A few notes on self-publishing my new photography book – This Land
A few years ago I finished a project looking at cowboys and the landscape of the American west. I’d always envisaged getting the work published as a book with a mainstream publisher, but time, resources and the odd rejection letter got the better of me so I decided to put it on the back burner […]
Hans van der Meer – European Fields
At the beginning of the 1995 football season, Hans van der Meer set out to take a series of football photographs that avoided the clichéd traditions of modern sports photography. In an attempt to record the game in its original form – a field, two goals and 22 players – he sought matches at the […]
Alec Soth – Songbook
I came across Songbook a while back during a visit to the Village Bookstore in Leeds. This latest publication from Alec Soth, a photographer from Minneapolis examines life and communities in rural America. During the project, Soth assumed the role of community newspaper reporter and from 2012-2014 travelled state by state while working on his self-published […]
Confrontier by Kai Wiedenhöfer
One of my favourite books of 2014. I was lucky enough to see the accompanying exhibition at Newcastle’s Side Gallery and was deeply moved with this extraodinary body of work. In 1989 Kai Wiedenhöfer photographed the fall of the Berlin Wall in his hometown. At the time, Wiedenhöfer, like many, believed this event would mark […]
Gasbehälter (Gasholder) by Bernd and Hilla Becher
German husband and wife team Bernd and Hilla Becher’s wonderful book Gasbehälter. The pair met as students in Dusseldorf in 1957 and began collaborating on photographing the disappearing German industrial landscape. Famous for their work on water towers, this book (published in 2002) looks at gasholders around Europe and is an absolute favourite of mine.
Hustlers by Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Between 1990 and 1992, Philip-Lorca diCorcia photographed male prostitutes during trips to Los Angeles. Each location was carefully arranged before the subjects were approached and included car parks, fast food chains, bus stops, and motel rooms. The hustlers are identified in the titles of the photographs by their name, age, place of birth and were […]
Icelanders
I picked up this great book whilst on a recent trip to Iceland. Photographer Sigurgeir Sigurjónsson and author Unnur Jökulsdóttir travelled Iceland and documented people from all over the country. The result is the book Icelander. A series of images of ordinary people living their lives within the incredible landscape of the Island.
Two publications picked up at the Polare Bookshop, Utrecht
Peter Bak, Overwerk (Overtime). Dutch photographer Peter Bak’s book for Tauw. Interesting black & white images from construction sites. With text by Guus Van Der Valk. Blow – Issue four. A great magazine including some excellent work by David Farrell, Alexander Gronsky, Kalle Kataila and Edgar Martins. David Farrell Alexander Gronsky Kalle Kataila Edgar Martins
Magazines
A recent trip to Leeds visiting two wonderful bookshops, Colours May Vary and The Village Bookstore, left my bags full of some great magazines. Too many to mention but these are some of my favourite bits from the six mags I picked up. Aperture – winter 2012. Events Ashore by An-My Lê Capricious – Water. […]