What's up! trouvaillesdujour: May 2013

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Blumenfeld Studio: New York, 1941 - 1960 at Somerset House

Blumenfeld Studio: New York, 1941 - 1960 looks at one of the most influential photographers of the twentieth century, Erwin Blumenfeld and his latter works from his career in New York. Having produced an extensive body of work throughout his thirty-five year career, it was in the USA, after the war in the context of economic growth and a buoyant and expanding press, that Blumenfeld's humorous, inventive and personal work flourished. This exhibition celebrates the output of his Central Park studio during the Second World War and post-war boom years, including fashion photography, advertising campaigns, personality portraits, 'war effort' propaganda posters and experimental work, which have since been recognized as significant technical achievements in the field.

After only three years of working in the USA, the German-born photographer became one of the most famous and highly paid photographers in the business, with the New York Times heralding him as an "outstanding leader in imaginative photography".

Blumenfeld Studio: New York, 1941 - 1960 is currently on exhibit at Somerset House, UK.
May 23 - September 1, 2013

Blumenfeld Studio: New York, 1941 - 1960

Grace Kelly 1955 for Cosmopolitan

Spring Fashion 1953 for Vogue

Lilian Macusson for the cover of American Vogue, January 1951

Evelyn Tripp in a Dior Sargent Dress (variant of photograph in American Vogue Nov. 1949)

City Lights

Support for the Red Cross for the cover of American Vogue March 1945

Courtesy The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld and Somerset House, UK.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Photo of the Day

Flowers on Water

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Anja Niemi: Starlets

In Anja Niemi's new series Starlets, the Norwegian photographer combines the self-portrait with the idea of the staged narrative. The images are like film stills or movie posters, with herself cast as all the characters. Niemi calls herself a 'one-man band', as she always works alone.

The stories are loosely told leaving room for interpretation, and although it is mostly fiction, "there will always be a bit of me in them" she says, believing that private experiences help to create universal statements. The images possess an eerie, unreal quality, combining tragedy with humor.

We have a tendency to cover up our flaws and decay, hiding all the ugliness of life and I try to have a bit of humor about it.
~~ Anja Niemi

Anja Niemi is one of the most exciting young European photographers. She has exhibited widely in both Europe and USA with her previous series Do Not Disturb, Portrait of the Invisible and Porcelain.

Starlets is on view at The Little Black Gallery, London.
June 4 - June 29, 2013

Anja Niemi

Starlets

The Showgirl
Copyright © Anja Niemi

The Taxidermist
© Anja Niemi

The Bride
© Anja Niemi

The Receptionist
© Anja Niemi

The Roller Girl
© Anja Niemi

The Secretary
© Anja Niemi

The Socialite
© Anja Niemi

The Starlet
© Anja Niemi

The Wife
© Anja Niemi

The Reject
© Anja Niemi

Courtesy the artist and The Little Black Gallery, London.

Also on the Huffington Post.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Photo of the Day

Philip Haas

The Four Seasons

Summer (after Arcimboldo), 2010

Courtesy New York Botanical Garden

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Photo of the Day

A Bed of Flowers

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Photo of the Day

To All the Moms of the World

I made this collage with my Instagram Flower Photos

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Guldnakke (Golden neck) by Trine Søndergaard

" My Neck Is Shaded by the Beads....."

Gold is a universal symbol of wealth, the sublime or the divine. gold provokes a feeling of desire in many of us. When I first saw the golden bonnets at a local museum, I was immediately fascinated by the material and the delicate embroidery, without knowing anything about the history behind them. The bonnets are from the mid 1800s, and were popular among the wives of Denmark's wealthy farmers. They were a status symbol. Gold textiles had previously been reserved for royalty, the nobility and the church. Highly specialized needlewomen made the bonnets, and these experts are early examples of self-employed women who were often able to provide for their families. Linking this kind of women's history to a specific garment is something I've explored in the past, just as I've explored our ability to read the signs of the past previously.

In Guldnakke, none of the faces can be seen. The focus is entirely on the napes and golden bonnets. I work consciously with large formats to enhance the visual effect that occurs when the embroidery is magnified and the image creates the space for a wealth of detail, which in real life only covers a small area.
~~~Trine Søndergaard

Trine Søndergaard (b. 1972) is a Danish photographer. She has exhibited in numerous solo and group shows in Denmark and abroad. Søndergaard lives and works in Copenhagen.

Trine Søndergaard

Guldnakke