Tonight, Tuesday's Photo Art Tweetchat - What is photography's role in crises like Haiti?

What is photography's role in crises like Haiti?

For tonight's Art Photo Tweet chat will will be joined my photographer and writer Michael David Murphy aka @whileseated2. Recently, he wrote this piece in foto8 Does Haiti's Crisis Call for a New Photojournalism? This started off a great deal of discussion.

These is also a huge post over on the blog Prison Photography Staring at Death: Photographing Haiti.

Another starting point will be Susan Sontag's classic essay: Looking at War, Photography's view of devastation and death. I will be re-reading that before our chat.

We will be having an open ended chat on how photography interacts with disasters and crisis, using These articles as a starting point. Here are some potential points of discussion:

• What are the moral/ethical issues of creating photography in disaster/crisis areas, help the people in front of you or photograph them?
• What contribution does photography play in helping those in distress
• "artistic vampirism" - making money/fame based on the misfortune
• Why do we love to look at decay. Why can't photographers get enough of Detroit?
• Are photographers adding anything to public knowledge/information?
• What's the value of pro photo vs vernacular (Here Is NY vs Meyerowitz vs Abu Grhaib)

Join in tonight at 9 pm EST.

NOTE: we will be making these tweets a biweekly event now. So Todd and I can better prepare. Maybe in the future if momentum builds more we can move it back to a weekly event. If you liked the weekly version please email / tweet us.

These Art Photography Twitter Chats anyone can join in or just read it live by using the hashtag #photoartchat on Twitter. One easier way to transform twitter into a chat room is Tweetchat.com and entering the photoartchat room here: http://tweetchat.com/room/photoartchat.

PS., you should follow OcularOctopus on Twitter, here:http://twitter.com/OcularOctopus and me here: http://twitter.com/harlanerskine

Music Video of the Month: "Silvia" by Miike Snow

I'm loving this newish video from the Swedish band, Miike Snow. Directed by Marcus Söderlund www.marcussoderlund.se Cinematography By Linus Eklund www.linuseklund.se

The Rube Goldberg of Art and Advertising.

Rube Goldberg born in 1883 and lived through December, 1970 and his influence is still being absorbed and celebrated today. A few days ago I came across this advert for Google's Chrome browser made in the UK. I'm really digging their creativity and use of different angles and mediums like mercury to make their Rube Goldburg like effect look great.



Peter Fischli and David Weiss made this piece over 20 years ago based on this principle called the Way Things Go or Der Lauf der Dinge in German.



Some credit Peter Fischli and David Weiss with the inspiration for the advertisers including this famous Honda Cog ad:



There is also this popular Japanese children's show called ピタゴラ装置 pronounced Pitagora Suichi or Pythagoras Switch.



Also fun to watch is this baking of video for Google chrome:

Tonight, Tuesday's Photo Art Tweetchat - Continuing the conversation: Is Photography is in its death-throes?

Last Week's Tweet chat we discussed photography by starting with a comment left on Amy Stein's Facebook status by New York Art Critic Jerry Saltz:

I do not think that the word "emerging" is the problem; it merely denotes a phase of one's exhibiting career. I think that the lurking problematic term is, ah, "photographer!"

Photography is clearly going through simultaneous death-throes, transformation, rebirth, and other out-of-medium experinces.

That is what you should be thinking about. That's where the real THRILL will be.

This past week he dropped that comment into his own Facebook page and began a flood of over 300 comments. After his reposting Saltz also posed this question

Let's learn. Define the word "Postmodernism" (in art ONLY). Your definition CANNOT BE MORE THAN 2 or 3 SIMPLE sentences.

I responded:

Postmodernism in photography is photography that is meta aware. That is aware of its histories, truths, construction and realities and then communicates through that awareness.

In addition to the artist I mentioned last week I want to add a show I saw this past week "Lunch Break" by Sharon Lockhart at Gladstone Gallery.


Outside AB Tool Crib: Matt, Mike, Carey, Steven, John, Mel and Karl, 2008 Chromogenic print; 49 x 68 1/2 inches (124.7 x 174.2 cm) framed

That's where we will begin again for tonight using that quote as a starting point for our weekly photo art chat.

• where is art photography NOW? dead/alive/rebirth?
• what is transforming, rebirthing into
• how do the practices of documentary live along side the conceptual, constructed, abstract and appropriation?
• art art photographer's artists or art artist art photographers? does it even matter?

Join in tonight at 9 pm EST.

These Art Photography Twitter Chats anyone can join in or just read it live by using the hashtag #photoartchat on Twitter. One easier way to transform twitter into a chat room is Tweetchat.com and entering the photoartchat room here: http://tweetchat.com/room/photoartchat.

PS., you should follow OcularOctopus on Twitter, here:http://twitter.com/OcularOctopus and me here: http://twitter.com/harlanerskine

Tonight, Tuesday's Photo Art Tweetchat - Is Photography is in its death-throes?

A few days ago photographer and blogger, Amy Stein broadcasted via her Facebook status a complaint about the definition of "emerging photographer":

Amy Stein: Can we please come up with a better benchmark for "emerging photographer" than age!?! Unrepresented? No solo exhibitions? Something?

Her status update set off a first storm of over 55 comments from a variety of perspectives. Much of the conversation centered around what the term means and how even today age is used as a factor for eligibility as an "emerging photographer." This is of course a silly factor to weather an artist is coming onto their own. Especially considering the recent New York Times article on a 94 year old painter emerged onto the art scene. Much of the conversation floated between the frustration in the looseness of the "emerging" definition and the problem with age discrimination until New York Art Critic dropped by to add his thoughts:

Jerry Saltz: I do not think that the word "emerging" is the problem; it merely denotes a phase of one's exhibiting career. I think that the lurking problematic term is, ah, "photographer!"

Photography is clearly going through simultaneous death-throes, transformation, rebirth, and other out-of-medium experinces.

That is what you should be thinking about. That's where the real THRILL will be.

That's where we will begin our chat for tonight using that quote as a starting point for our weekly photo art chat.

Ofer Wolberger has an interesting related post on his blog horses think here:

I obviously don't think that photography is dead but it's definitely due for some re-invention and I don't mean the digital kind.

Lately, I've been excited by some photographers who seem to have found a natural way out of the medium. That's not to say that they give up on making photographs. On the contrary, they continue to make photographic work but they are also beginning to engage in other art making practices. The freedom to begin exploring visual ideas through other mediums seems to lead to a re-freshed perspective when it comes back to photography.

Wolberger then points to several photographers who are pushing outside of their photograph to express themselves. His list includes:


Brian Ulrich, City Life, 2008-2009


from Christian Patterson's Out There


submitted jpeg from Jason Lazarus' Try Harder


Sam Falls, Figure Drawing (girls like us), 2009

A few artists I would like to add:


Wolfgang Tillmans and the sculptural photography he loops into his exhibitions.


Simen Johan for mixing in his sculptures with photograph in his series "Until the Kingdom Comes"


Phillip Toledano from his "America the Gift Shop" series.

And recently Alec Soth's web project:

Las Vegas Birthday Slideshow from Little Brown Mushroom on Vimeo.

Alec Soth celebrates his 40th birthday in Las Vegas by making a slideshow.

For more information, go here: http://littlebrownmushroom.wordpress.com/?page_id=894

I'm sure there are many others I will add them as they come up.

So...

• where is art photography NOW? dead/alive/rebirth?
• what is transforming, rebirthing into
• how do the practices of documentary live along side the conceptual, constructed, abstract and appropriation?
• art art photographer's artists or art artist art photographers? does it even matter?

Join in tonight at 9 pm EST.

These Art Photography Twitter Chats anyone can join in or just read it live by using the hashtag #photoartchat on Twitter. One easier way to transform twitter into a chat room is Tweetchat.com and entering the photoartchat room here: http://tweetchat.com/room/photoartchat.

PS., you should follow OcularOctopus on Twitter, here:http://twitter.com/OcularOctopus and me here: http://twitter.com/harlanerskine

Happy New Decade! 2010 here we come!

Goodbye 2009 and good riddance!

Heres to the beginning of a new non-"lost decade" Let's make this one count! Dust your shoulders off and let's get down to work.

-best

h

Art Basel Miami Beach 2009, Day 6 - Final Day

The final day of Art Basel I revisited the main show to see what I had missed from the opening night. I love viewing art in person that I have only seen on the internet or in books. One key element to understanding art is seeing the scale and the quality of the production firsthand. Unlike some of the side fairs, the big show in the convention center is filled with consistently well produced art. It is really a pleasure to experience it.

I realize putting 600 pixel wide pictures up here doesn't do them much justice. Hopefully, it serves as a record of what caught my eye. This year's Art Basel was a step up from 2008. As we move toward 2010 I hope this is a positive sign of things to come. Enjoy.


Kehinde Wiley, "Equestrian Portrait of King Philip II," 2009. Oil on canvas: 122.375 x 138.375 inches. at Deitch Projects, New York, NY.


Jon Kessler, "Mob Scene," 2009. Mixed media with motors, cameras and LCD screens. LCD Array: 66.5 x 53 x 24 inches, Mechanism: 84 x 57 x 20 inches. at Deitch Projects, New York, NY.


Kader Attia "Satellite Dishes" 2009. Light Box at Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna, Austria.


A pairing of older and newer works from Thomas Struth. The left two are from 1978 when Struth was shooting in New York. The top is "115th Street and 2nd Avenue, New York / Harlem, 1978" and the bottom images is "99th Street at 1st Avenue, New York / Harlem, 1978." They both were printed in 2002. The right large piece is "Museo Del Prado 3, Madrid" 2005. C-print. 80 5/8 x 97 5/8 inches at Marian Goodman Gallery, New York, NY.


Andreas Gursky "Dubai World III" 2008 c-print 93 5/16 x 134 13/16 inches (incl. frame) at White Cube, London, UK.


Just around the corner from there was another Andreas Gursky this one I had seen before in a book is called "Copan" 2002. C-print 81 x 103 inches at Matthew Marks Gallery, New York, NY.


Across from Gursky was a Thomas Demand "Fotoecke / Photobooth" 2009 C-print 70 3/4 x 78 inches at Matthew Marks Gallery, New York, NY.


Robert Longo "Untitled (Men in Cities)" Black and White photos, 1976 - 1982 / 2009 at Metro Pictures, New York, NY.


Andrea Robbins and Max Becher, from top: "Black Cowboys:Bill Pickett Rodeo 09 no.1" and "Black Cowboys:Bill Pickett Rodeo 09 no.2" both 1999 archival ink jet prints at Sonnabend Gallery, New York, NY.


Elger Esser, "La Grande Be, France" 2009 C-print 72 1/2 x 78 3/4 inches at Sonnabend Gallery, New York, NY.


Bernd and Hilla Becher, "Winding Towers (Anlagen)" 2007 (photographed from 1968-1997) 9 black and white photographs at Sonnabend Gallery, New York, NY.


Beate Gutschow "S#2" 2005 Light jet print, 57 3/8 x 49 1/2 inches at Sonnabend Gallery, New York, NY.


Mario Garcia Torres "The Improbability of Common Sense" 2009 Acrylicand silkscreen ink on linen.


Kader Attia "Rochers Carres", 2009 at Galeries Christian Nagel, Berlin and Galerie Graesslin, Frankfurt, Germany.


Scott McFarland "Sugar Shack, Caledon Ontario" 2009 Digital C-print 72 x 105 inches at Regen Projects, Los Angeles, CA.


Doug Aitken "Free," 2009 at 303 Gallery, New York, NY.


Florian Maier-Aichen "Untitled (Passo Stelvio) 2009 C-print 70 3/4 x 98 1/4 inches at 303 Gallery, New York, NY.


Yinka Shonibare, MBE "Willy Loman: The Rise and Fall (Paradise)" 2009 C-type print 90 x 70 inches) at Stephen Friedman Gallery, London, UK.


Yoshitomo Nara at Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo, Japan.


Mikhael Subotzky at Goodman Gallery, Capetown, South Africa.


Mikhael Subotzky at Goodman Gallery, Capetown, South Africa.


Ernesto Ballesteros from the series "Covered Light Sources" Permanent black marker on photography, at Galeria Nara Roesler, Sao Paulo, Brasil.


Paul Pfeiffer "Fragment of a Crucifiction (after Francis Bacon)" 1999 at carlier | gebauer, Berlin, Germany.


Robin Rhode "8 Ball," 2007, 16 digital prints at carlier | gebauer, Berlin, Germany.


Quite possibly my favorite piece of the day was this Paul Pfeiffer gold chromed TV in the front left of the booth. "Caryatid (Wrestling)" 2009 at carlier | gebauer, Berlin, Germany.


It seemed like everyone in the media mentioned this Roxy Paine piece, "Maelstrom" 2009 at James Cohan Gallery, New York, NY. I had seen a different version of it on the roof at the Met but I still enjoyed it in the indoor environment. Maybe indoors is a better home than the roof where it competes with the sprawling views of central park.


Duane Hanson, "High School Student," 1990 at Emmanuel Perrotin, Paris, France.


Ryan McGinley "Wes (Scarlett Split)," 2009 at Team Gallery, New York, NY.


Caio Reisewitz, "Guanabara," 2009 C-print 70.8 x 90.5 inches at Luciana Brito Galeria, Sao Paulo, Brasil.


Mitch Epstein "Recreation: American Photographs 1973-1988" 2004 Dye Transfer 16 x 20 inches at (?)Sikkema Jenkins and Co., New York, NY.


missing info (please email me)


Rineke Dijkstra from Left, "Amy, Liverpool, England, December 22, 2008," and "Beth, Liverpool, England, December 22, 2008" both Archival inkjet prints 2008 at Marian Goodman Gallery, New York, NY.


Final stop of the night was a big group birthday bash for me and my early Sagittarius friends. Which was caped off with the best group birthday cake ever!!! Thanks to master baker and artist Jen Stark.

Tuesday's Photo Art Tweetchat - Looking back on 2009

Tonight 9-10 pm EST we continue our weekly Photo Art Tweet chat. Last week we had a very successful conversation with first guest tweeter, Darius Himes, an acquiring editor at Radius Books. Thanks everyone for joining in the conversation and thanks again to Darius Himes for taking the time to join us. You can get more info and a transcript here: http://wthashtag.com/Photoartchat

This weeks topic will be looking back on the past year. What are the things about 2009 that stick out in your memory about Art Photography? We will cover areas such as the best museum show, gallery show, photobook, new photographer? And other relevant topics that made art in 2009 stimulating.

These Art Photography Twitter Chats anyone can join in or just read it live by using the hashtag #photoartchat on Twitter. One easier way to transform twitter into a chat room is Tweetchat.com and entering the photoartchat room here: http://tweetchat.com/room/photoartchat.

PS., you should follow OcularOctopus on Twitter, here:http://twitter.com/OcularOctopus and me here: http://twitter.com/harlanerskine