#38 death, when you think about it

A third of the population never talks about death with their loved ones. The society of the global North has lost its natural attitude towards death. Through the ideal of infinite growth, consumer life, and the cult of eternal youth, death gradually became taboo. The presence of death has been delayed by society through a healthcare system focused on improving citizens’ physical condition, thus effecting the greatest possible delay to dying – not only in practice, but also within the collective consciousness of mainstream society. The importance and depth of the process of departure is reduced. One possible result is the suppression of fears connected to the end of life, which make it impossible to experience life in the present.

For theorists of photography such as Susan Sontag and Roland Barthes, the medium of photography was itself a kind of death or its imprint. As Sontag points out: “Photographs state the innocence, the vulnerability of lives heading toward their own destruction, and this link between photography and death haunts all photographs of people.” The fragile line between death and life has been the subject of art since antiquity. What are the forms taken by the topic today? It might be difficult to go through all the layers of emotion that surround our cessation, but we will try to imagine the diverse moments of encountering death and the different perspectives one might adopt, with the aim, ideally, of accepting respect and gratitude for life, allowing us to perceive it in the present. The art of accepting death at that moment can become the art of living.

Vivienne Westwood (London, UK)
March 7 - June 30

Photos
Andreas Kronthaler

Published in 2020
13 x 19 cm
32 pages
Color Offset Print
First Edition

REAL FASHION HIGHLIGHTS ILLUMINATED IN A WHOLE NEW WAY

The international fashion world is creative, expressive and above all fast-moving. This book is dedicated to elaborately staged, lovingly designed fashion productions and is a homage to fashion photography. 12 fashion experts have screened hundreds of magazines worldwide and have selected the best editorials, covers and campaigns for you. The Fashion Yearbook 2021 comprehensively depicts the fashion highlights and the creative minds behind them, such as photographers, stylists, models and make-up artists, in a stunning illustrated book, making it a unique standard work of the fashion industry. The result is beautiful. Engaging. Inspiring. Simply sensational.

• The best international fashion editorials, covers and campaigns of 2020
• A unique overview of the most impressive fashion photographs
• Top-class jury, among other the former editor-in-chief of American InStyle, Ariel Foxman, and street style icon Veronika Heilbrunner

Studio Magazine – Issue 2

A magazine published biannually showcasing art and fashion in contemporary culture. 

This new volume features the artist’s latest works as well as an interview and insightful essays, providing the most comprehensive look at Erwin Olaf’s work to date.

In his work, the Dutch artist Erwin Olaf (1959) creates worlds which are thought through to the smallest detail. They look confusingly similar to our own, but often pose a riddle: behind the immaculate aesthetics borrowed from the film and advertising industry, something repressed is lurking.

His works are negotiating questions about democracy, equality or self-determination. On the occasion of his first major solo exhibition in Germany, this accompanying catalogue explains key aspects of Olaf’s artistic work.

At the same time, it offers an attractive overview of his multifaceted work over the past forty years. Olaf’s most recent works, which were created especially for the exhibition in the Kunsthalle Munich, are also published here.

Erwin Olaf began to capture nightlife with documentary photography in the 1980s and developed into an artist who, as a director and photographer, creates cinematic photographs that are mostly characterized by a mystical atmosphere. His work is recognized worldwide and presented in many exhibitions.

GUP #68 - Echo

Whether it’s with regret for the past or desire for the future, we simply can’t wait to move on to a more vibrant daily experience, one that we can manage by ourselves again. Back to life, back to reality, right? Yet, while anxiously awaiting the light at the end of the tunnel, we suggest first a moment of contemplation – in order to absorb the echo of a world we’ll be leaving behind. If only to see what condition our condition is in.

Antoine d’Agata examines the essence of last spring’s lockdown, which he captured with the use of a thermal camera; Robert Knoth and Antoinette de Jong discuss the eerie calm they experienced in the woods around Fukushima; Parisa Aminolahi, 2021 New Dutch Photography Talent of the Year, looks back on her transition from Iran to Europe. GUP#68 evaluates Jason Eskenazi’s completion of a trilogy, his visual report of an impressive odyssey; and we also present a portfolio showcasing Claudine Doury’s long-term commitment to Siberia.

As well as our regular announcements of events scheduled to (actually!) happen and recommendations for recently published books, this issue furthermore features work arising from more abstract or conceptualised introspection. In addition to portfolios from talented artists Valerio Polici and Xue Jiang, we have the privilege to present a preview of Jessica Backhaus’s forthcoming book of highly aesthetic and colourful cut outs, plus a sneak preview of Cig Harvey’s ‘Blue Violet’ private realm, while artist duo Albarrán Cabrera elucidate humanity’s relation to Earth – the fragile “blue dot” amid the immense universe – via their distinctive approach to photography.

– The Editorial Team

Contributing Photographers:

Albarran Cabrera | Antoine d’Agata | Cig Harvey | Claudine Doury | Jason Eskenazi | Jessica Backhaus | Parisa Aminolahi | Valerio Polici | Xue Jiang

Contributing Authors:

Erik Vroons | Lauren Jackson | Linda Zhengová | Patrycja Rozwora

Her name is Julia, his name is Vincent. They met almost 10 years ago, and have been creating together for 5 years. ‘Erotish’ is an exercise in style, inspired by the aesthetics of the 1980s. Nostalgic for a time when “everything seemed positive, carefree, and where aesthetics were the priority”, the photographers play with retro codes, a few clothes in satin, naked bodies on motorcycles, a subtle blurry effect… But far from producing a vulgar sexy collection, or merely copy and pasting a certain aesthetic, the duo reclaims to modernize this aesthetic. (Cyrielle Gendron for Photo fr)

Julia Stoltz is an art director, photographer and director, living and working in Paris. Together with Vincent Girardot she forms the creative duo Julia & Vincent. As an artist duo they look for the artificial in our daily life.

Published by Art Paper Editions,

design and edit: Jurgen Maelfeyt

23,5x31cm, 80 pages, ills colour / b&w, paperback

edition of 700

A COLLECTION OF WORK DEPICTING LIFE WITHIN ISOLATION

ISOLATE ZINE - Edition02 aims to document the support of the Black Lives Matter movement, whilst celebrating not just black photographers, but the collaborative efforts of us all as we look to listen, learn, and support during this defining time in history.

ALL profits donated to Black Minds Matter UK, less the costs for the printing of the Zine, postage and packing.

Everyone involved in the project has donated their time, creativity and content for free so we could make this happen and donate to Black Minds matter UK.

54 pgs, 24 × 17 cm, Softcover, 2020,

Known for her quiet portraits of American cultural movements, Kristin Bedford’s new work, 'Cruise Night', is an intimate and unstaged exploration of Mexican American lowrider car culture in Los Angeles. From 2014 to 2019 she attended hundreds of lowrider cruise nights, car shows, quinceañeras, weddings and funerals. Bedford’s images offer a new visual narrative around the lowrider tradition and invite us to question prevalent societal stereotypes.

Located at the intersection of aesthetics and social realism, her photographs explore the nuance of cars as mobile canvases and the legendary community that creates them. With the bold language of color photography and the female vantage point, Cruise Night is an original look at a prolific American movement set against the Los Angeles cityscape.

Sixteen Journal 

A very special issue dedicated to Japanese Photography.

300 pages / 4 Glossy Dust Covers
Printed on uncoated paper

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Daido Moriyama, Nobuyoshi Araki, Keizo Kitajima, Masahisa Fukase, Jack Davison, Tatsuo Suzuki, Tenmei Kanoh, Keizo Motoda, Jun Abe, Koji Onaka, Seiji Kurata, Sakiko Nomura, Joe Cruz, Bruce Gilden, Eizaveta Porodina, Roe Ethridge, Alexandra Leese, Erika Kamano and more.

Issue No. 25

Crossing Borders Again

Europe’s Best Travel & Art Destinations after deconfinement

Cover: Picasso leaving exhibition, Vallauris 1953, Cover by Andre Villers, © Andre Villers

Body

The Photography Book

Nathalie Herschdorfer

The body remains a battleground. Politicized, conceptualized and increasingly shared, our often-paradoxical relationship with the human form is nothing new, but finds itself heightened in the digitised, virtualised era of the ‘post-industrial’ body. No longer a tool but a work-in-progress, our bodily expectations bound from fantasy to reality, beauty to tyranny, art to commerce and curiosity to obsession, leaving us dreaming of other bodies and alternate lives.

Surveying a range of over 360 photographic re-presentations from the worlds of art, fashion, scientific and vernacular photography – including the work of Nobuyoshi Araki, Bettina Rheims, Lauren Greenfield, Viviane Sassen, Cindy Sherman, Wolfgang Tillmans, Daido Moriyama, Sally Mann, Pieter Hugo, Juergen Teller, Sølve Sundsbø and Daniel Sannwald – Body explores what our imaging of the human form, and the ways in which those images have been used and shared, might reflect of our relationship to the body. Supporting the broad range of photography is an essay by the psychologist Professor David Sander, Ph.D., discussing the neurological representation of our own bodies.

About Elska 30 (Sidney, Australia):

‘Elska Sydney’ is our thirtieth issue, which also marks five years of the Elska project. For this landmark edition we decided to make our second trip to Australia, following one of our most popular ever editions ‘Elska Perth’. This time we decided to invite our readers to select which Aussie city to choose, and Sydney was the winner (Melbourne came a close second - they're time will come one day).

It's no surprise that we'd eventually spotlight Sydney. As one of the world's ‘big gay capitals’, famous in particular for perhaps the world's biggest pride celebration Mardi Gras, it's also one of the most beautiful settings of any city on the planet. However, our arrival came right at the end of one of the worst ever summers of bushfires, making the sky a strange dirty colour (which is visible in several of the images here), and right at the very beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak. Nevertheless, the enthusiasm of the men we met here could not be quashed, as they were keen to show us their city. Elska is rather known for its honesty, and here is one of the most honest issues of all, with stories that reveal what's great and what could be better about Sydney, and images that show lots of beautiful perfections and not just that Bondi Beach kind of gloss.

Inside ‘Elska Sydney’ you'll meet around a dozen ordinary local lads who we happened to meet on our trip. We photographed them in their homes and in their neighbourhoods, revealing their personalities and their bodies via intimate photography (shot by us) and personal stories (written by each of the men). Some of the Aussie boys you'll get to know here include:

• Stephen G, who shares his take on a rather universal story of a small-town boy choosing between a free but trying life in the city or a discreet but simple life in the country;

• Rhett P, who looks back at a perfect relationship that came to an end and wonders if he can ever find something so beautiful, especially after the countless disappointing dating experiences had a trans man in this city;

• Gary P, who talks about the ‘multiple personalities’ he comes to perform as a brown person in a city that can act much whiter than it actually is;

• Timur S, who guides us through his whirlwind wedding celebrations, an endeavour that he and his husband impulsively threw together in the space of a few days;

• Dan C, who recalls some of his first experiences with public nudity and shares how nakedness has been the basis of much joy in his life;

• Mart B, who tells us about the long road he's gone with coming to terms with his body and gender, a journey that still continues but gets ever closer to a destination of acceptance

Details and Specs:

‘Elska Sydney’ is 196 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

Includes texts in English and Russian (followed by English translations where applicable).

About Elska 26 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania):

Elska Pittsburgh is our twenty-sixth issue and also our third edition made in the USA, following our series in Providence (Rhode Island) and Los Angeles (California). If this isn't a city you know much about, then you should. The queer scene of ‘Steel City’ is one of the most diverse and up-and-coming in the country. The city as well has been flourishing of late, filling disused warehouses and broken factories with artists’ studios, independent bars and restaurants, and revitalisation projects that so far have been keen to maintain the town's true character. On the surface you might be reminded of a Shoreditch or a Brooklyn, but minus the hipster pretensions or snobbishness. Pittsburgh is truly welcoming, and it's truly a revelation.

The men we met in Pittsburgh were enthusiastic about their city and they were also especially keen to share their bodies and voices with us, totally open and unfettered by shyness. This means a larger than usual amount of stories dealing with sex, such as a loving tribute to polyamory, an explicit ode to a weekend-long orgy amongst friends, and even a piece about watching porn in a public café with old ladies cheekily leering along!

Whether you've been to Pittsburgh, are planning to go, or even if you have no interest whatsoever in touring the Rust Belt, this issue belongs in your collection. It's truly an exemplar Elska issue that does what we do best - sparking curiosity, opening minds, and titillating just a little bit. Or in this case, a little bit more. Ooh, aah!*

Features images of / stories from: Jerome “Chu” C, Ricky M, Jayvon T, Christian C, Tom C, Brett S, Will T Jr, Elí A, Kevin K, Indigo C, and Jan-Tosh G; plus our Q&A feature with Eric H.

We also recommend ordering Elska Ekstra Pittsburgh, available separately or in the bundle, to also meet: Varun S, Kevin T, Brian O, and Edwin N.

*Apologies for the probably over-the-heads Gina G reference.

Details and Specs:

Elska Pittsburgh is 192 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

About Elska 04 (Lisbon, Portugal):

This edition was made in Lisbon, Portugal. Truly one of Europe’s most beautiful cities, it makes a great contrast following the colder, more northern settings of the previous three issues: Reykjavík, Berlin, and Lviv. The warmer colour palettes, the sea, the hills, the crumbling old buildings and cobbled streets all bring a fresh look for the Elska collection. Of course the men are beautiful too, and inside you'll meet a cross-section of a dozen local boys of various backgrounds, styles and ages who we happened to meet on our trip here. Each is shot in the city or in their homes; in their own clothes or no clothes at all; without contrived styling, airbrushing and over photoshopping. It's part of the Elska goal to be authentic and honest. The stories too are honest, as each boy's photospread is accompanied by a personal story, making the experience all the more intimate and aiming to make you feel like you're right there visiting Lisbon with them. 

Originally released in 2016, this edition has been completely remade for this new 2021 edition. This means lots of previously unpublished images from the vaults, a couple extra boys who weren't in the original edition, a new story by Julien P, and all in our bigger and more beautiful modern format.

Includes stories in English, Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese (all followed by English translations where applicable)

Features images of / stories from: Daniel T, Matheus G, Paulo L, Ricardo V, André G, Daniel R, Jorge B, Miguel G, Pedro C, Julien P, Luis L, Ruben S

We also recommend ordering the companion zine ‘Elska Ekstra Lisbon’, available separately or as part of the “bundle” to get 308 pages of behind the scenes tales, loads of outtakes, extra stories, and nine extra boys like: Adrian L, Chris C, Luis R, Miguel LC, Miguel A, Ivaylo L, Quentin V, Dario P, Vasco Q, plus two stories by Romain Butti

Details and Specs:

‘Elska Lisbon’ is 180 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

250 p, ills colour & bw, 24 x 30 cm, hb, English

About Elska 28 (Amsterdam, Netherlands):

Elska Amsterdam is our twenty-eighth issue and our first made in the Netherlands. This is one of the most popular cities to visit in the world, and the Netherlands has long been lauded for its support of LGBTQ rights, being the first country in the world to embrace same-sex marriage. Amsterdam is also one of our most requested cities to feature, and we're excited to finally present it to you.

Inside this issue you'll meet a selection of gay Amsterdammers who have shared their bodies and stories with us. If you're expecting a bunch of images of lads in tulip fields dotted with windmills, wearing clogs and smoking, then you'll be disappointed. Our approach rather is gloriously ordinary - just a bunch of local gay, bi and queer men photographed walking around their neighbourhoods dressed in their own style and then in their own homes undressed. You will still see a lot of canals though, and maybe a bag of chips (erm, Vlaamse frites) - it is Amsterdam after all.

Each of the men we met has also his photospread accompanied by a person story, written by the subject himself. Some of the stories in this issue include: Arthur T's text about trying to let go of the perfection obsession in Insta-society; George E's story about being a new arrival in the country and being made to feel wholly unwelcome through an onslaught of passive aggressive comments and looks; Alex L's tale of a long flirtation of a dancer who once asked on Grindr to use his bathtub; Soek Z's piece about sex with an older man; and Rodrigo T's call for all to get naked.

Features images of / stories from: Blake S, Arnie M, Arthur T, Qian H, Soek Z, Rodrigo T, George E, Ran M, Jacques K, Alex L, Nick M, and Henri B.

We also recommend ordering Elska Ekstra Amsterdam, available as part of the “bundle” , for loads of outtakes, behind the scenes tales, and to meet the following additional Amsterdam boys: Andrés L, Miguel M, and “Anonymous OC Boy”.

Details and Specs:

Elska Amsterdam is 196 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors' Postcard is inserted inside.

Frankie – issue 99

we hope you’ve been doing some push-ups and squats (or at least have a forklift handy), because issue 99 is out in the world today, and it sure is a biggun. tucked inside our summer bumper issue you’ll find a set of four postcards designed by fotini tikkou, a make-it-yourself pennant kit featuring fun art from luke john matthew arnold, and of course, our humongous annual wall planner (hooray! smell you later, 2020!). then there’s all the rest: a chat with some lovely neighbours who share more than just a fleeting wave, and a guide to taking a roadtrip without blowing the bank or breaking down in the middle of woop woop. we delve into the science behind the feeling of hanger and meet a local lady having fun with eye make-up (spoiler: it involves one of your favourite childhood cereals). you’ll take a trip through some of australia’s raddest art deco pubs, be encouraged to make a mess while making art, and meet a few embroidery whizzes doing their own thing with a needle and thread. plus, there’s all the usual eye-catching visuals and chuckle-inducing real-life musings.

This book consists of polaroids taken during François Halard’s (b. 1961, French) 56 days of confinement in his greatly unimitative hôtel particulier in Arles, France. Foreword written by art dealer and curator Oscar Humphries (b. 1981, Australian).

64 pgs, 28 × 21.5 cm, Hardcover, 2021

Foam Magazine #58: Talent

The fifteenth edition of Foam Magazine’s Talent Issue presents a selection of outstanding artists, each in their own way feeling the pulse of our times. In spite of the many challenges humankind was confronted with in 2020, we counted the highest number of submissions yet: 1803 entries, from 72 countries - each of which represented a message in a bottle from different parts of the world, which felt more fractured than ever. This year’s common, underlying theme is a close, sharp look at one of the most important subjects, the human condition. While being born out of the Covid-19 pandemic, this issue is also a beautiful, hopeful and refreshing statement of the possibilities our medium offers, and the exciting future ahead. We look forward to celebrating new beginnings, and new horizons.

Next to our regular features we are extremely grateful to host a conversation between Carmen Winant and Laia Abril, winner of the 2020 Paul Huf Award Prize with her long-term project A History of Misogyny. The presented chapters, Chapter One: On Abortion and Chapter Two: On Rape have been unanimously selected by the jury as a remarkable example of the possibilities for the photographic medium to engage with complex subjects. We agree that the results of her efforts need to be seen by an audience as large as possible and are very proud to be able to make our part.

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS & WRITERS 

Laia Abril, Heather Agyepong, Kwabena Sekyi Appiah-nti, Delali Ayivi, Tomás Ayuso, Hajar Benjida, Daniel Castro Garcia, Soléne Gün, Giulia Iacolutti, Tommy Kha, Billy H.C. Kwok, Gabby Laurent, Simon Lehner, Pat Martin, Plantation, Sarker Protick, Irene Antonia Diane Reece, Silvia Rosi, Joey Solomon, Leonard Suryajaya, Lisandro Suriel, Igor Tereshkov, Ana Vallejo, Sheng-Wen Lo, Bowei Yang, Mariama Attah, Henri Badaröh, Antawan I. Byrd, Angela N. Carroll, Chandra Frank, Hinde Haest, Allie Haeusslein, Max Houghton, Maya Hristova, George H. King, Kim Knoppers, Mirjam Kooiman, Maitreyi Maheshwari, Elisa Medde, Ben Miller, Sunil Sha, Liz Sales, M. Charlene Stevens, Róisín Tapponi, Daria Tuminas, Sara Urbaez, Bindi Vora, Carmen Winant, Sophie Wright, Simone Zeefuik

288 pages 
Printed on selected specialised paper  
300x230x23 mm 
1118 g

PRIMARY PAPER is a biannual print magazine. Each issue contributors offer their unique perspective on a single topic that is culturally significant and artistically relevant. The fourth issue of PRIMARY looks deeply at the theme of ‘Human’. What is it that makes us feel human? Feel natural? Feel a part of humankind? Human instincts and behaviours. What is the essence of humanity? People, places, cultures, true connections. How does our community influence us creatively?

After the unforgettable year of 2020, PRIMARY reflects on the challenges that were faced collectively, as the whole world changed together, celebrating the strengths and vulnerabilities of human resilience in these uncertain times. The desire for this issue was to offer contributors some inspiration, maybe an opportunity to create differently, a chance to revisit old archives or even just provide some sense of community in surreal times.

Some highlights of the issue include—

• A study of tradition focusing on the harvest festival of Chuseok in South Korea by Andrew Jacobs and stylist Herin Choi.

• A photo series by Mathieu Richer Mamousse that captures the unique cultural rituals of the Kukeri.

• An abstract collaboration between Ana Cuba, Rebecca Scheinberg, Lune Kuipers, Maisie Skidmore, Sharda Fähmel and Macarena Rodriguez Pinto, that references the power of female relationships and how these relationships touch and enrich our lives.

• A portrait series by Felicity Ingram celebrating the female in all its forms.

• An editorial in which Hyun Woo Min uses plastic scraps from the beaches of Taean, South Korea to create a playful display of Beach Warriors.

  
  

Founded & Curated by
Coquito Cassibba & Jessica McGowan

Specifications—
9x12in, 260 Pages
Limited Edition of 500 copies

non essential #4

The non essential zine series continues. 52 pages of velvet paper. All killer no filler content!