The Magnum Digest: May 1, 2020
Emin Özmen’s portrait of Istanbul during the pandemic, Peter van Agtmael in Maryland for TIME, and Alec Soth’s photos taken through binoculars on The New York Times
Emin Özmen depicts a ghostly Istanbul for National Geographic
Images of the Turkish city made by Magnum’s Emin Özmen appear on National Geographic this week in a piece examining the effects of the pandemic on cultural life, business and tourism industries, and the practice of Ramadan in the formerly lively city. See the article here.
Magnum photographers explore quiet during the pandemic in National Geographic
The fifth edition of the photographic diary co-produced by Magnum and National Geographic was published this week. The series chronicles the effects of the coronavirus epidemic and the activities of photographers around the world during this time. This week, the piece explored silence and reflection. See it here. These images feed into Magnum’s ongoing series curated by Peter van Agtmael, Diary of a Pandemic, the latest chapter of which can be seen here.
Peter van Agtmael in Maryland for TIME
A new article in TIME explores the US state of Maryland’s management of the coronavirus crisis, as part of a profile of its governor, Larry Hogan. Peter van Agtmael worked photographing the activities in Maryland’s political offices as well as on the streets of its towns and cities. See the piece here.
Alec Soth’s binocular photography in The New York Times
The New York Times shared a visual diary of eight photographers’ time in isolation this week, which included images by Alec Soth, taken using his iPhone and a pair of binoculars, in his hometown of Minneapolis. Other names to make appearances in the diary included Joel Meyerowitz and Renée Cox. See the images here.
Listen to Alec Soth’s playlist
Seven photographers made playlists of their favourite music for Aperture, selecting the tunes which comfort them, inspire them, or get them moving. Alec Soth supplied a list featuring “bare-bones songs that have inspired me over the years”, which played a part in shaping his projects Sleeping by the Mississippi, Broken Manual, Songbook and I Know How Furiously Your Heart Is Beating. Find the playlist here.
Martin Parr’s Space Dogs chosen in National Geographic’s photobook list
National Geographic has compiled a selection of ‘escapist’ photobooks for travels from the comfort of your home, in which Martin Parr’s Space Dogs: The Story of the Celebrated Canine Cosmonauts has featured. The magazine’s former Director of Photography, Sarah Leen, recommends 17 titles, stating, “You can’t fall in love with a website the way you can with a book.” See the list here.
Chris Steele Perkins’s portrait of Sue Davies featured on The Guardian
A photograph by Chris Steele-Perkins of the late Sue Davies accompanies her obituary in The Guardian this week. The founder of London’s Photographer’s Gallery died April 19, aged 87. The paper described her as, “A charismatic champion of the medium,” noting that, “She broke a tradition that kept photographs in books, albums and newspapers. Instead she put them on walls […] in a central London venue that would become much more than just a gallery.” Read the piece here.
Koudelka: Shooting Holy Land in El País
El País explores the documentary Koudelka: Shooting Holy Land in a feature on their website this week. Directed by Gilad Baram, the film follows Josef Koudelka’s contemplative process photographing Israel and Palestine over a five-year period. Read the Spanish newspaper’s review online here. You can watch the film on-demand via Vimeo here or buy a hard copy via Nowhere Films. Learn more about the documentary here, on Magnum.
