11.30.2010

CHARLES LANE PRESS @ NADA ART FAIR


















December 2-5, 2010
The Deauville Beach Resort
6701 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33141
Open to the Public
Thursday, Dec 2; 2pm to 8pm
Friday, Dec 3; 11am to 8pm
Saturday, Dec 4; 11am to 8pm
Sunday, Dec 5; 11am to 6pm
Admission is free and open to the public

Lee Friedlander - America by Car


Generally, I have not been a big fan of Lee Friedlander's work since the 1970's. Being aware that many artists and photographers rest on their laurels and continue to do the same thing over and over again - I commend Mr. Friedlander who has consistently explored new points of view and themes in his work. Unfortunately the evolution from master street photogragher to nature photographer of stems, twigs, sticks and branches never suited my tastes. So it was with some skepticism and an open mind that I attended the Lee Freedlander show America by Car at the Whitney Museum of Art last month. Having heard that the new work was to be all images of America from his car window I was curious to see the show. As you may know, I myself make at least one major road trip a year to do some serious shooting across the United States. I felt that is was necessary to see what Lee Friedlander was up to on his own journeys. I found to my disappointment a tedious and unrestrained edit of dozens and dozens of images. Photographs of mostly cliched images of the American Road. I was hoping for something deeper, something that did not just scratch the surface about the America at the turn of the twenty first century. What I got instead was an overly studied typology (identically framed photographs always looking through the car window with the window/dash/door frame intersecting the image) that had nothing really special to say. After I saw the first five I was already quite bored and had the feeling I could probably have stopped right there and had a complete and total experience of the work. I should point out that Friedlander suffers from arthritis and is largely housebound (according to wikipedia) - so I commend him getting out and doing what he was physically capable of doing. That said however, I just don't think that I should give the work a pass solely because of his physical condition. I know this work has its defenders and feel free to argue here as to the value of this work. I also rarely ever post criticism on this blog but I felt inspired to say something. I can say that I was definitely impressed with how clean the window glass was in every single image!

11.19.2010

New Portraits in 49





















































































Check out the entire series here.

11.18.2010

Zoe Strauss

Last night I attended a lecture at ICP by Zoe Strauss. I came to appreciate Zoe's work only recently and am now a big fan. When I heard that she would be at ICP this month I made it a point to make it out to hear her talk. It was fantastic! She talked in depth about her ten year I-95 project. Her dedication to that body of work is pretty unmatched and completely admirable. She is a powerhouse shooter, has a wonderful presence, what appears to be boundless energy, and is an extremely smart woman. She is a force unto herself and I will very much enjoy watching the arc of her career.

Zoe Strauss- Nigel at the San Andreas fault

11.16.2010

Time Stands Still

Laura Linney, who happens to be one of my favorite actresses, is currently in a Broadway play titled Time Stands Still. The play is very good with a great supporting cast. It's about a photojournalist (war photographer) and her struggle with commitment and the dangers involved with her work. The play touches on several issues that deal with ethics and photography. It was rather strange to hear the words Aperture and ICP uttered on the Broadway stage. Laura Linney's acting was superb and fascinating to watch. If you like theater this is a play you should see.

11.13.2010

Meier und Mueller


I had been anticipating the arrival of the inaugural book from the new imprint Meier und Mueller, Conditions by Andrés Marroquín Winkelmann. The wait finally came to an end last week when I received a copy hand delivered by my friend Joerg Colberg, the co-publisher of Meier und Mueller and blogger extraordinaire. I was not exactly sure what to expect as I am not too familiar with Andrés work. I had heard about the unique binding and interactive sequencing as well so I was more than a little intrigued. I am happy to report here that the book came off fantastically well. The images are all very strong, as is the printing. And the fold out sequencing is a novel way to approach a photography book. I liked the experience of being able to turn two pages at the same time and appreciated the thoughtfulness of the pairings. I am also attracted to the built in potential, that this book allows us to create our own pairings. Design and Sequencing aside, I think the photographs are really good and this is a book to add to your collection. I'm already looking forward to seeing more titles from this bold and exciting new imprint.

11.03.2010

NY Art Book Fair and Book Signing with Allison Davies

This weekend is the NY Art Book Fair at PS 1. It's incredibly cool - so if you are in NY please come out to Queens and check it out!

Alaskan gold in the hand.















Joe holding nuggets














Prospector Jesse James shows me a cell phone photo of a smiley made of gold nuggets.