The Magnum Digest: February 26, 2021
David Hurn wins Amateur Photographer magazine’s Exceptional Achievement award, Paolo Pellegrin’s image illustrates The New Yorker’s fiction story, Olivia Arthur’s TED talk, plus more
David Hurn wins Amateur Photographer’s Exceptional Achievement award
Amateur Photographer magazine’s yearly awards event recognizes Magnum photographer David Hurn with its Exceptional Achievement award in its most recent iteration. The accolade is accompanied by a 6-page feature on the photographer’s life and 66-year career which included his social documentary from Wales and around the UK, his series following The Beatles, and his depiction of leisure time at an Arizona residential home for the elderly. Read about Hurn’s award online here, and see the feature in the latest print edition of the magazine.
Paolo Pellegrin shoots for The New Yorker
A recent story in the The New Yorker‘s Fiction section, ‘Casting Shadows’, by Jhumpa Lahiri, was illustrated by an image shot for the magazine by Paolo Pellegrin. The piece tells a story from the perspective of a single woman about the interactions she has with a married man and the other people in her neighbourhood. Jhumpa Lahiri won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for fiction for Interpreter of Maladies. Read the story here.
Olivia Arthur gives a TED talk on humanity and technology
Magnum photographer—and president of the collective— Olivia Arthur recently gave a talk on her body of work, produced in conjunction with BCG, about technology and the human body. Listen to the talk here.
Stuart Franklin interviewed about his pandemic photography
A recent feature on The Atlantic has explored the significance of pandemic photography, and the question of vivid, iconic images representing the past year under Covid-19. Writer Helen Lewis spoke to a variety of photo editors at major news organizations, as well as Magnum photographer Stuart Franklin, about the possibility of visually documenting the psychological and indirect impacts of the virus and resultant lockdowns. Read The Atlantic’s piece here. Find an essay by Franklin on his coronavirus reportage on Magnum here.
Cristina de Middel’s mountain pool image in The Guardian
The Guardian recently provided a look into Cristina de Middel’s series, Journey to the Center, the body of work which won her the Prix Virginia last month. The paper’s Tim Adams unpacks de Middel’s enigmatic image of a woman at the Hierve el Agua rock formation in Oaxaca, Mexico. Read his article here.
Susan Meiselas’ photography book for kids on It’s Nice That
It’s Nice That has featured Susan Meiselas’ new book, Eyes Open, a publication which teaches visual literacy and photographic expression to children. Read the feature at It’s Nice That here.
Comic on Abbas’ Muhammad Ali images reviewed by The New York Times
The New York Times explores the new graphic novel Muhammad Ali, Kinshasa 1974, in a feature on its website this week. The publication, released by Titan Comics, takes the photographs by Abbas of Muhammad Ali’s fight against George Foreman —known popularly as The Rumble in the Jungle— as a basis to illustrate the full story of the iconic sporting event. Find The New York Times’ piece here, and read an interview with the estate of Abbas on the same story on Magnum here.
Elliott Erwitt’s latest book reviewed by The Independent
Found, Not Lost, the new publication collecting never-before-seen images from Elliott Erwitt’s 70-year archive, has been featured in The Independent. The newspaper writes, “The wit [Erwitt’s] pictures are known for has survived this second viewing and shines through across the pages.” Read more here.
Carolyn Drake’s Knit Club reviewed by The Washington Post
Writing for The Washington Post, Kenneth Dickerman has reviewed Carolyn Drake’s most rcent photobook, Knit Club. The book explores the lives of a group of women in Mississippi through a framework of the writings of William Faulkner. Dickerman says, “The results are mysterious and sumptuous, making it rich for repeated viewings. This is the best kind of photography — shying away from literal descriptions and giving the viewer so much to consider.” Read more here.
Black in White America 1963-1965 recommended by Boston magazine
A new edition of Leonard Freed’s seminal civil rights photobook, Black in White America, includes a selection of previously unseen images and an essay by Freed’s Magnum colleague Eli Reed. The book has been included in Boston magazine’s list of five art books for springtime reading lists. See the whole selection here.
Khalik Allah’s ‘IWOW’ reviewed by The Guardian and Financial Times
‘IWOW: I Walk on Water’, the newest film by Magnum 2020 nominee Khalik Allah, goes on general public release today. Ahead of the release, several publications wrote about the film. The Guardian described the work as comparable to “a real-time autobiography” here, while The Financial Times here remarked that Allah’s “camera never sleeps”. Find more information about the work, including Allah’s own reflections from his talk at the ICA’s recent film festival in a piece on Magnum here.
