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Last Call to WIN A Solo Exhibition this December! Juror: Ed Kashi
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Steve Toole
Steve Toole
Steve Toole

Steve Toole

Country: United States
Birth: 1957

"I have enjoyed photography and art since I was young. I was fortunate to have traveled with my family throughout the United States as I was growing up. Taking pictures during those trips was an exciting and rewarding experience. Being semi-retired from teaching, I now have more time to rekindle my artistic pursuits. Much of my work depicts life outdoors, because that is where I spend a significant amount of my time. Capturing moments through photography, whether magnificent or understated, is more fulfilling now than ever.

My wife Kim and I live in Ashton, Illinois where we foster rescued dogs, volunteer, teach part time, and enjoy small town life."

About Back Roads:
"There is a sense of timelessness when I travel the back roads of America. Two-lane blacktops and meandering gravel roads are the capillaries that carry me to those places that modernity has mostly ignored.

For me, in these places, the sky is bigger, the earth is closer, and the air smells fresher. A feeling of tranquility exists there.

Whether a bucolic scene, a sylvan setting or an alpine view, I am transported to a time and place that previous generations might have experienced.

Black and white images contribute to that feeling of timelessness, whether depicting a leafless tree, a grazing horse, or an abandoned pick-up truck in a pasture. I hope my photos transport the viewer, even for a few moments, to these out-of-the-way places – sometimes beautiful, sometimes gritty, sometimes simple, sometimes unique, but always real."

Awarded Photographer of the Week - Week 14

Websites

mr2el.smugmug.com

@mr2el

 

Steve Toole's Video

Inspiring Portfolios

Thomas Vijayan
© Thomas Vijayan
Julie Wang
© Julie Wang
Pedro Jarque Krebs
© Pedro Jarque Krebs
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More Great Photographers To Discover

Francesca Hummler
Francesca Hummler
United States/Germany
1997
Francesca Hummler is a German-American visual artist and researcher working with photography. She received her B.A. in Media Arts and B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of California at San Diego in 2019. She completed a Master's in Photography with distinction for her dissertation, "American Identity and Photographic Healing", from The Royal College of Art in London, England, in 2022. Interested in issues regarding identity, she draws from her experience as the daughter of German immigrants in the United States to explore the archive, familial intimacy, and generational trauma. Influenced by the concept of photo-therapy Francesca often utilizes self-portraiture to untangle her sense of self. In 2021 she was selected as one of the laureates of the Carte Blanche Étudiants award and displayed her work at Paris Photo. In 2022 she won the Young Talent Award from the Vonovia Award for Photography and had her work displayed in the Sprengel Museum. Her work was collected by the Odunpazarı Modern Museum in Türkiye, featured in the Hamburg-based magazine Photonews, and she was interviewed by Deutschlandfunk Kultur. In May 2023, she had her first solo in Erlangen, Germany, quickly followed by her second solo show in London as a part of the Deptford X Festival. Recently, her series “Das Kuckucksei” or “The Cuckoo's Egg” was published in the January 2024 issue of Artforum magazine.
Matthew Hardy-Brown
Matthew Hardy-Brown
South Africa
2000
Matthew Hardy-Brown's artistry unveils the enchanting beauty of our world, reminding us of the untamed wonder that surrounds us. With every click, he captures fleeting moments of unscripted time. His work is a testament to the natural wonder surrounding daily life. Originally from South Africa, Matthew Hardy-Brown's creative roots were planted in the landscapes of Australia, upon his relocation at 10 years old. While he didn't grow up by the ocean, it was here that he found his poetic sanctuary. As a self-described introvert, Matthew Hardy-Brown sought refuge by the water's edge, discovering his voice through the lens of his camera. He values unfiltered moments, intentionally avoiding excessive editing and digital manipulation. To MHB, magic ignites through authenticity—a commitment he fiercely upholds. At the core of Matthew Hardy-Brown's ethos lies a resounding mantra: "Live Often, Smile More." Having personally confronted the harsh realities of life's unpredictability, he gained a profound insight: tomorrow is not promised. Fuelled by this understanding, he is on a mission to share the world's inherent beauty, to inspire others that it's never too late to pursue a passion, to be a good human, and ultimately, to live often and smile more. His passion for capturing life's grandeur has earned him collaborations with industry giants such as Ralph Lauren, Mini Cooper, Paramount Pictures, and GoPro. His proudest achievement earned him the national exclusive as Canon’s premier artist with his timeless images featured throughout stores across Australia. Statement: Matthew explores the delicate dance between the wild and the human spirit, capturing moments that transcend the ordinary. Through a lens finely tuned to the nuances of the natural world, these pieces invite viewers to immerse themselves in the rhythmic chaos of crashing waves, the fearless dance of surfers, and the subtle interplay of light and shadow on the water's surface.
Carole Mills Noronha
Carole Mills Noronha
Australia
1970
Born with a sensitivity to light which lead to a childhood filled with epileptic seizures, I developed a strong awareness of my surroundings, a natural empathy and keen observational skills. My eye was trained to observe changes in light which eventually lead me to a love of photography and capturing moments. I studied Graphic Design at University, finding myself drawn to composition, colour and storytelling. I'm best known for my documentary series 'That Place He Goes'. A personal project of love photographing my late father, Harold Mills', Dementia and Alzheimer's. This series has been exhibited most recently in Barcelona and Italy, published in various magazines and won several awards. I read a quote that resonated with me regarding my series as a whole, "If you want to learn what someone fears losing, watch what they photograph"- unknown/art of poets. I'm happiest wandering to new places with my camera in hand. Seeking an opportunity to tell another's story, capturing everyday moments of rawness, beauty and emotion. Documenting people on my travels gives me the greatest joy as I seek the unknown waiting around each corner.
Lalla Essaydi
Lalla Essaydi
Morocco
1956
Lalla Essaydi (Lalla A. Essaydi) is a Moroccan-born photographer known for her staged photographs of Arab women in contemporary art. She currently works in Boston, Massachusetts, and Morocco. Her current residence is in New York. Essaydi was born in Marrakesh, Morocco in 1956. She left to attend high school in Paris at 16. She married after returning to Morocco and moved to Saudi Arabia where she had two children and divorced. Essaydi returned to Paris in the early 1990s to attend the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. She moved to Boston in 1996 and earned her BFA from Tufts University in 1999 and her MFA in painting and photography from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in 2003. Influenced by her experiences growing up in Morocco and Saudi Arabia, Essaydi explores the ways that gender and power are inscribed on Muslim women's bodies and the spaces they inhabit. She has stated that her work is autobiographical and that she was inspired by the differences she perceived in women's lives in the United States versus in Morocco, in terms of freedom and identity. She explores a wide range of perspectives, including issues of diaspora, identity, and expected location through her studio practice in Boston. She also looks at the ways of viewing reality while questioning limits of other cultures and challenging Orientalist art, engaging tradition, history, art, and technology. Her Grand Odalisque from the series Les Femmes du Maroc (2008), for example, cites the French painter Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres' painting La Grande Odalisque (1814), although her model is dressed. She also presents the resistance of stereotypes maintained by Western and Eastern societies. The inspiration for many of her works came from her childhood, in the physical space where she, as a young woman, was sent when she disobeyed. She stepped outside the permissible behavioral space, as defined by Moroccan culture. Essaydi said her works will become haunted by spaces she inhabited as a child. Several pieces of her work (including Converging Territories) combine henna, which is traditionally used to decorate the hands and feet of brides, with Arabic calligraphy, a predominantly male practice. While she uses henna to apply calligraphy to her female subjects' bodies, the words are indecipherable in an attempt to question authority and meaning. According to Essaydi, "Although it is calligraphy that is usually associated with 'meaning' (as opposed to 'mere' decoration), in the visual medium of my photographs, the 'veil' of henna, in fact, enhances the expressivity of the images. Yet, by the same token, the male art of calligraphy has been brought into a world of female experience from which it has traditionally been excluded." The women depicted in her exhibition of photographs, Les Femmes du Maroc, are represented as decorative and confined by the art of henna. Essaydi thus poses her subjects in a way that exemplifies society's views of women as primarily destined for mere beauty. Henna, however, is extremely symbolic, especially to Moroccan women. It is an association with familial celebrations of a young girl reaching puberty and transitioning into a mature woman. The use of henna in her work creates a silent atmosphere of the women "speaking" to each other through a quality of femininity. It is predominantly a painting process where women who are discouraged to work outside the home find a profitable work in applying a tattoo-like material. Beyond creating powerful pieces revolving around the art of henna, Essaydi includes interpretations of traditional Moroccan elements, including draped folds of cloths adorning women's bodies, mosaic, tiles, and Islamic architecture. Lalla Essaydi’s photo series, Les Femmes du Maroc comments on contemporary social structures, as well as acknowledges the history that has aided in constructing representations of Arab female identity. Les Femmes du Maroc is one of her three major photographic series, which is influenced by nineteenth-century European and American Orientalist art. However, Essaydi appropriates Orientalist paintings by incorporating a new subject & style derived from her own personal history and experiences to emancipate Arabian women and to demonstrate a tradition that is misunderstood by a Western audience. The title of the series is an appropriation of a painting by the French Romantic Artist Eugène Delacroix. Therefore, each photo in the series is influenced by Orientalist art that is then appropriated. Essaydi's photographic series include Converging Territories (2003–2004), Les Femmes du Maroc (2005–2006), Harem (2009), Harem Revisited (2012–2013), Bullets, and Bullets Revisited (2012–2013). Her work has been exhibited around the world, including at the National Museum of African Art, and is represented in a number of collections, including the Art Institute of Chicago; the Museum Fünf Kontinente Munich/ Germany; the San Diego Museum of Art; the Cornell Fine Arts Museum, Winter Park, Florida; the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden, The Netherlands; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Williams College Museum of Art in Williamstown, Massachusetts. She was named as #18 in Charchub's "Top 20 Contemporary Middle Eastern Artists in 2012-2014". In 2015, the San Diego Museum of Art mounted the exhibition, Lalla Essaydi: Photographs. Source: Wikipedia Lalla A. Essaydi grew up in Morocco and now lives in USA where she received her MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/TUFTS University in May 2003. Essaydi’s work is represented by Howard Yezerski Gallery in Boston and Edwynn Houk Gallery in New York City. Her work has been exhibited in many major international locales, including Boston, Chicago, Minneapolis, Texas, Buffalo, Colorado, New York, Syria, Ireland, England, France, the Netherlands, Sharjah, U.A.E., and Japan and is represented in a number of collections, including the Williams College Museum of Art, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Fries Museum, the Netherlands, and The Kodak Museum of Art. Her art, which often combines Islamic calligraphy with representations of the female body, addresses the complex reality of Arab female identity from the unique perspective of personal experience. In much of her work, she returns to her Moroccan girlhood, looking back on it as an adult woman caught somewhere between past and present, and as an artist, exploring the language in which to “speak” from this uncertain space. Her paintings often appropriate Orientalist imagery from the Western painting tradition, thereby inviting viewers to reconsider the Orientalist mythology. She has worked in numerous media, including painting, video, film, installation, and analog photography. "In my art, I wish to present myself through multiple lenses -- as artist, as Moroccan, as traditionalist, as Liberal, as Muslim. In short, I invite viewers to resist stereotypes."Source: lallaessaydi.com
Susi Belianska
Susi Belianska
Slovakia/Italy
1980
Susi Belianska is a photographer and artist with a passion for capturing visual stories, particularly through the art of portrait photography. Her fascination with the intricate details of the human face, the play of light and shadow that accentuates its contours, and the emotions it conveys drives her to create compelling and evocative portraits that tell unique narratives. With a background in the fashion industry, she transitioned into full-time photography in 2007, capturing diverse campaigns and catalogues for national and international brands. Her work has been featured in prominhotent publications like Condè Nast - Vogue Italia, GQ, Financial Times, Vrij Magazine, L’Officiel, D Repubblica, among others. She develops as well her personal projects within fine art. In 2013 she won the Nikon Talent Photo Contest presented and exhibited during the international contemporary art Artissima fair In 2012 she was in shortlist of the Sony World Photography Awards in fashion category. She actively participates in renowned photography festivals, including the Ancona Photo Festival 2021 and Grenze Photo Festival Verona 2022. Das Unheimliche: Das Unheimliche is a photographic project that explores the intersection between the human being and the artificial and invites us to reflect on the complex dynamics and emotional dilemmas that arise when confronted with the possibility that a man-made work can replace a living being. The photographs depict girls representing dolls, thus embodying the idea of the artificial figure hidden behind a human appearance. Each portrait captures the ambivalence of experience in front of these hybrid figures, who seem alive but lack genuine vitality. The expressions on the girls' faces convey a combination of fascination, unease and disquiet, inviting viewers to question the meaning and implications of this substitution. The idea that artificial creations can replace a person has ancient roots and can be traced across different cultures and historical periods. A significant example dates back to ancient Greece, where stories and myths have been documented involving statues or artifacts that come to life. Among these narratives, the myth of Pygmalion stands out, a famous sculptor who fell in love with his own creation: a statue of a woman. Through divine intervention, the statue came to life, highlighting the ability of artificial figures to enchant and involve human affections. Over the centuries, the idea of replacing an individual with an artificial figure has been explored in different forms of artistic expression such as in the film "Die Pupe" by Ernst Lubitsch or the short story "Sandman" by E.T.A. Hoffmann. In Lubitsch's film ,a shy young man decides to marry a mechanical doll to avoid a traditional marriage while in Hoffmann's story, a man becomes obsessed with a female automaton believing it to be alive.These works reflect on the tensions between desire, fear and the challenge of defining what is truly human. With the advent of modern technologies and artificial intelligence, the discussion around the possibility of replacing a human being has taken on a new meaning and relevance. Modern lifelike dolls and artificial intelligence interfaces, such as advanced chatbots, have become subjects of ethical and social debate. These creations raise profound questions about the nature of human relationships, affection and emotional connection, questioning our perceptions of what is authentic and genuine. Exploring the boundary between the human and the artificial has profound implications on a psychological level as well, as what approaches a living being but lacks vitality or completeness can elicit complex emotional reactions. Sigmund Freud's "Das Unheimliche" theory and Masahiro Mori's "Uncanny valley" hypothesis offer perceptive insight into these challenges and ambiguities. According to Freud's "Das Unheimliche" theory, the experience of what is familiar yet strange and disturbing can trigger a variety of psychological reactions, such as disgust or fear. When we are faced with artificial figures that resemble human appearance but without being alive, a feeling of unease can arise that challenges our understanding of what is considered authentic and genuine. Mori's "Uncanny Valley" hypothesis focuses on the concept of an emotional curve that describes our psychological responses based on the level of similarity of an artificial figure to human appearance. The project aims to capture the essence of these reflections, highlighting the contradictions and tensions that emerge. The girls portrayed represent a fascinating duality: on the one hand, they seem to reflect the dolls' ideal of perfection and control, with their delicate features and impeccable poses; on the other, they convey a feeling of foreboding and dissonance, which underlines the lack of authenticity and vitality. Each photograph is intended as an invocation of the need for a deeper connection with our own humanity and the complex emotional dynamics that emerge when we are faced with an artificial creature that seeks to emulate human affection and vitality. The project challenges us to investigate the meaning of humanity and our ability to deal with the complexities of affection, intimacy and replacement in an age characterized by rapid technological advances. It prompts us to explore our relationship to artifice and to deepen our understanding of ourselves. Stars: he focus of this project is to elevate women to a central place in the universe, symbolizing their importance, and to emphasize the need for equal treatment in social and occupational settings. The project features surreal images of women situated in an infinite cosmos surrounded by stars, emphasizing the timeless relevance of the message.The women depicted are captured without clothing to avoid association with any particular historical period, as passing time has no bearing in this context. The stars radiate upon their bodies, symbolizing the brilliance that women should exude in today's contemporary society. This project aims to celebrate those women who break the mold and call for questioning of stereotypes in a society often dominated by male culture. It highlights the strength and resilience of women who have defied non gender equal societal norms.Additionally, the project seeks to ignite discussions and raise awareness about gender inequality, addressing not only men but also women who may unknowingly undervalue their own worth, urging individuals to recognize and appreciate their own intrinsic value.
Larry Louie
Larry Louie
Canada
1961
International award winning documentary photographer Larry Louie leads a dual career. In his optometry clinic, he is Dr. Larry Louie, working to enhance the vision of people from all walks of life in the urban core of a North American city. On his travels, he is a humanitarian documentary photographer, exploring the lives of remote indigenous people, and documenting social issues around the world. As an optometrist, Larry adjusts people’s visual perception. As a photographer, he seeks to adjust people’s view of the world. Either way, he is interested in things that exist outside the regular field of vision. Larry’s photographs have often been described as realism at its best. There is a story waiting to be told in every image. Sarah Cho, competition director of the IPA/Lucie Awards describes Larry’s photographs as “captivating and sincere and reflect his passion for the medium,” adding, “Larry Louie has a very distinctive style, straddling the fine line of a photo journalist and documentarian. His images are as rich and evocative as the subjects (on) which he focuses.” His photographs show the strength and perseverance that mark people the world over, revealing the light sometimes found in dark places. Larry' s work to document the lives of people around the world has resulted in a vast archive of images. His work has received international recognition and awards including the IPA Lucie Award; National Geographic Photo Essay Award; and Humanitarian Documentary Grant with the World Photography. As an optometrist and photographer, Larry is avid supporter of Seva Canada, an international non-profit organization who is a part of VISION 2020, the global initiative for the elimination of preventable and avoidable blindness in the world by year 2020. Source: www.larrylouie.com Interview with Larry Louie All About Photo: When did you realize you wanted to be a photographer? Larry Louie: I knew when I was about 16 when I received my first real camera and I was experimenting exposures. AAP: Where did you study photography? LL: Self taught. AAP: Do you have a mentor or role model? LL: I do not have a mentor, but I have master photographers whose work I greatly admire and I study their amazing portfolio of works: Josef Koudelka, Sebastiao Salgado, James Natchwey. AAP: How long have you been a photographer? LL: I have been regularly photographing since 18 years of age but in regards to the documentary work, only for the last 8 years. AAP: Do you remember your first shot? What was it? LL: My first shot that I liked was the color image of 2 women taken in Jodphur, India. I call it the Blue City image because of the predominating blue color of the city. This image was placed second in a National Geographic Traveler magazine photo competition. AAP: What or who inspires you? LL: Great work that has passion in the subject. That is why I like the works of the above artists I mentioned. AAP: How could you describe your style? LL: I like B&W documentary work that evokes one's curiosity about mankind and his struggle with the surrounding environment. AAP: Do you have a favorite photograph or series? LL: I like 2 of my latest series: "A Working Day in Dhaka" and my latest series "Tondo, Manila" (will be up on the web within this month). AAP: What kind of gear do you use? Camera, lens, digital, film? LL: I use Canon 5D Mark3 bodies, 24mm f1.4 prime lens, 85mm f/1.2 prime lens, and 24-105mm f/4 zoom lens. AAP: Do you spend a lot of time editing your images? For what purpose? LL: I don't do too much editing. I do not crop my images and very minimal photoshop besides converting it into black and white and some burning and dodging. I do most of my editing the week after I return on a trip. The images are used for my website, to produce prints, calendars for fund raising purposes. AAP: What are your projects? LL: Please go to my website. My latest projects have been concentrated on the working poor and people who are stuck in the bonds of poverty, especially children born into poverty and child laborers. AAP: Favorite(s) photographer(s)? LL: Josef Koudelka, Sebastiao Salgado, James Natchwey. AAP: What advice would you give a young photographer? LL: Photograph what gives you passion. The best work will come through. Shoot, shoot, shoot. AAP: What mistake should a young photographer avoid? LL: Being cliché. One should be original. AAP: An idea, a sentence, a project you would like to share? LL: My wife and I are working presently with an organization named "Philippines Community Fund" whose goal is through education to enable a generation of children to escape from the cycle of poverty to which they are born into, and in doing so create a better and more sustainable life for them and their family. PCF today funs a four storey school in Tondo, Manila providing education, food, healthcare, and other support services for nearly 600 children from the nearby garbage dump and cemetery. AAP: Your best memory as a photographer? LL: To be able to help and raise funds and bring attention to issues that makes a significant difference in the lives of the people we photograph. AAP:The compliment that touched you most? LL: A thank you and a smile from the people who we touched during our visits and who in return touched us with their graciousness. AAP:If you were someone else who would it be? LL: I am happy with who I am and what I do. AAP: Your favorite photo book? LL: "The Sahel" by Sabastiao Salgado. AAP: Anything else you would like to share? LL: No, I would like to thank you for your interest in my photography.
Denise Pensky
Denise Pensky
United States
1950
Based in Albany, NY, Denise Pensky is a street and portrait photographer driven by a desire to capture the essence, emotion, and rhythm of the places and people she encounters. Inspired by Elliott Erwitt’s ability to see the extraordinary in everyday scenes, she looks for natural light and the spontaneous magic of real life, whether in her hometown, on the streets of NYC, or traveling to new destinations. More than just an artistic tool, her camera is a means of storytelling — documenting the people she meets and the worlds she steps into along an ever-evolving photographic journey.
Richard Nickel
Richard Nickel
Poland/United States
1928 | † 1972
Richard Nickel was an American architectural photographer and preservationist best known for documenting and preserving historic architecture, particularly the works of renowned architect Louis Sullivan. Nickel, who was born on May 31, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois, developed an early interest in photography and architecture. Nickel began documenting Chicago's architectural legacy in the 1950s and 1960s, focusing on buildings designed by Louis Sullivan, one of the forefathers of modern American architecture. His photographs captured Sullivan's buildings' intricate details, ornamental features, and craftsmanship, highlighting their beauty and significance. During the mid-twentieth century, Nickel became increasingly concerned about the destruction and neglect of historic buildings in Chicago. He understood the significance of architectural preservation and saw photography as a means of raising awareness about the need to protect these structures. Nickel actively advocated for the preservation of historic buildings in addition to his photography. He campaigned against the demolition of Sullivan's iconic Chicago Stock Exchange Building, which, despite his efforts, was demolished in 1972. Nickel's photographs of the building, as well as his writings on the subject, raised public awareness of the loss and inspired the Chicago preservation movement. On April 13, 1972, Richard Nickel was killed while photographing the ruins of the Chicago Stock Exchange Building, which was being demolished. Despite his untimely death, his legacy was preserved and exhibited posthumously through his photographs. Nickel's work had a significant impact on architectural preservation and historic building appreciation. His photographs captured not only the physical structures of the buildings, but also their spirit and essence, revealing their historical and cultural significance. His dedication to architectural preservation continues to inspire individuals and organizations working to protect our architectural heritage. Richard Nickel's contributions as a photographer and preservationist serve as a reminder of how important it is to document and cherish our architectural treasures so that future generations can appreciate and learn from them.
Tom Flathers
Tom Flathers
England
1991
Tom Flathers is an Award Winning Senior Club Photographer at Manchester City Football Club, Having been at the club for more than 8 years and covered the entirety of the Pep Guardiola era at the club, Tom has had the opportunity to cover the incredible success of the club – from the treble to 4 Premier League’s in a row. Tom has had the chance to capture elite players from Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne to Steph Houghton and Phil Foden. With another exiting season ahead Tom looks forward to covering further success at the club
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