THE NEW YORK PHOTO FESTIVAL 2011
MAY 11-15

CURATED BY ENRICO BOSSAN AND ELISABETH BIONDI

TAKING PLACE THROUGHOUT DUMBO, BROOKLYN (click here for map & additional info)
Tickets will be available at 1 Main Street Storefront, starting Wednesday, May 11 @ 5:00 p.m.

Exhibition Hours

Wednesday, May 11 - 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, May 12 - 12:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Friday, May 13 - 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 14 - 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 15 - 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

This year’s main exhibitions, curated by Enrico Bossan and Elisabeth Biondi (on show at the 81 Front Street Storefront) are presented under the shared rubric PHOTOGRAPHY NOW: engaged, personal, and vital. They offer distinct perspectives on a shared theme: the state of documentary photography today.

Bossan’s show, entitled Hope, features the work of young photographers who, in his words, "neither provide a faithful representation of reality nor create an illusion, but who have impressed me with their ability to capture the essential aspects of life." These artists include Olivia Arthur, Clemence de Limburg, Matt Eich, Simona Ghizzoni, Andrea Gjestvang, Sean Lee, Margo Ovcharenko, Andy Spyra, Mikhael Subotzky, Ali Taptik and Peter van Agtmael. Bossan grants that photography can portray the world at its bleakest, but suggests that it can also—and, in fact, must—remain oriented toward what lies ahead.

Curated by Elisabeth Biondi, Subjective/Objective argues that documentary photography today is remarkably vibrant and creatively thriving, despite the bleak financial picture and vanishing support from a publishing industry challenged by digital media. She has selected photographers who refract reality through their own distinct visions, often venturing into more personal visual languages. Subjective/Objective will include the work of Alejandro Chaskielberg, Stefano De Luigi, Carolyn Drake, Martine Fougeron, Balazs Gardi, Jessica Hines, Ethan Levitas, Irina Werning and A Yin.

In addition to their respective exhibitions, Bossan and Biondi are jointly curating a room of work by photographers Shaul Schwarz and Richard Mosse that reveals the common ground in the curators’ perspectives.

A separate venue, located at 30 Washington Street, will feature multimedia works by artists CIA DE FOTO and Ben Lowy, as well as six viewing booths featuring work by such industry luminaries as MediaStorm and Panos Pictures.

Bossan and Biondi are also curating Under the Bridge: Projections of a Revolution, an extensive collection of photographs and videos documenting the revolutions in North Africa. The show will be comprised of 4 simultaneous projections within the recently renovated Archway under the Manhattan Bridge, underscored by music from DJ Awesome Tapes from Africa.

The show will be projected within the newly renovated Archway under the Manhattan Bridge on the night of Thursday, May 12, starting at 8 p.m. Admission is free.