Berger's photographs feel like instant punctum but there’s layers upon layers to absorb.

If you’re active on Instagram, you’ve likely been struck by Kyle Berger, aka @kyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyle’s instant-woah photos of owls, raccoons, eagles, fast food signs and other animals, people, and objects thrown jarringly into suburban landscapes. Golden arches loom ominously behind flash-blasted foliage. Flames smoke and engulf a lone black sedan on a thruway. A bear sneaks up on a smiling baby from behind a tree. In all of Berger’s photos, there’s something humorously off. They’re intentionally unreal – at once creepy and funny, throwing light jabs at the absurdity of contemporary suburbia and declining strip mall culture.

Most of Berger's photos are digitally altered, but, like KangHee Kim aka @TinyCactus, Laura Hendricks aka @hav_house, and countless others, representing “truth” or having a photo “look real” is irrelevant. I spoke with Kyle to learn more.

Jon Feinstein in conversation with Kyle Berger

PostedMarch 28, 2019

AuthorJon Feinstein

CategoriesArtists, Portfolio

TagsKyle Berger, new photography, tinycactus, KangHee Kim, Laura Hendricks, Jon Feinstein, Humble Arts Foundation, HAFNY

Adeline in Barrettes, 2018 © Micaiah Carter — *Adeline in Barrettes, 2018* © Micaiah Carter

To celebrate her new representation of Micaiah Carter, acclaimed art advisor Sarah Hasted speaks with the photographer about his lyrical portraits of celebrities and everyday people.

The first time I saw the photography of Brooklyn based artist Micaiah Carter in the fall of 2016 at Parsons School of Design, I knew he was going to be successful. A self described recluse, he was not social in college, he just put his head down and quietly got to work. Mentoring and guiding him through his senior year was one of the true joys of my long teaching career. The unique gift that 30 years of experience in the art world and 16 years teaching at one of the most prestigious art schools in the world has given me, is the ability to spot artistic talent and potential – immediately.

Micaiah’s portraits are sincere, dignified representations of the sitters while staying true to his distinctive aesthetic - a modern day combination of Roy DeCarava’s poetic, lyrical, emotional photographs - and the proud, regal and formal portraits by Harlem Renaissance photographer, James Van Der Zee - all of them achingly beautiful.

The work is soft hued with a 1970’s tone and vibe that pay homage to his family history and father’s scrapbook. In some works, Micaiah consciously references his father’s early life and dated fashion and with total reverence, creates exquisite, inspired images, that can only be interpreted as stunning.

Sarah Hasted in conversation with Micaiah Carter

PostedMarch 19, 2019

AuthorSarah Hasted

CategoriesPortfolio, Artists

TagsMicaiah Carter, contemporary portraiture, celebrity portraiture, new photography, Solange, Sarah Hasted, Parsons School of Design

APR-66-Wisteria © Chinn Wang — *APR-66-Wisteria* © Chinn Wang

Recent 93rd Annual Print Center exhibition finalist Chinn Wang cuts up and recasts her family’s photos to make sense of their missing pieces.

It’s like the classic riddle: what casts a shadow but cannot be seen? In Soaking Up Local Color, Chinn Wang’s solo show at Philadelphia’s Print Center, the answer might be something like “the past” or “history” or “family heritage.” The child of immigrant parents who purposefully chose to focus on their American future instead of sharing their family histories with their daughter, Wang addresses this gap in knowledge and representation in a haunting visual manner. The works on display are screen-printed enlargements of photographs of Wang’s mother, newly on American soil soon after she immigrated from Hong Kong in the 1960s in a variety of settings: a field of flowers by a mountain, the gravel of a parking lot, the manicured grass of a lawn.

Exhibition Review by Deborah Krieger

PostedMarch 14, 2019

AuthorDeborah Krieger

CategoriesExhibitions, Artists

TagsThe Print Center Philadelphia, 93rd ANNUAL International Competition Solo Exhibitions, Chinn Wang, Deborah Krieger, Photo Collage, The Age of Collage, Soaking up Local Color, Vintage Photographs, Found Photographs, Family Photographs, Vernacular Photography, 2019 Photography Exhibitions

I first encountered poet Philip Matthews and photographer David Johnson at Chicago's Filter Photo Festival in late 2018. Though our portfolio review was a brief 20 minutes, it was immediately clear that their collaborative effort Wig Heavier than a Boot was a fulsome, even revelatory experience. The project, which will debut as a book published by Kris Graves Projects in October 2019, reveals a rich creative relationship between Matthews, Johnson and Petal, a drag persona who acts as the artists’ muse and teacher.

In advance of their talk at SPE this coming Saturday March 9th, we spoke about the project's origin and evolution, the nature of collaboration, and matters of gender and representation in a photo- and art historical context.

Roula Seikaly in conversation with Philip Matthews and David Johnson

PostedMarch 4, 2019

AuthorRoula Seikaly

CategoriesPortfolio, Publications, Galleries, Artists, Photobooks

TagsWig Heavier Than A Boot, queer photography, Philip Matthews, David Johnson, Kris Graves Projects, photography and performance, Roula Seikaly, New Photography

Embodiment: Salvaging A Self is Stone’s ongoing response to being diagnosed with a mysterious autoimmune condition that threatens her mobility. Rather than making literal, documentary photographs of her experience, she pairs self-portraits with sculptural objects – both found and fabricated in her studio – as metaphors for her feeling of disorientation from her body. Pins, glue, tape, and other materials hold her sculptures together while muted self-portraits depict her 5'10" subtly slouching frame. These simple pairings capture the emotional weight of trying to hold herself up.

I spoke with Stone to learn more about her process, ideas, and how she’s doing.

Jon Feinstein conversation with Sue Palmer Stone

PostedFebruary 25, 2019

AuthorJon Feinstein

CategoriesArtists, Portfolio

TagsSue Palmer Stone, Sculptural Photography, Self Portraiture, New Photography, PhotoNola

Kyle Berger May Be The Most "Whoa" Inducing Photographer on Instagram

Micaiah Carter's Achingly Poetic Portraits

Chinn Wang Conceals and Reveals Her Family's Hidden History

Wig Heavier Than A Boot: A Collaboration of Poetry, Photography and Queer Identity

Sue Palmer Stone Uses Sculpture and Self Portraiture to Process A Mysterious Diagnosis