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This blog series is created by choosing a photograph by a photographer who's work I greatly appreciate, that photographer picks a photograph by another photographer, that photographer picks a photograph by another photographer, and so on until a chain of five photographs have been created. 

The structure is based on the book Poets Picking Poets published by McSweeney's in 2007. Applying this technique to photography and photographers, allowing them to choose their own tablemates, will surely spark some interesting visual conversations that will be diverse and surprising. 

Yazan Khalili, 30'/ f 5.0, 2011, from the series "Landscapes of Darkness". Courtesy and copyright the artist.

Tarek Al Ghoussein, Untitled 5, 2004, from the "Self Portrait Series". Courtesy and copyright the artist.

Hala Al-Ani, Self-portrait, 2008. Courtesy and copyright the artist. 

Anas Al-Shaikh, Memory of Memories, 2001. Courtesy and copyright the artist.

Hassan Meer, My Grandfather's House / Crashed Memory, 2009. Courtesy and copyright the artist.

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We are pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 Daylight/CDS Photo Awards!

PROJECT PRIZE: Tamas Dezso, Budapest, Hungary

WORK-IN-PROCESS PRIZE: David Pace, Los Altos, California

PHOTO AWARDS EXHIBITION:

Tamas Dezso’s work will be awarded a solo show at CDS and a multimedia podcast produced by Daylight. CDS will also host a group exhibition featuring Work-in-Process Prize winner David Pace and the rest of the Jurors’ picks.

September 19–December 22, 2011

Porch and University Galleries

Reception: Tuesday, October 4, 7 p.m.

JURORS’ PICKS:

Anthony Bannon, George Eastman House

John Cyr-Project Prize

James Dodd Work-in-Process Prize

Darren Ching, Klompching Gallery/ PDN

Tamas Dezso, Project Prize

Lydia Goldblatt-Work-in-Process Prize

Stacey Clarkson, Harper’s Magazine

Lorenzo Martelli, Work-in-Process Prize

Kris Vervaeke, Project Prize

Whitney Johnson, New Yorker

Sebastian Liste, Work-in-Process Prize

Shane Lavalette, Project Prize

Sasha Wolf, Sasha Wolf Gallery

Baldomero Fernandez, Work-in-Process Prize

Tamas Dezso, Project Prize

PROJECT PRIZE HONORABLE MENTIONS

Larry Louie

Christian Lutz

Rania Matar

Bill McDowell

Landon Nordeman

Emily Schiffer

Anna Skladmann

Magdalena Sole

Daniel Traub

Rick Wright

WORK-IN-PROCESS PRIZE HONORABLE MENTIONS

Noah Greenberg

Eirik Johnson

Cesar Lechowick

Sebastian Liste

Dina Litovsky

Larry Louie

Stacy Kranitz

Derek Shapton

Emily Schiffer

Jonathan Taggart

* Note: Joel Sternfeld reviewed and ranked all entries in both categories but elected not to make juror picks.

Thanks to all who submitted work this year. It was an outstanding selection!

In September 2009 photojournalist Vance Jacobs was invited to Medellin, Colombia by the Centro Colombo Americano to teach a photography workshop to inmates in a maximum security prison in the city. He spent a week teaching photography to eight of the 4,200 inmates at the Bellavista Prison, culminating in an exhibition displayed at the prison and at the Centro Colombo Americano. Pete Brook of Prison Photography has called the project "an exercise in self-documentation overturning stereotypes and the ‘exotic fetish’."

"One of the things that gets the inmates' attention is responsibility, that there is a stake in what they do. In this case, their ability to work together as a team, and to pull this together in a very short amount of time would determine whether other similar projects were done not only at this prison but at other prisons in Colombia," says Jacobs. "Once they bought into the idea that there was a lot at stake, they really applied themselves."

See more photographs from the workshop here and here. Vance Jacobs talks about the project in a recent video.

Photo caption: Built in 1976, the prison was intended to hold 1,500 inmates but its population grew rapidly, which has led to inmates subdividing their cells into smaller and smaller unites. Many inmates will buy or rent attic-like spaces in other prisoners' cells, with no more than 3 feet of clearance between the boards that act as a floor and the ceiling. Photo by inmate.

Last night Howard Stein, investment guru of Dreyfus Corporation fame, passed away after a stroke at his home in Southampton this week, the New York Times reports. What the Times obituary completely leaves out, however, is the generous support Stein gave to the photography world in the last 13 years of his life, via JGS, Inc., the Joy of Giving Something Foundation. The organization, which he was very involved in, supported individual photographers in the collection, as well as the serial New Photography shows at the Museum of Modern Art, a dvd documentary series and many titles published by Nazraeli Press. The foundation's website hosts the online Forward Thinking Museum and contest, which help drive interest in an obsession of his: the future. He was known to tell young photographers to stop looking back at the past, and only think forward, ahead to the future. The web-only virtual museum is an example of his desire to use 21st century technology to make a difference. According to the website, JGS is working on a new project which will be free for all public schools. The new series will profile individuals who, overcoming adversity in their youth, have emerged as innovators in their chosen professions. "Our aim is to inspire the next generation, as we reach out to an ever-expanding audience." Howard wll be missed. www.jgsinc.org

It will be an exciting Fall for straight photography at Midtown's Pace MacGill Gallery, with shows on deck of work by Richard Benson, Judith Joy Ross and Hiroshi Sugimoto. Stay tuned.

North South East West: Richard Benson 

September 8 – October 22, 2011

Opening Reception, Thursday, September 8

5:30pm – 7:30pm

On the occasion of the publication of North South East West: Richard Benson by The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the exhibition presents multiple-impression inkjet prints taken on recent road trips throughout North America (2005-2011).  Benson’s measured views of the American landscape record the country’s history with a caring and inquisitive eye, while showcasing the descriptive powers of the photographic medium.  Perfectly composed and visually stunning, his images invite viewers to contemplate the passage of time through weathered terrains and architectural surfaces, outmoded machinery, environmental development, and changes in season.  A photographer for more than four decades and acknowledged as a pioneer in printing technology, Benson produces his photographs with a digital camera and inkjet printer custom-configured to print a single image in at least three successive stages.

Hiroshi Sugimoto: Lake Superior

October 27 – December 10, 2011

5:30pm – 7:30pm

This single-subject exhibition consists of photographs of Lake Superior, most of which have never been on view to the public.  Using an 8 x 10 inch view camera, Sugimoto allows the horizon line to divide each picture plane into equal proportions of light and dark, water and sky.  Lacking all human presence and meditative in quality, these photographs are not only an extension of the artist’s well-known Seascape series, but also visual explorations of boundaries – both spiritual and physical.

Judith Joy Ross: Recent Work

December 15, 2011 – January 28, 2012

Opening Reception, Thursday, December 15

5:30pm – 7:30pm

Judith Joy Ross: Recent Work showcases the artist’s first foray into color photography.  A departure from her traditional 8 x 10 inch gelatin silver prints, Ross’s new large-scale color work examines man’s often complicated relationship with the natural world.  Taken at wildlife conservation areas, anti-fracking protests, zoos, farms, and summer camps, Ross’s photographs are revelations not only of individuals, but of humanity at large.