If you ask this editor what’s better than summer in Europe, the only acceptable answer is summer in France, specifically. Throw in a legendary photography festival and that might just be la crème de la crème. This summer, Les Rencontres d’Arles, a historic photography festival, is back after weathering the pandemic, running from July 4 through September 25 in the southern French town of Arles.

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What is Les Rencontres d’Arles?

Arles is known as “the capital of photography,” and art buffs may know it as one of the homes of Van Gogh. The annual festival has taken place since 1970, consisting of exhibitions and workshops on all things photographic. It’s credited with elevating photography to a fine art form, and here art and life are intertwined. Exhibitions take place in venues throughout the city, which are often historical spaces such as a 12th-century cloister.

Over the years, Les Rencontres d’Arles photography exhibition has drawn some of the medium’s biggest names, the roll call reading as a who’s who: Ansel Adams, Cecil Beaton, Richard Avedon, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Irving Penn, Annie Leibovitz, Gordon Parks…need we go on?

Though photography has historically been a male-dominated space, the festival has in recent years been working to spotlight women and minority artists. This year’s focus continues that commitment, with a variety of work by women, emerging talent, and historical figures on view.

Visiting Les Rencontres d’Arles

Les Rencontres d’Arles photography exhibition runs from July 4 to September 25 in Arles, France with a variety of artist exhibitions and workshops for practicing photographers. An exhibition day pass starts at 29 € online and 34 € at the box office; those under 18 are free. Workshops vary in price. Tickets are for sale at multiple locations throughout the city; see this link for more information.

The town of Arles has a train station, making it easily accessible from other cities such as Avigon, Aix-en-Provence, as well as Marseille for those flying in. Train tickets are available through SNCF. 

5 exhibitions worth viewing 

Cartographies du corps, Susan Meiselas & Marta Gentilucci, at Eglise Saint-Blaise

To be a woman is a complicated thing. Always too much, never enough, and between the prison bars of perfection, we must also stay eternal. In Cartographies du Corps, Susan Meiselas and Marta Gentilucci explore the concept of aging, presenting the idea that to do so is sacred—but not lacking in vivacity.

“Meiselas and Gentilucci partnered to capture in images and sound the vital force that inhabits these bodies, the intensity of their past lives and the enduring hope of the life that remains to be lived, against the representation of old age as the absence of opportunity, or even illness, loneliness, and deprivation.”

Songs of the sky: Photography and the cloud, Curator: Kathrin Schönegg, at Monoprix 

As a photographer, I have long held a fascination with the sky and clouds. Particularly at sunset, when the dying light splashes them with pastel hues. Curator Kathrin Schönegg pulls together a collection of cloud photographs with the intent of also furthering the conversation about the digital cloud and its effects on climate and politics. 

“The cloud is not a romantic place up there. It is a network that constantly relocates our data. It is a machine through which artificial intelligence learns. It is also a techno-capitalist system that is lent material form by hard drives, cables, and computers. Similar to the way that clouds resonated in the beginning of abstraction in photography one hundred years ago, the way artists today interact with the cloud reflects the twenty-first century’s visions of the future.”

I have done nothing wrong, Mika Sperling, at Église des Frères Prêcheurs

How does one discuss family trauma? Germany-based Mika Sperling addresses the tumult of her childhood in this series, I have done nothing wrong. It’s a journey of seeking answers, reconciliation, and healing.

“Armed through vulnerability and braced by resilience, maintaining a keen awareness of the facts in order to reject violence, the artist expresses the crimes of her grandfather.”

I can’t stand to see you cry, Rahim Fortune, at Église des Frères Prêcheurs 

Amidst a father’s death, a global pandemic, and racial reckoning, an artist grapples with personal turmoil in the face of increasingly fraught political and moral tensions on a national scale. 

“It is an autobiography informed by history, where the healing of the author’s wounds and the reduction of the country’s fractures are at stake. If the work is inscribed in documentary tradition, it’s with a desire to redefine and update what is an image. The young photographer draws strength from vulnerability to create an intimate work in permanent dialogue with those around him.”

Water protectors, Bruno Serralongue, at Le Jardin d’Été

In this series, Bruno Serralongue documents the fight of the Sioux Indians to protect their sacred land at the Standing Rock reservation from the Dakota Access Pipeline. From the 2016 standoff between the Sioux, activists, and fellow nations against law enforcement, to today, Water protectors explores this ongoing conflict. 

Related: An intimate study of the female portrait

Workshops for the practicing photographer

Down by the river: between imagination and reality

August 8-12 

This workshop, led by Claudine Doury, will bring photographers to the Rhône, Camargue, and neighboring villages. You will work to prepare a series of images and spend the days shooting, editing, and discussing ideas with fellow participants, while learning how to convey sensibility, meaning, pace, and progression in a body of work. 

According to the workshop description, “Participants will consider the industrial ruins, residential area, riverbanks reshaped by human activity, and preserved natural spaces they visit as full-fledged subjects, the backdrop of a personal, intimate narrative or just a pretext to meet people.”

A shooting with Ambroise Tézenas

July 11-15

Led by Ambroise Tézenas, whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Libération, Paris Match, and more, participants will explore the principal themes of distance and time. After a consultation with Tézenas, photographers will get to work creating by exploring natural spaces, urban places, and abandoned buildings before heading back to edit and cull a series. 

A shooting with Charlotte Abramow 

July 4-5

In this workshop, attendees will be challenged to create a shocking series inspired by daily life. Photographers will explore the ways the mundane is made intriguing, surprising, and unexpected.

A shooting with Ludovic Carème

July 6-7

Dive into the world of portraiture and learn how to create a compelling one. The workshop begins with a portfolio review by Ludovic Carème, and follows with a supervised portrait session focusing on lighting to create effects highlighting detail, shadow, and expression.

Laying the groundwork for a book

July 4-5, Fabienne Pavia

Do you dream about publishing a photobook? This workshop will show you the ropes. Participants will learn about developing the photographic narrative and the tensions, relationships, and interactions that must exist between images. The course will also delve into the practicalities and workflow of book design.

Exploring Arles

After you’ve enjoyed the festival and are feeling inspired, take yourself for a spin around town with your camera. Arles, a former Roman provincial capital, is rife with historical sites. Neither is it too far from the Camargue, where wildlife photographers will enjoy the iconic pink flamingos, black bulls, and white horses. Whatever inspires you, be sure to save your best shots—who knows, you may need one to enter in our Photos of the Day challenge.

The post Festival preview: 10 shows & workshops to check out at Les Rencontres d’Arles this summer appeared first on Popular Photography.

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We’re back with a fresh batch of excellent photo shows to check out in the United States as the summer temperatures heat up. This month’s column features a mixture of historical and contemporary, including intimate images of jazz singer Billie Holiday, a career-spanning retrospective of photographer William Klein, a group exhibition that highlights emerging Black talent, a celebration of some of photography’s most influential female shooters, and a two-person show that documents New York City during the early days of the pandemic from two perspectives. 

Billie Holiday at Sugar Hill: Photographs by Jerry Dantzic

In 1957, during Billie Holiday’s week-long residency at the Sugar Hill Nightclub in Newark, New Jersey, photojournalist Jerry Dantzic was given special access to document the performer. Captured just two years before her death, the images on view showcase an expansive view of the private and public life of the iconic performer. The exhibition includes rarely seen images of Holiday with her son, her godchild, and her pet chihuahua, Pepi. The pictures are accompanied by commentary from author Zadie Smith, along with objects including Dantzic’s Leica M3, a 1957 copy of SEE Magazine that featured the photos, and other ephemera. The collection of images highlights Holiday’s passion and originality. 

Where: Newark Museum of Art in Newark, New Jersey 

When: Through August 22

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at newarkmuseumart.org.

William Klein: YES; Photographs, Paintings, Films 1948-2013

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This summer the International Center of Photography hosts the first U.S. exhibition dedicated to William Klein’s work in over a generation. Throughout his career, Klein’s work straddled the worlds of street photography, fashion photography, graphic design, painting, filmmaking, and more. This expansive show will fill the museum space and feature over 200 pieces that are inclusive of the various mediums he has worked in. The career-spanning exhibition covers Klein’s time as a studio assistant in Paris to his career photographing in Brooklyn. Get inspired this summer by diving into the mind of one of photography’s most versatile creators. 

Where: ICP in New York City 

When: Through September 12 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at ICP.org.

The New Black Vanguard: Photography Between Art and Fashion 

This group exhibition presents the work of Black photographers working in the worlds of portraiture and conceptual art, who fuse the genres of art and fashion photography—changing the contemporary visual vocabulary regarding beauty. The show includes work from Campbell Addy, Arielle Bobb-Willis, Micaiah Carter, Awol Erizku, Nadine Ijewere, Quil Lemons, Namsa Leuba, Renell Medrano, Tyler Mitchell, Jamal Nxedlana, Daniel Obsai, Ruth Ossai, Adrienne Raquel, Dana Scruggs, and Stephen Tayo. The included photographers are regularly featured in lifestyle magazines and ad campaigns, and run widely-consumed social media channels—they are also artists who are actively expanding conversations regarding the representation of Black bodies and Black lives, and celebrating Black creativity.

The exhibition also features a salon-style wall of photographs that features images from additional emerging Black artists, including Lawrence Agyei, Daveed Baptiste, Faith Couch, Yannis Davy Guibinga, Delphine Diallo, Rhea Dillon, Justin French, Erica Génécé, Denzel Golatt, Travis Gumbs, Texas Isaiah, Seye Isikalu, Adama Jalloh, Manny Jefferson, Joshua Kissi, Myles Loftin, Ronan Mckenzie, Tyra Mitchell, Travys Owen, Lucie Rox, Makeda Sandford, Cécile Smetana Baudier, Isaac West, and Joshua Woods.

Where: Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio 

When: Through September 11

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at clevelandart.org.

Anonymous Architectures: Lauren Silberman and Alexa Hoyer

Captured during the early days of New York City’s COVID-19 lockdown, these two bodies of work from Alexa Hoyer and Lauren Silberman document the strange era when the city that never sleeps, seemed to be frozen in time and completely devoid of people. Window Dressing by Alexa Hoyer focuses on the luxury storefronts that boarded up their windows during the COVID-19 lockdown and the city-wide BLM protests. The Lost Happy Hours by Lauren Silberman captures the interiors of the shuttered bars and nightclubs in her neighborhood—which ultimately became symbols of the loneliness inherent with sheltering at home during the early days of the pandemic. 

Where: Mana Contemporary in Jersey City, New Jersey 

When: Through August 31 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at manacontemporary.com.

Modern Women Modern Vision

This traveling group exhibition, currently on view in Denver, features over 100 images by female photographers such as Diane Arbus, Imogen Cunningham, Dorothea Lange, and contemporary artists like Neeta Madahar, and Carrie Mae Weems. The expansive show celebrates the contributions of women to photography in the 20th century and how they’ve shaped the medium. Modern Women Moden Vision is organized into six thematic sections including Modernist Innovators, Documentary Photography and the New Deal, the Photo League, Modern Masters, Exploring the Environment, and The Global Contemporary Lens.

Ultimately this exhibition is a great overview of the influence women photographers have had on the medium and an excellent place to discover the work of a diverse group of creators in one place. 

Where: Denver Art Museum in Denver, Colorado

When:  Through August 28

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at denverartmuseum.org.

The post The new Black vanguard of portrait photography, plus four other photo shows worth seeing appeared first on Popular Photography.

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We’re back with our monthly installment of the best photography exhibitions to see around the United States for the months of May and June 2022. Highlights include the return of Brooklyn’s Photoville festival; Elle Pérez: Devotions on view at the Baltimore Museum of Art; and a group show in Chicago that connects global artists of color and Black diasporic artists in one exhibition. Read on to see what else we are looking forward to seeing in May and June. 

William Eggleston: Photographs from the Laura and Jay Crouse Collection

William Eggleston was one of the first fine-art photographers to use color film, which was still considered a novelty at the time. His vivid images of mundane everyday life—old tires, faded signs, dusty condiments in diners past their prime—have influenced countless photographers and have been prominently featured as cover artwork for a number of albums. The thirty images on view at The Gibbes in Charleston are part of Laura and Jay Crouse’s private collection and represent some of the photographer’s most iconic shots. 

Where: The Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston, South Carolina 

When: On view through October 9, 2022 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at gibbesmuseum.org.

Elle Pérez: Devotions

Organized by the Carnegie Museum of Art, this exhibition features 13 images captured between 2019 and 2021 that explore love, sex, and friendship through the lens of grief and care, pain and pleasure, and desire and self-exploration. Pérez tends to center themselves and their relationships within the images—rather than documenting them as an outsider looking in, and the work included in Devotions is no different. The work is an intimate and tangled look at how gender identity, kink, sexuality, pleasure, and pain often coexist. 

Where: Baltimore Museum of Art in Baltimore, Maryland

When: On view through March 19, 2023 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at artbma.org.

James Nachtwey, Memoria

War is hell and James Nachtwey has spent his career photographing it. His professional life has documented the atrocities of war across the globe, making him one of the most well-respected photojournalists working today. His images have also helped shape the way in which Americans understand the human toll of conflict abroad. This exhibition, on view at Fotografiska in New York City, serves as a career overview. It also includes fragments of memories documenting the fallout of international conflicts and human rights violations. His hope is that as the audience bears witness to the atrocities that he has captured with his camera, we can collectively honor the individuals depicted in each moment and not forget how these conditions came to be. 

Where: Fotografiska in New York City

When: On view through August 14, 2022 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at fotografiska.com.

Janette Beckman, Rebels

Spanning nearly four decades, Rebels offers just a snapshot of the larger-than-life creative icons photographed by British music photographer Janette Beckman during her career. Featuring a mixture of black and white and vibrant color photographs, the images on view are authentic and raw, capturing the rebellious spirits of her subjects. The show features images of LL Cool J, Debbie Harry, Joe Strummer, Keith Haring, Tribe Called Quest, and more. As the name suggests, it’s an effortlessly cool show that is sure to inspire creatives of all types. 

Where: Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles, California 

When: On view through June 18, 2022 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the gallery’s website at faheykleingallery.com.

Photoville 

New York’s free outdoor photo festival returns in a big way this summer, with in-person workshops and walking tours of its exhibitions. Although Photoville will host outdoor exhibitions in twenty locations throughout the five boroughs, Brooklyn Bridge Park will serve as the main hub for events during the month of June. Community Day on June 4 will include a day’s worth of interactive programming at Brooklyn Bridge Park, over thirty exhibitions, and food and beverages from Smorgasborg. 

Where: Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn

When: June 4-26 2022

For more info on Photoville, go to the festival’s website at photoville.com.

Beautiful Diaspora / You Are Not the Lesser Part

This group exhibition combines two exhibition concepts and features the work of 15 photographers in dialogue over the parallel experiences of global artists of color and Black diasporic artists. This expansive show brings together works that might not typically be presented alongside one another and urges viewers to question how the work fits together and why it’s commonly assumed that the work shouldn’t fit together—both in museum exhibitions and in the outside world. It’s a chance to consider the legacy of colonialism as it exists in the modern era.

The exhibition includes photographic work from Xyza Cruz Bacani, Widline Cadet, Jessica Chou, Cog•nate Collective (Amy Sanchez Arteaga and Misael Diaz), Işıl Eğrikavuk, Citlali Fabián, Sunil Gupta, Kelvin Haizel, David Heo, Damon Locks, Johny Pitts, Farah Salem, Ngadi Smart, Tintin Wulia, and the debut of Abena Appiah. 

Where: Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago 

When: On view through June 26 

For more info on the exhibition, go to the museum’s website at mocp.org.

The post Portraits of ‘rebel’ icons, plus five other photo shows worth seeing appeared first on Popular Photography.

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