7.01.2010
Fraction 16 & Publishing in Your Hands Open Forum
Isabelle Pateer
Jane Alden Stevens
Taylor Glenn
Also, included in this issue is a feature that Fraction hopes to host ever month with a different theme. This month Darius Himes, David Bram, Andy Adams and I all discuss the topic Publishing in Your Hands. We welcome an open discussion on the Fraction Blog. Please take a look at the piece and add your comments to this discussion.
Tooting My Own Horn: Fraction 15
Bryan Formhals
Christy Karpinski
Jane Tam
I am not the best a self-promotion as I neglected to promote the last issue of Fraction which included the work of Blake Andrews, Bryan Formhals, Christy Karpinski, Geoffrey Ellis, Jane Tam, Joerg Colberg, Todd Walker and me.
Blake Andrews
As a result of our work being published in Fraction, Blake Andrews and I participated in a online panel discussion with Michael M. Koehler on the blog of the artisian black-and-white printers Duck Rabbit Digital.
And finally, Fraction (forever) contributor, Geoffrey Ellis has a new zine titled Get off My Lawn featuring the work of Ellis along with contributors:
Noah Beil
Geoffrey Ellis
Grant Ernhart
Alan W George
Liz Kuball
Sarah Lacy
Ian Lemmonds
Jennifer Loeber
Dalton Rooney
Andrew Martin Scott
Justin Visnesky
6.06.2010
Asger Carlsen Interview on His Book Wrong
MM: When and why did you move to NY?
AC: I have always been fascinated by the United States and the "undefined" way of living here. It’s pretty much up to you what kind of live you wanna live here. For me, it’s a very entertaining way to go by life, but to make a long story short I got a working VISA and moved out of Denmark.
copyright Asger Carlsen
MM: Was your project Detour influenced by the work of other contemporary European photographic "explorers" of the US? Jacob Holdt or Robert Frank, for example? Where and why did you select the route you took?
AC: As far as road trip photography, I think Jacob Holdt latest "US 1970- 1975" book-- I think it’s some of the most fearless and conscientious photography I have ever seen. But I would say his style is very Danish or European. I always have been a big fan of Eggelston, Robert Frank, Stephen Shore, etc. What attracted me the most was the endless driving and the hunt for uncertainty experience... but for me this kind. Photography is not exciting anymore and I will never do a project like that again.
copyright Asger Carlsen
MM: In an interview on Too Much Chocolate, Vincent mentions that he thinks of Baldessari when looking at your work. My thoughts tend to go to photographs and the work of Charlie White because of the seemingly related
themes. Who are your artist influences? Why did you draw from that particular work?
copyright Asger Carlsen
AC: I appreciate Baldessari for his ways of using mixed medias and I like the idea of not being bound to calling my self a photographer. That is just the media I have chosen to work in. I work in photography-based material, but I also work in meat, foam, wood and dove, etc. My concentration in "Wrong" has been more about creating my ultimate hopes of experience. I realized with the first Wrong pictures that I created the satisfaction in seeing something I didn't understand and is removed from the normal. They are "manipulated" to create new narratives in the picture. So telling the obvious stories don’t challenge the mind in my opinion. I'm constantly on the look for the ambiguous in conversation or things I see doing my walk around the city... I guess it’s really about my strong need for entertaining myself and maybe reality is enough for me.
I'm a huge fan Charlie White and I remember I bought his book Charlie White: Photographs in London back in 2004 and I couldn't stop looking at it. So yes he is an big inspiration for me, as well as, Evidence by Mike Mandel and Larry Sultan.
A lot of my research for Wrong comes from medical books and simple internet browsing.
copyright Asger Carlsen
copyright Asger Carlsen
MM: Speaking of Charlie White, his project Monsters project makes me feel a sense of voyeurism, looking on the private, snapshot moments of "humans" and questioning what is going on in the scene. For many of the photos, he creates alien appearances for many of the characters causing me to question whether I am really seeing what is the visual truth of the scene. This brings to mind many questions about the nature of photography (which I do not wish to touch at this time), but also some about your intent when producing Wrong. Is there another meaning behind your imagery dealing with your emotions towards humans, the feeling you want the viewer to feel, or is it simply your love of the manipulated image? What drove you to create Wrong?
AC: Voyeurism is like "legally" allowing spying on people’s privacy. I don't think I will ever get tired of Voyeurism.
I really like to create an illusion that possibly could be real. The images itself is the record of one original event, but because of my alteration they loose their original language. Their connotation can mean anything. I also try not to be to specific about the idea behind each image-- I want to leave people with and open experience of the work .
MM: What drove you to create Wrong?
AC: Creating Wrong is maybe an expression of never really belonging anywhere. I don't wanna sound "super special", but growing up I never had a feeling normality. In a way this is an outlet of that feeling. So on a personal level this has moved me a lot ... also it has been a departure from the photography I knew and has opened me up to be able to express my ideas in any medium.
MM: You recently published the project Wrong with Mörel books in the UK? What was the process of publishing? Did Mörel select you or vice versa? What was your role in the book making? Did you help select printers, paper, etc?
AC: I got an email one afternoon from Mörel books asking if I wanted to do "a book with Mörel books" and I said yes... I designed the book with a friend and made the order of the images. Aron Mörel and I picked the paper stock together and the printer had already made several books with Mörel books before.
MM: What process was used to print the book? Where was it printed? Did you go on press?
AC: It is printed in four-color in Turkey. I did not go to the press.
MM: Do you have advice for photographers looking to publish?
AC: I was lucky to be picked up by Aron Mörel, but why not do self publishing.
MM: I have a rolling list of blogs on my feed and I never have the time to make it through them all. Are there any that you must read? Do you still pick up paper magazines? Which ones?
AC: I really don't read magazines that much anymore.. I like to spend my money on art books.
MM: What is your favorite book, photo or otherwise? Why?
AC: I have so many I like, but to be frank now a days I look more art other art from than photography and also my fascination changes all the time…but tow Sundays I was in a really bad mood and went to local flea market and found an $12 used Man Ray book published by Aperture. I have been looking it everyday since. He had a great innovative way of using the medium and he was not control by the traditions of photography and I find that as one of the most inspiring reasons to continuing my work.
MM: Although the lines of photographic genres are becoming blurrier, not all photographers are embraced in the art and commercial world of photography.
What do you find are some of the greatest differences when making commercial versus your personal work?
AC: I personally will never commercialize my art, but doing commercial images is really about understanding the client and then producing "product" that is with in your photography style and esthetics. I always try to push my own ideas in my commercial jobs, but the main difference in art is that you don't have to understand anyone else then yourself.
MM: I usually end by asking if there is a photo-related story you would like to share. I could not miss this opportunity with you. Do you have a story to share?
AC: My next project is called Hester which is very inspired by the Surrealism movement. It definitely has links to the Wrong project, but a more extreme outlet for the idea.
copyright Asger Carlsen
MM: I wanted to mention, possibly as a question, that in a conversation with one of my co-workers, he related your work to that of Hans Bellmer, namely in the Hester series, and Weegee, relating the reportage nature of the Wrong project. I can see, as you have mentioned, the relationship of Wrong with Mandel and Sultan's collection in Evidence. This connection leads to the aesthetics of Weegee, not so much for subject, but the harsh flash and the contrasty photos associated with that era's reportage imagery. But back to the Hester series and Bellmer, when looking at the photos, I see his point, but I want to ask did you draw on the work and/or the philosophies of the Surrealists? If so, which artist was the most influential in work and/or thoughts?
AC: I have several Bellmer pieces that I have been inspired by for my Hester project. I'm experimenting with building some sculptures at the moment where I use conserved skin from chickens. Also I’m very influenced by Francis Bacon and his way interpreting the human body in such an abstract way, but it is still subtle and recognizable. So yes, I feel very drawn by Surrealists point of views. I like to think that I can use photography for something other than its "original purpose" like the way painters technically can get away blending very detailed work and casual strokes. It's a hard balance between real and fake looking. I don't think "perfect photography" is interesting at all and I don't get anything out at looking at the "beautiful image".... I want to push reality so that is why I produce my images in a low tech way.
Also, for the photographer whose work I like-- Lee Friedlander is someone I go back to over and over.
Also, read the earlier interview with Aron Mörel on this blog.
6.03.2010
Finite Foto: Photojournalism
In this next issue of Finite Foto:
Issue Eight: Photojournalism
Photographs are an important tool to help us understand what’s going on around us. Whether it’s coverage of an extremely local event or a global disaster, without photographs we would have less understanding of important events. For our June issue, Finite Foto is showcasing photographers who keep us up to date on important events at home and abroad.
© Dan Milnor
Melanie McWhorter showcases Dan Milnor, who has been pursuing many documentary projects that are dear to his heart or intriguing to his mind.
© Roberto Rosales
David Ondrik sat down with Roberto Rosales, a staff photographer at the Albuquerque Journal, to discuss photography, teaching, blogging, and film.
© Tina Larkin
Jonathan Blaustein brings the images of Tina Larkin, the award winning staff photographer for the Taos News.
© Michael Benanav
Jennifer Schlesinger presents two portfolios of New Mexico freelance photographer Michael Benanav’s images, one on the Gurez Valley of Kashmir and the other on the Van Gujjar of Northern India.
Finite Foto is a new media collective that investigates and promotes the intersection of photography and culture in the state of New Mexico. We are dedicated to bringing awareness to the global art community about both historical and contemporary photography from all regions of the state.
Contact us by emailing Finite Foto.
5.25.2010
What's that logo?
copyright elviegraphisme
Many of you out there, assuming that there are many, will notice that my photo has disappeared and been replaced by a logo not unlike an abstract, computer-generated interpretation of a typological form often photographed by Hilla and Bernd Becher. Well, good guess! It is an abstract, computer-generated interpretation of a typological form often photographed by the Bechers. The logos were designed for a project on Creative Commons and available for viewing on the website TOBERND/YOURHILLA. So far the logos have been assigned to some very repritupable blogs including Hippolyte Bayard, Sister I'm A, and Mrs. Deane. I am happy to be including in this grouping. There are a few more logos available. Email Didier Falzone at hello[at]elviegraphisme[dot]com to see if you can snag a logo now. Now find the more technical (and accurate) description from Didier below.
More info on the project:
TOBERND/YOURHILLA is a generative logo project on slot basis. Nine serial logos released in Creative Commons license for nine visual-related websites. toberndyourhilla.tumblr.com
THE PROJECT.
In the TOBERND,YOURHILLA project, each slot of a 3x3 logo grid evoke one of the storage silos documented by the couple and arranged into grid for comparation of form and design. If the typologies documented by Bernd and Hilla emulate "the clarity of an engineer’s drawing", these logos allude to the forces of the composition to get a visual represantation to be used as one-way identity. Once the nine signs will be assigned, the digital manipulation will mirrors itself in a systematic community auto-generated.
In the TOBERND,YOURHILLA project, each slot of a 3x3 logo grid evoke one of the storage silos documented by the couple and arranged into grid for comparation of form and design. If the typologies documented by Bernd and Hilla emulate "the clarity of an engineer’s drawing", these logos allude to the forces of the composition to get a visual represantation to be used as one-way identity. Once the nine signs will be assigned, the digital manipulation will mirrors itself in a systematic community auto-generated.
THE GENERATIVE LOGO.
In the art world, the term "generative" refers to a system of creation defined by computer software algorithms in order to get autonomous processes. Taking the cue from this idea, this series of generative logos was born performing a series of common software’s batch actions on a series of photographs by the Becher’s couple. The strict research for hidden visual forces into the photographic work, find a similar visual parallelism into the logos, turning an outwardly random but mathematical process into a series of consistent visual forms to be vectorialized in logotypes.
THE LICENSE
Each logo is provided under the terms of a Creative Commons public license. Detailedinformations about the type of license can be found here: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/
Posting on photo-eye
Too many things going on, including posting on the photo-eye Blog now. My first post is an entry on the excellent new book by Ed Templeton, Drinking the Kool-Aid.
Enough on that though, you can sign up for the RSS to get more from myself and the photo-eye staff on books and such while on our day job.
Enough on that though, you can sign up for the RSS to get more from myself and the photo-eye staff on books and such while on our day job.
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