This N' That: Keep Up With The Know In Photography News
By Ashley Yu
© Andrew Williams/WIRED. Image courtesy of WIRED
5 Cameras are Better than One, I Guess
The Nokia 9 PureView has 5 cameras. That’s pretty much all you need to know.
Nokia boasts that, unlike other multi-camera phones by Samsung, the PureView uses the same key specs for all five cameras, each with a 12-megapixel sensor and f/1.8 lens. Two of the cameras shoot in color while the other three shoot in monochrome. When you take a photo, the camera will shoot five different exposures simultaneously, and then will merge together for a single shot. The result is a smartphone camera that will add new layers of depth, detail, and color to the photographs.
Besides this innovative feature, the new Nokia PureView resembles any other smartphone, featuring an in-display fingerprint sensor, a face-unlock ability, waterproofing, and 128 GB of storage. This is definitely Nokia’s most luxury release. Just as they were pioneers of the brick phone in the 90s, Nokia steps forward with this ultra-high-tech smartphone that will be available in March.
Image courtesy of the Armory Show
VOLTA Art Fair Cancelled; Armory Show Forced to Relocate
The VOLTA Art Fair that runs alongside the Armory Show is forced to cancel its 12th Edition just eleven days before its opening. Upon unforeseen construction at Pier 92 that was deemed unsafe by the New York Economic Development Corporation, VOLTA plans to fully refund all persons involved. The fair’s artistic director Amanda Coulson has stated that to make compromises to continue the fair “would be a disservice to our galleries, the artists or the visitors.” The Armory Show, however, will continue and has been relocated to Pier 94 and Pier 90, reassuring all that the layout will be the same.
The Armory Show’s 25th edition will be running from March 7-10. By providing an unprecedented platform for innovative artists, the premier art show aims to showcase works from leading international galleries and a collection of the best art from the 21st Century.
Spike Lee accepting the award for best adapted screenplay for his film “BlacKkKlansman”. ©Noel West for the New York Times. Image courtesy of the New York Times
Oscars 2019: Yays and Nays
Yays:
The hostless Oscars was a surprising success, following Kevin Hart’s departure due to his previous homophobic remarks. Hollywood’s most beloved female comedians Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Maya Rudolph opened the award ceremony with a riotous hilarity.
This year, at long last, a diverse list of Oscar winners were announced. Three of the four winning actors were people of color with Regina King for Best Supporting Actress, Mahershala Ali for Best Supporting Actor, and Rami Malek for Best Actor. Meanwhile, Asian-American directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin won Best Documentary Feature Free Solo.
Spike Lee finally accepted his Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, decked out in a purple Prince getup.
Nays:
We’re one step further from #OscarsSoWhite, but the Best Picture Green Book has incited some discussion on the warped representation of people of color. Arguably a complacent apology for racism, Green Book is another genre of film where the African-American character is but a plot device to further the character development of the white protagonist.
Shahidul Alam reacts as he is released from Dhaka Central Jail. ©Suman Paul/AFP/Getty Images. Image courtesy of Getty Images and Artnet News
Jailed Bangladeshi Photographer to Open First Solo Exhibit in NYC
This November, the Rubin Museum of Art is holding a long-awaited exhibition by Shahidul Alam--a Bangladeshi photographer, writer, and activist. Jailed for his dissident political beliefs last year, Alam’s “Truth to Power” is a statement on the plight of freedom of speech in his home country. Featuring photographs spanning 40 years, we are to witness the influence of Alam’s career as a photographer and community organizer.
In August of last year, Alam criticized the Bangladeshi government for its violent overreaction in suppressing protests in the capital of Dhaka. He further denounced the mass social issues on national television that plague the Bangladeshi community, including “the looting of banks, the gagging of the media, the extra-judicial killings,” and many more. Within hours, Alam was arrested by authorities and allegedly brutalized for the next three months. He was released in November and was later named one of TIME magazine’s People of the Year.
As a symbol for free speech, Alam continues to shed light on the injustices of what he calls the “majority world”—a new term for “third-world” countries that are without the negative connotations. You can read more about his upcoming exhibition here.
Yorladis is pregnant for the sixth time, after five other pregnancies were terminated during her FARC years. She says she managed to hide the fifth pregnancy from her commander until the sixth month by wearing loose clothes. © Catalina Martin-Chico, Panos. Image courtesy of British Journal of Photography.
Out Now: Nominees for World Press Photo 2019
A short list of six images has been announced for the 62nd World Press Photo of the Year. Three photographers are shortlisted for a new award that celebrates visual storytelling--the World Press Story of the Year.
From images of migrant caravans to that of gas attack victims, the contest saw over 4,000 photographers from 129 countries. There was a 20 percent increase of female nominees compared to 2018. The judges of the contest comprised of 17 professionals from six global regions with an equal number of men and women. The jury featured prominent artists, such as Ghanaian photographer Nana Ko Acquah, Japanese curator Yumi Goto, and the deputy director of photography at National Geographic, Whitney Johnson.
Recognizing the significance of photojournalism and celebrating the best of visual storytelling, World Press Photo 2019 seeks to define this tumultuous year in photographs. You can take a look at the nominees here.
©American Rifleman. Image courtesy of the Hill.
N.R.A.’s “Target Practice” on Nancy Pelosi and Former Congresswoman who Survived Bullet to Head
The March Issue of National Rifle Organisation’s Magazine features a photo of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords speaking on the proposed legislation to expand background checks prior to firearm purchases. The headline was “Target Practice”, emblazoned across the photograph. It is disgustingly distasteful, considering that Giffords was shot in the head at a meeting in Arizona in 2011, as well as the recent arrest of a U.S. Coast Guard who planned to assassinate Democratic representatives.
Many, including Democratic Senator Christian Murphy of Connecticut, have publicly denounced the N.R.A. article for its incitement of violence. The Senator has stated on Twitter that “they know what they’re doing,” implying that the magazine’s editorial decision was deliberately hateful. Similarly, Republican representative Dan Crenshaw condemned the article’s author for provoking “outrage culture.”
The N.R.A. has yet to comment, but it is undeniable that their manipulation of the facts regarding gun control is unacceptable and degrades the integrity of the press as it shapes the public opinion. You can read more about the article on the New York Times here.
Not content to toil in fashion, Karl Lagerfeld wanted to dominate it, to preside over it, and to make grand pronouncements about how it should evolve. ©Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty. Image courtesy of Getty Images and The New Yorker
Karl Lagerfeld Dies at 85
Know as the “Kaiser” of the fashion industry of the 20th Century, German designer Karl Lagerfeld passed away in Paris, the city that he has helped revolutionize into the “fashion capital” of the world. Donned in his trademark sunglasses, slick silver ponytail, and fingerless gloves, the creative genius was one of the most recognizable men in fashion.
In 1983, Lagerfeld became the creative director of Chanel, transforming the brand into a luxury global powerhouse of beauty and design. In the 2007 documentary Lagerfeld Confidential, he described the Chanel brand as “a sleeping beauty. Not even a beautiful one. She snored.” His aim at the fashion house was “to revive a dead woman”—and that he did. Lagerfeld also breathed new life into the iconic Italian brand, Fendi. Expanding its reach past fur and leather, Lagerfeld produced more than 50,000 sketches, despite his age and waning health.
Not only was he a cultural icon, Lagerfeld was also a fine-art and commercial photographer who captured the beauty of the banal and the fashionable. He was the brilliant photographer behind the many popular Chanel campaigns featuring Cara Delevingne, Lily-Rose Depp, and Pharrell Williams. As the world mourns the loss of the pioneer designer, the Gallerie Gmurzynska in Zurich is exhibiting his photography as an homage to Lagerfeld’s life.
