Issue No. 28 – Control

What is the nature of control? The desire for it—and to be free of it—are essential parts of both life and art.

New Blood at Milk Gallery

New Blood at Milk Gallery

Image above: ©Max Pinckers, Kimono. From the series Two Kinds of Memory and Memory Itself, 2015 / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

Image above: ©Max Pinckers, Kimono. From the series Two Kinds of Memory and Memory Itself, 2015 / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

 

Milk Gallery was pleased to announce MAGNUM PHOTOS: NEW BLOOD.

Image above: ©Matt Black, USA. Allensworth, California. 2014. Fence post. Allensworth has a population of 471 and 54% live below the poverty level / Courtesy of Magnum Photo

Image above: ©Matt Black, USA. Allensworth, California. 2014. Fence post. Allensworth has a population of 471 and 54% live below the poverty level / Courtesy of Magnum Photo

This exhibition celebrates the work of Magnum Photos’ six new nominees: Matt Black (b. 1970, USA), Carolyn Drake (b. 1971, USA), Sohrab Hura (b. 1983, India), Lorenzo Meloni (b. 1983, Italy), Max Pinckers (b. 1988, Belgium), and Newsha Tavakolian (b. 1981, Iran). These remarkable photographers have worked across the globe, from California’s Central Valley to the streets of Tehran, documenting stories with journalistic diligence and exceptional artistic eyes.

 

Image above: ©Sohrab Hura, India. 2007. Rainy night in Kodaikanal / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

Image above: ©Sohrab Hura, India. 2007. Rainy night in Kodaikanal / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

Membership of Magnum Photos is both a rare privilege and a phenomenal accomplishment; applicants undergo numerous rounds of scrutiny and years of exceptional portfolio development to join its esteemed ranks, shared by the likes of Elliott Erwitt, Susan Meiselas, Thomas Hoepker, and Steve McCurry, to name a few.

 

Image above: ©Carolyn Drake, Darvaza. Turkmenistan. 2009. Nicknamed "The Door To Hell," Darvaza gas crater has been burning since 1971 when Soviet geologists tried burning off the gas in an underground cavern to prevent poisoning. Gas is in rea…

Image above: ©Carolyn Drake, Darvaza. Turkmenistan. 2009. Nicknamed "The Door To Hell," Darvaza gas crater has been burning since 1971 when Soviet geologists tried burning off the gas in an underground cavern to prevent poisoning. Gas is in readily available in Turkmenistan and was supplied free of charge across the country until 2014 / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

 

Since the agency’s inception 69 years ago, Magnum has never before admitted so many photographers in one year. In addition to marking a great personal achievement of each respective artist, the inclusion of these talented photographers to the prestigious ranks of Magnum’s legendary photographers makes a profound statement in the agency’s vision. As current Magnum president Martin Parr exclaimed, the intake of these six gifted photographers “indicates the great faith we have in our future and our desire to find the best new talent that can contribute to the growth of Magnum.”

 

Image above: ©Lorenzo Meloni, SYRIA. Kobani / Kobane (Arabic: Ayn al Arab) . 09 August 2015. A painting inside a destroyed building / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

Image above: ©Lorenzo Meloni, SYRIA. Kobani / Kobane (Arabic: Ayn al Arab) . 09 August 2015. A painting inside a destroyed building / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

 

With 46 framed pieces that will be on display and for sale, the exhibition will highlight the unique point-of- view each new associate member brings to Magnum. Matt Black is an American documentary photographer whose work focuses on issues of poverty, migration, and the environment and has won the World Press Photo Award for Daily Life and been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography. Fulbright and Guggenheim fellow Carolyn Drake explores the ways that history and reality are purposefully shaped and revised over time through her documentary photography projects, which include the series “Two Rivers” and “Wild Pigeon.” The second Indian photographer to join Magnum, Sohrab Hura’s photography ranges from intensely personal narratives of his mother’s struggle with schizophrenia to the series “The Song of Sparrows in a Hundred Days of Summer,” which documents life in a secluded village in central India. Dedicated to long-term projects regarding the aftermath of the fall of Gaddafi in Libya and the conflict in Syria, Lorenzo Meloni currently focuses in on the political balances of the Middle East and the consequences of its conflicts on the population. With his several documentary photo-series in countries such as Thailand, India, Japan and Kenya, Max Pinckers combines extensive research and diligent technical preparation that makes use of theatrical lighting, stage directions, and extras with improvisation to obtain unexpected and poetic documentary images. Newsha Tavakolian’s work ranges from bold reportage of political events to sensitive portraits and evocative series on subjects such as the insecurity of middle-class youth, female Kurdish fighters or the impact of sanctions on individual lives.

 

Image above: ©Newsha Tavakolian, IRAN. Teheran. Mahud, climbing the wall of the abandoned empty swimming pool, which is the only quiet place he can find to practice his singing. 2014 / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

Image above: ©Newsha Tavakolian, IRAN. Teheran. Mahud, climbing the wall of the abandoned empty swimming pool, which is the only quiet place he can find to practice his singing. 2014 / Courtesy of Magnum Photos

 

These diverse artists have unquestionably earned the title “best new talent,” each bringing a wide range of experience and skill to Magnum’s list of photographers and will continue Magnum’s legacy of consistently setting the precedent in producing excellent documentary work while creating fine art.

Magnum Photos: New Blood is on view at Milk Gallery until May 8, 2016 at 450 West 15th St New York, NY

Figurative Digital Photography? at Galerie Richard

Figurative Digital Photography? at Galerie Richard

Kansuke Yamamoto at Taka Ishii Gallery

Kansuke Yamamoto at Taka Ishii Gallery