Aperture aggregates the best posts from this past week in the photography blogosphere.

• Forty years after AP photographer Nick Ut took the iconic ‘napalm girl‘ photograph in Vietnam, photographer David Burnett writing for the Washington Post reflects on an exposure that could have been his. He was standing mere feet away from the scene, surrounded by journalists, re-loading film into his Leica when he missed what became a most emblematic moment. The entry seems like it might have been a good fit for Will Steacy’s collection Photographs Not Taken, which features similar essays from photographers on moments that never became their pictures.
• “Radical change in the photography industry during the past five years has ignited an explosion of photo collectives,” writes James Estrin for the New York Times’ LENS Blog. He explores this recent trend after witnessing an impressive presentation by the newly formed Grain collective at the Look3 Festival in  Charlottesville, VA last month. The post offers a good bit of context for this May, 2012 Wired piece: “7 Budding Photo Collectives You Need To Know.”
• New Yorker’s PhotoBooth profiles Underage, an exhibition of work from six emerging photographers in their late teens and early twenties on view at Photoville, an exciting, week-and-a-half-long photography happening which kicks off in Brooklyn this Friday, June 22,  and features 60,000 square feet of exhibitions, hands-on workshops, nighttime projections, a “photo dog run,” and a “camera garden.” Find daily programming here.
• Time‘s LightBox goes “Behind the Cover: Capturing the American Dream,” exploring the process of the photo shoot for the birds-eye-view cover image by Jeff Minton that illustrates Jon Meacham’s article, “The History of the American Dream,” for this week’s magazine. They also profile Mike Sinclair, whose photographs accompany the same article inside the magazine. His current exhibition, Public Assembly, is on view at Jen Bekman Projects in New York City until June 23, 2012.
• A few things on street photography this week. Blogger and photographer Blake Andrews, who is interviewed by LPV Magazine here, reviews Cedar Pasori’s recently published “50 Greatest Street Photographers Right Now,” with an extensive selection of images. PetaPixel posts the highly informative video by Portland-based photographer Jimmy Hickey, “How to Photograph Complete Strangers” and the free 31-day “program” and e-book by street photographer Eric Kim, “Overcoming Your Fear of Street Photography in 31 Days.” This fall, we’re very excited to be publishing a monograph by Doug Rickard, “A New American Picture,” which offers a radical rethinking of street photography–photographs re-taken in Google’s Street View.
• Fototazo does another Book Discussion Group Recap on Gerry Badger’s collection of essays, The Pleasure of Good Photographs, this time focusing on “Without Author or Art: The Quiet Photograph,” exploring the restrained work of Stephen Shore, among others.
• The Fotojatka festival that traveled to cinemas around the Czech Republic last week screening audiovisual photography slideshows is now offering them free on their website featuring work by Kristoffer Axén, Nikos Economopoulos, Erwin Olaf, and Reiner Riedler.

Congratulations to Kristoffer Axén, whose images Day Three and The Conversation will join the Photography Collection at the ICP next month. The photographs are part of a new, on-going, series called ‘Events in Nature’ (from which a selection can be viewed at this year’s Tierney Fellowship Exhibition at Photoville, the new Brooklyn-based photo destination).

The Tierney Fellowship was created in 2003 by The Tierney Family Foundation to support emerging artists in the field of photography. Axén will be exhibited among a promising roster of artist, which includes Nicholas Calcott, Luo Dan, Ishaan Dixit, Gabrielle Goliath, Emily Kinni, Bryan Krueger, Carlos Licon, Mack Michael Magagane, Bruno Ruiz, Rubi Rose Siblo-Landsman, Roberto Tondopó, Aubrey Tseleng, and Terttu Uibopuu.

The Tierney Fellowship Exhibition
Opening | Friday June 22, 7 to 10PM, on view through July 1
Brooklyn Bridge Park, New York City

›› The successful Fotojatka festival that traveled to cinemas around the Czech Republic – screening specially produced photographic slideshow – is now over. But, you can still view Kristoffer Axén’s contribution online, featured alongside slideshows by more than a dozen contemporary photographers, amongst them Erwin Olaf, Nikos Economopoulos and Reiner Riedler.
›› For those interested in introducing prints from Kristoffer Axén into their personal collection of photography, we recommend The Rabbit Hole from the series At Sea At Night, available via Aperture

By Anna Carnick

Erwin Olaf, Angels in America, 2010

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Now showing: Erwin Olaf: De La Mar at Hasted Kraeutler.

For his latest series, Erwin Olaf casts his highly stylized, cinematic eye on the theatre world. Commissioned by the DeLaMar VandenEnde Foundation for the new De La Mar theatre in Amsterdam, Olaf’s series reinterprets scenes from eight classic plays, with a star-studded cast of Dutch film and theatre actors. The De La Mar series was shot primarily in film studios and theatres in and around Amsterdam in 2009.

Describing the role of theatre in his work, the Dutch photographer says, “I have always been involved with the theatre and dance world, mostly through theatre posters, but also as an inspiration, so there is a close relationship and love for the theatre.” He goes on, “I have always been influenced a lot by film, and I think this is one of the most literal translations of that influence.”

For the series, which will be permanently displayed at the new theatre, Olaf chose scenes from Angels in America, A Streetcar Named Desire, Amadeus, Cyrano, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Sunshine Boys, Waiting for Godot, and Three Sisters. Describing his selection, Mr. Olaf says, “We were looking for classic plays which have iconic scenes in them, instantly recognizable to the visitors of the theatre. Plays that the actors are very fond of, as well as the audiences.”

Notably, in several of the photographs, at least one individual seems to be working behind-the-scenes, such as a stagehand or ticket-taker. “The little people should not be forgotten,” Olaf says. “It’s the whole crew that makes a play, movie, or photograph.”

According to gallery partner Joseph Kraeutler, what makes the series most impressive is the modern twist Olaf has given to such classic plays. “Although these plays were originally produced on paper, they have been translated to the stage time after time by various theatre productions, each with their own views,” he says. “Olaf takes the imagery of these plays and injects both his unique style as well as Dutch celebrity into the imagery, making them entirely his own, as well as modernizing the images to fit into current Dutch culture. He does this while still staying true to the original story of the play. The ability to depict a play in a single image is not just a monstrous undertaking, but also one that invites criticism as different interpretations range dramatically and [are] fueled by the passions of theatre goers.”

Erwin Olaf: De La Mar is on view at Hasted Kraeutler’s Gallery 4 through July 1.

Hasted Kraeutler
537 West 24th Street
New York, NY
www.hastedkraeutler.com

Look for more of Mr. Olaf’s work in the upcoming Aperture book and exhibition, The New York Times Magazine Photographs. Mr. Olaf’s self-titled monograph, published by Aperture, is available now here. And his limited-edition portfolio – I WISH, I AM, I WILL BE – is available here.

*All images courtesy of Hasted Kraeutler.

Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf spoke at Aperture Gallery and Bookstore in the fall of 2008, on the occasion of the release of his self-titled Aperture monograph.

Inspired by Olaf’s new series “Hotel, Dusk and Dawn,” currently on view at New York photography gallery Hasted Hunt Kraeutler, we went into our video archive full of the many wonderful talks, lectures and conversations with photographers, curators and scholars, that have taken place at Aperture over the years, to bring you this in-depth look into Olaf’s work.

In this edited excerpt Olaf compares the orchestration of his complex shoots and the creation of his images of fantasy, similarly to the work of a film director. In the aftermath of 9/11 Olaf constructed several nostalgic photographic series depicting an”America” in the tradition of artist Norman Rockwell and 1960′s glamour. Olaf used this work to explore several psychological themes that commented on both the past and the present. Olaf also talks about what he values in portraits, describing how he captures intimate and candid images of his models while they are in character.

For the full artist’s talk click here:
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Buy Erwin Olaf’s Self-titled Monograph

Check out these two gallery shows opening in New York City this week:

Erwin Olaf: Hotel, Dawn & Dusk

Dusk – Mother by Erwin Olaf
Courtesy of the Hasted Hunt Kraeutler Gallery, New York

A solo show of new work by photographer Erwin Olaf will feature two bodies of work inspired by Olaf’s travels. Dawn & Dusk is a series of dramatic black & white and color photographs contemplating race, history and form, and the simultaneously exhibited series Hotel, a group of images evoking feelings of boredom and loneliness within the sameness of hotel rooms.

Hotel, Dawn & Dusk
Erwin Olaf
January 28- March 20, 2010
Opening reception: January 28, 6:00pm – 8:00pm

Hasted Hunt Kraeutler Gallery
537 West 24th Street
New York, NY, 10011

Also this Thursday, January 28th, a dual exhibition of works by photographers Amy Stein and Brian Ulrich is opening at Caption Gallery in DUMBO, Brooklyn.

The show will include Brian Ulrich‘s Dark Stores, a stark group of landscapes depicting vacant malls and department stores in various states of abandon. The series is part of a body of work showcased in Ulrich’s first monograph Copia, which was published as part of Aperture’s first volume of our ongoing series the Midwest Photographers Publication Project.

Now available from Aperture is a limited edition photograph from Brian Ulrich titled: Chicago, Illinois, 2005, from the series Thrift.

Also exhibited in the exhibition will be photographer Amy Stein’s Stranded, a series of portraits of stranded motorists. Where she describes finding subjects as a matter of chance and every encounter tense because of the unusual circumstances of the interaction and the inherent danger of the roadside environment.

View Erwin Olaf’s Monograph Erwin Olaf

View Aperture’s Midwest Photographers Publication Project

In celebration of his milestone birthday this year, Erwin Olaf created the following set of photo-illustrations: I WISH, I AM, and I WILL BE. Aperture sends our best wishes for this year … and for many more to come!

Click here to purchase your copy of Erwin Olaf’s award-winning monograph through Aperture.

Last week Aperture’s work scholars attended a private tour of Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered with Sean Corcoran, Curator of Prints and Photographs at the Museum of the City of New York.  The exhibition, curated by Kathy Ryan, is in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the Dutch arrival in Manhattan and features a collection of work from Dutch photographers including Helen van Meene, Rineke Dijkstra, Erwin Olaf, Hendrik Kerstens, and others, all aimed to create a ‘portrait of the city’. Alluding to Dutch traditions, each of the artists employs a unique approach to his or her interpretation of present day New York City.

Click below for more pictures from the tour.

The Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered
Wednesday, June 10—Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Museum of the City of New York
1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street, New York
(212) 534-1672

Click here for more information on Aperture’s Work Scholar Program.

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The Museum of the City of New York and Foam_Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam present Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered. This exhibition is guest curated by Kathy Ryan, Photo Editor of The New York Times Magazine, and commemorates the 400th anniversary of the Dutch arrival in Manhattan. The show features works from contemporary Dutch photographers aimed at constructing a portrait of what New York City is today. The exhibition includes portraiture, landscapes, still lifes, conceptual photographs, and documentary photography in a display of modern work, firmly rooted within the Dutch tradition. Participating artists include: Morad Bouchakour, Misha de Ridder, Wijnanda Deroo, Rineke Dijkstra, Charlotte Dumas, Hendrik Kerstens, Arno Nollen, Erwin Olaf, Jaap Scheeren, Danielle van Ark, Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, and Hellen van Meene.

Click here for information on tickets for the opening reception and symposium on Wednesday, June 10 at 5:00 pm.

The Dutch Seen: New York Rediscovered
Wednesday, June 10—Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Museum of the City of New York
1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street, New York
(212) 534-1672

The 88th Art Directors Club Award winners were announced Thursday, April 30 at the Art Directors Club Gallery in New York. Aperture-published titles Erwin Olaf and Michael Wolf’s The Transparent City were both recognized for Design in Print in Photography. Erwin Olaf won a silver cube award and The Transparent City took gold. Congratulations to all who were nominated and Aperture extends gratitude to our great design team. Be sure to get your copies of these award-winning books today!

Click here to purchase a signed copy of Michael Wolf’s The Transparent City.

Click here to purchase of Erwin Olaf.

Paris Photo 2008 honoring Japanese photography, just ended yesterday. It was a truly successful fair for Aperture! Here are a few highlights from the Aperture booth and our book signing event at colette.

On Thursday, legendary Japanese photographer Eikoh Hosoe dropped by the booth to sign copies of the recently launched first edition facsimile reissue of Barakei. Lucky visitors also had the chance to discover his new book projects.

Later in the afternoon, photographer Michal Chelbin signed her latest acclaimed book Strangely Familiar: Acrobats, Athletes, and Other Traveling Troupes.

On Friday, the notorious colette store hosted a special evening celebrating Aperture photographers and a stunning new season of books and prints. Michal Chelbin, Elena Dorfman, Takashi Homma, Erwin Olaf and Michael Wolf were there to sign books and party among 200 collectors and fans eager to meet them.

Erwin Olaf

Takashi Homma