Xe Bang Fai River Cave

An expedition in 2008 recently mapped the Xe Bang Fai River cave in central Laos. Likened to "an underground K2" by explorer John Pollack, the enormity and scale of the cave dwarfs most others on Earth (so far). I look forward to hopefully seeing the photos in my NG when it arrives.

We cover a lot of architecture on our site. But looking at the photos of the cave, I am reminded of how the hands of man cannot create a built environment as grand and awe-inspiring as this. Something that started as an underground trickle, over countless years, became a humbling reminder of the power and patience of the natural world.

photographs by Dave Bunnell

Abandonalia

Check out Abandonalia's flickr and blog for some incredible photographs of abandoned sites. Textures and colors abound in these old institutions, reversing the previous sterility and order. I wish I could read more spanish to understand the descriptions of the places.

The Oxford Project

In 1984 Peter Feldstein photographed 670 of the 676 residents of Oxford, Iowa. Twenty-one years later, he returned to re-photograph the 670 original participants, bringing Stephen G. Bloom to interview each person. Though some people had died and some had moved away, Peter was able to photograph and interview large number of the original participants. The result is a beautiful portrait of a small American town. From the artist's website:

Some chose to talk about religion. Others spoke about relationships gone bad. More than a few talked about spouses' infidelities. Several broke down in tears. A few waxed about first girlfriends and boyfriends.

Some of their words came out slowly, others came out in jags and torrents. The language of more than several was pure poetry. Stephen and Peter came to realize that the project had a purpose. They had become confessors to an undiscovered America.

Peter and Stephen put together 100 of these portraits and oral histories in a book titled "The Oxford Project", which is available here.

Mitchell Feinberg

Mitchell Feinberg describes himself as a "luxury still life" photographer. His artistic and conceptual approach to fashion photography makes him stand out in the crowd. I love this series of photographs he did for Muse Magazine - the relief of the product sands in for its actual presence.

Via Omami.

Pieter Hugo - The Hyena & Other Men

I've never seen a real hyena but Pieter Hugo's photo series "The Hyena & Other Men" is somewhat terrifying. The hyena seems almost savage and brute in form, and I can't imagine how you could domesticate one. Pieter Hugo's artist's statement is fascinating:

These photographs came about after a friend emailed me an image taken on a cellphone through a car window in Lagos, Nigeria, which depicted a group of men walking down the street with a hyena in chains. A few days later I saw the image reproduced in a South African newspaper with the caption 'The Streets of Lagos'. Nigerian newspapers reported that these men were bank robbers, bodyguards, drug dealers, debt collectors. Myths surrounded them. The image captivated me.

Through a journalist friend I eventually tracked down a Nigerian reporter, Adetokunbo Abiola, who said that he knew the 'Gadawan Kura' as they are known in Hausa (a rough translation: 'hyena handlers/guides').

A few weeks later I was on a plane to Lagos. Abiola met me at the airport and together we took a bus to Benin City where the 'hyena men' had agreed to meet us. However, when we got there they had already departed for Abuja.

In Abuja we found them living on the periphery of the city in a shantytown - a group of men, a little girl, three hyenas, four monkeys and a few rock pythons. It turned out that they were a group of itinerant minstrels, performers who used the animals to entertain crowds and sell traditional medicines. The animal handlers were all related to each other and were practising a tradition passed down from generation to generation. I spent eight days travelling with them.

The spectacle caused by this group walking down busy market streets was overwhelming. I tried photographing this but failed, perhaps because I wasn't interested in their performances. I realised that what I found fascinating was the hybridisation of the urban and the wild, and the paradoxical relationship that the handlers have with their animals - sometimes doting and affectionate, sometimes brutal and cruel. I started looking for situations where these contrasting elements became apparent. I decided to concentrate on portraits. I would go for a walk with one of the performers, often just in the city streets, and, if opportunity presented itself, take a photograph. We travelled around from city to city, often chartering public mini-buses.

I agreed to travel with the animal wranglers to Kanu in the northern part of the country. One of them set out to negotiate a fare with a taxi driver; everyone else, including myself and the hyenas, monkeys and rock pythons, hid in the bushes. When their companion signalled that he had agreed on a fare, the motley troupe of humans and animals leapt out from behind the bushes and jumped into the vehicle. The taxi driver was completely horrified. I sat upfront with a monkey and the driver. He drove like an absolute maniac. At one stage the monkey was terrified by his driving. It grabbed hold of my leg and stared into my eyes. I could see its fear.

Two years later I decided to go back to Nigeria. The project felt unresolved and I was ready to engage with the group again. I look back at the notebooks I had kept while with them. The words 'dominance', 'codependence' and 'submission' kept appearing. These pictures depict much more than an exotic group of travelling performers in West Africa. The motifs that linger are the fraught relationships we have with ourselves, with animals and with nature.

The second trip was very different. By this stage there was a stronger personal relationship between myself and the group. We had remained in contact and they were keen to be photographed again. The images from this journey are less formal and more intimate.

The first series of pictures had caused varying reactions from people - inquisitiveness, disbelief and repulsion. People were fascinated by them, just as I had been by that first cellphone photograph. A director of a large security company in the USA contacted me, asking how to get in touch with the 'hyena group'. He saw marketing potential: surely these men must use some type of herb to protect themselves against hyenas, baboons, dogs and snakes? He thought that security guards, soldiers and his own pocket could benefit from this medicine.

Many animal-rights groups also contacted me, wanting to intervene (however, the keepers have permits from the Nigerian government). When I asked Nigerians, "How do you feel about the way they treat animals", the question confused people. Their responses always involved issues of economic survival. Seldom did anyone express strong concern for the well-being of the creatures. Europeans invariably only ask about the welfare of the animals but this question misses the point. Instead, perhaps, we could ask why these performers need to catch wild animals to make a living. Or why they are economically marginalised. Or why Nigeria, the world's sixth largest exporter of oil, is in such a state of disarray.

Via One Strange Morning.

Misplaced Groceries by Aesthetic Apparatus

Misplaced Groceries is a quirky little book done by Aesthetic Apparatus cataloging exactly what the title implies. I can't stand it when people put stuff back where it doesn't belong, but I appreciate the book a lot. Check out a pdf preview of it here.

Stacy Pearsall

Check out this interview from Popular Photography with Stacy Pearsall. In the short interview, she speaks about being both in combat and a photographer at the same time. Stacy is not an embedded photographer from a press service, she is in the Air Force. The images featured are very powerful and highlight conflict in a different way than we are used to seeing on the news.

Phillip Toledano

Days with my Father is a beautiful, touching website dedicated to Phillip Toledano’s father, who no longer has any short-term memory. The website catalogs Phillip's ongoing relationship with his 98 year old father through photography and words. Definitely worth a look through.

Via Creativadoration.

Terraclime 100 by Lowepro

The Terraclime 100 from Lowepro serves as a great city and camera pack. The slim messenger shape with the inside and outside pockets keep everything organized. The padded camera wrap fits virtually any SLR body instead of cramming an odd-sized lens setup into a pre-formed holster. The good (or bad) news is that it is only 390 cu. in., allowing for only the day's essentials. Lowepro intended to make the pack as eco-friendly as possible and executed that by using 95% recycled materials to construct the bag.

Klaus Thymann

Klaus Thymann's book "Hybrids" explores incongruous themes - including (among others) gay rodeo, underground garden, artificial beach, and religious theme park. The photographs are of The Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida. The juxtaposition of the scene from the crucifixion and the tourists checking their photos raises a number of emotions. I'm not quite sure what to think of the park. Where is the line between evangelism/ministry and entertainment? Should there be a line at all?

Light Calligraphy by Julien Breton

Julien's light calligraphy is simply beautiful. The contrast of the fluidity of movement and the implied control necessary to control the light source is very inspiring. I especially like the image on the left, which shifts out of the two-dimensional and creates a radial space for the writing.

QStarz GPS Travel Recorder

QStarz BT-Q1300 is a super small GPS travel recorder so you can be your own big brother. I am particularly interested in the geotagging of photos. I have been looking for a gps receiver for our D80, but synchronizing a log file with the image time stamp seems to be the only way to do it unless we upgrade to a pro dSLR. If I had this before, you could find out where went on our most recent hike.

Saw V Poster

Lionsgate released the new poster for Saw V recently. While I do not really support movies like Saw that parade torture as entertainment, the movie poster is very intriguing. The facial expression and bleached-out medical preservation colors slow down the image to a somber portrait instead of a gory sideshow. Though, Dr. Lecter is slightly critical of it.

Bee in the Morning Dew

I'm not sure who took this photo originally (if you know, please email me!), but it is amazing! The colors and the refraction of the eyes in the water...gorgeous, gorgeous photo of a bee in the morning dew.

UPDATE: Thanks to Max for digging up the photographer - it is Martin Amm, who describes it as a portrait of a red veined darter, full of dew. Lovely.

Via Kussyi.

Eye of Science

Eye of Science combines the exacting images of microscopic images with the artistry of photography and color. Started by a biologist and a photographer, EOS captures amazing moments of cellular processes as well as microscopic structures and organisms. The images make you think twice about how well designed the world around us is, down to the smallest detail.

via Digg

50 Sad Chairs by Bill Keaggy

50 Sad Chairs by Bill Keaggy catalogs the vibrant colors and compositions of street chairs and their surroundings in St. Louis, MO. Keaggy's skill and eye bring out beauty in the banal, page after page.

50 Sad Chairs at Amazon.

The Rolling Exhibition - Kevin Connolly

Kevin Connolly started a great photo project to document the expressions and reactions to his skating by them. The expressions capture such a range of emotions because Kevin was born without legs. Check out the Rolling Exhibition and a video short segment called "What Are You Looking At?" on People of the Web to learn more

Flickr Turns 4

Flickr turned 4 a few weeks ago and hosted a big show in their gallery space. They also encourage everyone to grab a few photos from the Flickr Turns 4 Photo Pool and put up a little gallery of your own.

If you are ever looking for some incredible photographs for your walls, Flickr is absolutely a great place to look. Print them out and frame them! And you can start adding them to your contacts to keep up with their work. I am waiting for camera companies to integrate gps into their cameras so that geotagging will become a bigger part of photography.

Dresser Johnson

While the Arrow Ring by Dresser Johnson is very cool, it's the photo set of the ring out in the world that I really love. Check out Steph Goralnick's flickr set here.

Via the Carrotbox.

Nike Zoom TRE ads

Check out the Nike SB ads for the Zoom Tre, shot by John Humphries. I love the fisheye combined with the pixelated ceilings. I'd like to see the set they shot against here. I appreciate that Nike takes a little different stance on the ads by creating sets and combining graphics and photo. Their P-Rod commercial is a great example of their work.

File Magazine

File, an online magazine, shows an ever-expanding collection of photography. Their main collection is open to public submissions. It's an interesting mix of all sorts of moments, from the composed to the candid.

I especially like Laura Kicey's Construct, an ongoing project of architectural documentary photographs.

Brian Gaberman

How many photographers can say they had a part in 411? And Chomp on This shouldn't really count as comparison. Brian Gaberman is now behind the lens and building a beautiful portfolio of skate photos that go far beyond simply documenting a trick. In a field recently dominated by high-production videos, it's nice to see a single instant framed, lit, captured and printed.

We're heading to the Bronx for Thanksgiving and are taking Thursday and Friday off - enjoy the holiday weekend! Tell your mama's what you're thankful for!

20x200

I've been meaning to post about 20x200 after hearing about it over at Raul Gutierrez's great blog, Heading East. 20x200 is a new limited edition showcase dedicated to providing affordable art to collectors with all depths of wallet. Curated by Jen Bekman, 20x200 debuts two artists a week (one photographer and one illustrator). The prints come in three sizes: S,M,L: S (6"x10") has an edition of 200 for $20 each. M (13"x20") has an edition of 20 for $200 each. L (26"x40") has an edition of 2 for $2000 each. Art for everyone! The artists shown above: Dana Miller (left) and Jennifer Sanchez.

NASA - Great Images in NASA (GRIN)

GRIN aka Great Images in NASA, is the repository of the most important historical images of the US space program from its founding through today. The images above are of the Saturn V S-1C Stages in Michoud Assembly Facility (left) and The First Stages of Saturn IB in Final Assembly (right). The library of images is absolutely worth checking out and span the breadth of the NASA programs.

National Geographic - Wildlife Motion Detection Cameras

Ever wonder who is stealing the cheese out of the fridge? These Wildlife Motion Detection Cameras from National Geographic might solve that problem right quick. Triggered by heat and movement, both the 35-mm and digital models of these simplified all-weather cameras take multiple images to capture backyard wildlife. Equipped with a wide-angle lens with 60-degree field of view and two test modes, these cameras will run for 21 days of 24-hour operation before needing fresh batteries. NG makes both a digital (left) and 35mm (right) version for all your cheese-nabber needs. And they are incredibly affordable at $60-$70 each.

Design*Sponge Shop

Thanks so much to Grace Bonney for including us in January's Design*Sponge shop! It was truly an honor! This month sees new products from Amanda Kavanagh, Foxy and Winston, Laura Lienhard, Jon Setzen of Standard Motion and Geoff Wood. The lovely print above is from Foxy and Winston. As was the case last month, 100% of the proceeds from select items in the shop go towards the Design*Sponge scholarship.

Bill Sullivan - More Turns

More Turns, a series/installation by Bill Sullivan, a local NYC artist, showcases a part of our day that we rarely ever notice (or even try our hardest not to notice): people passing through the turnstiles in the subway.

Installed as a series of 6 larger than full-size images, the portraits become a window into the familiar, but re-presented in a striking and unfamiliar way. The photographs confront the viewer with the stare of the commuter in such a way to freeze both the subject and the viewer. Please take a minute to look at the website and see the individual expressions on the faces, amazing. We should all take such an interest in the everyday din of the city. Because in it we can find those fleeting moments of beauty.

Karen Walker

While Karen Walker's jewelry is all very nice, the images of the jewelry really steal the show. If you know who the photographer is, let me know!

UPDATE: The photographer is Derek Henderson and the stylist is Katie Lockhart. Thanks, Allebelle!

Via ~>O<~.