SPE in Philadelphia

The last few weeks have been extremely busy. Last weekend I was in Philadelphia to attend the Society for Photographic Educators (SPE) conference, and then to Fort Worth for a much needed vacation. SPE is always an incredible experience. An opportunity to see old friends and former students, to look at lots of photography and hear lectures on the subject, check out new products, and do portfolio reviews.

Many lectures were fascinating, and there is much to research and post about in the future. Perhaps the most interesting lecture was when Dawoud Bey spoke about the history of African-American's fight to become included in museum exhibitions and collections in the 60's, and how his encounter with Roy DeCarava's one man picket line outside the Metropolitan Museum in 1969 (Harlem on my Mind exhibition) would lead to a life of making photographs. Below is a viddie of Dawoud talking about his work.

As luck would have it the Philadelphia Museum of Art had a wonderful exhibit of platinum prints that was remarkable. I have talked before on this blog about seeing actual artwork as opposed to reproductions, and there were so many images from the history of photo on exhibit that I felt like a kid in a candy store. The process is truly beautiful and I understand why it continues to be relevant. As usual there was photography on exhibit throughout the city, and I will be adding to the Links page as I go through my notes, and will undoubtedly feature other artists in the future.

SPE is also an opportunity to visit a new city and Philadelphia was amazing. I really enjoyed walking around making photographs, and found the mass transit intuitive and easy to use. I am currently obsessed with making images of the interaction between graffiti, advertisement, and erosion. So the pics I made are not tourist shots. There were several odd encounters with the people of Philly wanting to know what I was doing with my camera an inch from the wall, and my back to the main attraction. The funniest comment had to be near the bus station when I was making the accompanying photo. Some guy walked by and said, "Of all the things to make pictures of in this town, what on earth are you doing?" I just laughed. It was a good time

Next year the conference is in Atlanta, and I look forward to attending.

Photo Credit: Rene' West, Philadelphia, 2010