The NYTimes is rightly fascinated by the blind making photographs. Read All About It Here.
And if you don't have a NYTimes account, you can read the article below.
Photographs without Borders
The New York Times (read the extended post for the entire article) reports that Mr. Dupret, a Belgian photojournalist, has embarked on a project to document registered World Heritage Sites (including the Taj Mahal). His take on things is interesting in that the images are panoramic and online viewers get a very true sense of the place he has photographed. The World Heritage Tour Web Site is a must see. Dupret plans to be in India, Pakistan and Nepal over the next few years. We'll be watching.
Also check out Peter Murphy‘s web log showcasing some of his panoramic photography and Jook Leung‘s social-documentary panoramic work.
9/11 Sights Unseen
NPR's Morning Edition announced today an interesting photo exhibit designed for the blind. The images are tactile and apparently depict the horrendous events of 9/11/2001.
Via Sangeetha Raghavendra.
New York, New York-er
Lahiri's new book is out. And so is her publicity machine (and no, I don't get a dime for pushing her writing). She will be at The New Yorker festival that begins today. Here is the blurb:
Jhumpa Lahiri and Michael Cunningham
7 P.M. Union Square Ballroom, 27 Union Square West $15Jhumpa Lahiri's début story collection, “Interpreter of Maladies,” some of which first ran in The New Yorker, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2000. Her first novel, “The Namesake,” part of which appeared in the June 16th & 23rd issue, will be published in September.
Michael Cunningham's novels include “A Home at the End of the World” and “The Hours,” both of which first appeared, in part, in The New Yorker. “The Hours” received the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and also the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction; a feature film adapted from the book won an Oscar and two Golden Globe awards this year. Mr. Cunningham is currently working on a new novel.
And before you race out and try and get tickets, allow me to burst your bubble – this has been sold out!
For photographers [yes, another sold out show, but worth mentioning]:
Photography Master Class
1 P.M. Condé Nast Corporate Auditorium, 4 Times Square $30New Yorker staff photographers Robert Polidori and Martin Schoeller will share their insights into photographing for the magazine. Mr. Polidori will talk about his landscape photographs of Cuba and Chernobyl, and Mr. Schoeller will discuss his portraits of such subjects as Bill Clinton, Lil' Kim, and Robin Williams.
Robert Polidori became a staff photographer in 1998. His work is included in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He won the Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Magazine Photography for a second time in 2000 and has published several books, the most recent being “Zones of Exclusion: Pripyat to Chernobyl,” which will appear in September.
Martin Schoeller has been a staff photographer since 1999. His work was featured in “Skin: Surface, Substance, Design” at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum last year. His portfolio “Hip-Hop” won the Society of Publication Designers Silver Medal in 2001.
“HAPPY WRINKLES” Digital Photography Competition
Much in the spirit of the M.I.L.K. contest (see the book series in The Book Nook, in the left column), here is something for Singaporeans and presumably other South Asians to consider entering.
The HAPPY WRINKLES Digital Photography Competition runs from September 1 to October 22. You don't have much time, so get out there and get your grandma to say “cheese.” Or, better yet, how about a documentary on the elderly in your neck of the woods. If you are working on a project along those lines, drop me a note and I'll be happy to feature it here on TiffinBox!
Bohemian Bengali
Photo Contest for Amateurs
I got this from the Google News service. Didn't cut and paste the original URL, but the information reads more like a press release and I am skipping attributing the source this one time.
The International Library of Photography is pleased to announce that over $60,000 in prizes will be awarded this year in the International Open Amateur Photography Contest. Photographers from the Durham and Middlefield area, particularly beginners, are welcome to try to win their share of over 1,300 prizes. The deadline for the contest is October 31, 2003. The contest is open to everyone and entry is free.
“Everyone has at least one memorable photo that captures a special moment in time,” stated Christina Baylon, contest director. “When people learn about our free photography contest, they suddenly realize that their own favorite photos can win cash prizes, as well as gain national exposure,” continued Baylon.
To enter, send ONE photograph in only one of the following categories: people, travel, pets, children, sports, nature, action, humor, portraiture, or other. The photo must be a color or black-and-white print (unmounted) and 8″ by 10″ or smaller. All entries must include the photographer's name and address on the back, as well as the category and the title of the photo. Photographs should be sent to: The International Library of Photography, Suite 101-2617, 3600 Crondall Lane, Owings Mills, MD 21117. Entries must be postmarked by October 31, 2003. You may also submit your photo directly online at www.picture.com.
The International Library of Photography is an organization dedicated to bringing the work of amateur photographers to the public's attention. You can view the work of over 1.1 million amateur photographers at their website, www.picture.com.
Dark Days for a Wet Darkroom
I remember the days in a Maine darkroom where I recklessly spooled my Tri-X onto steel reels and taped the cans down for good measure. Of course, I practiced threading dry exposed film but with the lights out in a stuffy closet-like room, it made it almost impossible to get it right the first time. I grabbed the film by its edges, bent it slightly and hooked the sprockets onto the prongs on the reel. Sometimes it caught. Sometimes I thought it caught. I spent an inordinate amount of time rolling and re-rolling film. That was just the first of many challenges with film. The good folks in Rockport were both meticulous and strict about their film development. No sooner had I learned to spool film, I was confronted by the idea of getting my chemistry just right in temperature and volume. Too warm and I would nuke my film. Too cold and it would take me eons to finish.
Getting the chemistry just right was just the start. Film had to be agitated just so (a source of great mystery even to this day) and I followed along and got into a system of ‘swish-swish-rotate-swish' every minute.
But all of this is old hack. It had to happen. Digital is now firmly established in our collective consciences. Is it the death knell of film? That's for time to figure out. I still shoot film. But click here and you will see why I raced to jot a few thoughts down.
Waxing Nostalgia
Exhibit of 19th-century Photos of India
Location: Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, Salem, Mass.
Exhibition on “Masterpieces of Asian Nineteenth-Century Photography” at Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, Salem, Mass., through Sept. 28.
The museum's photographic gallery displays fifty-two albumen, carbon and printing-out-paper prints that depict the people, landscapes and cultural sites of Japan, China, India and Tibet.
The Peabody Essex Museum has reopened after a $125 million project that includes a new building and new exhibits from around the world. The museum features both a gallery dedicated to contemporary Indian art and another for older works.
The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursdays until 9 p.m. Normal admission is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, $8 for students and free for children under 16 or residents of Salem.
For info., call (866) 745-1876 or visit www.pem.org.
QuoteSource: From India New England News
Arthur Pais, a friend and writer, once told me the deep rooted connection between Peabody, Massachusetts and Madras (now Chennai), India. He mentioned merchant ships shuttling between Boston and Madras, carrying ice. Ice for the British! The Ice House, perched off of Marina Beach in Madras, is now a tourist attraction (or is it just a condemned building about to crumble?). Whether one can actually go inside, I don't know. But I remember whizzing past it as a young boy not knowing its interesting past.
Check out the exhibit! You may learn something new. I know I will.
Documenting America
This just in from the Santa Fe Photo Workshop:
“Assignment America” Photography Contest
Want to win a free workshop in Santa Fe? This just announced photography contest offers several Santa Fe Workshops as prizes. Organized by our friends at Kodak Professional and Popular Photography and Imaging magazine, “Assignment America” is looking for images that display the culture, diversity, history, and enthusiasm that is built within American heritage. In addition to workshops in Santa Fe, other prizes include getting your winning image displayed on the Kodarama in Times Square, publication in Pop Photo, an expense-paid weekend in NYC, a feature on Kodak.com, dinner with the judges, Kodak film, and many more. Images submitted by professional photographers and photo enthusiasts will be judged and awarded separately. For complete details visit http://www.popphoto.com.
Good luck! I have been to the SFPW's and they ROCK!