The Contemporary Photobook Magazine
Review by Gerhard Clausing • In Greek mythology, the Minotaur was a human-like creature with the head and tail of a bull, and his favorite meals consisted of sacrificial Athenian youths. His home was said to be an elaborate labyrinth on the island of Crete. Naturally as well as unnaturally, there was more to that... Continue Reading →
Review by Gerhard Clausing • Charles Fréger’s latest photobook presents an intriguing photographic and ethnographic study of “the masks, costumes, and characters created by the descendants of Africans and indigenous peoples in the Americas to honor their ancestors, commemorate their history and celebrate their heritage.” (Back cover) Our history certainly follows us around, and old... Continue Reading →
Review by Gerhard Clausing • How to portray a city through its residents? The city of Berlin is certainly one of the most diverse places in the world. Combining the former West and East sections, it is now an even more expanded center of culture and cultures. The citizens’ well-known directness and swagger, sometimes referred... Continue Reading →
Review by Gerhard Clausing • How do you effectively illustrate the follies of WAR? No matter how many times some of us advocate brain over brawn, war seems to be an ever-present specter, and this past week was certainly a glaring example. Perhaps such aggressive behavior is a remnant of the ancient male warrior who... Continue Reading →
Review by Wayne Swanson • What defines a city? Civic boosters point to all manner of urban amenities, but highways and freeways are seldom among them. Functional at best, highways are more likely known as noisy, divisive, and unsightly rips in the urban fabric. Yet in the post-World War II era, their impact on American cities... Continue Reading →
Review by Wayne Swanson • Now playing at a bookstore near you is a behind-the-scenes look at the spectacle of moviemaking, filmed in epic widescreen black and white. Jeff Bridges: Pictures, Volume Two, by an accomplished photographer who also happens to be an actor of some acclaim, is a welcome sequel to Bridges’ 2003 book about... Continue Reading →
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 →
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 →
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 →
Review by Steve Harp • Nico Bick’s Parliaments of the European Union (nai010 publishers, 2019) is an imposing volume. The book — 12" x 15", 272 pages, weighing in at almost 9 pounds — exudes the gravitas of its subject matter. Consisting of 30 four-page foldouts (double gate-folds), it depicts the legislative chambers of the 28... Continue Reading →
PhotoBook Journal 