Political Outrage, Political Inequities, Compression of Time, Winter Light, Time/Decay, Weather Events, Global Warming, Eating Out Alone, Waffle House Vistas, Architecture, Mining Dumps, Burlesque/Drag Shows, All Things Nature, Socio-Political Topics, The Idea of Home, Bachelor Party Psychology, Parallel Universes, Animal Behaviors, Incarceration, Segregation, The Pearl Industry, Disguised Cell Phone Towers, Scientific Technologies, Rural America, Missile Sites, Race Tracks, Veterans, Mausoleums, Evangelical Marriage, Traditional Marriage, Gun Violence/Control, Twin Daughters, Twin Houses, Black Masculinity, Holocaust Remembrance, American Bedrooms, Post-War Landscapes, General Landscapes, Woods, Trees, Botanica, Climate Change, Ecosystems, Yards, Consumer Culture, Ferrets, Hurricane Aftermath, Disaster Recovery, Ecosystems, Tension between Truth and Fiction, Political Ugliness, Luxury Item Packaging, Shame Killings, Funeral Home Viewing Rooms, Pay Phones, Topoanalysis, Professional Wrestling, Splendor in Decay, Incarceration, Equus, Geneology, Impermanence of Life, Macular Degeneration, Carwash Interiors, Idea of Home, Chefs’ Cutting Boards, American Dream, Cruise Ships, Amelia Earhart Disappearance, Surgery Artifacts, Sibling with Autism, Quarters, Animal Rights, Science, Environment, Military, Lava Flows, the Male Gaze,  Grand Central Terminal, Borderlines, Elvis Presley, Death Poems, Buddhism, Agriculture, Family, Passage of Time

Socio-Specific Groups: Quarry Workers, Refugees, Transgender Community, Migrant Artifacts, Witches, Punk Rock Culture, Irish Travelers, African-American Cowboys, Surfers, Female Fighter Pilots, Falconers, Drag Artists, Latina Women, Widows/Widowers, Vogue-ing Balls, Masai Culture, Homeless Camps

Geographical Places: Tokyo, Cuba, Ukraine, Japan, Small Town America, Rural America, Urban America, American West, American South, Florida Panhandle, Uganda South Africa, India, Alaska, Iceland, Burma, Niagra Falls, Paris, Crete, Los Angeles, Mississippi River, Ohio River, Connecticut River, Hawaii, Nicaragua, Death Valley, Silicon Valley, Midwest, Newport Beach, Salton Sea, Saharan Desert

Creative Influences/Inspirations: F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Turrell, Elaine Scarry, George Elliot, Delmore Schwartz, Carl Jung, Francis Bacon, Oscar Wilde, Sihk Captain America, Atget, Carleton Watkins, T.S. Eliot, Dante, Robert MacFarlane, Clarence John Laughlin, Dr. Suess, Gregory Crewdson, Caravaggio, Mary Oliver, Anna Atkins, Robert Adams, Abstract Expressionist Painters, Louis Baltz, Robert Heinecken, Julia Margaret Cameron, Ingmar Bergman, Ernest Hemingway, Gerhardt Richter, Vermeer, Paul Strand, John Muir, Edward Steichen, T.S. Eliot

Critical Mass, Critical Mass 2019, Critical Mass Juror Profiles, Critical Mass Jurors, juror profiles, Jurors

New CM 2019 Jurors – Part 3!

We are excited to welcome more new-to-us jurors to the 2019 Critical Mass Jury panel! See the full list of 200 jurors here!
Savannah Sakry – Book Division Manager, Photo-Eye

Savannah Sakry is currently the Book Division Manager for Photo-Eye Books and Gallery. Originally from Evergreen, CO, Savannah Sakry moved to New York City where she received a BFA in Photography from the School of Visual Arts. Relocating to Santa Fe, NM in 2015, she began her experience with fine art sales working for the internationally acclaimed photo bookstore and contemporary photography gallery, photo-eye. While photography is Savannah’s first love she is just as enthusiastic about other mediums, and shares form & concept’s mission to challenge traditional distinctions between art, craft, and design. She believes these disciplines are intrinsically connected, and that no matter the medium, it’s all about the concept, execution, and storytelling.


Susan Laney – Director, Laney Contemporary

Susan Laney is an independent curator and director of Laney Contemporary Fine Art with more than 20 years experience in the fine art market. Laney specializes in photography and contemporary art from both emerging and established artists with a focus on the South.
Her passion for working in support of the arts began with a part-time job at the Jack Leigh Gallery while attending the Savannah College of Art and Design. Laney graduated from SCAD with a BFA in photography and began her career as an exhibition designer and collections manager for SCAD’s permanent collection. In 1998, she returned to the Jack Leigh Gallery as the director, where she worked for 13 years. She has since served on the Alumni Executive Board of SCAD and co-founded the non-profit organization, ARC Savannah. She is the director of the Jack Leigh Estate and manages the legacy of the internationally- heralded photographer. Laney’s expertise is often requested for collaboration with private and corporate clients in developing or enhancing art collections.


Xavier Soule – Curator, Galerie Vu
Xavier Soule, is the CEO of Abvent Group, which includes VU’ Gallery, the largest photography gallery in Paris and the internationally acclaimed VU’ Agency representing photojournalists all over the globe, and Abvent, a leading provider of digital technologies for architecture, image and design in over 108 countries. Abvent Group (and VU’ Gallery) are located in the historic Hotel Paul Delaroche in Paris. 
Xavier began his career as an architect and his interest in digital solutions grew from his architectural work. After creating Abvent in 1985 and working to expand its global reach, in 1998 he decided to pursue his long standing interests in photography by opening VU’ Gallery and incorporating the famous VU’ Agency in Abvent Group. A collector himself, Xavier is interested in seeing a wide array of photography. He is particularly interested in cutting edge photojournalism and contemporary work which offers an innovative approach to expanding our visual understanding of the world, the people and the light. 


Erin Miller – Exhibitions and Programs Manager, Houston Center for Photography

Erin Miller received a BFA in Studio Art at the University of Texas at Austin in 2016. There, she co-founded The Mom Gallery, an artist run space exhibiting national and international emerging artists including Jesse Morgan Barnett, Erin Stafford, and Gracelee Lawrence. Miller has participated in many group exhibitions both locally and nationally, most recently including Paper at Gallery Sonja Roesch (Houston, TX), Collective Pulse at the Galveston Arts Center (Galveston, TX) in 2017 and Routinely at Box 13 Art Space (Houston, TX). In 2016, she mounted a solo exhibition of drawings at Bass Concert Hall (Austin, Texas). She has been the recipient of the Marshall F. Wells Scholarship and Fellowship Endowment (Oxbow School of Art Residency, 2015) and the University of Texas College of Fine Arts Student Residency and Scholarship Award in collaboration with Fieldwork Marfa (2015). Miller is currently living and working in Houston, TX and is the Exhibitions and Programs Coordinator and Guest Editor of spot magazine at Houston Center for Photography.

 

Whitney Tressel – Curator, The Print Swap
Whitney Tressel is the Curator for The Print Swap – a global photo-sharing project launched in 2016 by the editors of the Feature Shoot. Whitney was a freelance Photo Editor at Google working on the Content & Community team within Google Maps. She contributed to the new Local Guides travel photography program, helped shape the visual identity of third party brand Zagat, and also helped develop new tools and products on a macro scale for Google’s Geo team. Each summer, Whitney spends about a month with National Geographic Student Expeditions as a photography Trip Leader, so far leading high schoolers in Australia, Costa Rica, Paris, Barcelona, Iceland, Prague, and Bali. In summer 2018, she lead The New York Times Student Journeys group concentrating on social justice in the American South. She is based out of New York City

 

Judith Pishnery – Executive Director, Atlanta Photography Group
After many years of teaching and working as a professional photographer, she completed M.A and M.F.A. graduate degrees from the Savannah College of Art and Design. As the Executive Director at the Atlanta Photography Group, Judith serves as the chief operating officer of Atlanta’s oldest photography art center, she works closely with the Board of Directors to direct and administer all programs, operations and policies in addition to supervising professional staff and volunteers.
In addition, she has served on the board of APA/Atlanta (American Photographic Artists) and the Advisory Board of Atlanta Celebrates Photography (an annual photography festival). She has been involved on the Board of Directors of ACP since the early planning sessions in 1998.
She currently resides in a small town outside Atlanta, not unlike where she grew up in Pennsylvania, with her husband and two dogs.
CAMPO Residency, Critical Mass 2018, residency, Residency Award

Laura Stevens on her CAMPO Residency

I have just returned from the CAMPO AIR residency, which I was awarded from Photolucida’s Critical Mass2018, and am full of appreciation for the opportunity I was given. It was the first time in my artistic career that I had been offered the chance to spend a month uninterrupted, with no expectations attached, purely to devote to reflection and creation.

CAMPO AIR is an inspiring initiative founded by the artist Heidi Lender to provide a place where art, writing and good ideas can flourish. Heidi is developing a creative colony in the Pueblo Garzon in the deep countryside of Uruguay, with cabins, artist studios, an exhibition space, a clubhouse, a food lab and organic gardens in this beautiful rural landscape. Being part of the first residency at CAMPO AIR, the artists were provided with houses and studio space in the village itself whilst the project progresses. My home, which I shared with another artist, had recently been donated to the foundation and was newly renovated, full of rustic charm and comfort, with a large studio attached for me to work in – a rare treat for one confined to Paris-apartment sized spaces. 
Four other artists were invited during my residency term in May; an Argentinian filmmaker, an American sound artist, a Brazilian sculptor and a Uruguayan chef. Our multi disciplinary backgrounds coupled with the fact that we were all at varying stages of our career offered a chance for rich and stimulating cultural exchanges. Every week there was a group excursion to better acquaint ourselves with the area and each other, including trips to Jose Ignacio, the Bodega Garzon for wine tasting, and watching the sunset with a herd of carpinchos. 
Heidi and her team were warm and welcoming, providing an environment in which we could be free to engage and create in whichever manner presented itself, free of obligations or the requirement of an end result, whilst allowing invaluable access to the local community and any resources we might need. A dinner was cooked for us five nights a week by the resident chef, Vika, giving us the chance to share our daily experiences and ideas together over her delicious and thoughtfully prepared meals.
Upon my arrival at CAMPO I had in mind various concepts and directions I wished to follow. However, the ideas which accompany you from home tend to shift once situated in the new environment, and I was prepared to stay open minded, responding instinctively to the surrounding stimuli. 
The work awarded by Photolucida was the series ‘him’, a study on the naked male body, the representation of masculinity and the female gaze. Considering my time in Uruguay, I felt immediately drawn to looking at its gaucho culture. The gaucho is a national folk hero, originally a nomadic horseman and cowhand of the Uruguayan Pampas similar to the North American cowboy, representing dreams of a free life, an embrace of nature and loneliness, and a machismo of noble, stoic and brave strength. 
I had hired a car with plans to make various trips into the interior of Uruguay, to discover this culture. However, once resident in Garzon, I realized that I would not need to travel far. Garzon is a small pueblo of 200 residents, deep in gaucho country, and Heidi was able to introduce me to many local gauchos. It would have taken a long time driving through the small dust roads of the Uruguayan interior, and – not speaking Spanish myself – making connections alone would have been challenging in the few weeks I had there. It became clear that I also wanted to be situated close to the residency and the other artists. 
I developed a routine of going out in the early morning in my car or on a bike to photograph in the nature surrounding Garzon. The landscape is characterized by gentle rolling hills and plains, dotted with wild woods, streams and lakes. It is a jigsaw of vast ranches and small farms, largely populated with cattle, sheep and horses and very few humans. It was easy to find beauty and silence, with only the sound of animals and birdsong accompanying you. 
On various days I would follow gauchos to their work of feeding and herding the animals, or tagging, medicating, branding and even the castration of cattle. I spent time observing, photographing and filming them in their activity and whilst at rest. Without a common language it was an exercise in the interpretation of gestures and finding ways of connecting without words. One of the men I spent the majority of time with – Chiquito – taught me to ride a horse by first giving me chorizo and grappa miel for breakfast then by just hoisting me upon the horse and made to follow him. My fears of riding a horse conquered, we rode together across the plains and I no longer needed to run after him with my camera. Eventually I started using a mobile speech translator to communicate, which with often absurd interpretations, helped me get to know them better.
Other time was spent in my studio writing, sketching, making photographic tests, shooting portraits, editing and building fires. By working in a visceral way during the first couple of weeks of the residency I made experiments in my photographic process, which pushed me through different ideas and approaches quite quickly. I learnt to better free myself from an overriding spirit of perfectionism, embrace mistakes and enjoy that ride. It is a rare gift to get this time to go outside of your normal behaviors and patterns.
Toward the end of the residency, I started paring things down and looking at my connection to nature and the Other through more quiet and poetic observation, rather than as a  more literal narration of a place/subject. I was very drawn to the moving image whilst there and finally made a short film using the horse I had ridden as the star. It is minimalist, dark, and slow, with still so much work to be done, but it was very exciting to change directions in this way and open myself up to the new.

This month of freedom and isolation from the pressures and the busyness of city life created a space for me to experiment and cultivate ideas in unexpected ways and gave me time to reflect and gain a clearer perception of my artistic practice that was invaluable to me at this moment in my life. My deepest thanks to Photolucida and the wonderful CAMPO team for offering me this incredible and memorable experience. 

                                                                                                                          – Laura Stevens

–>

Critical Mass, Critical Mass Juror Profiles, Critical Mass Jurors

New Jurors, Round Two! Critical Mass 2019

Each year, Photolucida puts together a diverse and talented team of 200 jurors for Critical Mass.  It’s a fantastic panel of museum curators, gallerists, publishers, editors, festival directors, and media producers – important voices in the photography world today. There are a lot of new faces on the Critical Mass roster this year, so we thought we’d take a moment to make some introductions! 
And – check out the growing list of 200 jurors, and read some of the success stories from previous years!

STACY PLATT, Editor, Exposure Magazine


Stacy J. Platt is a writer, photographer and the editor of the Society for Photographic Education’s Exposure Magazine. Exposure’s mission is the same as the SPE organization itself: to understand how photography matters in the world. As editor, Stacy is interested in featuring in-depth critical writing on emerging and mid-career photography portfolios.

Exposure publishes thoughtfully considered analysis of a photographer’s work, the context in which they are producing it, and the larger implications for both the field and culture at large. She is actively looking for innovative and smart work that she can include in future publications of Exposure. Stacy J. Platt lives and works in Colorado.




STEVEN EVANS, Director, FotoFest


Steven Evans is an artist, writer, curator and executive director of the award-winning arts organization FotoFest International, which founded and sponsors the first and longest running international Biennial of Photography and New Media Art in the U.S. Appointed in 2014, he is responsible for exhibitions, art programs, administration and Biennial organization. He recently represented FotoFest at photography events and festivals in Argentina, Brazil, China, France, Korea, Lithuania, and Russia.

Evans has co-curated many exhibitions internationally including: the FotoFest 2018 Biennial, INDIA, Contemporary Photography and Mixed Media Art, the FotoFest 2016 Biennial – CHANGING CIRCUMSTANCES, Looking at the Future of the Planet, and both the International Discoveries V (2015), and International Discoveries VI (2017) exhibitions, featuring new artists from around the world. In 2014-2015 Evans curated the FotoFest inter-biennial exhibitions I Am A Camera and Collector’s Eye: The Maloney Collection.

Prior to FotoFest, Evans worked with a wide range of artists and collaborators as managing director of the Dia:Beacon Museum in New York State and as director of the Linda Pace Foundation in San Antonio, Texas.




VERENA KASPAR-EISER, Curator, Kunst Haus Wien, Photo Vienna


Verena Kaspar-Eisert (*1981), studied art history in Vienna with a focus on contemporary fine arts and photography. Her professional career began at Galerie Knoll and Galerie Krinzinger and she freelanced in numerous exhibition projects from 2003. 2005 to 2011 she was exhibition manager and curator at Kunstraum Niederoesterreich in Vienna.


From 2011 to 2014 she was director of the Galerie OstLicht, in addition from 2012 to 2014 she was director of the private Fotomuseum WestLicht, Vienna.

Since 2014 she has been curator at KUNST HAUS WIEN. She is an expert in portfolio reviews, lectures on photography and is a member of various juries.


AMELIE SHULE + MARINA PAULENKA, Curator + Artistic Director, Unseen Amsterdam

Unseen is a platform for contemporary photography that presents the latest developments in the field of photography and amplifies the careers of boundary-pushing artists.

As curator, Amelie is responsible for the speakers programme, exhibitions, and onsite projects at the annual fair, Unseen Amsterdam, as well as for various other events and projects throughout the year. She enjoys researching and developing exhibition concepts that incorporate different materials and textures, integrate audio, and concentrate on themes such as sustainability and inclusivity. Prior to her role at Unseen, she worked as Associate Director at Christophe Guye Galerie where she collaborated with artists including Roger Ballen, Stephen Gill and Rinko Kawauchi, among many others.

Marina is an Artistic Director for Unseen Amsterdam. Prior to her new role at Unseen, she worked as a curator and Artistic Director of the Organ Vida International Photography Festival and the Organ Vida Photography Organisation, the leading institution for contemporary photography in Croatia. She has curated numerous solo exhibitions of artists such as Nina Berman, Katrin Koenning and group exhibitions such as Vigilance, Struggle, Pride: Through Her Eyes. Paulenka is the recipient of the Lucie Awards 2018 for best curator/exhibition of the year for the exhibition Engaged, Active, Aware: Women Perspectives Now. Paulenka is interested in contemporary practices, new approaches to medium and showcasing, and in works dealing with feminism and socio-political issues of our everyday life.

ROULA SEIKALY, Senior Editor, Humble Arts Foundation

Roula Seikaly in an independent writer and curator based in Berkeley, California, and Senior Editor at Humble Arts Foundation. She has curated exhibitions at Blue Sky Gallery, SF Camerawork, SOMArts, and the Utah Museum of Arts. She is a regular contributor to Photograph, Hyerallergic, BOMB Magazine, and KQED Arts.

Critical Mass, Top 50, Top 50 exhibition

TOP 50 Show to be at the Center for Photographic Art!

Photolucida is super-pleased to have the Critical Mass 2019 TOP 50 Exhibition at the Center for Photographic Art in Carmel, California! This means the artists that make the TOP 50 this year will be part of the exhibit scheduled for 2020. We can’t wait to see what curator Elizabeth Avedon does with the show.

The Center for Photographic Art is the second oldest members’ photography gallery in the country, striving to advance photography through education, exhibition and publication. These regional traditions – including mastery of craft, the concept of mentorship, and dedication to the photographic arts – evolved out of CPA’s predecessor, the renowned Friends of Photography (established in 1967) by iconic artists Ansel Adams, Wynn Bullock and Cole Weston. Also part of the gallery’s beginnings were Imogene Cunningham and Beaumont Newhall. While respecting these West Coast traditions, CPA is also at the vanguard of the future of photographic imagery. Ann Jastrab recently took over the Executive Director reins from Brian Taylor.

For those not familiar with the storied significance of the Center for Photographic Art, check out this interview with former Executive Director Brian Taylor on the 50th Anniversary (2017) of the Friends of Photography. And we thought we would throw this visual reference in, as we love it:

Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham & Jerry Uelsmann, 1969
Credit: Ted Orland
Awards, Critical Mass, Critical Mass 2019, Critical Mass Juror Profiles, Critical Mass Jurors

Critical Mass & GUP Magazine

GUP #61 – Escape

Photolucida is excited to enter a collaborative endeavor with GUP Magazine as one of our Critical Mass 2019 awards! A selection of Critical Mass Finalists (somewhere between 6 and 10 artists) will have spreads from their Critical Mass portfolios highlighted in a limited edition of GUP Issue #63 (Nov-Feb).

Founded in 2005, GUP (Guide to Unique Photography) Magazine is published in the Netherlands, with wide international distribution. Published quarterly, each issue functions as a guide to upcoming exhibitions and book publications, and has a thematic editorial direction, such as “Escape”, “Transition” or “Rituals” that gives foundation to it’s image presentation.

In addition to the printed publication, GUP has a strong international online following curious for great content which is delivered through it’s webzine and various social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter). The editorial team puts forth photography portfolio features, photo festival reviews, photobook reviews and artist interviews on the website.  GUP Magazine is an in-house production of X-Publishers, owned by Roy Kahmann (Kahmann Gallery, Amsterdam). Check out this video for a behind-the-scenes look at GUP in the earlier days!

* And – BONUS! – all 200 Finalists and all 200 Jurors receive a copy of the Critical Mass limited edition GUP #63 for participating in Critical Mass 2019.

Photolucida is pleased to have Erik Vroons, Editor-at-Large at GUP jurying Critical Mass this year! In addition to his role at GUP, he is closely involved with the production of the annual New Dutch Photography Talent catalogs, and subsequent exposure at international photo festivals such as BredaPhoto, and groupshow exhibits Artsalon Taipei, and Paratay Em Foco. As a freelance writer and critic, Erik has contributed to a multitude of international press magazines, blogs, and photobooks. He is also a contributor to World Press Photo’s competition team and a workshop mentor in the field of creative authorship connected to (conceptual) documentary projects.

Critical Mass 2019, Critical Mass Juror Profiles, Critical Mass Jurors, Jurors

Why, Hello! Some of our New Critical Mass Jurors!

Each year, Photolucida puts together a diverse and talented team of 200 jurors for Critical Mass.  It’s a fantastic group of museum curators, gallerists, publishers, editors, festival directors, and media producers – important voices in the photography world today. There are a lot of new faces on the Critical Mass roster this year, so we thought we’d take a moment to make some introductions! 

And – check out the growing list of 200 jurors, and read some of the success stories from previous years!

 

 

Jane Yeomans – Photo Editor, Bloomberg Businessweek

Jane Yeomans currently works at Bloomberg Businessweek Magazine, where she commissions and licenses photography. Previously she worked as a freelance photo editor and researcher for book projects, design firms and for many publications, including The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Vanity Fair, ESPN and many others. She has been commissioning and licensing photography for many years in New York City, where she currently resides.  

Says Jane: “Instagram is one of the many photo tools I use when both assigning and sourcing photos on a daily basis. I often look at Instagram to see where photographers are in the world, as most weeks I am looking to assign a story worldwide. In addition, I look at Instagram for existing photos to license. I also use it to build my rolodex/find new photographers.”

 

Gregory Harris – Associate Curator, High Museum of Art

Gregory Harris is a specialist in documentary photography and is best known for his work with emerging artists. Since joining the High Museum in Atlanta in July 2016, Harris has organized the exhibitions Thomas Struth: Nature & Politics (2016), The Spirit of the Place: Photographs by Jack Leigh (2017), and Paul Graham: The Whiteness of the Whale (2017). He was previously the Assistant Curator at the DePaul Art Museum in Chicago and held curatorial positions in the Photography Department at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Check out a piece with Gregory Harris talking about the photography of Amy Elkins here.

 

Chloe Coleman – Photo Editor, The Washington Post

Chloe Coleman is an award-winning photo editor at The Washington Post, currently working at the international news desk. She is a contributing writer and editor on the Post’s Insight photo blog, where she has written about and featured contemporary photography, reviews of photo books, and exhibitions.

Chloe’s career as a photo editor began at NPR, followed by her first staff position as a digital photo editor at The Denver Post. She attended the Columbus College of Art and Design and is a graduate of the Photojournalism Program at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Chloe serves on the faculty at The Kalish Visual Editing Workshop and was awarded NPAA’s Best of Photojournalism for photo editing in 2017.


 

Andy Burgess – Publisher, Dark Spring Press

Originally from London, Andy Burgess is an internationally-recognized artist who founded Dark Spring Press in Tucson, Arizona in 2017. Andy dedicates himself to producing elegant and meaningful small-run photography books, such as recent publications by Ken Rosenthal and Robert Stivers. He has an interest in work that is termed non-narrative and/or abstract or poetic as well as images that might have a documentary and narrative intent, and places high value on the collaborative process between photographer and publisher.

Douglas McCulloh – Senior Curator, California Museum of Photography 

Douglas McCulloh is senior curator at UCR/California Museum of Photography. Exhibitions curated by McCulloh have shown in a range of venues: Kennedy Center for the Arts, Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Centro de la Imagen, Flacon Art Center, Center for Visual Art, Manuel Álvarez Bravo Center, Sejong Center, Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, and, of course, UCR/California Museum of Photography.

Founded in 1973, the California Museum of Photography stages exhibitions concerned with the intersection of photography, new imaging, and society. With more than 750,000 objects, it holds one of the major photography collections in the western United States.