alec soth - blog
photographica, miscellanea, etcetera
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The mystical moist night-air
I’m hitting the road and hanging up the blog. Join me for a non-virtual visit in Memphis (Oct. 5th) and Atlanta (Oct. 11th). Otherwise, send me a letter - I’m sick of email. Ill leave with a poem: When I Heard the Learned Astronomer by Walt Whitman When I heard the learnd astronomer, When the proofs …
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Links
Give me a Rembrandt in a subway station toilet and a flashlight and Im happy. A profile of Peter Schjeldahl in the Village Voice (Schjeldahl previously discussed on this blog here, here, here, here, here). “You are many things, but I wouldn’t count glamorous among them.” Jen Bekman talks to me ab …
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Doppelgängers
Last June I went to a party in New York. Alex Majoli was there and he said to me, “there is a guy here who looks exactly like you.” I forget his name, but this Cuban fellow really did feel like my Doppelgänger. I remember that when I looked at him, I couldn’t help but cover my own face: A friend r …
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This post is not about sex machines
Not every photographer finds his or her subject through moody introspection. One of the goals of my recent SFAI class (Finding Your Subject) was to show students the possibilities of assignment photography. While I would never say it is right for everyone, editorial work can be useful in exposing p …
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Hallmark
Yesterday I got home from a ritzy junket business trip to LA. My plane was late so my wife and I didn’t have much time to celebrate our 11th anniversary. Back at the house, Rachel gave me a card. “Youre more than just a funny, smart and lovable guy,” it said, “youre mine.” Inside she wrote: BAC …
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Friday Poem
The Flooded Grave 1998–2000 by Jeff Wall. See details here In an interview with ChicagoPostmodernPoetry.Com, Graham Foust is asked to name his poetic influences. I love his answer: More often than not, these lists get boring rather quickly, perhaps more for the maker than for the reader. I don’t …
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Image Makers / Image Takers
When I assemble reading lists for photo classes, I prefer to use texts by other photographers. My all-time must-read essay for students is Robert Adams’ ‘Making Art New’ from Beauty in Photography. I’m also crazy about David Hurn and Bill Jay’s conversation, ‘Selecting A Subject’ from On Being a Pho …
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Dog Days Done!
Pre-order at Photo-eye, Amazon, and Steidlville
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Teenage Lust
This weekend I went to the Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin to see a show that included the work of Larry Clark. After recent discussions on this blog (here and here) it was interesting to see Clark’s pictures from Teenage Lust. He shows a girl who is tripping on acid being raped, male hustlers, a …
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The mystical moist night-air
I’m hitting the road and hanging up the blog. Join me for a non-virtual visit in Memphis (Oct. 5th) and Atlanta (Oct. 11th). Otherwise, send me a letter - I’m sick of email. Ill leave with a poem: When I Heard the Learned Astronomer by Walt Whitman When I heard the learnd astronomer, When the proofs …
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Friday Poem
Last week while I was traveling my wife had to put down our sweet dog Charley. Charley wasn’t named after the Steinbeck book, Travels with Charley (he came with that name from the Humane Society), but he was as worthy of adoration as Steinbeck’s poodle. Though Charley usually came to the studio w …
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Links
Give me a Rembrandt in a subway station toilet and a flashlight and Im happy. A profile of Peter Schjeldahl in the Village Voice (Schjeldahl previously discussed on this blog here, here, here, here, here). “You are many things, but I wouldn’t count glamorous among them.” Jen Bekman talks to me ab …
-
Doppelgängers
Last June I went to a party in New York. Alex Majoli was there and he said to me, “there is a guy here who looks exactly like you.” I forget his name, but this Cuban fellow really did feel like my Doppelgänger. I remember that when I looked at him, I couldn’t help but cover my own face: A frien …
-
This post is not about sex machines
Not every photographer finds his or her subject through moody introspection. One of the goals of my recent SFAI class (Finding Your Subject) was to show students the possibilities of assignment photography. While I would never say it is right for everyone, editorial work can be useful in exposing p …
-
Hallmark
Yesterday I got home from a ritzy junket business trip to LA. My plane was late so my wife and I didn’t have much time to celebrate our 11th anniversary. Back at the house, Rachel gave me a card. “Youre more than just a funny, smart and lovable guy,” it said, “youre mine.” Inside she wrote: BAC …
-
Friday Poem
The Flooded Grave 1998–2000 by Jeff Wall. See details here In an interview with ChicagoPostmodernPoetry.Com, Graham Foust is asked to name his poetic influences. I love his answer: More often than not, these lists get boring rather quickly, perhaps more for the maker than for the reader. I do …
-
Image Makers / Image Takers
When I assemble reading lists for photo classes, I prefer to use texts by other photographers. My all-time must-read essay for students is Robert Adams’ ‘Making Art New’ from Beauty in Photography. I’m also crazy about David Hurn and Bill Jay’s conversation, ‘Selecting A Subject’ from On Being a Pho …
-
Dog Days Done!
Pre-order at Photo-eye, Amazon, and Steidlville
-
Teenage Lust
This weekend I went to the Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin to see a show that included the work of Larry Clark. After recent discussions on this blog (here and here) it was interesting to see Clark’s pictures from Teenage Lust. He shows a girl who is tripping on acid being raped, male hustlers, a …
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Documenta, children, sexuality, Barnes & Noble
Yesterday I went to Documenta. Along with feeling under the weather, I am getting to be too much of a curmudgeon to walk though a half dozen museums of Scotch tape, toothpicks and wall text. But there was the occasional gem. I’m always a fan of Kerry James Marshall. He took the prize for best painte …
alec soth - blog
