Documentary photographer Sean Sutton tells Bryony Cottam what he has learned from 30 years on the road

Travel, says Sean Sutton, can help you find your purpose in life. Although, he adds, that very much depends on you. ‘There are lots of ways of travelling. You could go to Thailand and spend the whole time on the beach, maybe try some Thai food. But if you’re inquisitive, if you realise that the world is a lot bigger than what you see around you, it can be revelatory.’

For Sutton, it was travelling through Southeast Asia in 1988 that inspired his 30-year career as a documentary photographer. He’d been taking ‘pretty pictures’, as he calls them, of the countries’ vibrant culture and traditions. ‘In hindsight, I could sense that I was struggling to understand the point of what I was doing,’ he says. ‘It just didn’t seem meaningful.’ 

When he stumbled across a situation on the Thailand–Burma border (a wave of protests and riots had been sweeping across Burma, reaching a peak that August in what’s now known as the 8888 Uprising), he realised he had an opportunity to make a difference. ‘It was a moment where everything sort of came together.’

Sutton would go on to spend two years working in the jungle with Burmese refugees and resistance groups. ‘That was my foundation course in photojournalism,’ he says. 

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Since then, his work has taken him to more than 40 countries, where he has focused on amplifying marginalised voices, particularly in areas of conflict and humanitarian crisis, often working directly with aid organisations. ‘Photography is a really powerful tool for telling stories,’ he says. ‘Collaborating with NGOs and using images to tell the story of crises and injustices is one of the most effective ways to support the organisations working on the ground.’ 

Sutton maintains that, even today, documentary photography can reveal the truth of a moment in time. ‘It’s all about how honest you are as a photographer,’ he says. ‘I’ve certainly seen scenes that have been orchestrated, and that’s fine, as long as it’s been disclosed. Photographers who are not honest really do a disservice to all of us who are out there trying to show the truth.’

To the experienced eye, it can be easy to spot a manipulated image, but sometimes it can be difficult to know what to believe when different media are sharing different views, and some issues never make the news at all. But Sutton thinks that travel can help us to fill in the gaps in our knowledge and better understand the wider world.

 ‘Take Laos,’ he says. Between 1967 and 1973, the USA dropped 260 million bombs on Laos – a covert mission that the US government tried to keep secret for years – making it the most heavily bombed country in history. ‘A lot of people travel to Laos,’ says Sutton, ‘and they inevitably find out about its recent history and are quite horrified by it. Many often feel mobilised to do something to help the organisations that are trying to solve the ongoing problems there.’ 

Sutton cautions that while tourism can benefit regions that have been affected by disasters and conflict, especially if communities have been reliant on tourists for income, visitors should think carefully about why they want to visit. There’s a lot that a traveller might not know about a new country they visit, even if they do their research before they go. 

For that reason, Sutton says it’s important to pay attention while you’re there. ‘It’s not just about written rules and often it’s not about religion – it’s about how people feel, their culture and their way of living. In a lot of places, people are very tolerant, even when tourists are behaving very badly, so you need to be sensitive to how they – and you – behave, partially because people are likely to be more accepting and that can make the whole experience more rewarding.’

Although it would be an impossible task to define the entire year in just a handful of images, we thought we’d still take a crack at it by asking Cameron Spencer, Award-winning Chief Photographer at Getty Images Australia, to share some of the photography highlights from 2023. Here are his picks from the best of Getty.

“With the person in the foreground walking toward the destruction in the background, it’s an incredibly powerful image, using layers and scale to show the impact of the earthquake,” says Spencer.

The logistics behind capturing the world’s news events as they are and as they happen is very complicated. Photojournalists have a responsibility to capture honest, and often confronting photos and videos from disaster zones and other difficult locations.”

“This photo captured the Matildas’ heartbreak after their 1-3 defeat to England so eloquently. The photographer captured the match from the catwalk in the roof high above the stadium and cemented the Matildas’ heart-shaped huddle in the middle of Stadium Australia in the history books, reflecting the love and support they felt from Australian fans during the World Cup.

The photo is a complete juxtaposition of the iconic victory over France just days prior.”

“This is an interesting photo as it reveals a behind-the-scenes perspective of King Charles’ coronation ceremony, singling out King Charles III and Queen Camilla against the backdrop of the masses. For most, this could feel isolating or overwhelming, but Getty Images Royal photographer Chris Jackson captures the contrast so well.

It also points to a trust that the Royal Family has with this photographer, as it’s incredibly rare to gain access and capture such unique perspectives first-hand. Using a wide lens and being close to the royals gives the viewer or audience a feeling of being there on the balcony with the royals as they acknowledge the English public as King and Queen.”

“Skilled photographers must be able to master light, and use it creatively to capture photos using manual exposures to decide the tonal range of a frame that stands out from average smartphone photos.

This photo from a recent fashion week displays the skill required in capturing this moment. The pink dress was made to pop against the background, producing an image which exemplifies the amazing use of colours and lighting and the photographer’s composition against the muted dark tones of the guests.”

Most smartphone brands nowadays invest much of their R&D into professional smartphone photography. TECNO isn’t an exception in this list.

Not only are they bringing the best smartphone hardware they could provide for their wallet-friendly handsets, they’re also getting serious in delivering new camera technologies to the masses.

These will open doors to a new world of imaging. It will also provide exceptional results that were not possible before due to hardware and/or software limitations.

Xiaohan Huang, TECNO’s Director for Image R&D Center, presented three main pain-points when it comes to shooting photos in a smartphone. Those could be addressed with TECNO’s latest innovations in mobile imaging.

Liquid Telephoto Macro Lens

The problem most brands encounter when producing smartphones is that telephoto zoom lens takes too much space. TECNO solves this with their headlining “liquid” telephoto macro lens.

This new type of telephoto shooter incorporates a liquid-filled lens into the actual telephoto module. It adapts a lens curvature depending on how close or far you are from a subject.

This unique liquid lens also ensures better macro shots. It can get to as close as 5cm that traditional periscope telephoto lens fail to provide. Those lenses rely on increasing the overall motor drive — which is also inefficient and expensive to make.

TECNO’s approach relies on adjusting and utilizing the voltage to adjust the lens curvature. This not only gives the best details in a shot possible, but also maintains the thinness and the compact form factor of the smartphone.

W-Shaped Adjustable Physical Aperture

Unlike usual flagship smartphone cameras with the traditional aperture opening, TECNO steps it up a notch with their very-own W-Shaped aperture. This was inspired from the eyes of a cuttlefish.

Much like a standard smartphone lens with dual variable aperture system, TECNO’s patented technology allows users to manually adjust the camera’s aperture. It also precisely manages light while eliminates that annoying glare. This is one of the biggest pain-points in smartphone cameras.

This new type of aperture also ensures better photographs even when challenged by scenarios with harsh backlight. No need to compromise between having poor/dark subjects or overexposed skies.

Universal Tone (UT) Technology

TECNO is among the few phone brands that connect its partners to its users. And ICYMI, TECNO is the leading phone brand in Africa as well as being a rising brand among Southeast Asian nations.

They say most AI algorithms that phone brands have do not deliver the true color of people in color.

But with TECNO’s plethora of R&D centers across the globe alongside leading global universities such as Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU), they have more than enough sample sets to make Universal Tone (UT) technology a reality when taking picture-perfect and accurately-colored portraits.

With this, people of color will also feel they are respected and accepted. Something many smartphone manufacturers fail to deliver.

Sony x TECNO

While Computational Photography is becoming more prevalent, it would still not be possible to achieve a desirable image output without having a great image sensor. Phones still need hardware components in order to make smartphone photography even better. These are: image sensor, lens, back-end processor, camera module, and other necessary components.

Jun Zhang, the Director of Sony’s Semiconductor Mobile Engineering in China, told us that they constantly improve to make their sensors even better. And with TECNO stepping into the scene, they are teaming up with Sony in bringing the best camera tech possible. This results in a more seamless collaboration with one another.

And with the debut of Sony’s dual-layer stacked sensor “LYTIA”, Sony’s director also told us that they’re moving forward with that direction to ensure excellence in imaging quality without sacrificing the overall heft of a smartphone. Something we’ve encountered with 1-inch mobile sensors. No definite word though if TECNO plans on bringing us a smartphone with the latest LYTIA sensor just yet.

The Future of Lens

Nigel Atherton, the Editor in Chief of UK’s leading photography magazine Amateur Photographer is very thrilled with how the smartphone photography scene will look like in the next one to two years thanks to TECNO’s imaging innovation. As someone who has a culturally-diverse family, he told us that the UT technology would be further utilized when taking portraits and photos with family and friends.

For him, the two other camera technologies by TECNO together with Sony’s promised improvements in sensor also meant better dynamic range, reduced noise, and improved signal processing for faster imaging output.

We never witnessed how any of these new imaging technologies by TECNO work in real life. However, the ever-growing Chinese smartphone brand proudly says these three new technologies are compatible with one another and might be in a future (flagship) device soon (Clue: three letters?)

More so, TECNO has also kept video shooting in mind while they are working with these new camera innovations. As Universal Tone (UT) is software-based, it’s been continuously observed by TECNO. Meanwhile, the two other imaging innovations are hardware-based so TECNO said they could definitely be used for dynamic shooting as well.

Originally from outside of Philadelphia, USA, photographer Eric Seidner (Instagram @eseidner) has been in China since 2004, and came to Shanghai in 2010. Before that he lived in Nepal, where his passion for photography was ignited.

Tomorrow sees the opening of his debut Shanghai exhibition at La Cava de Laoma, with an opening taking place on Saturday. We sat down with Seidner to talk inspiration, Instagram and how he went about finally getting his work hanging on a wall.

How did you get into photography?
My interest in photography coincided with my first travels outside of the United States during my early twenties.

I lived in Nepal for a period of time, and there the culture was so rich and pronounced – so different – that I wanted to somehow capture what I was seeing to share with friends and family back home.

All I had was a very basic point and shoot camera – no bells and whistles. Point, click, that’s it. But it started me asking questions.

See, I remember being a child and having had to endure the endless slideshows my uncle forced the family to sit through after he’d return from an exotic adventure.

The stories he told were good, but the images he showed were not – real thumb-in-the-frame type of shots. They were enough to tarnish the glow of the adventure.

So, I began asking myself – what makes a good shot. Or at least – what will make for a non-boring slideshow?

But I was a real crap photographer for ages. My first evolution was when a friend of mine, a photographer at a Philadelphia newspaper and magazine, sold me his used DSLR (Nikon D70).

That camera was totally out of my league at the time! So many buttons and controls – not to mention the weight and size. Yet, it forced me to learn about focal length, shutter speed, aperture, etc.  

Over time, practice practice practice led to better outcomes. But it wasn’t until years later when I joined Instagram that I made another serious evolution in skill level.

Suddenly, I was putting photos out in public and getting real feedback, making experienced connections, and observing thousands and thousands of images. I invested in Lightroom and, just as learning to edit makes a better writer, so does it make a better photographer.

Sometime around 2017, passion and learning really kicked in and I felt myself improving rapidly after years of relative stagnation. 

More recently, I switched to a mirrorless (Nikon Z7 ii) and picked up droning (Mavic Air 2), which has been an entirely new set of skills to learn, like moving from snorkeling across the surface to scuba diving – whole new dimensions of movement become available.

I’m still a ridiculously nervous flyer – I once crashed into a waterfall outside of a hanging temple and relied on monks to fish out my drowned drone from the bottom of a carp pond, but I do love the extra perspectives I now have access to from above. 

How do you choose where to shoot?
I usually choose where I want to travel first, then the photography mostly happens along the way. I believe a travel photographer should have “an eye” and be able to pick moments along a journey as they encounter them.

This is why I tend to avoid 网红 locations, as they have been done to death – I think they can be helpful spots for those just learning to shoot as the scene is already set up, but I really enjoy the process of discovering my own take on a location or in finding a scene that just exists for that moment and is gone the next. 

Through countless travels, I’ve developed a pretty decent hunch on where to truffle-hunt a good photo. Plus, I love to stumble about and am deeply curious – so I follow my instincts and have often been rewarded with unexpected photographic finds. 

Occasionally, I have researched locations in advance or asked my Instagram connections for recommendations. But it is hard to distinguish this as photographic research rather than overall trip planning. Only a few times have I traveled somewhere just to obtain a specific photo. 

What do you look for in a photograph?
For me, the highest ideal for a photograph is to tell a story. I have a literary background and am a hobbyist writer, so I have a natural affinity for photographs that reveal a sense of place and sense of character, and then demonstrate a relationship between them.

I have great admiration for photographers who can constantly achieve this. In my personal work, this is a goal I aspire towards, but often struggle to achieve.

I think the very best of my work features story-telling qualities, but when I can’t achieve that I hope to at least convey a sense of place or person. In the very least, I’ll aim for composition or aesthetics.  

I don’t have a particular niche and am comfortable attempting a wide variety of subject-matter and styles, although “travel” is the common thread running through most of my work. 

Experiencing unfamiliar places and cultures lends itself to a story-telling approach as it will spark my curiosity and encourage me to ask narrative-building questions through my lens – who is this person? Why do they follow this custom? What is special about this environment?

Slowly, I will try to piece it all together. Once I’m engaged, I can sit with a scene for a very, very long time. It is both parts adult-play and mystery-solving. I have to decide what is in and out of frame. Find the right angle. Anchor to a subject. Choose a decisive moment. 

Favorite place to shoot in Shanghai?
Actually, it wasn’t until recently that I started photographing places in Shanghai. I guess it has always been a bit like the old joke of the Parisian who had never once visited the Eiffel Tower – despite having the most famous spot in one’s own backyard, there just isn’t an urgency to go visit it.

Besides, I had always associated my photography with travel and Shanghai was simply my home. 

That began to change with the pandemic. First, international travel was no longer an option, and then domestic travel became increasingly difficult.

Finally, with so many friends beginning to leave Shanghai, I felt a dawning sense of impermanence and that I’d hate for my time in Shanghai to conclude without me having ever documented this great city. 

I began thinking of some of the more iconic areas around the city and decided to (slowly) visit these in turn and capture them in my own way. As I began to do that, I started to become accustomed to taking my camera around the city and began shooting whenever I caught an interesting moment – some of my favorite “Shanghai” shots have happened in random locations. 

Finally, there was the lockdown. I was fortunate enough to live in a building that lifted restrictions earlier than many others, so I tried to document scenes around the city when so many other photographers were unfortunately limited to the view from a window or balcony.

That time was a tie that binds – a shared link that connected everyone throughout the city. For myself, I felt it was important to document and personally I found it therapeutic to process the experience through imagery.

And outside of Shanghai?
Anywhere far away from the tourists!

I like to explore at my own pace, so jostling for position or trying to click-and-go at a scene is not my thing. I’d much rather walk around a single village for hours than hop from location to location.

I often enjoy basing in a location for a few days and just heading out in a different direction each morning to see what there is to see. 

How is the Instagram community in Shanghai and China?
Generally speaking, I have found a good level of openness and friendliness among the travel photography community in Shanghai and China.

At one point, I even belonged to a small private “Asia Crew” group of Instagram photographers whose members were based across China – and, over the years, we even managed to turn online relationships into offline friendships. I still meet with several of them to this day.  

To plug into the community, I think honest engagement is key: follow an account you like, meaningfully comment on their photos and start asking them thoughtful questions about their work and experiences. You’d be surprised how people respond when they sense genuine interest in their account.

People often like to talk about themselves and their work or like to be viewed as a source of expertise from which to offer advice. So ask a good question and be a great listener – start a conversation.

Yet it can take time to build credibility and an online relationship. Some Instagram users are hesitant to reveal the locations in their photos or partner with other users until they can get a sense of “like mindedness” or trust. Therefore, it might take some giving and generous sharing from one’s own end to get the connection going. 

But several of my photography trips have benefitted from recommendations from those in the Insta community, and overall I truly think I have improved as a photographer from having exposure to so many great Instagram connections. 

What advice would you give someone trying to build up an Instagram account?
I think Instagram is best approached with a clear expectation as to how you want to use it as a tool.

For me, I primarily use Instagram to seek community rather than to chase growth; volume of numbers means much less to me than quality of interactions.

As a result, I break many of the platform’s cardinal rules with my photos: I don’t post regularly, take selfies, feature trendy sites, use Reels or vertical orientation and I don’t write catchy little captions – in fact, I write long and often personal stories. 

This leaves me with a curated gallery of photos and a sort of ongoing diary, through which I have made many strong connections and friendships that have lasted years.

For other users, they may have a business to promote or a personal brand and may therefore approach the platform very differently – which is fine, just not for me. 

However, if I had two bits of advice for someone who is a travel photographer just starting out on the platform, I’d say “quality” and “community.”

First, post only your best material – only post bangers.

Second, don’t chase followers for follower’s sake. Instead, find a good community of like-minded individuals.

There are plenty of China or Shanghai-related Instagram accounts (as well as general photography ones) where you can meet individuals who share the same passion or tastes in photography.

You can receive helpful feedback and advice that bring you deeper into your craft, find great recommendations on travel, and make some good friends. 

If you could shoot a place you have not yet, where would it be?
For China, I’ve always wanted to visit Xinjiang. In terms of culture and landscape, I think it is right up my alley. But I have a feeling that I’d need a large swath of time to travel there in any meaningful way, and the pandemic has meant I’ve needed to postpone these plans.

Outside of China, I’d love to visit Iceland! I am a sucker for a good ol’ road trip and would love to rent a vehicle and drive across that fantastically surreal landscape with my drone in tow.

How did the debut exhibition come about?
Hanging my photographs on a wall has always been a goal of mine.

While the initial stages of photography – from capturing the shot to post-production editing – are personal and private, creating a print is about sharing it with others for appreciation and interpretation; when someone takes home a print, the artwork takes on a life of its own, separate from the artist.

I’ve had this intention for a while, but wasn’t sure how to make it happen. It’s not like you can just randomly approach galleries.

Luckily, a friend, Fabiola Liacy De Felip (brand “ByFab”), who is an accomplished travel photographer with many exhibitions under her belt, helped me bring this goal to fruition.

READ MORE: ByFab Photography on The Art of Capturing Human Emotion

She introduced me to Mariano, the owner of La Cava De Laoma, a wine bar and gallery. After reviewing my portfolio, we agreed on a month-long exhibition.

La Cava provides an ideal space with its ample, well-lit walls, and wine being within arm’s reach is an added bonus.

What can people expect from the exhibition?
Big Picture: Gestalt Patterns In Photography brings together a unique theme and immersive experience for a distinctive viewing encounter.

My hope is that guests not only discover visually impactful travel photography, but also gain insights into how their own mind naturally recognizes and processes visual complexity.

Gestalt, a psychological school from the early 20th century, has outlined specific principles explaining how our minds organize complex visuals into patterns.

Artists and graphic designers have employed these principles for decades to create art that aligns with our mind’s interpretation of visual stimuli.

Each exhibited photograph will include a caption explaining the demonstrated Gestalt design principle, and will also serve as an example of how incorporating a specific principle enhances photographic composition.

Big Picture: Gestalt Patterns In Photography

Exhibition: Thu Dec 14, 2023 to Wed Jan 17, 2024.

Opening Party: Sat Dec 16, 4-8pm.

La Cava de Laoma, 1156 Kangding Lu, by Wuning Nan Lu 康定路1156号, 近武宁南路.

Here, Seidner introduces six of the photographs that will be in the exhibition…

Labyrinth

“This photo represents my enjoyment of getting a bit off the beaten path, even though the area of Xiapu is becoming more well-known amongst professional photographers.

“To get this view I had to climb to the roof of an abandoned building in a fishing village. In frame, a boat maneuvers towards an exit from within a maze of bamboo poles as an approaching storm darkens the sky.

“These poles – tens of thousands of them speared into the sea and stretching towards the horizon – are a characteristic of China’s largest mudflat, Xiapu, and are used by fishermen to festoon seaweed for drying.”

Golden Prosperity Building

“This is not only one of my first Shanghai shots after having lived in the city for years, but it also represents the silly amount of patience I will employ to get the photo I want.

“The beautiful golden ringed pattern on the interior of Jin Mao Tower makes for a great shot all on their own, but I wanted a human subject and envisioned including a spectator on the balcony.

“I had to wait nearly an eternity with my camera held in position for that man in the lower right to pop out on the balcony with his phone to complete my composition.”

Leviathan

“This is another of my all-time favorites and shows the power of choice a photographer has in framing a shot.

“In reality, it is a fisherman checking fishing nets blowing in the wind. But with a simple choice of crop it becomes something much more menacing – a tentacled leviathan closing in on a victim.”

Dragon Catches The Pearl

“Mythical Chinese dragons are often portrayed chasing a flaming pearl, symbolizing spiritual prosperity, power, or wisdom.

“In this candid morning shot of the Bund, dragon dancers toss their dragons high into the air, creating the illusion of these creatures hovering over and about to catch the ‘Pearl’ Tower.

“The resulting photo made the early rise well worth it.”

Writ In Water

“I love capturing unplanned moments during my explorations.

“For example, during my visit to Zhenjiang, renowned as the home of vinegar, I stumbled upon an elderly man crafting sidewalk poems with a large calligraphy brush dipped in water.

“His verses described and praised the location.”

The Rainbow Headquarters

“The Old Hill Street Police Station in Singapore is striking on its own, showcasing a vibrant pattern of ROYGBIV window shutters.

“Yet, to align with my aesthetic, I prefer to include an individual in the frame to offer both a sense of scale and a narrative focus.

“Achieving this involves a bit of a challenge, as it relies on the participation of strangers. 

“Without the ability to direct them, I patiently wait for the right person to naturally come along and contribute an action that enhances the overall composition.”

Follow Eric Seidner on Instagram @eseidner

[All images courtesy of Eric Seidner/@eseidner]

The art photography program in the Department of Film and Media Arts at Syracuse University is now accepting applications for its MFA degree. The faculty of this dynamic program appreciate how photography as a contemporary art has transformed in the past two decades. The dramatic expansion of the parameters of photographic practices and the increasingly global nature of the contemporary art world necessitates an educational environment that prepares students for entirely new challenges and opportunities. Our MFA students are offered access to professional residencies in Los Angeles and Berlin; interdisciplinary courses that braid diverse ideas and practices; state-of-the-art equipment and media production studios; and significant investments in curriculum and facilities to ensure students can pursue their creative passions.   

As artist and faculty, we are acutely aware of the financial burdens of graduate education and offer generous tuition discounts, scholarships, and teaching positions. Graduate students admitted to the program benefit from substantial financial assistance and can receive up to 20,000 USD per year of study, with many students also receiving teaching assistantships and hourly paid positions.  

The faculty (Yasser Aggour, Doug DuBois, Laura Heyman, and Susannah Sayler) is a diverse group of working artists who have a comprehensive knowledge of contemporary photography and are experienced in documentary, video, conceptual, and performance art, as well as curatorial practices. Together with our students, we have created an academic environment that is intellectually rigorous and supportive. Recent graduates of the program have participated in numerous exhibitions and received awards, residencies, and academic appointments, including a Guggenheim fellowship and a MacArthur “genius” grant. Students benefit from our close partnership with Light Work, an invaluable intellectual, professional, and technical resource unique to Syracuse University. Graduate students receive membership access to one of the nation’s leading photo production facilities, which they retain for five years post-graduation.  On any given day MFA candidates may be working alongside major international artists in residence at Light Work. 

Between the contemporary programing at Light Work and our visiting artist program, students receive mentoring from some of the art world’s leading artists, critics and curators. Recent visiting artist include Siddhartha Mitter, Tyler Mitchell, Yto Barrada, Hito Steryl, Wendy Redstar, Allison Janae Hamilton, Joiri Minaya, Collier Schorr, Farah Al Qasimi, Rahim Fortune, William Camargo, Danielle Bowman, Deana Lawson, Dana Lixenberg, Laurel Ptak, Zora Murff, Ryan MacNamara, Zoe Strauss, Carrie Mae Weems, Elinor Carucci, Penelope Umbrico, Susan Meiselas, Alec Soth, Stanley Wolukau-Wanambwa,  Shimon Attie, Denise Markonish, Sam Falls, Arnold Kemp, An-My Lê, Justine Kurland, Liz Cohen, Kelly Reichardt and Jesse Darling, among others.  

In addition to artist studios and access to a full range of media production equipment and facilities, MFA candidates can visit and participate in exhibitions at several internationally recognized venues, including the Everson Museum, Syracuse University Art Museum, and Urban Video Project.  

Alumni: La Toya Ruby Frazier (MacArthur and Guggenheim Fellow, MoMA); Rose Marie Cromwell (Silver List 2024, Vice, Harper’s Magazine, Calvin Klein, FADER, MACK first book finalist); Widline Cadet (Huis Marseilles, The New Yorker, Time Magazine, FOAM, NYFA Fellow, Studio Museum in Harlem AIR, Deli Gallery, Fotografiska, Milwaukee Art Museum, PS1); Nydia Blas (Johnson Museum of Art, Over the Influence, Los Angeles, California, Paris Photo, The New York Times, Vogue, Assistant Professor of Art & Visual Culture at Spelman College ); Courtney Asztalos (Fort Wayne Museum of Art, The Front, New Orleans, Meinblau, Berlin, Post, LA, The New Yorker, Paper Journal, Der Greif, New York Times); D’Angelo Lovell Williams (Higher Pictures Generation, Lumber Room PDX, The Mint Museum, Yale University Art Gallery, W Magazine, Out Magazine, New York Times Magazine, monograph Contact High, Mack Books); David Politzer (Cabinet, Eyebeam, El Paso Museum of Art, Director of the University of Houston’s School of Art); Shawn Records (Vice, New York Times Magazine, MOCP, Portland Art Museum).  

Applications are now online. The deadline for fall 2024 admission is February 1.  

Images from Ani, the ancient Armenian capital, are featured in the 2024 wall calendar published this week by Stone Garden Press.

The photographs are from the portfolio of Matthew Karanian, the author-photographer of The Armenian Highland, an award-winning history book about Western Armenia and the First Armenian Republic of 1918. Karanian’s photographs of Ani cover a period of 20 years, dating back to 2003 when he made his first research trip to the ancient capital. During those years, Karanian has documented the changes at Ani.

Ani was a restricted military zone when Karanian first visited 20 years ago. Photography was forbidden, and armed soldiers enforced the law. Still, Karanian was able to take photographs of Ani using a film camera, while standing outside the city walls. One of those images graces the cover of the 2024 calendar. Later, when the military restriction was lifted, Karanian returned and documented the city within the walls, using digital equipment. 

“The loosening of the restrictions harmed Ani,” says Karanian. “With the military restriction lifted, and with the soldiers largely gone, Ani was plundered.” Karanian has documented illegal excavations that were performed, apparently by looters, during the past decade.

There have also been so-called “renovations” to the churches, walls and other monuments in Ani in recent years. These reconstructions were performed under the supervision of Turkish authorities and, according to Karanian, the work was sometimes performed without regard to historical accuracy.

Karanian first published images from his portfolio of Ani in the historical guidebook Historic Armenia After 100 Years. This is the first time the images have been available in a calendar.

The 2024 Ani wall calendar is available online from www.HistoricArmeniaBook.com for the online discounted price of $21.95 with free shipping within the U.S. The calendar measures 9 x 18 inches, and covers the 13-month period from December 2023 through December 2024.

Mail orders are also accepted with checks for $24.95 made payable to Stone Garden Press, P.O. Box 943, Pasadena, CA 91102.

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles or press releases written and submitted by members of the community.

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