Great New Book: Breach of Peace

Breach of Peace: Portraits of the 1961 Mississippi Freedom Riders by Eric Etheridge was published last May and, if your local bookstore doesn't already have it on the shelf, you should ask them to order it. The book juxtaposes contemporary portraits of the original Freedom Riders with their mug shots from 1961, along with interviews and reflections about American culture then and now. Not only is that a unique idea, it's an aesthetic jolt to see the modern nuanced portraits side-by-side with the older shots, often stark and badly lit but, nevertheless, heroic. The book raises questions about the uses of photography, the uses of memory, and the importance of documentary photography to capture the essence of a moment. The book contains more than 100 modern portraits/interviews and says as much about 21st century America as it does about the 1960's.

Heavy Light

Heavy Light: Recent Photography and Video from Japan is the first major American presentation in the last decade of contemporary photography-based artwork from Japan. The exhibit, which features 13 artists, is at the International Center of Photography in NYC from May 16-September 7, 2008.

The Esquire Covers---at MOMA

George Lois: The Esquire Covers

This exhibit--at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC until March, 2009--features Esquire covers from 1962-1972. Photographer George Lois "changed the face of magazine design" and dealt with such controversial issues as racism, feminism, and the Vietnam War. Don't miss this exhibit and the images that have become icons of American culture.

Call for Proposals

Call for Proposals: Documentary Photography Project

OSI's Documentary Photography Project is seeking applications for a grant to encourage new ways of presenting photography to the public to stimulate social change.

Rediscovering Jacob Riis

A new book "Rediscovering Jacob Riis: Exposure Journalism and Photography in Turn-of-the-Century New York" is just out from The New Press. The New York Time's says that Riis' photos "still have the power to shock." Read a review of the book and see a slideshow of Riis images.

Witness for Justice

Highly recommended is a new book called "Witness for Justice: The Documentary Photographs of Alan Pogue." Pogue began taking photos during the Vietnam war and continued for the next four decades. The book spans the years from Vietnam to Iraq and also contains Pogue's pictures from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as portraits of American cultural heroes like Allen Ginsburg.

Orlando Fringe Theater Festival

The Orlando Fringe Theater Festival is happening now through May 26th in Loch Haven Park. There are dozens of shows, plus art for sale.

In California, visit an exhibit of photographs documenting Cesar Chavez and the "Thousand Mile March." Also included in the exhibit is a series of personal portraits of Chavez. The exhibit continues through May 30th.