April 2023 MBR The Photography Shelf

The Photography Shelf

What We See
Daniella Zaleman, curator
Sara Ickow, curator
White Lion Publishing
Quarto Publishing Group USA
100 Cummings Center, Suite 265D, Beverly, MA 01915
www.quartoknows.com
9780711278547, $30.00, HC, 244pp

https://www.amazon.com/Women-Photograph-nonbinary-perspectives-through/dp/0711278547

Synopsis: 85% of photojournalists are men. That means almost everything that is reported in the world photographically is seen through men's eyes. Similarly, spaces and communities men don't have access to are left undocumented and forgotten. With the camera limited to the hands of one gender, photographic 'truth' is more subjective than it seems.

To answer this serious ethical problem, "What We See: Women and Nonbinary Perspectives through the Lens" flips that bias on its head to show what and how women and nonbinary photojournalists see.

From documenting major events such as 9/11 to capturing unseen and misrepresented communities, "What We See: Women and Nonbinary Perspectives through the Lens" presents a revisionist contemporary history: pore over 50 years of women's dispatches in 100 photographs. Each individual image is accompanied by 200 words from the photographer about the experience and the subject, offering fresh insights and a much-needed perspective.

Until we have balanced, representative reporting, the camera cannot offer a mirror to our global society. To get the full picture, we need a diverse range of people behind the lens. "What We See: Women and Nonbinary Perspectives through the Lens" offers a first step.

Critique: A simply fascinating and richly illustrated study, "What We See: Women and Nonbinary Perspectives through the Lens" is a core, essential, and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library History of Photography collections in general, and supplemental curriculum Women Photographers studies lists in particular. Rescuing from an undeserved obscurity the visual contributions of women and nonbinary visual storytellers with respect to the camera lens, "What We See: Women and Nonbinary Perspectives through the Lens" is also available for photojournalism students, academia, photographers, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).

Editorial Note #1: Daniella Zalcman (http://www.dan.iella.net/about) is the founder of Women Photograph, a global, US-based non-profit that launched in 2017 to elevate the voices of women and nonbinary visual journalists. The private database includes more than 1,000 independent documentary photographers based in 100+ countries. Their mission is to shift the makeup of the photojournalism community and ensure that the industry's chief storytellers are as diverse as the communities they hope to represent. They believe that inclusion and equity work must be fully intersectional, and are committed to supporting and highlighting photographers across the spectrum of all identities.

Editorial Note #2: Sara Ickow (@sasickow) is the Senior Manager, Exhibitions and Collections at the International Center of Photography. Previously, she worked as a Curatorial Assistant and Collections Manager with the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in their Department of Photographs and as a freelance collections manager. She holds an MA in art history from NYU's Institute of Fine Arts, where she studied photography and time-based media art and wrote her thesis on Walker Evans in the 1930s.

Athens Unveiled
Anna A. Angelidakis
ORO Editions
31 Commerical Blvd., Suite F, Novato, CA 94949
www.oroeditions.com
9781957183039, $30.00, HC, 300pp

https://www.amazon.com/Athens-Unveiled-portrait-Nineteenth-Neighborhoods/dp/1957183039

Synopsis: Every year millions of travelers arrive in Athens eager to catch a glimpse of the ancient city and savor its classical heritage. But what about the late nineteenth century Athens with her neoclassical buildings, wide avenues and literary salons?

An Athens where music wafted from King Otto's palace and the aristocracy waltzed under crystal chandeliers. A city of dignitaries, scholars and architects drawing plans and reworking them, leaving their mark on every dimension of the young capital. An Athens where commoners hovered around dimly lit fires and children played in the mud amidst the ancient ruins. Where criminals settled disputes with drawn knives and prostitutes roamed the ports luring sailors into filthy, smoke-filled taverns. Where Greek refugees lived in wind-swept streets with no sewers or running water, singing about their troubles under the stars.

An Athens where intellectuals, writers, poets, and artists converged in local cafes planning the future of the newly founded nation, discussing philosophy, literature, and their shared passion for reclaiming Greece for the Greeks.

With the publication of "Athens Unveiled: A portrait of Nineteenth Century Athens Through Her Streets and Neighborhoods", the photography and commentary by Anna Angelidakis pays homage to the people, streets, and neighborhoods of late nineteenth century Athens, where some of the finest neoclassical buildings still stand next to abandoned mansions, brothels, and old factories; where people still bargain the prices of clothes and produce on the old streets of commerce and where young artists create powerful murals, bringing everything about the city into sharp focus.

Critique: Ideal for armchair travelers and on-site visitors alike, "Athens Unveiled: A Portrait of Nineteenth Century Athens Through Her Streets and Neighborhoods" is unique, fascinating, informative, and unreservedly recommended for personal reading lists, as well as community and academic library Contemporary Photography and Athens/Greece Travel Guide collections.

Editorial Note: Anna Angelidakis is the author of Rooted in the Hood, an Intimate Portrait of New York City's Community Gardens, winner of the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Gold Award (Regional Category) and New York City Big Book Award (Green Category). She currently lives and travels between Athens and New York documenting her beloved cities.

Greg Williams Photo Breakdowns
Greg Williams
Cider Mill Press
c/o HarperCollins Focus
www.harpercollins.com
9781951511500, $65.00, HC, 224pp

https://www.amazon.com/Greg-Williams-Photo-Breakdowns-Celebrity/dp/1951511506

Synopsis: Have you ever wondered about the stories behind memorable photographs of some of the most famous people in the world? Why does Joaquin Phoenix look so relaxed eating a sandwich right after winning an Academy Award? Why was Cate Blanchett's daughter running through her legs in a hotel at Cannes?

With the publication of "Greg Williams Photo Breakdowns: The Stories Behind 100 Portraits", one of today's most in-demand photographers, Greg Williams, brings you behind the scenes stories for over 100 intimate and revealing images he has shot.

Readers will learn the techniques of the master and draw on key tactics and skills Williams has accumulated throughout his extensive career. Whether describing how to frame a shot, leverage the lighting, or understand exposure, Williams emphasizes the importance of using photography as a means to tell stories, especially the stories that you want to tell. With a focus on authenticity, believability, and imperfection, Williams also illuminates how he achieves these staggering shots.

As the official photographer for the Oscars and a regular contributor to magazines such as Vanity Fair, Williams has unprecedented access to international celebrities, ranging from Brad Pitt and Daniel Craig to Beyonce, Charlize Theron, and Adam Driver. And, more importantly, his rapport with his subjects results in singular photographs. "Photo Breakdowns" focuses on some of his favorite moments and how he captured these incredible moments in memorable photographs.

Critique: Published in a large coffee-table style volume (10 x 2 x 13 inches, 1.48 pounds) "Greg Williams Photo Breakdowns: The Stories Behind 100 Portraits" will have a very special appeal to readers with an interest in celebrity portrait photography. This elegant and informative compendium of Greg Williams work is particularly and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Contemporary Photography collections.

Editorial Note: Greg Williams (https://gregwilliams.com) is arguably one of the most trusted and acclaimed photographers in entertainment -- his name and candid portraiture are synonymous with authentic glamour. Williams established his reportage style as a photojournalist in the '90s covering war zones in Burma, Chechnya, and Sierra Leone. An assignment for the Sunday Times Magazine gave Williams his first access to the film industry and he has now shot "specials" on over 200 movies, including four poster campaigns for the Bond franchise. He has also enjoyed exclusive access to BAFTA, the Golden Globes, and the Oscars and is a regular contributor to Vanity Fair and British Vogue.

Bighorn Visions: The Photography of Jessamine Spear Johnson
Tempe Javitz
South Dakota Historical Society Press
900 Governors Drive, Pierre, SC 57501-2217
https://www.sdhspress.com
9781941813447, $29.95, HC, 160pp

https://www.amazon.com/Bighorn-Visions-Photography-Jessamine-Johnson/dp/B0BWSNB1S5

Synopsis: Born in 1886 to pioneer parents on the eastern front of the Bighorn Mountains, Jessamine Spear Johnson would grow up to document many of the dramatic changes that this region would see over the next century.

After first picking up a camera at the age of eleven, Johnson developed into a uniquely gifted artist, all while helping manage the family ranch. Through her photography, Johnson captured the rapid advancements occurring around her, especially from the 1910s through 1940s.

During these years, a burgeoning dude ranch industry brought new visitors to this remote area and technological changes reshaped the nature of work. At the same time, the Crows and Cheyennes in the region struggled with being confined to reservations as they sought new livelihoods to support their families, all while maintaining old traditions and establishing new ones.

As "Bighorn Visions" shows, Johnson's camera captured not only the day-to-day nuances of ranch life but also changing gender norms, transformations on the reservation, and the abundant natural wonders of northeastern Wyoming and southeastern Montana. Featuring over one hundred of Jessamine Spear Johnson's photographs, this volume is the first publication to showcase her work in detail.

Essays and captions by granddaughter Tempe Javitz, along with an intro by historian Mary Murphy, situate Johnson's life and career in relation to broader shifts in ranching, tourism, and photography.

Critique: With a very special appeal to readers with an interest in Native American History and Women's Biographies, "Bighorn Visions: The Photography of Jessamine Spear Johnson" is an inherently fascinating and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and a academic library American Photography collections.

Editorial Note: Tempe Javitz (https://tempejavitz.com) is Jessamine Spear Johnson's granddaughter and with "Bighorn Visions" has compiled over one hundred of Jessamine's photographs, in the first publication to showcase her grandmother's work is such detail.

People & Places: Robert Kareka
William O'Rourke, editor
Dos Madres Press
www.dosmadres.com
9781953252708, $30.00, PB, 215pp

https://www.amazon.com/People-Places-Robert-William-ORourke/dp/1953252702

Synopsis: "Robert Kareka: People & Places" showcases one of the late Robert Kareka's (1934-2020) many talents, concentrating on his black and white photographs from, chiefly, the 1960s, '70s, '80s.

Curated by his friend of a half-century, William O'Rourke, memorializes their connection by means of a long introduction in the form of a memoir, which chronicles Kareka's artistic development as a photographer and sketches various highlights and lowlights of his long life and their sustained connection.

For this memorial volume of Kareka photos, O'Rourke in his role as editor selected and compiled over eighty black and white photographs of Kareka's work. The result is an impressive and representative selection culled from a life lived with intensity, purpose and the aesthetic victories of one man's lifetime in photography.

Critique: This large format paperback edition of "People & Places: Robert Kareka" is a fascinating collection of black/white photos to simply browse through one thoughtful, full page, title captioned image at a time. With photography raised to the level of fine art, "People & Places: Robert Kareka" is highly recommended to dedicated students and practitioners of photography, as well as personal, community, and academic library American Photography & Photographer collections.

Editorial Note: William O'Rourke (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_O%27Rourke) is an Emeritus Professor of English at the University of Notre Dame and the author of The Harrisburg 7 and the New Catholic Left (1972), Signs of the Literary Times: Essays, Reviews, Profiles (1993), On Having a Heart Attack: A Medical Memoir (2006), Campaign America '96: The View From the Couch (1997), Campaign America 2000: The View From the Couch (2001), Confessions of a Guilty Freelancer (2012), Politics and the American Language: Reviews, Rants, and Commentary, 2011-2018 (2020), as well as the novels The Meekness of Isaac (1974), Idle Hands (1981), Criminal Tendencies (1987), Notts (1996), and has edited two anthologies.

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