All posts by Photolucida Administrator

call for entries, Critical Mass 2015, Jurors, success stories

And it Begins! Critical Mass is Open!

Image: Angela Bacon-Kidwell (2014 Critical Mass Top 50)

Photographers, start your engines! Critical Mass 2015 is now open for entries! Photographers can submit 10-image portfolios and artists statements here. Before you do, you’ll want to read the entry details and take a look at the stellar list of 200+ jurors.

Critical Mass is an unprecedented platform for photographers looking to show their work to a wider audience of photo professionals. Critical Mass jurors are chosen because they are professional museum curators, book publishers, photo editors, gallerists, and new media producers who actively use photography. They’re not just folks with an informed perspective on the field and the ability to identify great photographs – they’re people who are on the hunt for fresh new work, people who can directly offer opportunities to artists. We love seeing these connections happen. Each year we see exhibitions offered, images acquired for collections, articles written about photographers “discovered” via Critical Mass, book proposals made – it’s exciting stuff! A Top 50 group is chosen and awards are given every year – but career-building connections are made by many, many more of the photographers who enter Critical Mass.

As we kick off another great season of Critical Mass, we thought we’d share a few more success stories here on our blog. Considering entering this year? We’d love to see your work. Registration is open until noon Pacific Time on July 28th, don’t delay!

I am delighted to be working with Jeanine Michna-Bales after having the pleasure of reviewing her work [in Critical Mass] last year. I am grateful for Photolucida facilitating the introduction and look forward to her solo show here at the gallery February 2017!
—Arnika Dawkins (Owner, Arnika Dawkins Gallery)

I am incredibly grateful for all the attention my work has received as a result of Critical Mass. My participation resulted in my work being featured on Slate.com and Petapixel.com, and in upcoming one person shows at photo-eye Gallery in Santa Fe and Kopeikin Gallery in Los Angeles.
—Richard Tuschman

As a gallery director and curator it was amazing to judge Critical Mass and see so much good work. I ended up giving two, one-month solo exhibitions to different artists I first found through Critical Mass. A benefit to my gallery, Documentary Arts Asia, and a benefit to them. I also invited a few promising photographers to apply for our no-cost Artist in Residence program. I’m already looking forward to seeing this year’s work.
—Ryan Libre (Director, Documentary Arts Asia)

I am happy to let you know that the work of five photographers from Photolucida’s Critical Mass were accepted for exhibition by the committee of the 2015 Shanghai International Photo Festival. The photographers that will be included are: J. Scriba, Jim Kazanjian, Debora Schwedhelm, Heidi Kirkpatrick, and Fritz Liedtke.
—Yan Li (Curator, Beijing High Noon Culture & Art / People’s Photography)

I am happy to let you know that we will be exhibiting Mila Teshaieva’s “Promising Waters” body of work at the Haggerty Museum of Art in January, 2015. We will be showing the 47 prints that are included in her monograph, and we are excited that she may come over from Berlin to present a lecture. Also, we acquired eight prints from Aaron Blum for the Haggerty Museum’s permanent collection after seeing his work in Critical Mass.
—Wally Mason (Director, Sheldon Museum of Art)

I was thrilled and honored to learn that I had been offered a show at Blue Sky Gallery. This was a result of Critical Mass.
—Francine Fleischer

Being in the Top 50 is an incredible honor and thrill for me. I am preparing for a show which was a direct result of being a Finalist last year when Hamidah Glasgow of Center for Fine Art Photography offered me the solo show in her comments….I will keep you updated as so many good things are happening. I remember meeting you [Laura Moya] for the first time in Atlanta and you told me to “keep at it.” Words of wisdom I have followed. I said at the time “Photolucida was the gold standard” and I continue to hold that opinion. Thank you for Photolucida and all you have done for me and our community. It is very much appreciated.
—Susan Barnett

Awards, Critical Mass, Critical Mass 2015, Jurors, Pre-screeners

Critical Mass 2015 Opens Soon!

Image: Marja Pirila (Critical Mass 2014 Top 50 Winner)

Critical Mass opens on June 15th (that’s next week!) and we are excited to share news about this year’s event. Our jury is composed of 200+ of the best and brightest in the photography world. Museum curators, photography book publishers, magazine editors, gallerists, new media producers – the jury is a force to be reckoned with! The primary goal? To provide a platform for photographers to share their work with professionals in the field. It’s not every day you get to show your work to an audience like this. It’s a wonderful way to make important connections with professionals who might otherwise be difficult to contact.

On that note, we thought we’d share a few photographer comments here on our blog. We love hearing success stories from photographers who have been offered exhibitions, publications, and other opportunities as a result of their participation in Critical Mass. It happens all the time, and each time it does we are thrilled to have played a role in making these connections happen. Here are a few of our favorites:


I feel like I should become a poster child for both Critical Mass and Photolucida’s [Portfolio Reviews] as so many fabulous things have come from my participation in them both. The experience has been crazy great.
—Cheryle St. Onge

There have been many opportunities that came about as a result of my exposure on Critical Mass. My work will be included in an upcoming exhibition at Castell Photography Gallery in Asheville, North Carolina and is currently in the juried/invitational “Unbound” exhibition at Candela Books & Gallery in Richmond, VA. My work has been featured on several sites including feature shoot, Lenscratch, Huff Arts and My Modern Met to name a few, which has resulted in some work publications! I have a few other opportunities “coming up” as well and will keep you posted.
—Amy Friend


Winning the Critical Mass Book Award has been the most important turning point in my photography life. It was thrilling to work on the book and I got great support from Photolucida to realize it according to my ideas. After publication the book has been sent to nearly 1000 professionals, among these 200 curators from all around the world, most of whom I would never have been able to meet. The response was immediate: Wally Mason from Haggerty Museum offered me a solo show on the same day he got the book from Photolucida. Thanks to the book I had a solo exhibition in the West Coast Museum of Art in Germany earlier this year and took part in several group shows. Suddenly doors have opened for me; several galleries in Europe have offered me representation, the work got published in a French magazine and I got a chance to share my vision with a wider audience by giving interviews and presentations on the book. Besides that, I got really inspiring messages from people who got the book from Photolucida, telling me of their appreciation for the work. It’s hard to believe that all these have happened in less than one year. Taking part in Critical Mass has opened opportunities for me that I could never have imagined.
—Mila Teshaieva

Excited to enter Critical Mass this year? Take a look at the entry details (with updated information about our 2015 Critical Mass awards). Also, read more fun success stories to get in the mood. Registration will be open from June 15th until July 16th.

Portfolio Reviews 2015, Portland Photo Month

Forget April in Paris, Enjoy April in Portland during Portland Photo Month!

April in Portland is lovely – the days are longer, the rain lets up (a bit!) and things start blooming like crazy. People start to venture outside more, which is good timing, as April is (the 5th annual) PORTLAND PHOTO MONTH!

Do you live in Portland, are you visiting Portland, or are attending Photolucida’s Portfolio Reviews Event at the end of April? Your all-inclusive guide to what to do photography-wise can be found on the Portland Photo Month website. So grab some coffee, eat a donut, and head out to partake in all the exhibition openings, artist talks, lectures, workshops, and social gatherings Portland has to offer!

The rest of this blog post is dedicated to people “out and about” this month! Have a photo of people having a good time eating, drinking or looking at photography? Send it to us!  info@photolucida.org

Susan Seubert and Twinka Thiebaud at Frolick Gallery (credit SK Josefsberg)
David Hilliard and JoAnne Verberg at Elizabeth Leach Gallery (credit Eirik Johnson)
Jake Shivery at his opening of ‘Contact’ at Newspace (credit Blue Mitchell)

 

Elizabeth Leach Gallery artists (Chris Rauschenberg and David Hilliard) dinner. (credit Malia Jensen)

 

Cheryle St. Onge and Chris Rauschenberg (credit Cheryle St. Onge)
Toni Greaves and Steven Josefsberg at Froelick Gallery (credit Froelick Gallery)
Cheryle St. Onge at her artist talk at Blue Sky Gallery
Chris Rauschenberg, Colleen Plumb, David Hilliard, and Cheryl St. Onge
Susan Seubert’s opening at Froelick Gallery (credit Froelick Gallery)

 

Colleen Plumb and David Hilliard interview on OPB’s State of Wonder Program (credit OPB)
Portfolio Reviews 2015, Portland Photo Month

Portland Photo Month: Submit Your Listings!

Photolucida’s Portfolio Walk, Portland Art Museum

Photo lovers, start your engines! Each April, Portland is abuzz with photography-related events and exhibitions. From Photolucida’s Portfolio Reviews event (and concurrent Portfolio Walk and Keynote Lecture), to a diverse array of photographic happenings across the city, it’s a great month to soak up a lot of visual inspiration.

If you have a photography event or exhibition happening in Portland this April, you may submit your information here until March 31st. Submissions will be reviewed and posted on the Portland Photo Month section of Photolucida’s website.

We’re just starting to add April events to our website, and new listings are being posted every day. Check back often to see the latest news and updates.

Awards, Critical Mass 2014

Critical Mass 2014 Rauschenberg Residency Award Announced!

We are pleased to announce that Critical Mass Top 50 photographer Tamara Staples has been chosen for the Robert Rauschenberg Residency Award. Tamara will spend four weeks at the Rauschenberg estate on Captiva Island, working on a moving new personal project. Tamara writes,

“This project began when I inherited a box of pills that were owned by a person whose life was dictated by pill use and who eventually took their own life with an overdose. The arrangements I’ve made with the pills are meant to be a private and public portrait. I seek not only to make sense of our need to control the unknowable human condition and our fragile physiology, but also to understand our relationship to self-medication in a society where drug use is pervasive. The way we use our drugs and why is very different from the drug culture from the free-loving days of the 60’s. The aim of this project is to explore where we stand in the history of drugs and how we relate to it.”

Image by Tamara Staples from her new series
Image by Tamara Staples from her new series

Tamara Staples began her career as a prop stylist for print and television commercials. However, it was her fine art photography background that kept taking her behind the camera. As a photographer, her work has appeared in Harper’s Magazine, Time Out NY, New York Times, Men’s Journal, O Magazine, New York Magazine, and Town and Country to name a few. In 2001, Tamara published her first photography book entitled The Fairest Fowl: Portraits of Championship Chickens. That work has been featured on NPR’s This American Life and CNN. Tamara is the recipient of a NYFA Grant, PDN Self Promotion Award and the Bronze Award from the Royal Photographic Society. Tamara has a second book of chicken portraits entitled, The Magnificent Chicken, 2013, Chronicle Books. She lives and works in NYC.
Images by Tamara Staples from her Magnificent Chicken series

Congratulations, Tamara!

Awards, Critical Mass 2014, Solo Show Award

Critical Mass Solo Exhibition Award

Image: Cheryle St. Onge

Photolucida is pleased to announce that the Blue Sky Gallery exhibition committee has chosen Critical Mass finalist Cheryle St. Onge for this year’s solo exhibition award. Cheryle’s exhibition will open on First Thursday, April 1st and run through May 3rd 2015. If you’ll be in Portland for Photolucida’s Portfolio Reviews event, you’ll be able to view the exhibition at that time. We are so pleased to collaborate with Blue Sky to make this exhibition a reality.

Cheryle writes about her work:

“The photographs from Natural Findings began with the idea that our early foray into the natural world is not only innate, it is familial. When an older sibling offers up a jar of glowing fireflies, or grandmother puts a winter berry on your tongue, they are in a colloquial, familiar manner forging a path and beckoning to share the natural world. Natural Findings explores the curiosity and awe of our early grasp of nature: a paper wasp nest that appears dropped from Mars, the frog egg mass that on close inspection…becomes a gelatinous constellation of soon-to-be tadpoles. The photographs become both the shared means of a longer examination and the conduit of our own private recollection of nature.”

Stay tuned! The Monograph Award and the Artist’s Residency Award will be announced in the coming months.

Image: Cheryle St. Onge
Image: Cheryle St. Onge
Critical Mass 2014, Top 50

The 2014 Critical Mass Top 50!

Image: Heather Evans Smith

It’s official! The Top 50 photographers for Critical Mass 2014 have been chosen. Our 200-strong jurying team completed their voting yesterday and the results have been tallied. Thank you to all participating photographers and all our wonderful, insightful jurors. There were so many creative, inventive, powerful portfolios in the mix this year – Critical Mass participants are a talented bunch!

Stay tuned – the Critical Mass awards will be announced next. Selected photographers will be awarded a solo exhibition at Blue Sky Gallery, an artist’s residency at the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation’s Captiva Island Estate, and our coveted Monograph Award. The Top 50 photographers will also be included in a group exhibition at the next GuatePhoto festival, curated by Center for Creative Photography Curator Rebecca Senf. They will also be added to the annual archive on our website – a fantastic resource for curators, publishers, and new media producers across the globe. Top 50 photographers will also be included in Photo Eye’s Art Photo Index.

To see portfolios by all the Top 50 artists, click here.

Congratulations, Top 50!

2014 Critical Mass Top 50

David Emitt Adams

Matthew Arnold

Jessica Auer

Angela Bacon-Kidwell

Mandy Barker

Nadine Boughton

Ben Brody

Antoine Bruy

Patty Carroll

Calvin Chen

Daniel Coburn

Sian Davey

Frances F. Denny

K.K. DePaul

Heather Evans Smith

Amy Friend

Susan Grant

Kevin Horan

Sandra Hoyn

Priya Kambli

Corinna Kern

Bear Kirkpatrick

Heidi Kirkpatrick

Meeri Koutaniemi

Álvaro Laiz

Nate Larson & Marni Shindelman

Jennifer Little

Gloriann Liu

Cynthia Matty-Huber

Kendall McMinimy

Diane Meyer

Jeanine Michna-Bales

Nancy Newberry

Walker Pickering

Victoria Piersig

Marja Pirilä

Jessica Eve Rattner

Christopher Rauschenberg

Meghann Riepenhoff

Ken Rosenthal

Mateusz Sarello

Alix Smith

Aline Smithson

Tamara Staples

Laura Stevens

S. Gayle Stevens

Ayumi Tanaka

Iveta Vaivode

Donna J. Wan
Xiaoxiao Xu
Critical Mass, Portfolio Reviews, Solo Show Award

Happy Birthday, Blue Sky Gallery!

Book by David Pace

Over the years, Photolucida has collaborated with Blue Sky Gallery on a number of exhibitions and projects. Blue Sky has offered solo exhibitions to Critical Mass finalists each of the last few years, and their exhibition lineup often includes photographers who have been part of our programming here at Photolucida. We love seeing these connections happen. It’s always a treat to see Critical Mass and Portfolio Reviews photographers showcasing their work in Blue Sky’s stunning exhibition space.

This year is Blue Sky’s 40th Anniversary. For 40 years, they’ve shown the best new photography from the U.S. and abroad. To celebrate, the gallery has produced monographs highlighting 36 of the artists they’ve exhibited over the years. A number of Critical Mass and Portfolio Reviews photographers (Patricia Galagan, M. Bruce Hall, David Pace, M. Alexis Pike, and Shawn Records) are represented in these lovely and affordable new books, so we thought we’d share the news here on our blog.

In the words of series editor Christopher Rauschenberg, “We’ve got portraits, landscapes, street photography and family rituals, mythologies, quirkiness and pathology. We’ve got bachelors, Haitian workers, Moslem youth, synchronized swimmers, people dressed as the statue of liberty, people holding snapshots, and people scarily dressed in rubbish. We have pictures from Russia, Cuba, Mexico, India, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Burkina Faso, small town Oregon, and Canadian suburbs. We’ve got projects about prison cells, proms, English gardens, Judaism, weddings, museums, and AIDS. We’ve got blueprints, pre-Photoshop shenanigans, plastic camera pictures, stereographs, photographic sculpture, scanners used as cameras, pictures made with hand-held fishtank cameras, and trees seen from every direction at once. Half of the books are by women artists and all of them are great.” Book previews and more information may be found here.

In related news, the Portland Art Museum is highlighting Blue Sky’s anniversary with a special exhibition (through January 11th). See a preview of the exhibit here. Interested in learning more about Blue Sky Gallery and photography in Oregon? Oregon Public Broadcasting just produced a great Art Beat episode about the history of photography in the region: “Darkroom to Digital: Oregon Art Beat Special”.

Book by Patricia Galagan
Portfolio Reviews

New to the Portfolio Review World?

New to the world of Portfolio Reviews? Do you find yourself wondering if you are ready to attend one? Are they really worth the cost of attending? Here are our thoughts!

Everyone pays attention to the cost to attend a Portfolio Reviews event. It is expensive to attend, and it is expensive to produce. The organizer, the participating photographers, and the reviewers all put a lot of time and energy into creating a successful event and a worthwhile experience – it is a huge commitment for all those involved. The “value” of attending a Reviews event is highly subjective and only you can decide whether participating in one makes sense for you. You should know when you are at the point in your career where you are ready to show your work in this context. In essence, it is a fee-for-service situation and like any good consumer, you should do research before committing.

How does one calculate the hard cost of a Reviews event? Take the registration fee and divide it by the number of Reviews appointments one receives to come up with a cost-per-appointment. You can do some comparative shopping this way. Of course, one must also consider the cost of travel and lodging connected to attending the event.

Factors to keep in mind when thinking about attending any Portfolio Reviews event:

What does the Reviewer list look like – what industry professionals are choosing to give their time and expertise to the event? What is the location of the Reviews – both city and venue? Is there a Portfolio Walk produced for the general public? Is there a space outside the actual Reviewing room for photographers to spend time informally with each other? Does the organization have effective programming developed to provide an accurate selection process for choosing Reviewers? Is there additional programming produced for participants – lectures, panel discussions? Does the Reviews event take place during a Photography Festival with exhibits, talks, social events, etc.?

Check to see if various organizers track and list any success stories that happen after the event is over. This reflects the level of opportunities that happen post-event. And, they are always fun to read!

Reviews events continue to proliferate yearly on a national and international basis. Some are juried, some are “screened”, some run lotteries, some are first-come-first-serve. Some offer scholarships, most don’t. Reviews events are are run by non-profits, for-profits, and professional membership organizations. Some focus on fine-art imagery, some on the editorial/commercial realm, some have a documentary or photojournalism bent. Some have versions of Reviews specifically for students, and are more about advice and feedback than professional opportunities.

Photolucida is pleased to be in the ranks of many renowned Reviews events nationally such as FotoFest, Center’s Review Santa Fe, and PhotoNOLA. Other reputable organizations that run Reviews sessions include Atlanta Celebrates Photography and the Society for Photographic Education. The New York Times has a version in New York City, as well as the Palm Springs Photo Festival. Internationally, LensCulture puts on a fabulous Reviews event in Paris. LensScratch put together a thoughtful comprehensive calendar of international Reviews events, and there is similar information on The Curator Ship blog.

If you are new to the Reviews event scene, perhaps start out at a one or two-day Reviews event to acclimate yourself to the process, then graduate to a longer one when you feel ready. Perhaps volunteer at an event to get an idea about what goes on behind the scenes, which will help you determine if it is a direction you want to take.

One factor that comes with attending a Portfolio Reviews event might not have a dollar value that is easy to assign: the chance to meet and network with one’s fellow photographers in person. Friendships are forged, networks are strengthened, and work is shared. The social aspect of spending an intense stretch of time with one’s contemporaries talking photography day and night is either the icing or the cake part of the event!

Portfolio Reviews 2015

Photolucida 2015 Registration Lottery Results!

Thank you to those who registered for the Portfolio Reviews event in April! The lottery results are below, listed alphabetically by first name. If your name is on this list, please keep an eye out for an e-mail on Tuesday letting you now how to make payment/complete registration. If your name is not on the list, you are part of our “wait list”, which we will use if cancellations occur. Thank you!

The list below also includes the names of our scholarship award recipients. 

Aaron Waterman 
Abbey Hepner
Adrienne Defendi
Alejandro Medina
Alexander Chekmenev
Alexis Pike
Alison Turner
Allison Stewart
Alyssa Minahan
Amy Jorgensen
Andi Schreiber
Andreanne Michon
Andrew Warren
Ann Pallesen
Aoife Shanahan
Archana Vikram
Arthur Drooker
Barbara Kyne
Ben Altman
Ben Marcin
Beth Kientzle
Bob Avakian
Brandy Trigueros
Bruce Myren
Caleb Cain Marcus
Carol Isaak
Carol Golemboski
Carolyn Monostra
Carolyn Russo
Charlotta Hauksdottir
Charlotte Niel
Cheryl Medow
Cheryle St. Onge
Chris Bennett
Christian Ureta
Christa Blackwood
Claire A. Warden
Craig Barber
Dan Eckstein
Dana Miller
David Wolf
David Ondrik
David Ellingsen
David Kressler
David Miller
David Ondrik
David Pace
David Emitt Adams
Debi Cornwall
Dennis Hodges
Diane Meyer
Donna Pinkley
Donna J. Wan
Doug Dertinger
Doug Ethridge
Doug Lowell
Edis Jurgis
Eileen Clynes
Elisa Ferrari
Elizabeth Siegfried
Elizabeth Bernstein
Elizabeth Stone
Ellen Cantor
Erik Hagen
Erin Malone
Frances Denny
Fritz Liedtke
Gerhard Clausing
Gloria Baker Feinstein
Haley Morris-Cafiero
Heather Evans Smith
Heidi Kirkpatrick
Hye-Ryoung Min
Ian van Coller
Insiya Dhatt
Ira Wagner
J.T. Blatty
Jacinda Russell
Jade Doskow
Jaime Alvarez
Jaime Permuth
James Stephenson
Jane Paradise
Jay Zukerkorn
Jay Tyrell
Jeanine Michna-Bales
Jennifer McClure
Jessica Auer
John Faier
John DuBois
Jon Edwards
Joseph Vitone
Joshua Dudley Greer
Judith Fox
K.K. DePaul
Karen Divine
Kathleen McLaughlin
Kent Hasel
Kent Krugh
Kerry Mansfield
Kevin Horan
Kim Campbell
Kirk Crippens
Klaus Enrique
Lais Pontes
Laura Hynd
Laura Shipley
Laura Stevens
Laurie Blakeslee
Lawrence Dattilio
Libuse Jarcovjakova
Linda Kuehne
Lindsey Beal
Liz Steketee
Liz Bretz
Liz Hickok
Liza Macrae
Loli Kantor
Lori Pond
Lori Hepner
Lydia Panas
Marina Font
Mary Farmilant
Mary Parisi
Mary Ellen Bartley
Max Kellenberger
Meike Nixdorf
Michael Kirchoff
Micheal Sherwin
Mijoo Kim
Minjin Kang
Miska Draskoczy
Moira McDonald
Molly Lamb
Nancy Baron
Nancy Newberry
Nicole Jean Hill
Noelle McCleaf
Nori Hall
Patricia Lay-Dorsey
Pauline Gola
Philip Augustin
Preston Gannaway
Rachel Wolf
Randi Ganulin
Rebecca Palmer
Rebecca Martinez
Rebecca Najdowski
Rita Maas
Robbie McClaran
Robert Moran
Robert Harding Pittman
Ross Mantle
Rubi Lebovitch
Ryan Steele
Sarah Christianson
Sarah Malakoff
Sean Carroll
Sheri Lynn Behr
Smith Eliot
Sonya Lawyer
Stan Raucher
Stanislav Ginzburg
Stephen Tomasko 
Susan Keiser
Susan Rosenberg Jones
Susan Swihart
Susan A. Barnett
Svetlana Bailey
Takeshi Moro
Terri Warpinski
Tess Hurrell
Thomas Alleman
Tobias Hutzler
Toby MacLennan
Vaughn Sills
Viky Garcia
Wendel Wirth
Yelena Zhavoronkova
Yorgos Efthymiadis
Zelda Zinn