The following contribution is offered as part of the unfolding conversation about the future of photobooks, a crowd-sourced blog initiated by Miki Johnson from RESOLVE and Andy Adams from Flak Photo.

When Adams invited me to partake, I’d just finished writing the usual letter prefacing the Spring 2010 Aperture booklist, which I mention only because I begin the piece by marveling over the extent to which photobooks have been a primary topic of conversation everywhere I’ve been over the the past year — from the Netherlands to Madrid, Frankfurt to Paris, Beijing, and other less exotic places in between. It’s not that this is unexpected in my line of work (publishing, photography, etc.), but the fact that I haven’t been the one to force the topic on other people, and that others have been eager to speak to me about it on their own—that I have been invited to more book awards, shows on books than ever before—is proof to me that the conversation on photobooks is reaching a point of super-saturation. To my knowledge, there are at least four major Books about Books in development (Latin American Photobooks, German Photobooks, Dutch Photobooks, among other general interest) and several related exhibitions underway for release sometime in 2010-11. (In fact, I’m a little bit worried about whether or not the backlash is going to set in before too long). Of course, this newfound attention must be viewed conversley within the larger context of the implosion of the publishing industry at large. This is one of those moments of reconsideration that history loves to give us: the book is dead, long live the book!

From this vantage point, it seems pretty apparent that the photobook market is bifurcating and then some, dividing things into at least two identifiable camps—not to be seen simply as a split between the luxury collectible v. the mainstream affordable, or, as it is more commonly interpreted, between analog and digital. My preferred view of this is of a matrix in which along one axis, you have publications in which the transmission of the idea is tantamount to its material form; and along the other, publications in which the objectness and conceptual rightness of the material form are of utmost importance. In the ideal world, a multiplicity of points plotted between these two axes would be acceptable and supportable; the key factor being a commitment to finding the right form for the material—be it traditional offset printing, hand-pulled gravure, Indigo digital printing, halftone on newsprint, eBook, or online presentation. In other words, even if one sticks to the traditional definition of the book as the word and image brought together in a physical form, there is no single future of the photobook—there are multiple futures.

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Aperture with The New School, the Photography Department at Parsons and the Vera List Center for Art and Politics presents a panel discussion as part of the Confounding Expectations: Photography in Context series. Kicking off this fall season’s series is Words Without Pictures, which explores pressing issues in contemporary photography and celebrates the launch of the LACMA book project by the same name. Charlotte Cotton, curator and Head of the Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, LACMA, will moderate a discussion with panelists Alex Klein, artist and Curatorial Fellow in the Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, LACMA; Matt Keegan, artist and editor of North Drive Press; David Reinfurt, graphic designer and co-founder of Dexter Sinister; and Denise Wolff, Aperture Editor. Other special guests include special guests Fia Backström, Johanna Burton, Melissa Catanese, Sarah Charlesworth, Moyra Davey, Darius Himes, John Lehr, Miranda Lichtenstein, Arthur Ou, Ed Panar and Laurel Ptak. Copies of the book will be available at a special price.

Words Without Pictures
Panel Discussion
Thursday, September 17, 2009  7:00 pm

FREE

The New School
Tishman Auditorium
66 West 12th Street
New York, New York

Dear Exposures Readers,

Aperture friend, Radius co-founder, and photobook freak Darius Himes, sends notice that the deadline for the Blurb Photography Book Now competition is looming.  All entries must be received by noon PDT, July 16, 2009.

Last year, I had the pleasure of being in one of the first groups of jurors to participate in Blurb Photography Book Now (as was fellow Aperture editor, Denise Wolff), and it was a real treat when all the books from the “Thematic Photography Book” category—of which I was one of 5 jurors—started pouring in and piling up. In looking through them, it was evident to me that one key limiting factor for the technology had to do with an artist’s ability to work with the few format options available. In the best, most successful books, the artists accepted and adapted effectively to those parameters in interesting and creative ways, whereas others were clearly fighting it the whole way through—and their layouts subsequently tried to work despite the format, not with the format. Another observation I made at the time was how frequently the text—whether it be simple captions or an artist statement—was treated as a mere afterthought, and not integrated into the larger whole of the book with much intention. Of course for me, the book is such a great form precisely because of the possibilities present when text and image interact.
One thing I was a bit confused about in last year’s competition was how the somewhat vague category of “Thematic” work (the one I had been given to jury) differentiated itself from the even more vague “General” category, so I was pleased to see that they had redefined the categories to be a little more straightforward: Fine-Art, Commercial, and Editorial. (Mr. Himes, who has coordinated and helped guide this competition, writes further about this tweaking of categories in his blog.)
I frequently advise people who are interested in having a book published that the best first step is to try to work with the book form on their own before presenting it to a publisher: make a hand made maquette, barter some art for design services, or—hey, here’s an idea—why not make a book via one of the super-easy digital printing services now so widely available. This competition (which is not limited to ONLY Blurb-made books) is a chance to do just that, and to possibly get some feedback and recognition while you’re at it!

Also, while you’re thinking about competitions, don’t forget that the Aperture Portfolio Prize deadline is also looming… more about that next week.

Best of luck,

Lesley A. Martin

Just announced! Photo-eye Magazine’s list of Best Photo Books 2008. Congratulations to all who are recognized, most notably Josef Koudelka’s Invasion 68: Prague, which made the Top 12 list.

Publisher of the Aperture Book Program, Lesley A. Martin’s list can be viewed here. Darius Himes, Publisher and Co-founder of Radius Books chose Martin Parr’s eclectic work, Parrworld as one of his favorites of the year. Michelle Dunn Marsh, Senior  Art+Design Editor, Chronicle Books nominated two Aperture titles, Hank Willis Thomas: Pitch Blackness* and Misty Dawn: Portrait of a Muse* by Jock Sturges both are available signed from Aperture. Aperture works recognized by PDN include Paul Fusco: RFK* and Travelers*by Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz. Also nominated was Jonas Bendiksen’s powerful work documenting urban slum dwellings in The Places We Live*.

Be sure to check out Aperture’s bookstore to purchase these incredible titles. Order your copy of Invasion 68: Prague here today!

*Signed copies available through Aperture.