News

It’s dangerous to look at an artist’s work and make too many assumptions about his or her character. In art there is artifice; there is always a strong chance it will misinform. If, however, you look at the photography of Arthur Leipzig, you will likely draw conclusions about the photographer that are entirely correct.

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, what is it when you publish an entire book of historically important photographs recreated in Legos? Unfortunately, my knowledge of Spanish does not get me quite far enough into the Galician text to understand why they are made out of Legos. The simplest point of the book is to take us on a through the history of photography, beginning with Niepce and running through Robert Capa and Robert Frank.

Girls are certainly in the news, as these two new magazine covers make clear. But what is the message we’re getting about the fairer sex? Clearly, we are worried about them. Newsweek takes a paparazzi shot made during that brief moment in history when Paris and Britney were BFFs and puts a newsweekly spin on the story. There is the standard, trendy-sounding cover line: “The Girls Gone Wild Effect.” But what I find more interesting is the ungainly cover subhead: “Out-of-Control Celebs and Online Sleaze Fuel a New Debate Over Kids and Values.” What do I start fretting over first?

You may want to start setting aside some time to attend the Festival of the Photograph, goes on from June 7 to 9 in Charlottesville, Virginia. Organized by National Geographic photographer Michael K. Nichols, the festival is something new for the U.S., and it promises to be one of the big photo events of the year. Indeed, the official advertisement for the festival promises nothing less than “three days of peace, love, and photography.” At this point I’d take two out of three of those possibilities. You can get more information at the festival’s website.