All posts filed under: The New York Times Lens Blog

The New York Times Lens Blog: Pictured – A World At 7 Billion

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Pictured: A World at 7 Billion The New York Times Lens Blog December 7, 2011, 5:00 am By KERRI MACDONALD Here it is: A visual time capsule, capturing our world at seven billion people — and counting. Below, you’ll find a virtual quilt that weaves together about 400 of the more than 1,000 photographs we received. There is little rhyme or reason to the order you see. We sought a mega-snapshot of our world — different regions, subjects, viewpoints. There is a serendipitous beauty in the chaos. What will these photos tell the future generation — including some of the newborns who were photographed by Lynsey Addario on Oct. 31 — about our world? Explore the gallery using the search box just below this text. Browse by name, location, or — if you want to get creative — randomly, by word. One of our most successful searches was “hope,” which brings together the optimism we found in so many pictures. […] View my image, “A Dissident Remarries,” featured as #3 of 390 images submitted by …

Today in Chicago: Last Cabrini Green High-Rise Demolition Begins

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In late 2007 and through early 2008, I spent several months following and photographing the Revolutionary Communists, a group based around the personality of Bob Avakian, a reclusive Armenian-American said last to be living in Paris. At the time, they lived at 1230 N. Burling, the last Cabrini Green high-rise building where demolition will begin today. The photo essay, “Plan for Transformation” borrows its title from the name of the urban renewal scheme devised by Mayor Richard M. Daley and the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) that would see the destruction of some of the largest public housing projects in the nation (at their inception the world) which were built under the leadership and direction of Mayor Richard M. Daley’s father Richard J. Daley during his 21-year tenure as mayor for life. Previously in Fortnight Journal, I wrote in an article entitled “The Chicago Way“: The outcome of the younger Daley’s “Plan for Transformation”–or, more accurately, the demolition of Chicago Housing Authority projects–would hand over large swaths of prime Chicago real estate on the Near North, …

Michael Shaw of BAGnewsNotes’ Top 10 Visual Politics/Photojournalism Blogs List

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Michael Shaw is “the publisher of the popular progressive blog, BAGnewsNotes. BNN is the only blog dedicated 100% to visual politics and the analysis of news images, and also features original, politically-oriented images from America’s pre-eminent photojournalists.” Included on his list of the “top 10 visual politics/photojournalism blogs” for Blogs.com is Verve Photo and a link to recent work featured on the site by Amanda Rivkin. Also included on the list is The New York Times Lens blog, where I co-created and contributed a series of 13 interviews with young photographers last year for the “Turning Point” series that asked about an image that served as a source of inspiration and an image by each photographer that represented a turning point in their early careers. In addition to being featured in this series on the Lens blog, “Turning Point: Images That Inspire,” my work was also highlighted in “Must See: Images on the Web” and “Showcase: New President, Old Problems (2009 – The Year in Pictures)”. Additional blogs listed in Shaw’s top ten include No …

Adding Islam to a Latino Identity, Photographs on The New York Times Lens Blog By Eirini Vourloumis

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My good friend Eirini Vourloumis has work featured on The New York Times Lens blog today, “Adding Islam to a Latino Identity,” that includes 19 slides of Latino Muslim life in the New York suburbs. From her interview with Lens editor and New York Times staff photographer Jim Estrin: Q. What got you started documenting Muslim life in America? A.My interest in Islam began after the attacks of Sept. 11, as I was interested in how the event affected the daily lives of Muslims in New York. Personally, I was interested in exploring Islam because my mother’s family is Muslim, from Indonesia. Being raised in Athens and baptized Greek Orthodox, I was never exposed to the religion. I desired to learn more about my mother’s culture, using photography as my guide. Q. Is it different being Muslim in America than in other countries? A. The main difference is that in America, Muslim society does not have a homogeneous ethnic identity. There are communities of different cultures and backgrounds that embrace Islam. This creates an layered …

Holiday Print Sale, FotoWeek DC, Fortnight Journal, Turning Point Concludes

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Newsletter went out yesterday afternoon: Greetings! I would like to announce a holiday print sale of a select series of 17 prints for $75 each. Every print is from a 6 x 10 inch file and is printed on 8 x 10 inch paper and students who order from a .edu e-mail account receive a discounted price of $50. The holiday print sale is to fundraise for my upcoming trip to Hungary to cover the aftermath of the alumina industrial accident in Ajka that sent toxic red sludge pouring into neighboring villages when an industrial reservoir ruptured. VIEW THE 17 PRINTS FOR $75 to order: send a request that specifies which print and includes your name and mailing address to amanda.rivkin@gmail.com. — Two of my fellow Sarah Lawrence alums, Samantha Hinds and Adam Whitney Nichols, launched Fortnight Journal an online literary journal of art, prose and contemporary culture. VIEW SLOVENSKO FOR FORTNIGHT JOURNAL to see my first of six contributions. — The New York Times Lens Blog “Turning Point” series concluded last week after showcasing …

The New York Times Lens Blog Turning Point Series: Kirsten Luce on Ami Vitale

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Finding Pictures When You’re Not Looking By KERRI MACDONALD AND AMANDA RIVKIN October 27, 2010, 3:39 pm Kirsten Luce, a 28-year-old photographer living in Brooklyn, is a regular contributor to The New York Times. She spent two years photographing along the Mexican border and has freelanced in Mexico City and Atlanta. She is the coordinator for the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, a nonprofit program for emerging photojournalists. Amanda Rivkin’s conversation with Ms. Luce has been edited. Q. Where and how was this picture taken? A. It was taken at a ranch in rural northeastern Mexico. I was living in McAllen, Tex., on the Mexican border, and I was invited to watch a bullfighting practice session. This young matador-in-training was suited up and anxious to begin, but the rest of the men involved were taking their time, socializing. I think it’s important to document everyday life along the border. With the violence occurring in the region, we see a steady stream of dramatic imagery. It is easy to forget that the border is home to millions of …

The New York Times Lens Blog Turning Point Series: Peter van Agtmael on Mark Steinmetz

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A Large Worldview From Small Details By KERRI MACDONALD AND AMANDA RIVKIN October 20, 2010, 12:30 pm Peter van Agtmael, who is represented by Magnum Photos, has spent the last four years documenting America at war. In 2006, his work from Iraq won second place in the general news category from World Press Photo. His book, “2nd Tour, Hope I Don’t Die,” was described on Lens (Nov. 3, 2009). His conversation with Amanda Rivkin has been edited and condensed. Q. How was this picture taken? And how has it changed the way you work? A. It was taken on my second trip to the Three Gorges Dam. It hasn’t really changed the way I work. It was just one of many different moments of happiness and satisfaction toward photography I’ve encountered along the way; just a particularly potent one at the time. I wouldn’t be very excited if I took that picture now, but that’s a good thing. Inspiration: Mark Steinmetz Image: “Knoxville, Tenn.” Early 1990s. Q. When did you first come upon this image? …

The New York Times Lens Blog Turning Point Series: Matt Eich on Rich-Joseph Facun

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Finding Clarity in Ambiguity By KERRI MACDONALD AND AMANDA RIVKIN October 13, 2010, 1:30 pm Matt Eich, a freelance photographer based in Norfolk, Va., is a founding member of Luceo Images. Mr. Eich, who was born in 1986, focuses on the sense of identity found within communities. This year, he was named one of PDN’s 30 emerging photographers to watch. He has also received awards from Pictures of the Year International. His conversation with Amanda Rivkin has been condensed. Q. How was this picture taken? A. I was in Amsterdam for the Joop Swart Masterclass last November. It had been a week of crazy discussions with photographers from around the world who all speak a slightly different version of this visual language. You could always get interpretations of your work and ways to view your work. We were all sort of reeling from these conversations we had been having. Toward the end of the week, we all went out to a bar and I snapped a few pictures, one of the back of this guy’s …

The New York Times Lens Blog Turning Point Series: Justin Maxon on Antoine D’Agata

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Multiple Realities, Multiple Exposures By KERRI MACDONALD October 6, 2010, 1:55 pm Justin Maxon was born in California in 1983 and attended San Francisco State University. In 2007, at 24, Mr. Maxon won first prize in the World Press Photo Daily Life category. Two years later, in 2009, PDN called him one of 30 emerging photographers. Mr. Maxon’s conversation with Kerri MacDonald has been edited and condensed for space. Q. How was this picture taken? A. While working on a long-term project in Chester, a small town outside of Philadelphia, I was besieged in witnessing issues weighing on the lives of the community. I grew frustrated that my work didn’t have the dimension or complexity I felt was necessary to unfold the overlapping issues. So I took a bold leap and began experimenting with multiple exposures. Placing interrelated moments next to each other, I attempted to create images that had layers of understanding in them, where one could see more of the true complications of life in Chester. People must endure a tremendous amount of …

The New York Times Lens Blog Turning Point Series: Mustafah Abdulaziz on Richard Avedon

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Finding Reality, Through a Lens By KERRI MACDONALD AND AMANDA RIVKIN September 29, 2010, 3:23 pm The Brooklyn-based photographer Mustafah Abdulaziz, 24, was born in New York City. Mr. Abdulaziz, who works as a contract photographer for The Wall Street Journal, has been a member of the photo collective MJR since 2008. His work focuses on people and cultures in transition. In 2009, Mr. Abdulaziz was named one of Magenta Foundation’s Emerging Photographers, and this year he was nominated for young photographer at the International Center of Photography’s Infinity Awards. His conversation with Amanda Rivkin has been edited and condensed for space. Q. How was this picture taken? A. The Mural Arts Program of Philadelphia commissioned me to do a series of portraits during the installation of a mural on the side of a methadone clinic in North Philadelphia. People who were on methadone worked on the mural — some contributing poetry and writing for the muralist, James Burns; others putting it together in the basement of the clinic. This portrait of Peggy was taken …