Richard Renaldi's Photography Blog

Magical...

2012-02-03T03:42:00.007-05:00

Read the story about this house here.

©John Burcham for The New York Times

Back from a shooting trip to Vegas and Cali...

2012-01-25T14:47:00.002-05:00

Bill T Jones: A Good Man

2012-01-10T11:21:00.004-05:00

This is a fantastic American Masters documentary about the choreographer and dancer Bill T Jones. It's as much a film about the creative process as it is a look at this indelible man.

Interior Relations in PDN

2012-01-02T16:55:00.001-05:00

Great article on Charles Lane Press' Interior Relations in the new issue of PDN.

Happy New Year

2012-01-02T16:50:00.002-05:00

Photographs - Nov 27 through December 12

2011-12-17T11:27:00.014-05:00

Richard Renaldi's 4th Annual Secular Holiday Advent Calendar!

2011-12-06T12:32:00.007-05:00

Check out my 4th Annual Secular Holiday Advent Calendar
Remember that you can not jump ahead of the current calendar day.

Charles Lane Press Holiday Book Sale

2011-12-01T13:27:00.001-05:00

Pulse Miami

2011-12-01T00:46:00.001-05:00

If you are in Miami for the art fairs visit us at Pulse Miami.

The Ice Palace
1400 North Miami Avenue
Miami, FL
Booth # P2 in the Impulse Tent

Thursday December 1 1pm-7pm
Friday December 2 11am-7pm
Saturday December 3 11am-7pm
Sunday December 4 11am-5pm

Instagram

2011-12-01T00:14:00.001-05:00

If you have an iphone and like to take snaps with it check out Instagram. It's a free photo sharing app that allows you to easily post your photos and follow other people's feeds. I've been a little preoccupied with it since I got the 4S...
My feed is renaldiphotos

Happy Thanksgiving.

2011-11-24T13:14:00.001-05:00

New York in Color

2011-11-18T17:58:00.001-05:00

I am happy to have my work included in a recent survey titled New York in Color, edited by historian and curator Bob Shamis. New York in Color presents many iconic images not widely seen before, and is a thoughtfully arranged book.. Any lover of New York City will appreciate this collection of color photography from the past one hundred years.

Winner

2011-11-18T16:49:00.001-05:00

Receiving this email is what makes me glad I allow myself to be accessible on the internet.

Hello.
I'm not totally sure if you're going to be actually reading this or if you have a secretary doing it for you, but I stumbled upon your website because someone made a post on tumblr.com about your website. I was scrolling through your hotel room pictures and came across one that struck my attention and is still currently holding it.
I showed this to my brother and we were both a little confused.
1 - Why did you come to Winner, of all places...
2 - What motel/hotel were you staying in...
And 3 - I've lived in Winner for 16 years and thought it was crazy seeing that you took a picture of yourselves and put it on your site. WINNER SD!

I hope to talk to you. You two guys in the pictures got bonus awesome points from me.

Winnser, SD 2007
Hotel Room Portraits

News

2011-11-17T16:29:00.001-05:00

I am proud to be included in the Lainzhou Photo Festival taking place this weekend in Lainzhou,China. I will be showing new work from my latest project Manhattan Sunday. I wish I could have made the trip as I am sure it is going to be an interesting mix of work in a unique setting.
I am also exhibiting work at the Charles Lane Press booth at the Pulse Art Fair in Miami December 1-4.
I have not updated my website in quite a long time due to the fact I am launching a new re-designed site coming in 2012. I am looking forward to sharing it. Stay tuned...

East Broadway 2011

Mona Lisas of the Suburbs

2011-11-12T17:57:00.001-05:00

The other day, I received a beautiful new photo book from my friend Joerg Colberg of Conscientious blog fame. You may not know, but Joerg is also a publisher, whose mission is to put out original and challenging monographs through his cleverly named imprint Meier und Müller, the two most common surnames found in German telephone books.

The title "Mona Lisen der Vorstädte" which translates to "Mona Lisas of the Suburbs" refers to the work of Ute and Werner Mahler, a wife and husband team who travelled from Iceland to Ukraine making large format portraits of that most enduring European archetype: the girl of ambiguous beauty, and a face whose secrets are tucked safely away behind her bemused gaze.

The figures are framed by gray suburban backgrounds of the most generic and unmistakably European style. But each composition is carefully arranged, mating its subject to the landscape in a way that animates the indeterminate spaces in which they are posed, and beckons the viewer into the mysterious no man's land separating what we think we know about a person when we look at her portrait, and what we can never know.

A very interesting new photo book that you should order for your collection!

2011-11-01T17:00:00.000-04:00

Please visit Charles Lane Press this weekend at the Editions Artists’ Books Offprint Photobook Fair
November 3-6
548 West 22nd Street
NYC
Free Admission
Friday 11 am – 7 pm
Saturday 11 am -7 pm
Sunday 11 am – 4 pm

Born

2011-10-27T01:06:00.000-04:00

I've twice been over to the Sasha Wolf gallery to see Elinor Carucci's most recent work about her and her twins Eden and Emmanuelle titled Born. The work is quite amazing and the prints are really beautiful to see in person. I think Elinor is limning new and compelling territory in her photographic exploration of motherhood. I'm quite looking forward to this project becoming a book.

Eden and Emmanuelle the first month, 2004

Nick Cave

2011-10-27T00:45:00.000-04:00

No, not the musician, the fashion designer, just seriously wowed me at his recent show at the Mary Boone Gallery here in NY.

photos by James Prinz

photos Mary Boone Gallery

Book Signing - Interior Relations by Ian Van Coller

2011-10-18T12:31:00.002-04:00

October 21, 2011
6:00-7:30
International Center of Photography
1133 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street NY, NY

The Map is not the Territory

2011-10-18T12:15:00.001-04:00

Photographers Vanessa Winship & George Georgiou are traveling the United States over the course of the next year documenting their impressions of America. You can follow their work and travels on a blog titled The Map is not the Territory. Vanessa won the 2011 Henri Cartier Bresson Award and with that award is here for the next year working on a new project Out There: An American Odyssey.
George Georgiou is accompanying his wife Vanessa on the American journey and also photographing along the way. George Georgiou's work from Turkey is included in MoMA's New Photography 2011. George and Vanessa met in photography school in the UK over twenty-five years ago. The two of them are extraordinary photographers, and have such an admirable working partnership. Good Stuff!

© 2011 George Georgiou Reno, NV.

Arias with a Twist

2011-10-13T17:16:00.001-04:00

Last night I saw a beautiful fantasia of a show starring NY legendary performer Joey Arias. The show is a collaboration between Arias and master puppeteer Basil Twist. It was a glorious performance taking you on a magical journey through the most imaginative stage design, sets, and puppetry. Arias has a very strong voice that often mirrors Billy Holiday and the show delivers the naughty punch you would expect from a drag diva like Arias. It is only running through tomorrow night but hopefully they will bring it back soon.

7 Minutes in Heaven

2011-10-10T19:51:00.000-04:00

I just came across this wonderful series of shorts by Mike O'Brien, a Second City Alum and writer for Saturday Night Live. They are all shot in a closet and could be described as brief interview and performance bits. What makes them particularly interesting is how O'Brien's random guests react and respond to him. Here he is with Kristen Wiig - check it out.

September Road Trip

2011-10-08T23:35:00.001-04:00

Touching Strangers on TIME

2011-10-05T15:56:00.001-04:00

Horses!

2011-09-30T18:39:00.001-04:00

4 horse related photographs from our recent drive to Salt Lake City. I was not intentionally shooting these.

and while we are at it...

NY Art Book Fair

2011-09-30T16:53:00.004-04:00

We are showing our new book Interior Relations by Ian Van Coller, and a small exhibit of portraits from my forthcoming project Manhattan Sunday. Come by today, tomorrow, or Sunday!

September 30–October 2, 2011
MoMA PS1
22-25 Jackson Ave.
Long Island City, NY
3rd Floor Photography Section – Table N08

Troubling news about Kodak

2011-09-29T13:29:00.001-04:00

Here is another disturbing sign that Kodak may not be around too much longer. I hope it isn't so...

Peter Hessler wins 2011 MacArthur Fellow

2011-09-23T00:04:00.001-04:00

Chinese Sentiment essayist wins the MacArthur Fellow!

Saves the Dates, Spread the Word

2011-09-16T14:36:00.001-04:00

Charles Lane Press - Fall Events

THE NY ART BOOK FAIR
September 30–October 2, 2011
MoMA PS1
22-25 Jackson Ave.
Long Island City, NY

Book Signing and Launch of Interior Relations by Ian van Coller
October 21, 2011
6:00-7:30
International Center of Photography
1133 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street NY, NY

Editions|Artists' Book Fair
November 4 - November 6, 2011
548 West 22nd Street, NY, NY

Pulse Miami
December 1 - December 4, 2011
The Ice Palace1400 North Miami Avenue
Miami, Florida

Video by Jörg

2011-09-13T00:46:00.000-04:00

My friend Joerg M Colberg of Conscientious has been making these really clever and funny videos as of late. His most recent one is about trying to write an artist statement. Joerg is both dry and subversive in these short clips - and I think they are fantastic and refreshing. Have a look.

Check out Photography is over and Photography is not over as well.

Hiking

2011-09-10T16:27:00.000-04:00

This summer I hiked to the top of the highest peak in New York State, Mt. Marcy at 5344 feet high. The hike was a fifteen mile round trip and over 4000 ft in elevation gain. It pretty well kicked my butt, especially on the way back down. For me there is a great pleasure derived from setting out with a destination point as your goal and then actually achieving it. Not to mention the stunning views, sublime vistas, and proximity to wildlife. Some of the most notable hikes I've ever done are; Half-Dome at Yosemite, Angels Landing at Zion National Park, The Kalalau Trail in Kauai, Hawaii, South Kaibab Trail, Grand Canyon National Park, Mt. Scott at Crater Lake National Park, Cadillac Mountain at Acadia National Park, and Mt. Equinox in Vermont.

Burning Man 2011

2011-09-05T00:02:00.005-04:00

Wishing I was there this week, I combed the web looking for photos from the past few days. Here are a couple magical scenes that I happened to come across.

Jim Urquhart

Michael Holden

To see some more photos from this years Burning Man look here and here.

There also is an interesting piece in the NY Times about Rod Garrett, who was creator of the concentric circle plan for Black Rock City. He passed away last week.

Tinariwen

2011-09-01T01:18:00.000-04:00

Briana, Destiny, and Tiffany

2011-08-27T16:38:00.006-04:00

from my forthcoming project: Typology of the American Teenager

Before Irene

2011-08-27T15:27:00.005-04:00

Chinese Sentiment - New Reviews and Editioned Print

2011-08-19T00:24:00.003-04:00

Large Format Portrait - ICP Summer 2011

2011-08-17T14:03:00.019-04:00

I am incredibly proud of my students from my recent portrait class at ICP. This was their first time out with the view camera and I was really impressed with the work they brought back to class. Below is what the students and I voted their two best images.

Class Portrait by Tomomi Kaneishi

Chantal Heijnen

Louise Espensen

Matt Harvey

Mihyun Kang

Marianna Ellenberg

Liz Calvi

Tomomi Kaneishi

Eddie Major

Hannah Blumer

Timothy Pfeifer

Summer Fun

2011-08-11T01:16:00.006-04:00

As a respite from all the doom and gloom news lately I put a few shots together of people enjoying the summer.

Check Up!

2011-08-05T13:14:00.002-04:00

About Face

2011-07-30T23:55:00.004-04:00

If you are in Philly check out this summer group show at gallery 339 of faces. One of my images from Fall River Boys is included amongst many notable photographers.
If you can't get there check out the installation shots here.

Touching Strangers

2011-07-19T00:06:00.002-04:00

Michael & Kimberly

Savage Beauty

2011-07-14T16:05:00.007-04:00

I finally got around to seeing the Alexander McQueen show last week and now I completely understand why people are waiting in hours long lines to see this show. It blew me away and is nothing short of amazing. . McQueen was a visionary and a creative genius and even if you are not a big fan of fashion you will be hard pressed not to be impressed. The design, materials, and patterns are fantastic. It made me feel that creatively we are only bound by the limitlessness of our own imagination. It is at the Met through August 7th. You can see pieces of the collection here and a video walk through here.

Photographs © Sølve Sundsbø / Art + Commerce

2011 CCNY Juried Competition Winners

2011-07-07T18:40:00.004-04:00

Congratulations to Nathan Bett, Goseong Choi, and Hugo Fernandes, the winners of the CCNY Annual Exhibition for which I was the juror. The exhibition will be at the Camera Club of New York from August 18 – September 10, 2011

Nathan Bett

Happy Pride!

2011-06-25T23:17:00.001-04:00

New Orleans 2003

Best Email Ever!

2011-06-18T00:15:00.005-04:00

Dear Richard,
A couple of weeks ago I have seen your photographs 'Touching Strangers' first time somewhere in the cultural part of a german newspapers homepage.
Since then I had to think about them very often. Here my results, which of course you know already by yourself, because you are the photographer:

- This series gives me an understanding what photography is for. They cannot be done with video or painting because the message is static and needs real life for its expression.
- It combines banality and utopia. The large distance between these two contradictions contains a lot of beauty.
- Normally, the function of art is to ask questions without giving answers, but your artwork seems to make a constructive proposal.

Yours sincerely,
Roland

Touching Strangers ©2011 Jenelle and Fabrice

Moveable Feast

2011-06-17T16:20:00.004-04:00

If you haven't had a chance to see the Moveable Feast: Fresh Produce and the NYC Green Cart Program exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York you should check it out. It's a really nice show of work by five photographers commissioned by Aperture to photograph the NYC Department of Health program that provides underserved communities with access to fresh fruits and vegetables via hundreds of independently owned, mobile produce stands known as Green Carts. The exhibition also includes a nice selection of historical photographs of street vendors in New York City form the 19th and early 20th centuries. The exhibition features new photographs by LaToya Ruby Frazier, Thomas Holton, Gabriele Stabile, Will Steacy, and Charles Lane Press' very own Shen Wei. Shen did a beautiful job translating this photographic challenge into something really really beautiful. If you have not seen his stunning new book Chinese Sentiment, order your copy now - they are going fast.

©Shen Wei

Nicole

2011-06-16T10:02:00.002-04:00

A sneak peak from a new project I began last summer.

Patriarchy and the photo not made.

2011-06-12T23:32:00.008-04:00

This past weekend I happened upon a parade in Greenwich village called the Festival of the Chariots, one of India’s most ancient and popular festivals. It was cacophony of color and sound and I knew it would be a great location to work on making some new Touching Strangers. I rushed home and then back to Washington Square Park with my 8 x 10 camera. One of my main objectives was to cast a young Indian girl dressed in a sari ( to me they often appear as visions of loveliness) into a Touching Strangers photograph. As I have said previously on this blog these photographs are really challenging to make and trying to procure an Indian teenage girl, most likely raised in a traditional conservative culture to make a portrait touching another person proved even more challenging than you can imagine. After one awkward attempt where a girl backed out at the last moment and four more rejections, I finally found a group of girls accompanied by their mother who consented to my request. I now had one half of my photograph and went in search of the other. I quickly found two men that were tourists from Sweden, both handsome, blond and fair, and somewhere in their late twenties, who were up for the task. At this moment I start to work quickly, posing my subjects, framing the shot, and finding my focus. Behind the ground glass the scene I had created was of two beautiful girls with gorgeous hair and skin wearing vibrant purple and blue dresses standing in front of two handsome chaps with there arms folded around the girls, all in front of a large tent made of textured black tarp. I felt that feeling of magic that occasionally happens when making these images, that this performance was special and unique for all of us. At the very moment that I was ready to close the shutter a man that had been standing on the periphery burst into the scene and grabbed the girls out of the frame. I was devastated - it was over. Apparently this man was a part of the group that these girls came to the festival with and though he was not a relative felt that he had the authority to overrule the consent of the mother. This is patriarchy at its core. The distance between the behavior of that man and the horrible injustices inflicted by men on woman the world over is not very far at all...

Read about the experience from the mothers perspective here.

Here is the mother's digital shot of my sabotaged image.
©Dhanny Palma 2011

Cue

2011-06-12T03:17:00.003-04:00

Regular Readers of my blog probably know I am a big fan of both BBQ and Southern/Soul Food. This weekend some of the best Pitmasters converge on New York City for the annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party in Madison Square Park. Seth & I sampled some seriously delicious pulled pork and bbq ribs from pitmasters representing both Mississippi and Southern Illinois. If you are reading this today and love BBQ you might want to make a little detour...
On our recent drive down to Florida we made it a point to sample regional southern food. The highlight was the Lima Bean stew at Ernie's in Charleston, SC. It was one of the most smoky and flavorful stews I have ever had. The proprietors were incredibly welcoming and as sweet as the sweet tea accompanying our stew.
Not to be missed if you are in Fort Lauderdale is Tom Jenkins BBQ. The line wraps around and outside the door at this place and I found their bbq well worth the hype and the wait.

Ernie's

Tom Jenkins BBQ

Leviathan by Anish Kapoor

2011-06-07T23:45:00.003-04:00

At the Grand Palais in Paris.
P.S. This was strictly a virtual visit to France.

images © designboom

2011-06-06T22:03:00.003-04:00

I'm ready for some. You?

Illuminance - Photographs by Rinko Kawauchi

2011-06-05T11:06:00.009-04:00

If you haven't seen the work of Rinko Kawauchi - check out her show at The Gallery at Hermès. Her work is really pretty and very seductive. Kawauchi uses a palette of soft pastels and illuminating light to create her lovely photographs. The new book of the same title by Aperture is really spectacular. Not only the photographs but the thoughtful pairings and sequencing as well as being beautifully printed make this book a must have.

Illuminance:
Photographs by Rinko Kawauchi
The Gallery at Hermès
691 Madison Avenue, 4th Floor
New York, New York
(212) 751-3181
Friday, May 20, 2011–Saturday, July 16, 2011

Li Songsong

2011-06-05T10:51:00.005-04:00

The best show of paintings I have seen in a while is by Li Songsong at The Pace Gallery here in NY. The paint bursting off of the canvas and the gradated panels of color all contribute to this unique and beautiful work. It's up through August 5 - catch it if you can!

additions to This Grand Show

2011-06-01T03:49:00.005-04:00

see the project here.

Review of Shen Wei’s Chinese Sentment in this week’s The New Yorker

2011-05-30T01:13:00.000-04:00

The New Yorker

GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN: ARTS

SHEN WEI

The photographer, whose radiant still-lifes of fruits and vegetables steal the “Moveable Feast” exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York, shows color portraits and landscapes from his recently published book, “Chinese Sentiment.” Returning to China after years living abroad, Wei looked for traces of the country he remembered, so most of his pictures were made in towns, far from the bustle of Beijing. The work has a hushed, intimate quality, and not just because most of his solitary young male and female subjects are seen half-naked and at home. Even the landscapes are rich with emotion—loving and keenly felt. Through June 4.

Through June 4

COONEY
511 W. 25th St., New York, N.Y.
212-255-8158
danielcooneyfineart.com

Chinese Sentiment Launch Party and Book Signing

2011-05-24T00:49:00.006-04:00

Hope to see you all tonight – Rain or Shine!
Please join us tonight May 24 from 6-11pm in celebration of Shen Wei’s new monograph, Chinese Sentiment, edited by Lesley A. Martin of the Aperture Foundation, with an introduction by Peter Hessler.
Tuesday, May 24 · 6:00pm – 11:00pm
Location
8-E Charles Lane NY, NY (off of Washington between Perry & Charles Streets)

Zach Galifianakis

2011-05-22T13:19:00.003-04:00

Zach Galifianakis: Live at the Purple Onion is one hour well spent. This guy is so funny, strange, and smart. I would say that his standup is comparable to a modern day Steven Wright. It is in many senses meta-comedy, somewhere between standup comedy and performance art. His appearances on talk shows are always a welcome diversion for me and I'd like to say right here and now, I love you Zach.

2011 NY Dance Parade-Goer

2011-05-22T13:08:00.005-04:00

by Charles Boyd (my partner Seth's Dad /father in-law)

car wash, series 3

2011-05-17T21:53:00.008-04:00

Matchmaker Matchmaker?

2011-05-06T10:24:00.005-04:00

On Wednesday I made a Touching Strangers portrait at a beach in south Florida. This is around the 60th image I have made from the series. I should emphasize that they are incredibly difficult and challenging to make and I am pushing myself in new and interesting directions. Well, this last shot may have resulted in a rendezvous or even a romance for all I know, as the couple I paired ended up sitting together after I had moved on - and from what I could tell seemed to have left the beach together at the same time. This may be all purely fantastical thinking on my part (who knows perhaps they just liked talking to each other) - but it does touch on one of the themes of the work which is the very real human potential to connect to any random stranger. Did I mention that this was a nude beach...

Cupid Victorious
Caravaggio
1602-1603

Bruce Wrighton

2011-05-06T09:48:00.007-04:00

I was recently exposed to the work of Bruce Wrighton at the Laurence Miller Gallery booth at AIPAD this past March. Working primarily in downtown Binghamton, Bruce Wrighton made street portraits with his 8 x 10 view camera that show the city's blue collar inhabitants with sensitivity and an brilliant eye for color. Making the work even more compelling is that the are imbued with the patina of the 1980's. The work has only recently been brought to light (by Laurence Miller working with Wrighton's widow) and the very talented Bruce Wrighton unfortunately died at the young age of 38 back in 1988. There is also a book titled At Home recently published by Only Photography of his humanist portraits and work from two other projects that I highly recommend. It is likely to sell out soon (as Only Photography does a small edition size of 500). To top it all off on the book's cover is an awesome photograph of a game room with the arcade game Donkey Kong in the corner.

Wrighton in Red...

Vava Voom

2011-05-05T01:46:00.003-04:00

Dear Readers,
Please think about attending or donating to Visual AIDS for their Spring Benefit on Monday, May 16th at The Park. I will be given an award as an honoree and I would be extremely grateful if my readers would contribute to this really great organization. See the attached invite for more information.

on the road again...

2011-04-27T00:38:00.004-04:00

Driving down south the next few days to make some new work.

Charlie Chaplin

2011-04-26T23:41:00.009-04:00

Somehow I missed out on Charlie Chaplin movies until now. I have enjoyed the films of Buster Keaton and others from the silent era but until last week I had never seen a Charlie Chaplin film. That changed for me after seeing Modern Times. It's a great film! Chaplin is so funny, smooth, and he really embodies the comedic physicality that is so often attributed to him. The social realism of Modern Times might make you yearn for Hollywood to make more films today about economic and class struggles - which seem to always fall by the wayside in favor of the fantasies that they are selling.

Aaron Huey

2011-04-25T13:59:00.004-04:00

I recently discovered the work of Aaron Huey. I learned that Aaron walked across the United States a few years back and what an all around amazing guy he is by watching his lecture at the Annenberg Space for Photography. You can watch his lecture here.
His work on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is important and really incredible.

Spring has Sprung - Easter Parade 2011

2011-04-24T16:50:00.005-04:00

Touching Strangers - new work

2011-04-13T13:22:00.005-04:00

hillbilly heroin honey

2011-04-11T19:27:00.005-04:00

I came across this book titled hillbilly heroin honey by Hannah Modigh while visiting the bookstore at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm last month. I was drawn to the photographs and decided to make the purchase (published by a small Swedish imprint, I suspected that it might be hard to find outside of Sweden). The photographs were made in the town of St. Charles, Virginia - a poor white Appalachian coal mining town where, like much of the rural east, there is a high rate of Oxycontin addiction. The photographs are a very real window into a poor community that this young Swedish photographer was impressively able to penetrate and document with a respectful eye. There is an interview with the photographer here.

Chinese Sentiment

2011-04-09T14:07:00.002-04:00

Advance copies are here! If you are in New York City this week stop by Daniel Cooney Fine Art Thursday night for the opening of Chinese Sentiment by Shen Wei. We have a limited supply of books that will be on sale at the opening.

Daniel Cooney Fine Art
511 West 25th Street, Suite 506
New York City, NY 10001
Opening Thursday April 14
6-8pm

Mark Morrisroe

2011-04-09T13:29:00.004-04:00

There is a Mark Morrisroe reemergence at the moment with a new book and two NYC shows. Mark (Dirt) Morrisroe studied at the Museum School during the same era as Nan Golden, David Armstrong, and Philip-Lorca diCorcia. He was born to a drug addicted mother and became a hustler at the age of 15. Having been shot by a client at 17 he lived with a bullet lodged next to his spine for the rest of his very short life. He was boyfriends with Jack Pierson, and sometimes performed as a drag character of his own creation named Sweet Raspberry. He photographed with a Polaroid Land Camera and shot Super 8 Film. His self-portraits are both intimate and raw, revealing desires and sharing vulnerabilities. He also beautifully captured his friends and lovers, what emerges is a portrait of a young man who created his own family out of the scars of a dysfunctional upbringing. Morrisroe died in 1989 from complications of HIV. His work is being show at both Clamp Art and Artist's Space.

A New History of Photography

2011-04-01T23:17:00.006-04:00

I've been intending to write a post about A New History of Photography: The World Outside and the Pictures In Our Heads, and its author Ken Schles for some time now. I was reminded to do so recently when I came across a videotaped lecture of Ken talking about his work at ICP. It is an incredible book that is both beautifully made (by White Press) and is a clever and thought provoking thesis on photography. Specifically, Schles' commentary on photography and how memory probes deep into the roots of a photographers' relationship to the medium. If you have not seen Ken's work and his books - you should!

Allison Davies in conversation with Lorie Novak at CCNY

2011-03-21T15:12:00.004-04:00

Thursday, March 31 7PM
The Camera Club of New York
The Arts Building
336 West 37th Street, Suite 206
New York, NY 10018-4212

Philadelphia Photo Arts Center Book Fair

2011-03-21T13:52:00.011-04:00

The Philadelphia Photo Arts Center will be hosting its second annual book fair on Saturday, April 2nd, 2011. Charles Lane Press and a number of other presses, publishers and artists will be in attendance selling books, prints and other ephemera.

The Philadelphia Photo Arts Center
1400 N. American St.
Suite 103
Philadelphia, PA 19122
215-232-5678

Loving this email!

2011-03-17T09:44:00.000-04:00

i love your 'touching strangers' photographs! while some of the people are stiff and uncomfortable with the exercise, others seem so warm toward the other people in the picture with them. fascinating!

the subject matter kind of reminds me of the way i used to love watching people relate to one another when i attended nascar races. for over a decade, i camped two weekends a year in the infield of atlanta motor speedway. like a great number of other attendees in the infield, i would sit up high on a camper top to get a better view of the race. from that height (ours was 7' 3") it's also easy to watch people milling about on the ground below. i was never a huge fan of the race itself (i admit it, i went for the social aspects. i'm a party girl. what can i say?!), and since during the races it's difficult to have a conversation even with someone right next to you, i did a lot of people-watching. it was completely impossible to hear what people in other camps were saying to one another, but i loved reading their body language and facial expressions. i think the fact that i couldn't hear them actually made it more enjoyable for me in a way. i always found it very heart-warming to watch *that* many people (thousands!) on such a small piece of real estate obviously having so much fun with each other, shaking hands, hugging, laughing, loving one another's company. and total strangers were instant friends if only for a few short days.

thank you for your work!

Underage by Ohm Phanphiroj

2011-03-15T09:09:00.005-04:00

This work about underage male prostitution in Thailand by Ohm Phanphiroj was recently brought to my attention. It is an intense body of work and a window into what a harsh existence these young boys face. Strong Stuff. Have a look here.

Wisconsin on my mind

2011-03-12T18:01:00.005-05:00

War Photography in Libya

2011-03-10T18:12:00.008-05:00

Tyler Hicks, Moises Saman, and the crew over at the NY Times are doing some incredible work in Libya that is both sad and extremely powerful. Check out this slide show here. I wish things were going better for the opposition...

(c)Tyler Hicks/NY Times

Fotografins Hus (House of Photography)

2011-03-07T11:37:00.003-05:00

If you happen to be in Stockholm the next few weeks please come check out my show at the House of Photography.
It is running from this Thursday, March 10 - April 23. The show is a selection of portraits from Figure and Ground, Bus Travelers, Fall River Boys, and 49 & 50.

Schoolhouse Editions

2011-03-07T11:26:00.006-05:00

Check out new prints by Vincent Cianni, Elinor Carucci, and Benjamin Lowy in Charles Lane Press' print program Schoolhouse Editions.

Homeland

2011-03-07T10:53:00.003-05:00

Somehow I missed, and just now discovered the series Homeland by Larry Sultan featured in his new book Katherine Avenue. This work is really incredible and it is a shame that Larry Sultan passed away still quite young and in the midst of this important body of work. Sultan hired Mexican and Central American day laborers looking for work to be actors in this series of landscapes made in Southern California. Straddling the line between documentary and fiction these images feel wholeheartedly sincere to me. Looking both inward to Sultan's own childhood and outward towards the pressing social issue of immigration Homeland is a rare example of successful "staged photography".

on photography

2011-03-05T19:32:00.002-05:00

Karlheinz Weinberger

2011-03-02T11:12:00.005-05:00

Two for the price of Free!
There are two exhibitions currently up of Swiss photographer Karlheinz Weinberger's biker portraits. If you do not know this work already, it's a pretty incredible document of a very creative and inspired group of Swiss youth strongly influenced by American culture in the late 1950's & 1960's. The exhibitions are showing at the Anna Kustera Gallery and the Swiss Institute here in NYC.

Sampling

2011-02-28T00:37:00.003-05:00

of some of my new work from Indonesia...

Shooting Back

2011-02-23T17:36:00.002-05:00

While recently traveling through Indonesia, I encountered on more than one occasion, people that were as interested in photographing me as I was them. This was rather new for me - and I found the interest in me from the Indonesian people rather curios and hard to explain. It also wasn't only me they were interested in photographing - Seth took on an even greater aura of "celebrity." If anyone has any thoughts or explanations I'd be interested in hearing them posted here...

Bringing it All Back Home

2011-02-21T14:54:00.004-05:00

Book Signings for both Outerland and Fall River Boys this Thursday at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts - Photography & Imaging Dept.
721 Broadway, 8th Floor
6 PM - 8 PM
Room 844

Detroitism

2011-02-20T16:38:00.006-05:00

Conscientious recently posted a link to a great article about "Ruin Porn". Published by Guernica Magazine and written by John Patrick Leary - check it out here.

Photograph by Yves Marchan and Romain Meffre

Letter from China

2011-02-17T13:37:00.011-05:00

letter from Seth Boyd - Publisher Charles Lane Press

Totally, totally weird here, as you predicted. The two guys, Ian and Fai, picked me up from the hotel in Hong Kong early this morning, and I was looking for some older dudes, but I think they're both younger than me! The ride into China was cool. We drove through Shenzhen and I got to experience firsthand what Peter Hessler wrote about in Country Driving. Nothing but factories, factories, factories for 50 miles, and attached to each factory are dormitories, dormitories, dormitories. All concrete; all gray.

At first I thought it was just extremely foggy, but the deeper we drove into China, the lower the visibility got. This is the worst pollution I have ever seen. All the articles and books we've read, all the 60 minutes and Frontline pieces we've watched are correct. The entire province is under a thick, heavy blanket of the nastiest, most foul smelling smog you'll ever see. And it's not just outside. It's in my hotel room, it's in the plant, it's in the conference room I'm sitting in right now, that
smoky, burning smell that we caught whiffs of in Indonesia.

Got settled into my hotel here, which is very Chinese. I mean tacky, Chinese with gold and brass and mismatched tiled surfaces
everywhere. A real hoot of a place. Right next to the hotel is one of those famous Chinese landfill type garbage heaps, so
that's a major draw right there. Trash everywhere, markets motorbikes, bicycles, chaotic traffic, but not as bad as Indonesia.

Got to the plant and was shown to my "Guest Room" which is more like a cell. There is terrible third world fluorescent lighting, no heat and it's freezing. I began to wonder when I was going to be allowed to see my lawyer. There is a couch and a large bookcase with other books, and there's a refrigerator. While I was arranging my things on the desk, they decided to bring in another refrigerator for me. And not just a little one. A regular-sized kitchen one. I do not know what they think I need to keep cold in this room that wouldn't get plenty cold if you just let it sitting out.

Then we went down to the press room to check the first form. It was my first glimpse of the plant. And to tell you the truth, if I hadn't had Sue's and Bob's stamp of approval on this place, I would have been worried. Everything is old and dirty. The equipment is like ancient. There are huge binding machines that do the cover stampings and they're like sets of giant jaws that open and close automatically. Every time they open, the guy quickly sticks his entire arm in the thing to position a new cover. And it just goes and goes like that. If the guy does not get his arm out before the jaws close, you bet your ass that arm will be flatter than paper in a second. I told Sue, "that does not look safe."

Looking around the place I thought this is not somewhere I'd even print a third grade spelling book let alone our beautiful Charles Lane Press books. But guess what? When I got to the press to look at the first form, it was stunning. It was a very close match to the proofs, except the form was better. The images are sharp and clean and smooth, the color is awesome and the images printed on this New-G paper are just luscious.

But anyway, we are in good hands here. Ian and Fai are totally professional. They are passionate about fine printing and they are very easy going, accessible and amenable to discussion and consultation. The press guys are great - they know their
shit - and the prints are looking absolutely beautiful, so we won't have compromised in any way on the quality. The dots in the press prints are smaller and sharper than the wet proofs they sent. So Shen's and Ian's books are looking as good as FRB and Outerland.

Java, January 31

2011-01-31T08:45:00.004-05:00

I was walking through a slum in Jakarta a couple days ago, and I did make some photographs. But I feel like this scene that Seth pulled up from The Year of Living Dangerously sums up some of the thoughts I had about the experience best...

Scene One: Year of Living Dangerously

BILLY
And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then?

GUY
What's that?

BILLY
It's from Luke, chapter three, verse ten. What then must we do? Tolstoy asked the same question. He wrote a book with that title. He got so upset about the poverty in Moscow that he went one night into the poorest section and just gave away all his money. You could do that now. Five American dollars would be a fortune to one of these people.

GUY
Wouldn't do any good, just be a drop in the ocean.

BILLY
Aah, that's the same conclusion Tolstoy came to, I disagree.

GUY
Oh, what's your solution?

BILLY
Well, I support the view that you just don't think about the major issues. You do whatever you can about the misery that's in front of you. Add your light to the sum of light. You think that's naive, don't you?

GUY
Yep.

BILLY
It's alright, most journalists do.

GUY
We can't afford to get involved.

BILLY
Typical Journo's Answer

Asia Bound

2011-01-23T23:32:00.005-05:00

Seth & I will be heading to Indonesia this week for a bit of travel - so the blog will be quiet for a while. I hope to have many new photographs and stories upon my return.
Happy Trails.
-Richard

Loving these...

2011-01-18T00:06:00.003-05:00

Found this work by Irish photographer Kenneth O Halloran via Conscientious

Amazing Guitar

2011-01-17T23:39:00.004-05:00

via Charles Boyd

Excellent Dance Video

2011-01-13T00:52:00.000-05:00

Girl Walk // All Day from jacob krupnick on Vimeo.

PIER 45 - A Multimedia Presentation

2011-01-09T13:49:00.005-05:00

Pier 45 by Richard Renaldi
Best viewed in Full Screen Mode.

December 25, 2010 The Christmas day the Christmas tree fell over...........................

2011-01-06T03:24:00.001-05:00

Just Kids

2011-01-06T03:13:00.004-05:00

I recently finished the Patti Smith book about her relationship/friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe and their coming of age in New York in the 1970's. It is a great book and a wonderful window into the downtown art and music scene when New York was still accessible and affordable. They both fed off of and encouraged each other's creativity - which is extraordinarily valuable. A great read!

Happy New Year Everybody!

2010-12-31T12:43:00.001-05:00

See previous years here.

Ode to Robert Ryman

2010-12-31T12:41:00.001-05:00

Two Rivers

2010-12-28T20:08:00.004-05:00

The Delaware and The Hudson
December 26 and 27, 2010

Postcards from the Edge

2010-12-28T19:51:00.004-05:00

My favorite benefit is just around the corner. I always enjoy creating a special piece for Postcards from the Edge and am truly amazed at all the amazing 4" x 6" art. Check it out the week after next.
-R

Postcards From the Edge benefit for Visual AIDS
Hosted by CRG Gallery
548 West 22nd Street NYC
January 7-9, 2011

Friday, Jan. 7, 6 - 8 PM
Preview Party (See the entire exhibition, no sales)
$85 admission, payable at the door, includes a raffle ticket for the chance to pick the FIRST postcard that evening. Silent auction of additional artworks and VIP packages.
**Preview Party admission for donating artists is waived. No RSVPs necessary. All artists’ names will be held at the door.

Saturday, Jan. 8, 10 AM – 6 PM
Sunday, Jan. 9, Noon – 4 PM
Benefit Sale
Over 1,400 original, anonymously-displayed, postcard-sized artworks, each sold for $85. All sales first-come, first-served, artists’ names revealed only after purchase. $5 suggested admission.

Artists include: Richard Renaldi, John Baldessari, Ross Bleckner, Louise Fishman, Ann Hamilton, Mary Heilmann, Jeff Koons, Glenn Ligon, Marilyn Minter, Yoko Ono, David Reed, John Waters and many, many more.

All proceeds support the work of Visual AIDS. Visual AIDS utilizes art to fight AIDS by provoking dialogue, supporting HIV+ artists, and preserving a legacy, because AIDS is not over.

Questions?
http://www.thebody.com/visualaids/current/postcards2011_faqs.html
Still have questions?
Contact Visual AIDS at (212) 627-9855

Advent Calendar Completed! Happy Holidays to All!

2010-12-24T10:57:00.002-05:00

Find and click on the current or prior days of the month to reveal a surprise...

There is an interesting history of the advent calendar on wikipedia here. You can use a Larger version of the calender HERE.