Review by Melanie Chapman • “Say It Loud, I’m Bronx, I’m Proud!” Recently, I was in touch with a college friend who grew up in the Bronx in the 1970s and asked him for five words to describe the place. He chose “Dark, rotten, cheated, drugged out, death.” This is not, however, the Bronx that... Continue Reading →
Cody Bratt – Love We Leave Behind
Review by Gerhard Clausing • Getting over a relationship that didn’t work out is never easy, especially if all your hopes and dreams were invested in it. You had your emotions tied up in another person with the hope of a long-term bond, with love the strong glue that was to hold it together. Depicting... Continue Reading →
Interesting Photobooks of 2019
It’s time to look back at 2019, a very productive year for photobook publishing and for the PhotoBook Journal as well. By the end of the year, having enhanced our format to a full-scale magazine, we will have published some eighty photobook reviews, along with numerous articles, interviews, show reports, and announcements. As is our... Continue Reading →
PhotoBook Journal – Issue #8
Welcome to our Eighth Issue! • Here in the States we just celebrated our Thanksgiving Holiday this last weekend, which in addition to the annual tradition of eating too much (or is that my tradition?), it’s a time to give Thanks. Thus a very BIG Thank You for your support for this new magazine endeavor and your... Continue Reading →
Sohrab Hura – The Coast
Review by Gerhard Clausing • Our current time is marked by an increasing blurring between reality and fantasy, and also by a greater prevalence of verbal, physical, and sexual violence, and so this photobook is right on target. Sohrab Hura helps us explore the questions so central to what is happening now: What is fake... Continue Reading →
Allison Stewart – Bug Out Bag: The Commodification of American Fear
Review by Gerhard Clausing • We find ourselves in a time of greater uncertainty. Thus our anxieties and fears are also greater, and we expect disasters – sudden catastrophes that can come about naturally, accidentally or by intent. Fires, earthquakes, storms and flooding are our main threats here in California; nuclear accidents and military aggression... Continue Reading →
Carissa Dorson – Conversations with Dad
Review by Gerhard Clausing • As we all know, communicating with one’s parents can be a challenge, not only in our early years, but later on as well. Often the verbal exchanges are limited to mostly necessary everyday topics and take the form of very limited small talk, and other kinds of interaction can also... Continue Reading →
Classic Photographs Los Angeles 2019
By Debe Arlook • For its 10-year anniversary, Classic Photographs Los Angeles christened ROSEGALLERY’s new space in Bergamot Station Arts Center in Santa Monica. Rose Shoshana (shown above, photo by Brittany Neimeth) and her team were in high gear hosting the weekend event before officially opening the doors to their new location just days later.... Continue Reading →
Marta Weiss – Making It Up: Photographic Fictions
Review by Paul Anderson • Making It Up: Photographic Fictions by Marta Weiss is an historical survey of photographic works that have been staged or constructed to replicate some scenes of historical significance, or to make a cultural or personal statement. All images come from the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.... Continue Reading →
Valentina Neri – Almanacco Toilet Club
Review by Gerhard Clausing • The ‘Toilet Club Milano’ is an Italian night club that welcomes people of all sexual orientations. It has a special place in the LGBTQ world, and features performers that present themselves in drag. Valentina Neri has woven a fascinating narrative around these ‘drag queens,’ including many visual and verbal cues... Continue Reading →