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| Lucas Blalock, from the video Lucas Blalock's Digital Tool Kit |
The Reading Shortlist is an occasional post with an eclectic listing of recommended sites, readings and links. A recommendation does not necessarily suggest an agreement with the contents of the post. For previous shortlists, please visit the site links page.
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Scott Alexander, American Photo, Processing the News: Retouching in Photojournalism Good overview of the slippery problems that surround creating contemporary PJ standards in the midst of questions of truth and manipulation in the Photoshop era.
Art21, Lucas Blalock's Digital Tool Kit A short, well-done video looking at Blalock and his transparently and heavy-handedly Photoshopped images.
David Balzer, The Guardian, "Reading lists, outfits, even salads are curated – it’s absurd" Asks a valuable question - "Does the process of selection and arrangement add any value?" - only to delve into a history of the idea of curation instead. Still worth a read.
JJ Charlesworth, artnetnews, Can Abstract Art Still Be Radical? What's left in the tank for abstract act? Charlesworth insinuates not much, at least not without inventing a new language of forms we don't currently have.
Michael David Friberg, On futility and the myopic nature of the photo world Friberg packs a lot of issues into this semi-rant, including questioning photographer motivation, that is, the idea many photographers create work as monuments to themselves, not with the goal of sharing with or educating others; the advent of photography as communal authorship and social practice, found in projects like Everyday Africa; and the limited audience for - and therefore limited impact of - contemporary art and long-term documentary photography.
Alessia Glaviano, Vogue.it, Taryn Simon A 15-minute interview with Simon that gives a nice overview of her work.
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| From Dutch Artists Celebrate George Orwell’s Birthday By Putting Party Hats On Surveillance Cameras |
Ellie Hall, Buzzfeeed, Dutch Artists Celebrate George Orwell’s Birthday By Putting Party Hats On Surveillance Cameras People can be awesome.
Marvin Heiferman, Paris Photo Forum, The Slipperiness of Photography: Marvin Heiferman A lunch-break length video from Heiferman on the multiple, unruly histories of photography.
Alfredo Jaar, Louisiana Channel, Images Are Not Innocent Jaar argues all images are ideological conceptions of the world and talks about how Western media, through its lack of coverage of events such as the Rwandan genocide, becomes complicit in these horrific events.
Brian Jones, Business Insider, 46 photos of life at a Japanese internment camp, taken by Ansel Adams I didn't know about this work before coming across this link. It helps expand a sense of Adams and his practice in a good way.
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| From Kool-Aid Man in Second Life © Jon Rafman |
Kool-Aid Man in Second Life Jon Rafman videos are on heavy rotation at fototazo International Headquarters.
Bryan Schutmaat, Ahorn Magazine, Interview with Peter Brown A good example of an interview that provides depth through clarity, and not by trying to weave the text as densely as possible.
Donald Weber, Vantage, The Rules of Photojournalism Are Keeping Us From the Truth "At what point did the act of making images subvert the idea of what Photojournalism is and should be?"
Alexi Worth, Cabinet, The Invention of Clumsiness A fascinating hypothesis about the impact of early photography on mid-19th century painting, in particular on Manet.