Photo News – Magnum photographers Jacob Aue Sobol and Chris Steele-Perkins out and about, Big Cat Press calls for photo submissions

Today’s post is a bit of a hotch potch as I catch up on some news. I gave a talk to journalism students at the University for the Creative Arts at Farnham last week, and have had features to turn in, so time has been short. On my way to the campus at Waterloo station, I bumped into portrait and celebrity photographer Barry Lategan, who I met years back at the Affordable Art Fair and is known for his discovery and early portraits of Twiggy in the 1960s. Barry was holding a book of contact sheets and photos including a studio shoot of a young Colin Firth. He kindly let me take his picture… Later, Barry contacted me and very politely asked me to remove his photo as he said he would prefer not to have it up online, so I have just left his calling card…

CHRIS STEELE-PERKINS – PHOTOVOICE LECTURE
Magnum photographer Chris Steele-Perkins talks about “his experience as a photographer whose career has moved between journalism, reportage and the pursuit of personal projects” for a PhotoVoice lecture series Words on Monday on 14 March at Kings Place in London. Starts 7pm. Tickets £9.50, if booked online, £11.50 on the door.

BIG CITY PRESS CALL FOR PHOTOS
Big City Press is calling for photographic submissions for its next photographic publication Hijacked 3 Australia / UK. Photographers based or born in either Australia or UK are invited to submit 12-18 digital images from a series/body of work for consideration. Multiple series can be submitted together. The submissions will be assessed by Louise Clements (UK), Mark McPherson (AUS), Katrina Schwarz (AUS/UK) and with a panel of peers from both countries. Deadline 1 May.

MINOR CROPPING MAY OCCUR – PHOTO SHOW
Finally, what looks like an interesting show has just opened in New York featuring a group of international photographers using a diaristic style, including Jacob Aue Sobol, British artist Nick Waplington, Takashi Homma and Swedish photographer JH Engstrom. I interviewed Danish photographer Jacob Aue Sobol who is a Magnum nominee, for the Danish magazine KATALOG when he had completed his I, Tokyo project and reviewed the book for Hotshoe. Follow this link I, Tokyo Reviews and Interviews to a page with downloadable PDFs of both. This new series is “heavily influenced by the postwar Japanese graphic scene and its use of high-contrast black and white imagery. On display, images taken from his ‘Bangkok’ series show clearly a stylized reality and engaging commitment to the photographic form”.

Minor Cropping May Occur (selected diaries 1962-2011) – an exhibition connecting thirteen international photographers—both established and emerging—whose works were created between the 1960s and the present – runs until 19 March. Presented by Lombard Freid Projects (the official link doesn’t seem to be working) in New York, the exhibition is co-curated by Lea Freid and Nick Haymes.

“The artists exhibited employ a diaristic style in approaching their subjects. All the photographs presented in this show avoid classification as documentation while firmly capturing reality. The images are carefully edited, often directly through the camera’s viewfinder, to create complex, emotional stories that ultimately transgress the private/public boundaries.”

Call for photo book entries to The European Publishers Award for Photography 2010

Now in its 17th year, The European Publishers Award for Photography is a major initiative to encourage the publication of contemporary photography and is open to photographers worldwide.

The competition requires “the submission of a substantial, completed and unpublished photographic book project” and presents a rare opportunity for a photographer to be published in each participating country in its language thanks to a collaboration between six European Publishers. Plus, the award ceremony is held in July during professional week of the annual French photo festival, Rencontres d’Arles. The six publishers are:

Actes Sud (France)

Apeiron Photos (Greece)

Dewi Lewis Publishing (United Kingdom)

Edition Braus (Germany)

Lunwerg Editores (Spain)

Peliti Associati (Italy).

SUBMIT
The competition requires the submission of a substantial, completed and unpublished photographic book project. Material must be original and be presented as a book project. Work may be presented in one of the following forms: a) a book dummy plus up to three original prints or transparencies; b) a set of sequenced photocopies or inkjets plus up to three original prints or transparencies. Projects sent on CD will not be accepted.

Projects conceived as anthologies (rather than as clearly themed projects) are not acceptable. The photographer must hold the copyright in the work. Competitors may present the same project a maximum of twice.

PRIZE
The winning project will be published in book form in autumn 2010 simultaneously by each of the publishers in their own country and in their own language, “resulting in perhaps the most extensive cultural collaboration currently existing in Europe”.  The winner will be notified as soon as a decision has been made. The deliberations of the jury will not be disclosed to anyone, including entrants. A shortlist of six finalists will be announced.

DEADLINE
Entries must be sent from 1 – 31 March 2010 with the application form and a signed copy of the rules.

More details below, if you: