EXTENSIVE LAB AND REAL-WORLD TESTING OF ALL MAJOR CAMERA BRANDS CREATE THE PERFECT HOLIDAY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CONSUMERS AND PHOTO ENTHUSIASTS

Leading digital camera and lens review website Imaging-Resource.com has announced the winners of their annual Camera of the Year (COTY) awards, recognizing the site’s top rated picks in 13 categories, this year including multiple categories for mirrorless cameras. The cameras and lenses honored represent the very best from the camera

Imaging Resource 2013 Camera of the Year awards. (PRNewsFoto/Imaging Resource)

manufacturers, including Canon, Fujifilm, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax and Sony, while the awards guarantee sure-to-please choices for consumers and photo enthusiasts this holiday season.

For more than 15 years, Imaging Resource has combined deep, objective laboratory testing with hands-on real-world experience. IR’s reviews transcend technical specifics and pixel peeping to show readers what they can expect from their cameras in daily use. The COTY awards build on this in-depth review process and over a century of combined photo experience on the part of IR’s editors to showcase a wide variety of cameras, from family point-and-shoots to pro level cameras for seasoned side-line shooters.

Categories and winners for 2013 are:

–  Best Overall Camera

–  Camera of the Year: Sony A7R

–  Cameras of Distinction: Sony A7, Olympus E-M1

“Selecting the winner of our Camera of the Year Awards for 2013 was an exceptionally difficult task: competition was intense, with strong entries across the board. In the end, though, the greatest difficulty we faced was in choosing between the closely-related Sony A7R and A7 mirrorless cameras. The duo share much of their design and together they completely demolish the status quo. We came very close to calling it a tie, but in the end, the Sony A7R’s images swung it. With the higher-resolution sensor of the pair, the A7R’s photos show razor-sharp detail comparable to a medium-format camera. Yet this is no medium-format body: along with its sibling, the Sony A7R is the smallest full-frame, fully-featured interchangeable lens camera on the market by a country mile.

We’re thrilled that the age of the full-frame mirrorless camera is finally here and equally thrilled to name the Sony A7R our Best Camera of 2013! It’s hard to overstate just what the Sony A7R means to full-frame shooters who aren’t content to live with a single, fixed prime lens — even a great one — as in the Sony RX1. Until now, if you wanted both an interchangeable-lens design and a full-frame sensor with true through-the-lens (TTL) viewing, you needed to buy a big, bulky camera whose form factor was dictated by its mirror box. The high-resolution Sony A7R mirrorless camera changes everything. This full-frame ILC is discreet enough for the street shooter, yet it’s capable of capturing astounding detail. And thanks to its huge full-frame sensor, the Sony A7R can keep on shooting with available light when smaller-sensored cameras would have you reaching for the flash.”

–  Best new Technology

–  New Technology of the Year:  Dual-Pixel AF (Canon EOS 70D for the Canon Dual-Pixel Hybrid autofocus system)

–  New Technology of Distinction:  Selectable antialias filtering (Ricoh Pentax K-3)

“Imaging Resource was founded in 1998. After 15 years writing photography, it’s rare to see a truly breakthrough technology. Yet that’s exactly how we characterize the winner of this year’s Technology of the Year award.

Contrast-detect autofocus has improved vastly over the years, but still struggles to track focus smoothly during video shooting. On-sensor phase-detect systems and Sony’s translucent-mirror technology both enable phase-detect AF during video recording, but these solutions are restricted to a relatively large minimum lens aperture and a limited number of discrete AF points. These limitations mean that some sort of follow-focus accessory has been mandatory for serious videographers.

Until now.

With their Dual-Pixel Autofocus system, Canon makes every pixel of the image sensor a potential phase-detect element. You can read the technical specifics in our Canon 70D review, but the bottom line is that Canon’s Dual-Pixel AF system can form AF points anywhere within the 64% central area of the imager. (80% vertically and horizontally.) For the first time, the videographer can easily, smoothly, and accurately rack focus between subjects almost anywhere within the frame. Not only can the AF system create a point anywhere within the frame, but the dimensions of these virtual AF points are flexible! This allows accurate autofocus at both extremely wide and very small apertures, something not possible with previous phase-detect AF systems.

The Canon 70D is the new bar against which all other video AF systems will be measured. In Imaging Resource’s 15 year history, Canon’s Dual-Pixel Autofocus technology is one of the few true breakthroughs we’ve witnessed, making it this year’s Technology of the Year.”

–  Best Pocket Camera

–  Pocket Camera of the Year: Sony RX-100 Mark II

–  Pocket Camera of Distinction: Panasonic LF1

–  Pocket Camera of Distinction: Fujifilm XF1

 –  Best Enthusiast Zoom Camera

–  Enthusiast Zoom of the Year: Sony RX10

–  Enthusiast Zoom of Distinction: Olympus Stylus 1

“The Sony RX10 offers something truly unique. Compared to its bridge-camera competition, the RX10 is in a different league, thanks to a weather-sealed body and a large 1-inch sensor that brings much better high-ISO performance. Compare it head-to-head with an APS-C DSLR and the RX10 will come surprisingly close in image quality at lower sensitivities, while its bright f/2.8 constant-aperture zoom lens can obviate the need for high ISO shooting. And man, what a lens! You’d need to buy a quiver of lenses for an interchangeable-lens camera to match what the Sony RX10 gives you, spending a small fortune in the process. Unless you love the idea of futzing with interchangeable lenses, the Sony RX10 offers a very compelling alternative to SLR and mirrorless cameras. In the bridge camera world it is without peer.

The Sony RX10 is more than just a viable alternative to ILCs and bridge cameras, though: it’s also a surprisingly capable video camera, with features not offered even by professional full-frame DSLRs costing thousands of dollars more. Full-sensor readout means that the RX10 is far less prone to moiré and false color than other cameras, DSLRs especially. Manual and priority exposure is possible, and you can choose manual or full-time autofocus with tracking and face recognition. You’ll also find microphone and headphone jacks, audio level monitoring and control and even support for XLR mics via an optional accessory. This is an exceptionally hard camera to put in a nutshell, but let’s try: if you’re into sports, travel, journalism, street shooting, you dislike tiny sensors, noisy photos or video moiré, you care a lot about audio recording in video, or you’re not a fan of lugging around lenses just in case you need them, then the Sony RX10 is the camera for you.” – The Editors

Camera of Distinction, Enthusiast Zoom: Olympus Stylus 1

“The Olympus Stylus 1 is a rare hybrid: a long-zoom bridge camera that can still fit in a coat or vest pocket. While there are smaller cameras with longer zoom range, none approach the large sensor and fast, sharp glass of the Stylus 1. The 300mm (35mm equivalent) constant f/2.8 lens makes the Stylus 1 special, but when you factor in size and price point, the Stylus 1 stands alone. We were particularly thrilled with the creamy bokeh in our shooting: shallow depth of field like that on the Stylus 1 is rarely seen in a bridge camera.”

–  Best Entry-level DSLR

–  Entry-level SLR of the Year: Pentax K-50

–  Entry-level DSLR of Distinction: Nikon D5300

–  Entry-level DSLR of Distinction: Canon SL1

“While today’s entry-level digital SLR cameras frequently outperform yesterday’s enthusiast models, there are certain features you just don’t expect to see on offer. Entry-level DSLRs come saddled with entry-level compromises: pentamirror vewfinders, a single control dial and a grab bag of concessions to price point. Ricoh Imaging’s impressive Pentax K-50 somehow manages to buck this trend, packing in features its rivals omit.

We’re not sure how Ricoh managed it, but somehow the company delivers enthusiast-grade features at a consumer-friendly price point. The Pentax K-50 sports a bright, accurate pentaprism viewfinder and boasts twin control dials that allow fast, intuitive exposure control. Both camera and kit lens are fully weather-sealed. And best of all, the K-50 is built around the same extremely well received image sensor as the Pentax K-5 II. In short, the Pentax K-50 offers unparalleled bang-for-the-buck, making it an easy pick for our 2013 Entry-level DSLR of the Year award.”

–  Best Entry-level Mirrorless Camera

–  Entry-level Mirrorless Camera of the Year: Olympus E-PL5

–  Entry-Level Mirrorless Camera of Distinction: Samsung NX2000

–  Entry-Level Mirrorless Camera of Distinction: Sony NEX-5T

“The Olympus E-PL5 houses the same sensor as the Olympus E-M5, which won awards in 2012 for the Compact System Camera of the Year and Camera of Distinction in our Overall Achievement categories. With the E-PL5 you get the image quality of last year’s Compact System Camera of the Year, but at half the price. Need we say more?

Factor in much of the performance and shooting ease of the E-M5 and it becomes an even clearer choice as a perfect entry-level mirrorless camera. Just don’t discount it as an equally great option if you’re a professional or enthusiast shooter looking for terrific image quality and performance in a (much) smaller package than your big rigs because the Micro Four Thirds lenses will surely win you over.”

–  Best Value

–  Value Camera of the Year: Sony NEX-3N

–  Value Camera of Distinction: Canon EOS M

–  Value Camera of Distinction: Olympus E-PM2

“This statement from one of our long-time reviewers sums up why we chose the Sony NEX-3N for Best Value for our 2013 COTY awards: “After shooting with the Sony NEX-3N, I finally have a firm answer to give to my friends when they ask ‘What camera should I buy if I’ve only got $500?’ The NEX-3N is an easy answer.” With familiar features like a zoom-lever right on the camera body, the NEX-3N is the perfect answer for point-and-shoot users looking to step up to the world of Interchangeable Lens Cameras.

If you’re still in doubt, ask yourself how many lightweight, easy-to-use APS-C sensor cameras are on the market for a street price well below $500. The list is short indeed. The world’s smallest and lightest ILC to feature an APS-C sensor at this price would be welcome in most any holiday stocking.”

–  Best Professional Camera

–  Professional Camera of the Year: Olympus OM-D E-M1

“Micro for the major leagues! It’s seriously impressive that this year’s Camera of the Year in the Pro category is a Micro Four Thirds camera. But this shouldn’t come as a surprise, because the Olympus E-M1 builds on its incredibly capable predecessor, the E-M5. Not only did the E-M5 win our Compact System of the Year award and Camera of Distinction award in the Overall Achievement category last year, but we also saw several pros flock to the new camera for its small size, great performance, weather sealing and superior image quality. While a cynic might point to a dearth of other professional announcements this year, it would be wrong to conclude the E-M1 is any less deserving.

The E-M5 quickly became a favorite at the Imaging Resource office, but there were a couple issues that kept it from shining in some professional workflows. The E-M1 answers every single one of these weaknesses with aplomb. The first was buffer capacity, which at around 15 frames was limiting for some pros. Olympus went crazy in this department, boosting the buffer capacity to nearly 50 frames, even for RAW files. The electronic viewfinder on the E-M5 was great, but still didn’t match optical viewfinder performance so Olympus provided the E-M1 with what might be the best EVF we’ve ever seen. It really needs to be seen to be believed.

To improve AF performance, Olympus brought on-sensor phase detect to the OM-D line for the first time. This is a common addition this year, but Olympus surprised us by also including a stronger autofocus motor. The combination of on-sensor phase detect and improved focus motor allows full compatibility with their line of exquisite Four Thirds lenses. Between Four Thirds and Micro Four Thirds, the lens selection available to the E-M1 is nothing short of phenomenal. Add to these benefits Olympus’s industry-leading weather-sealing (dust-, splash- and freeze-proof) and the groundbreaking 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilization and we had an easy time choosing our winner for the Professional Camera of the Year award.”

–  Best Enthusiast DSLR

–  Enthusiast DSLR of the Year: Nikon D7100

–  Enthusiast DSLR of Distinction: Pentax K-3

–  Enthusiast DSLR of Distinction: Canon 70D

“The Nikon D7100 is a still-photography powerhouse with impressive image quality, thanks in part to an upgraded 24.1-megapixel image sensor. By removing the optical low-pass filter, Nikon has also allowed for that added bit of sharpness. The D7100 is excellent at producing high-resolution, finely detailed images that makes it a great for portraiture, macro and even landscape photography.

The D7100′s vastly improved autofocus, 1.3x crop mode and excellent handling of noise at high sensitivities makes it an equally excellent choice for sports, wildlife and action photographers. All of these features packaged in a comfortable, relatively compact and lightweight body — and coming in at a relatively affordable price — make the Nikon D7100 a clear winner of our Best Enthusiast DSLR award.”

–  Best Enthusiast Mirrorless Camera

–  Enthusiast Mirrorless of the Year: Panasonic GX7

–  Enthusiast Mirrorless of Distinction: Samsung NX300

–  Enthusiast Mirrorless of Distinction: Fujifilm X-E2

“The Panasonic GX7 is the Micro Four Thirds camera that we’ve all been waiting for — one that provides a full range of advanced features and high performance, all at a reasonable price. Although it sports retro styling, the Panasonic GX7 is still an undeniably-modern camera, with a tilting, 3-inch touchscreen display and 90-degree tilting electronic viewfinder, pleasing both LCD shooters and EVF fans alike. Blazingly fast autofocus, swift 10 frames-per-second burst shooting, in-body sensor shift image stabilization, 1080p60 video, and built-in Wi-Fi / NFC wireless communication combine to make the GX7 a very versatile camera that feels right at home in a wide variety of shooting scenarios.

The GX7′s image quality is excellent: both dynamic range and high ISO performance are much improved over its predecessor. Build quality is equally good — the GX7 is solid, but still lightweight and comfortable. The Panasonic GX7 handles virtually everything an advanced photographer would expect, and handles it well. It’s a great value, too, offering most of the features and functionality of high-end, flagship Micro Four Thirds models, but without the high-end price tag.”

–  Best Lens

–  Lens of the Year: Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8

–  Lens of Distinction: Sony FE 55mm f/1.8

–  Lens of Distinction: Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8

“Sigma shocked the photography world with the introduction of the first constant f/1.8 zoom lens with its 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art lens earlier this year. It is hard to imagine any APS-C photographer who shouldn’t add this lens to their repertoire. Surprised? Let us enumerate just how awesome this lens is.

The new lens’s appeal begins with its shockingly sharp images at all apertures, including f/1.8. You get excellent flatness of field while maintaining good control over chromatic aberration, distortion and vignetting. We’re talking sharper than any other constant, wide-aperture aperture zoom lens we’ve ever tested. Still not convinced? It’s also one of the sharpest lenses in its focal length range — primes included!

Sigma didn’t skimp on build quality, either: its smooth zoom and focus actuations and satisfying heft combine to evoke the feel of a high-end professional-level zoom. The best part about this work of Art? It manages all the above while dramatically undercutting the competition in price.”

– Best Pocket Interchangeable Lens Camera –  Pocket ILC of the Year: Panasonic GM1

Camera of the Year, Best Pocket Interchangeable Lens Camera: Panasonic GM1

“The first truly micro Micro Four Thirds camera! This particular category started as an inside joke at first, but the more we thought about it, the more apt it seemed. Though there have been other diminutive Micro Four Thirds models, the Panasonic GM1 is what we all envisioned with the announcement of the Micro Four Thirds system. If you’ve yet to hold it yourself, you really must: its size is absolutely astonishing, truly putting it into a class of its own. The Panasonic GM1 is as impressive in image quality and performance as it is small: the tiny GM1 features the same exceptional sensor, processor and AF capabilities as the larger Panasonic GX7 (itself the winner of our enthusiast mirrorless award)! Autofocus feels near instantaneous on all but very low-contrast subjects and image quality is terrific. The GM1 with its 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens won’t fit into your skinny jeans, but it will easily fit in cargo pants and jacket pockets. Want a one-camera-one-lens walk around combo? The GM1 and its 12-32mm kit lens are a sublime pairing. Need to shoot telephoto? Low light? Throw on one of the many terrific Micro Four Thirds lenses.”

–  Most Unique Camera

–  Unique Camera of the Year: Nikon Df

–  Unique Camera(s) of Distinction: Sony QX series

–  Unique Camera of Distinction: Fujifilm X100S

“Take a look back over the history of the single-lens reflex camera, and there’s a pretty clear trend: External controls — the knobs, levers and dials all over your camera’s body that quickly become second nature to adjust — have gradually vanished over the years, replaced first in the age of electronics, and then in the digital era, by a handful of buttons and a menu system nested eight layers deep. (Or so it seems.) The Nikon Df spurns that modern aesthetic, teleporting you back to days gone by — and just about everywhere you touch, there’s comfy leatherette instead of cold, impersonal metal and plastic, to boot. One click glance at the top of the Nikon Df, and you can confirm shutter speeds, exposure compensation, and ISO sensitivity — even when the camera is switched off.

The Nikon Df is more like the film camera you remember through your rose-tinted glasses, except it’s digital, and absolutely top-drawer digital at that. It even forgoes movie capture completely, in favor of a more traditional SLR experience. There’s a lot more to the Nikon Df than the retro aesthetic, though. It’s the smallest and lightest FX-format (full-frame) digital SLR Nikon has ever made. And under the skin, the Nikon Df boasts some seriously professional-grade hardware: exactly the same 16-megapixel image sensor and EXPEED 3 image processor used in 2012′s Nikon D4, yet at half the price of that camera at launch. That pairing of old and new, of approachable and professional, makes the Nikon Df a pretty exciting camera, in our book!”

Camera of Distinction, Unique New Product: Sony QX-series

“In selecting our Camera of the Year award winners, we hemmed and hawed over Sony’s QX-series cameras, and came within a whisper of naming them 2013′s Most Unique Product. And they are, without question, unique. We’ve never seen anything that defies convention quite like the Sony QX-series, nor have we seen any product provoke quite such varied opinion. The Sony QX-series cameras take smartphone photography in a whole new direction, and give your phone access to photo features its makers never dreamed of. The large-sensor Sony QX100 offers the same large sensor and great lens as in the RX100 II (our pocket camera of the year for 2013), and the long-zoom Sony QX10 has a whopping 10x zoom lens akin to that in the WX150 compact. And we understand that both models — especially the QX100 — are selling far beyond Sony’s own hopes and expectations.

But therein lies the rub: while both are well-received products, neither is really aimed at the dedicated photographer. These are cameras for those whose photography experience revolves not around the camera, but the phone, first and foremost. Important features photographers would expect at this price point — such as fully-manual exposure and raw shooting — aren’t present, because they don’t gel with the smartphone experience. Imaging Resource is a website primarily catering to amateur, enthusiast, and professional photographers, and our awards have that same focus. Much as we wanted to honor the QX-series’ unique nature, it didn’t feel quite right to do so over products more directly aimed at our own readers. But let that take nothing away from the Sony QX-series: These lens-style cameras are clearly unique, and clearly have great attraction for many smartphone owners. They’re also excellent tools for drawing phone-photographers more deeply into the photo hobby, and for that, especially, we salute them. For all these reasons, we recognize the Sony QX-series as 2013 Products of Distinction, as some of the Most Unique Products of 2013.”

A spellbinding photo of the yawning trap of a carnivorous plant has taken First Prize in the 2013 OLYMPUS BIOSCAPES DIGITAL IMAGING COMPETITION®, the world’s foremost forum for showcasing microscope images and movies of life science subjects. IGOR SIWANOWICZ, a researcher from the HOWARD HUGHES MEDICAL INSTITUTE, JANELIA FARM RESEARCH CAMPUS, Ashburn, Va., captured the eerily fascinating photo of the floating humped bladderwort plant. The confocal image was selected from more than 2100 entries to earn Dr. Siwanowicz $5,000 worth of Olympus equipment.

Open trap of aquatic carnivorous plant, humped bladderwort
(Utricularia gibba). The floating plant digests microinvertebrates
that are sucked into its trap a millisecond after they touch its
trigger hairs (hair bases are seen in the center of the domeshaped
entrance). The traps also provide a microhabitat for singlecell
green algae, predominantly desmids, visible here. The red in
the image comes from chlorophyll’s innate fluorescence.
Confocal imaging, 100x. Igor Siwanowicz, HHMI Janelia Farm
Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA. First Prize, 2013 Olympus
BioScapes Digital Imaging Competition®.
http://www.OlympusBioScapes.com

Celebrating its 10th Anniversary, the Olympus BioScapes Competition is the world’s premier platform for honoring images and movies of human, plant and animal subjects as captured through light microscopes. Entries are judged based on the science they depict, their beauty or impact, and the technical expertise involved in capturing them. Entrants can use any brand of microscope. In addition to the Top 10 winners, 69 Honorable Mentions received recognition. Awardees came from 16 states of the U.S. and 22 other countries; competition participants hailed from 71 nations, making this year’s competition the most international to date.

“BioScapes movies and images combine art and science to remind us of the wonders of the natural world and highlight vital work going on in laboratories,” said BRAD BURKLOW, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS FOR THE SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT GROUP OF OLYMPUS AMERICA INC. “They serve as an inspiration to young people seeking careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. For a decade, Olympus has been dedicated to bringing these amazing images and stories to the world.”

A selection of images and videos will be displayed in a museum tour traveling the U.S. next year. The 2013 winners’ tour is sponsored by Olympus America in cooperation with Scientific American.

Next year’s competition, which closes September 30, 2014, is already open for participants. To enter, visit www.OlympusBioScapes.com.

Wi-Fi Enabled XS100i Now Shipping; Two Additional POV Cameras Debut

Polaroid expands their existing line of hi-definition sports action cameras at the 2014 International Consumer Electronics Show, January 7-10 in Las Vegas, NV. With performance-friendly features including high-definition resolution, Wi-Fi, auto rotation, waterproof technology, and ultra wide angle lenses, the new cameras are tailor-made for all athletes and action enthusiasts. The point-of-view cameras also come with mounting equipment, allowing photos and footage to be taken practically anywhere and from any angle.

Polaroid XS100i

“Polaroid is all about capturing fun, in the moment images and video from the user’s unique point of view and that is what this fast growing sports action camera category does the best,” says Polaroid President and CEO Scott W. Hardy. “Adding Wi-Fi connectivity to our popular XS100 model will now allow users to share their unique videos and images instantly, which is the heart of what Polaroid is all about. With these cameras, whether it may be biking, skiing, snowboarding or surfing, we want to provide users the ability to capture and share their finest moments and moves with the best possible coverage, at vantage points like no other.”

The Polaroid XS100i camera builds upon the success of the XS100 model but adds Wi-Fi with iOS and Android apps so consumers can adjust settings remotely, watch video in real-time and share videos instantly with friends, family or social media. The XS100i has a distortion-free ultra wide lens offering 170° of coverage and records video in 1080p, 720p, and 960p, and can capture still images in 3MP, 5MP and 16MP. It has a G-Sensor (Auto Rotation) assuring the greatest shot possible, regardless of the camera’s position. In addition, the Polaroid XS100i camera is shockproof and waterproof up to 30’ or 10m and offers 32MB of internal memory and up to 32GB on a micro SD card. The XS100i is now shipping and available at retailers for $179.99.

The Polaroid C³ model camera is a uniquely innovative camera with a square design, professional 5MP CMOS Sensor and a wide angle lens that provides 120° of coverage. It can capture video in hi-definition 1280 x720 and 640×480, and still images at 1.3MP, 3.0MP and 5.0 MP. The newPolaroid HD sports video camera is waterproof up to 2M, features a microphone and LED light and offers 2MB in internal memory and supports up to 32GB with micro SD card.

The Polaroid XS1000i model camera is a professional HD sports video camera with a unique patent-pending quick-change mounting system, a professional 16MP Aptina CMOS Sensor and ultra wide angle lens offering 170° of coverage. In addition, this camera will feature anti-shake technology and a gyro sensor to help keep the shot still even when the user isn’t. Action footage can be captured in 1080p at 30 frames per second (fps), 960p at 30fps and 720 at 60 fps. In addition, users can simultaneously capture video and still images with single, burst, continuous and time lapse mode. Lastly, this new Polaroid sports action camera is waterproof to 10m, and protected against drops and bumps with high impact and shock proof technology.

Offered by C&A Licensing, LLC, an authorized Polaroid licensee, the new Polaroid hi-definition sports action cameras are perfect to take on-the-go, mount and document life’s greatest, action-filled adventures. The Polaroid C3 and XS1000i camera models will be available in the summer of 2014. For more information on all the Polaroid products that will be launched at the 2014 CES show, visit: http://www.polaroid.com/ces-2014.

Designed to carry photo and video gear and accessories, Slinger BigBags are a necessity for durable, budget-friendly carrying solutions

Adorama, one of the world’s largest photography, video, imaging and electronics retailers, recently enhanced its Slinger camera bag collection with nine new BigBag camera bags, available exclusively at Adorama. Designed for a wide range of photo and video accessories, including tripods, lighting accessories and lenses, Slinger bags meet every carrying need with style, durability and simplicity. The line offers nine new selections fit for all levels of expertise.

If you’re a photographer or filmmaker, you aren’t just worrying about carrying your camera during on-the-go shoots. Likely, you will be lugging around a tripod, various lighting options, cables, memory cards, a laptop and many more accessories necessary to get that perfect shot. If you’re using an insufficient case, you risk damaging your expensive tools and wasting precious time searching for components you need. Adorama’s Slinger camera bags come highly recommended because of their ability to safely hold a camera system, lenses, filters, memory cards and more in one simple carrying solution.

Wrap, pack, protect and transport all of your delicate gear in the ultimate protective Slinger cases. Bags come complete with compartments for accessories big and small, including micro digital memory cards, optical filters, iPods, cameras and lenses for still or video. Each custom-designed, ready-for-action bag provides secure and easy access to gear with ample space, flexible padded partitions, and lightweight balance. An Adorama exclusive, the Slinger BigBag collection is the durable solution for value cases.

Slinger bags are now available from the low price of 29.95 USD for lightweight, modest options, to 179.95 USD for more heavy duty and versatile solutions. All Slinger bags include free shipping to US addresses when ordered through Adorama’s online store.

Slinger Lighting Bags
The Slinger BigBag Lighting Bag (model SLBBL5) comes with three full-length adjustable dividers for the safest and most efficient organization of lighting equipment. With two adjustable extra long outer straps with clips for attaching and carrying your light stands, this model is designed with the versatility necessary for professional on-the-go transportation. The Slinger BigBag Lighting Bag is large enough to hold all lighting needs and at only 69.95 USD, it is a budget-friendly option that will last for years.

For the highest protection possible, consider the Slinger BigBag Heavy Duty Light Stand Bag with Wheels (model SLBBL3). This light stand bag is a powerhouse on wheels with two inner straps to prevent damage from shifting, weather seal zippers, D-rings for straps and additional elements, and padding for comfort and further protection. Ideal for ultimate safety in an easily transportable package, the Slinger BigBag Heavy Duty Light Stand Bag with Wheels is now available for 119.95 USD. For a more versatile option, try the Slinger BigBag Heavy Duty Lighting Bag Large with Wheels (model SLBBL1). Combining the features of the rolling BigBag Heavy Duty Light Stand and the BigBag Lighting Bag, this option can safely enclose an entire lighting kit. It includes side handles, five sections, a padded light stand divider with Velcro straps, and an outer business card/ID holder. The large Slinger light stand bag is now available for 179.95 USD.

Slinger Video Bags
The Slinger BigBag Video Handbag Large (model SLBBV3) offers all of the protection needed for the filmmaker’s most important tool. The inside of the handbag consists of one full-length, five-part divider while the outside features a pocket with an internal organizer for batteries, cables, cards and drives. Enjoy padded straps and handles for additional comfort and a rain cover to keep tools completely dry. The large option is available now for 109.95 USD. For a more heavy-duty option, choose the Slinger BigBag Video Handbag XL with Wheels (model SLBBV2). This handbag brings luxury and convenience to transporting video gear. It comes with extra features such as an extendable handle, top and side handles, weather sealed zippers, an additional inner divider, and load-bearing security buckles. Add two side pockets and eight padded dividers to fill the 25”x13”x14” trolley and you are ready to tote some serious equipment. The XL handbag option is now available for 159.95 USD.

For the ultimate simple carrying solution, try the Slinger BigBag Video Backpack (model SLBBV1). The Slinger Video Backpack supplies generous space with inner measurements of 20”x13”x9” and features nine full length and inner adjustable dividers for ample organization. Also including a removable, built-in tripod holding system, this model is the perfect one-bag solution for shoots involving travel. The backpack comes with a rain cover as well as supportive, contoured padding lining the back of the bag, protecting your valuable equipment while keeping you comfortable. The Slinger BigBag Video Backpack is available now for just 129.95 USD.

The Slinger BigBag Video & Accessory Handbag (model SLBBV4) is the perfect solution for photographers and filmmakers desiring heavy capacity and organization for multiple accessories. It features two adjustable, full-length dividers and two outer front compartments. Inner compartments include pockets for cards, pens and markers. The Slinger BigBag Video & Accessory Handbag is now available for 99.95 USD.

Slinger Tripod Bags
At a lightweight one pound, the Slinger BigBag Tripod Bag (model SLBBT1) makes it easy to transport and protect your tripod in any situation. This model features an outer business card/ID holder as well as an inner pocket for additional QR plates and tools. Ideal for a quick solution when simultaneously transporting other heavy equipment, the Slinger BigBag Tripod Bag is now available for only 29.95 USD. If you’re carrying light stands, umbrellas and cables in addition to a tripod, the Slinger BigBag Tripod Bag & Light Stand (model SLBBT2) for 39.95 USD is the option for you.

Pricing and Availability
Slinger BigBags are now available at prices ranging from $29.95 to $179.95 and can be purchased in the Adorama store, located at 42 West 18th Street in New York City, or online at http://www.Adorama.com.

Jürgen Schadeberg Recognized for Lifetime Achievement
Event Co-Chairs: Renee Harbers Liddell, Bob Jeffrey, and Marjorie Rosen

The International Center of Photography (ICP) is pleased to announce the honorees of the 2014 Infinity Awards including Jürgen Schadeberg, who will receive the Cornell Capa Lifetime Achievement Award at the gala event on Monday, April 28, 2014, at Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers, in New York City.

Infinity Awards 2013 © Image Singuliere

The International Center of Photography (ICP) is the world’s leading institution dedicated to the practice and understanding of photography and the reproduced image in all its forms. Through our exhibitions, educational programs, and community outreach, we offer an open forum for dialogue about the role images play in our culture. Since our founding, we have presented more
than 500 exhibitions and offered thousands of classes, providing instruction at every level. ICP is a center where photographers and artists, students and scholars can create and interpret the world of the image within our comprehensive educational facilities and archive.

The Infinity Awards are widely respected as the leading honor for excellence in the field of photography. The awards are also ICP’s largest annual fundraiser and support all of ICP’s programs, including exhibitions, education, collections, and community outreach.

Since 1985, the annual ICP Infinity Awards have recognized major contributions and emerging talent in the fields of photojournalism, art, fashion photography, and publishing. Past winners include Berenice Abbott, Richard Avedon, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Roy DeCarava, Elliott Erwitt, Harold Evans, Robert Frank, Lee Friedlander, David Goldblatt, Ruth Gruber, André Kertész, William Klein, Karl Lagerfeld, Annie Leibovitz, Helen Levitt, Alexander Liberman, Mary Ellen Mark, Susan Meiselas, Daidō Moriyama, John G. Morris, Gordon Parks, Marc Riboud, Malick Sidibé, and Ai Weiwei.

More than 500 prominent individuals from the art, business, entertainment, fashion, philanthropy, and photography worlds are present to celebrate leading photography professionals and demonstrate their commitment to creative expression and artistic
achievement.

“It is with great joy that we honor this remarkable pool of talent,” said ICP Executive Director Mark Lubell. “This year’s recipients have each made significant contributions to the field of photography and the powerful way in which the image is viewed and interpreted around the world.”

THE 2014 RECIPIENTS  are:
Cornell Capa Lifetime Achievement: Jürgen Schadeberg
Art: James Welling
Fashion: Steven Klein
Photojournalism: Stephanie Sinclair and Jessica Dimmock
Publication: “Holy Bible” Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin, MACK/AMC, 2013
Young Photographer: Samuel A. James

Jürgen Schadeberg is a German-born South African photographer, editor, curator, and teacher known for his depictions of Apartheid, particularly his iconic images of Nelson Mandela. He has been featured in several ICP exhibitions, most recently Rise and Fall of Apartheid: Photography and the Bureaucracy of Everyday Life.

James Welling is an artist whose diverse photographic production has been tremendously influential. Making both representational and abstract work, Welling has brought an important experimental sensibility to photography. His work is featured in our spring exhibition What Is a Photograph? Welling is a professor at the University of California at Los Angeles.

Steven Klein makes provocative, boundary-defying fashion photographs and video collaborations. His repertoire ranges across subjects and includes suburban outcasts, improbable lovers, gorgeous loafers, and aging beauties, all seen through an imagination that is beguiling, erotic, wicked, and darkly humorous. He was featured in the 2009 ICP exhibition Weird Beauty: Fashion Photography Now, which presented innovative contemporary fashion photography.

The 2014 recipient selection committee includes Sean Corcoran, Curator of Prints and Photographs, Museum of the City of New York; Brett Rogers, Director, The Photographers’ Gallery, London; and Carol Squiers, Curator, ICP. This year’s nominators include Jeffrey Hoone, Executive Director, Robert B. Menschel Media Center, Syracuse University; Stacey Clarkson, Photo Editor, Harper’s Magazine; Daphne Angles, Head of European Picture Desk, New York Times/Paris; W.M. (Bill) Hunt, photography consultant and collector, New York; Betti-Sue Hertz, Chief Curator, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco; Mitra Abbaspour, Associate Curator, MOMA, New York; and Michiko Kasahara, Chief Curator, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography; Tokyo. The Cornell Capa Lifetime Achievement honoree is selected by the ICP Board of Trustees and senior staff.

THE 2014 INFINITY AWARDS
Monday, April 28, 2014
Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers, New York City
6:00 pm Cocktails
7:00 pm Dinner and Awards Ceremony

Individual tickets and tables are available for the 2014 Infinity Awards. Purchase them online or contact Mari Martinez at 212.857.0042 or infinity@icp.org

MUSEUM | 1133 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street, New York, NY 10036 | Phone 212.857.0000

SCHOOL   | 1114 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd Street, New York, NY 10036 | Phone 212.857.0001

National Geographic invites photographers from around the world to enter the 2014 National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest. The grand-prize winner will receive an eight-day National Geographic Expedition to Alaska for two aboard theNational Geographic Sea Lion or National Geographic Sea Bird. The contest, which is open now, ends Monday, June 30, at 12 p.m. EDT.

Eligible contestants can visit nationalgeographic.com/travelerphotocontest to submit photographs in any or all of four categories: Travel Portraits, Outdoor Scenes, Sense of Place and Spontaneous Moments. The entry fee is $15 (USD) per photo, and there is no limit to the number of submissions per entrant. For official contest rules, visithttp://on.natgeo.com/1i80wEV.

Judging consists of two rounds of evaluation based on creativity and photographic quality. The second-prize winner will receive a five-day National Geographic Photography Workshop for one in Santa Fe, N.M., and the third-prize winner will receive a six-day cruise for two on a Maine windjammer schooner. Seven merit-prize winners will receive a print of their photo, matted and framed by the National Geographic Imaging Lab, a $200 gift certificate to B&H Photo and “The Art of Travel Photography” course on DVD from National Geographic and The Great Courses.

Throughout the contest, National Geographic Traveler magazine photo editors will showcase their favorite entries every week at nationalgeographic.com/travelerphotocontest. Visitors to the site can view all entries and share them with family and friends through Twitter and Facebook, can download wallpapers and can complete jigsaw puzzles featuring contest entries.

The grand prize, Alaska’s Inside Passage Expedition, is a unique trip to explore the remote wilderness and remarkable wildlife of southeastern Alaska with a team of expert naturalists. The trip is provided by National Geographic Expeditions, the travel program of the National Geographic Society, which offers guided trips spanning all seven continents and more than 60 destinations.

“I just took in an exhibition of work by iconic photographer Robert Capra, a groundbreaking photographer who set the tone for many National Geographic shooters whose images have become symbols of our time. The delight I get from our photo contest is seeing legions of so-called amateurs creating enduring images that continue to demonstrate the pictorial excellence that is the lifeblood of National Geographic,” said Keith Bellows, National Geographic Traveler magazine editor-in-chief and National Geographic Travel senior vice president.

THE FIRST MUSEUM RETROSPECTIVE OF THE INFLUENTIAL PHOTOGRAPHER’S 35-YEAR CAREER

The Museum of Modern Art announces Christopher Williams: The Production Line of Happiness, the first retrospective devoted to Christopher Williams (American, b. 1956), spanning the 35-year career of one of the most influential cinephilic artists working in photography. Organized by MoMA in collaboration with the Art Institute of Chicago, the exhibition brings together about 100 works that engage the conventions of photojournalism, picture archives, and commercial imagery, presented within their sociopolitical contexts. Williams has pursued an artistic direction that examines the theoretical and political history of photography within the larger context of image production. On view from August 2 through November 2, 2014, in the International Council of The Museum of Modern Art Exhibition Gallery, Christopher Williams: The Production Line of Happiness is organized at MoMA by Roxana Marcoci, Senior Curator, with Lucy Gallun, Assistant Curator, Department of Photography.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Erratum / AGFA Color (oversaturated) / Camera: Robertson Process Model 31 580 Serial #F97-116 / Lens: Apo Nikkor 455 mm stopped down to f90 / Lighting: 16,000 Watts Tungsten 3200 degrees Kelvin / Film: Kodak Plus-X Pan ASA 125 / Kodak Pan Masking for contrast and colour correction / Film developer: Kodak HC-110 Dilution B (1:7) used @ 68 degrees Fahrenheit / Exposure and development times (in minutes): / Exposure Development / Red Filter Kodak Wratten PM25 2´30˝ 4´40˝ / Green Filter Kodak Wratten PM61 10´20˝ 3´30˝ / Blue Filter Kodak Wratten PM47B 7´00˝ 7´00˝ / Paper: Fujicolor Crystal Archive Type C Glossy / Chemistry: Kodak RA-4 / Processor: Tray. 2000. Chromogenic color print. Paper: 14 × 11″ (35.6 × 27.9 cm); framed: 29 3/4 × 25 3/8″ (75.6 × 64.5 cm). Kravis Collection. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

The exhibition is presently on view at the Art Institute of Chicago  through May 18; and after its presentation at MoMA, the exhibition travels to Whitechapel Gallery, London.

Williams studied at the California Institute of the Arts from the mid to late 1970s under the first wave of West Coast Conceptual artists, including Michael Asher, John Baldessari, and Douglas Huebler, eventually becoming one of his generation’s leading Conceptualists and art professors—he is currently professor of photography at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf. Deeply invested in the histories of photography and film, Williams has produced a concise oeuvre that furthers a critique of late capitalist society in which images typically function as agents of spectacle. For the title of this exhibition, Williams has taken a line from a documentary by French director Jean-Luc Godard in which an amateur filmmaker compares his daily job as a factory worker with his hobby of editing his films of the Swiss countryside as “the production line of happiness.” In Williams’s hands the phrase appears to refer to the function of much photography in postwar consumer society, in which it not only pictures but also produces so many experiences and objects to be consumed.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Mustafa Kinte (Gambia) / Camera: Makina 67 506347 / Plaubel Feinmechanik und Optik GmbH / Borsigallee 37 / 60388 Frankfurt am Main, Germany / Shirt: Van Laack Shirt Kent 64 / 41061 Mönchengladbach, Germany / Dirk Schaper Studio, Berlin / July 20, 2007. 2007. Gelatin silver print, paper: 20 × 16″ (50.8 × 40.6 cm); framed: 33 3/4 × 29 1/4″ (85.7 × 74.3 cm). The Art Institute of Chicago, restricted gift of Artworkers Retirement Society, 2013.1097. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

The Production Line of Happiness welcomes visitors with an installation of extensive vinyl “supergraphics” covering the walls outside the exhibition space. These supergraphics, in black letters on a red oversaturated AGFA color ground, feature elements taken from the exhibition catalogue, such as the checklist, graphics, and selected writings—so that the show appears to unfold from the book. The exhibition presents Williams’s early and little-seen Super-8 shorts, and major projects from the 1980s to the early 1990s, such as: SOURCE (1981), a work of appropriation and re-photography that subverts conventions of photojournalism; Angola to Vietnam* (1987–89), an installation of 27 photographs crossing taxonomies of scientific and political inquiry, which is being shown in its entirety for the first time in the United States in decades; and Bouquet for Bas Jan Ader and Christopher D’Arcangelo (1991), a single photographic still life of a bouquet mounted on a free-standing wall just beyond the main wall of a room, which pays tribute to two under-recognized artists from the 1960s and 1970s who met tragic ends. Williams calls art a dialogical exercise, each work forming part of a conversation with other artists and traditions, in his case with Neue Sachlichkeit,photo-Conceptualism, and the films of Godard, Harun Farocki, Georges Franju, and Jean Painlevé, among others. Other photographs in the exhibition include images of works by artists Claes Oldenburg, John Chamberlain, and Daniel Buren.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Pacific Sea Nettle / Chrysaora Melanaster / Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific / 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach, California / July 9, 2008. 2009. Pigmented inkjet print. Paper: 14 x 14″ (35.6 x 35.6 cm); framed: 28 3/4 x 28 1/4″ (73 x 71.8 cm). Collection of Constance R. Caplan. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Bergische Bauernscheune, Junkersholz / Leichlingen, September 29th, 2009. 2010. Pigmented inkjet print. Paper: 20 x 24″ (50.8 x 61 cm); framed: 32 7/8 x 37 1/16″ (83.5 x 94.1 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Committee on Photography Fund. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

From 1993 until 2001, Williams worked on a single photographic series known as For Example: Die Welt ist schön (The World Is Beautiful), which he describes as an “essay on modernity and modernization.” One inspiration for the series is Albert Renger-Patzsch’s 1928 book Die Welt ist schön, which contains 100 pictures of natural and human creations. Similarly, Williams’s series brings together various subjects in the world—Japanese models who have undergoneWestern-style hair and makeup changes; a tropical beach in Cuba, carefully maintained for foreigners; a travel poster with International Style buildings constructed in Africa; an overturned Renault recalling the student unrest in Paris—to address the aftereffects of decolonization, histories of avant-garde art, and the radicalism of May 1968. Like Renger-Patzsch, Williams attempts to create an atlas of the world while enacting a critique of photography’s role in the history of the Cold War that defined much of the second half of 20th century.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Weimar Lux CDS, VEB Feingerätewerk Weimar / Price 86.50 Mark GDR / Filmempfindlichkeitsbereich 9 bis 45 DIN und 6 bis 25000 ASA / Blendenskala 0,5 bis 45, Zeitskala 1/4000 Sekunde bis 8 Stunden, ca. 1980 / Models: Ellena Borho and Christoph Boland / November 12, 2010. 2010. Pigmented inkjet print. Paper: 24 x 20″ (61 x 50.8 cm); framed: 37 1/2 x 32 1/2″ (95.3 x 82.6 cm). The Art Institute of Chicago, Photography Associates, James and Karen Frank, and Comer Foundation funds, 2011.318. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

In the last decade, Williams has worked on another major series, For Example: Dix-huit leçons sur la société industrielle (Eighteen Lessons on Industrial Society), which takes its title from the 1962 book by French sociologist Raymond Aron, a study of modes of production in Fordist capitalism and Soviet planned economy. The series puts photography itself at its core, featuring numerous images of precision optics: sectioned cameras, lenses, photographic color- charts, analogue darkrooms, and light meters isolated against pristine backgrounds like fetish objects. The focus, this time, is the photographic apparatus and image culture across Europe and America during and in the aftermath of the Cold War. There are also pictures of socks, tires, chocolate bars, bricks, and apples, reflecting Williams’s fascination with German painting of the early 1960s (including the Capitalist Realist phases of Sigmar Polke, Gerhard Richter, and Konrad Lueg), which engaged the consumer culture of mass-mediasociety with a sense of ambivalence.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Fachhochschule Aachen / Fachbereich Gestaltung / Studiengang: Visuelle Kommunikation / Fotolabor für Studenten / Boxgraben 100, Aachen / November 8, 2010. 2010. Pigmented inkjet print. Paper: 24 x 20″ (61 x 50.8 cm); framed: 38 1/4 x 33″ (97.2 x 83.8 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Committee on Photography Fund. Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

This ambivalence is reflected in Williams’s pictures, which emulate regular advertisements, but include deliberate imperfections or irritations. Employing an auteurist approach in his studio practice, Williams has continued to raise questions about representation and photography’s historical role in the formation of the society of spectacle.

Christopher Williams: The Production Line of Happiness is an illuminating and unusual volume, equal parts artist’s book and exhibition catalogue. With a trio of essays by Mark Godfrey, Curator, Tate Modern; Roxana Marcoci, Senior Curator of Photography, The Museum of Modern Art, New York; and Matthew S. Witkovsky, Richard and Ellen Sandor Chair and Curator, Department of Photography, The Art Institute of Chicago, the book explores Williams’s engagement with his artistic peers and predecessors, with cinema (particularly the film-essay),and with the methods and modes of display and publicity in the art world. These contributions are “interrupted” by a transcript of a talk Williams delivered on the work of John Chamberlain, and additional historical and contemporary textual and visual materials that were selected by the artist himself. An exhibition history, bibliography, and illustrated list of works round out the publication. Christopher Williams: The Production Line of Happiness is published and distributed by Yale University Press. It is available at the MoMA Stores and online at MoMAstore.com. 186 pages; 100 illustrations. PB- with jacket, $45. ISBN: 9780300203905.

Christopher Williams (American, born 1956). Fig. 4: Changing the shutter speed / Exakta Varex IIa / 35 mm film SLR camera / Manufactured by Ihagee Kamerawerk Steenbergen & Co, Dresden, German Democratic Republic / Body serial no. 979625 (Production period: 1960–1963) / Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar / 50mm f/2.8 lens / Manufactured by VEB Carl Zeiss Jena, Jena, / German Democratic Republic / Serial no. 8034351 (Production period: 1967–1970) / Model: Christoph Boland / Studio Thomas Borho, Oberkasseler Str. 39, Düsseldorf, Germany / June 19, 2012. 2012. Pigmented inkjet print. Paper: 24 x 20″ (61 x 50.8 cm), framed: 37 3/8 x 33 3/8″ (94.8 x 84.7 cm). Courtesy of the artist; David Zwirner, New York/London; and Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne © Christopher Williams

Major support for the MoMA presentation of the exhibition is provided by MoMA’s Wallis Annenberg Fund for Innovation in Contemporary Art through the Annenberg Foundation and by The William Randolph Hearst Endowment Fund. Additional funding is provided by The Junior Associates of The Museum of Modern Art and by the MoMA Annual Exhibition Fund.

Carte Blanche: Christopher Williams

July 23–29 and September 15–21,2014 The Roy and Niuta Titus Theaters. In conjunction with MoMA’s Christopher Williams retrospective, the artist has selected experimental, avant-garde films that have informed his practice. The two-week film program is organized for MoMA’s Carte Blanche screening series.

The 98th annual Pulitzer Prizes in Journalism, Letters, Drama and Music, awarded on the recommendation of the Pulitzer Prize Board, were announced today by Columbia University.

The Pulitzer Prize Board made its recommendations for the 2014 prizes when it met at Columbia on April 10 and 11 and passed them to President Lee C. Bollinger. It announced that the awards would be presented at a luncheon on May 28 at Columbia
University. Randell Beck, Robert Blau, Joyce Dehli, Steven Hahn and Keven Ann Willey were re-elected to membership on the board.

In any category in which board members have an interest due to the action of the various nominating juries, those members do not participate in the discussion and voting and leave the room until a decision is reached in the affected category. Similarly, members of nominating juries do not participate in the discussion of or voting on entries in which they have an interest.

The winners in each category, along with the names of the finalists in the competition, follow:

A. PRIZES IN JOURNALISM

1. PUBLIC SERVICE

For a distinguished example of meritorious public service by a newspaper or news site through the use of its journalistic resources, including the use of stories, editorials, cartoons, photographs, graphics, videos, databases, multimedia or interactive presentations or other visual material, a gold medal.

Two Prizes of a gold medal each:

Awarded to The Guardian US for its revelation of widespread secret surveillance by the National Security Agency, helping through aggressive reporting to spark a debate about the relationship between the government and the public over issues of security and privacy.

and

Awarded to The Washington Post for its revelation of widespread secret surveillance by the National Security Agency, marked by authoritative and insightful reports that helped the public understand how the disclosures fit into the larger framework of national security.

Also nominated as a finalist in this category was: Newsday, Long Island, N.Y., for its use ofin-depth reporting and digital tools to expose shootings, beatings and other concealed misconduct by some Long Island police officers, leading to the formation of a grand jury and an official review of police accountability.

2. BREAKING NEWS REPORTING

For a distinguished example of local reporting of breaking news that, as quickly as possible, captures events accurately as they occur, and, as time passes, illuminates, provides context and expands upon the initial coverage, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to The Boston Globe Staff for its exhaustive and empathetic coverage of the Boston Marathon bombings and the ensuing manhunt that enveloped the city, using photography and a range of digital tools to capture the full impact of the tragedy.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: The Arizona Republic Staff for its compelling coverage of a fast-moving wildfire that claimed the lives of 19 firefighters and destroyed more than a hundred homes, using an array of journalistic tools to tell the story, and The Washington Post Staff for its alert, in-depth coverage of the mass shooting at the Washington Navy Yard, employing a mix of platforms to tell a developing story with accuracy and sensitivity.

3. INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

For a distinguished example of investigative reporting, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Chris Hamby of The Center for Public Integrity, Washington, D.C., for his reports on how some lawyers and doctors rigged a system to deny benefits to coal miners stricken with black lung disease, resulting in remedial legislative efforts.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Megan Twohey of Reuters for her exposure of an underground Internet marketplace where parents could bypass social welfare regulations and get rid of children they had adopted overseas but no longer wanted, the stories triggering governmental action to curb the practice, and Cynthia Hubert and Phillip Reese of The Sacramento Bee for their probe of a Las Vegas mental hospital that used commercial buses to “dump”more than 1,500 psychiatric patients in 48 states over five years, reporting that brought an end to the practice and the firing of hospital employees.

4. EXPLANATORY REPORTING

For a distinguished example of explanatory reporting that illuminates a significant and complex subject, demonstrating mastery of the subject, lucid writing and clear presentation, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Eli Saslow of The Washington Post for his unsettling and nuanced reporting on the prevalence of food stamps in post-recession America, forcing readers to grapple with issues of poverty and dependency.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Dennis Overbye of The New York Times for his authoritative illumination of the race by two competing teams of 3,000 scientists and technicians over a seven-year period to discover what physicists call the “God particle,” and Les Zaitz of The Oregonian, Portland, for chilling narratives that, at personal risk to him and his sources, revealed how lethal Mexican drug cartels infiltrated Oregon and other regions of the country.

5. LOCAL REPORTING

For a distinguished example of reporting on significant issues of local concern, demonstrating originality and community expertise, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Will Hobson and Michael LaForgia of the Tampa Bay Times for their relentless investigation into the squalid conditions that marked housing for the city’s substantial homeless population, leading to swift reforms.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Joan Garrett McClane, Todd South, Doug Strickland and Mary Helen Miller of the Chattanooga Times Free Press for using an array of journalistic tools to explore the “no-snitch” culture that helps perpetuate a cycle of violence in one of the most dangerous cities in the South, and Rebecca O’Brien and Thomas Mashberg of The Record, Woodland Park, N.J., for their jarring exposure of how heroin has permeated the suburbs of northern New Jersey, profiling addicts and anguished families and mapping the drug pipeline from South America to their community.

6. NATIONAL REPORTING

For a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to David Philipps of The Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colo., for expanding the examination of how wounded combat veterans are mistreated, focusing on loss of benefits for life after discharge by the Army for minor offenses, stories augmented with digital tools and stirring congressional action.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: John Emshwiller and Jeremy Singer-Vine of The Wall Street Journal for their reports and searchable database on the nation’s often overlooked factories and research centers that once produced nuclear weapons and now pose contamination risks, and Jon Hilsenrath of The Wall Street Journal for his exploration of the Federal Reserve, a powerful but little understood national institution.

7. INTERNATIONAL REPORTING

For a distinguished example of reporting on international affairs, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Jason Szep and Andrew R.C. Marshall of Reuters for their courageous reports on the violent persecution of the Rohingya, a Muslim minority in Myanmar that, in efforts to flee the country, often falls victim to predatory human-trafficking networks.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Rukmini Callimachi of the Associated Press for her discovery and fearless exploration of internal documents that shattered myths and deepened understanding of the global terrorist network of al-Qaida, and Raja Abdulrahim and Patrick McDonnell of the Los Angeles Times for their vivid coverage of the Syrian civil war, showing at grave personal risk how both sides of the conflict contribute to the bloodshed, fear and corruption that define daily life.

8. FEATURE WRITING

For a distinguished example of feature writing, giving prime consideration to quality of writing, originality and concision, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

No Award

Nominated as finalists in this category were: Scott Farwell of The Dallas Morning News for his story about a young woman’s struggle to live a normal life after years of ghastly child abuse, an examination of human resilience in the face of depravity; Christopher Goffard of the Los Angeles Times for his account of an ex-police officer’s nine-day killing spree in Southern California, notable for its pacing, character development and rich detail, and Mark Johnson of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for his meticulously told tale about a group of first-year medical students in their gross anatomy class and the relationships they develop with one another and the nameless corpse on the table, an account enhanced by multimedia elements.

9. COMMENTARY

For distinguished commentary, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Stephen Henderson of the Detroit Free Press for his columns on the financial crisis facing his hometown, written with passion and a stirring sense of place, sparing no one in their critique.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Kevin Cullen of The Boston Globe for hisstreet-wise local columns that capture the spirit of a city, especially after its famed Marathon was devastated by terrorist bombings, and Lisa Falkenberg of the Houston Chronicle for her provocative metro columns written from the perspective of a sixth- generation Texan, often challenging the powerful and giving voice to the voiceless.

10. CRITICISM

For distinguished criticism, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Inga Saffron of The Philadelphia Inquirer for her criticism of architecture that blends expertise, civic passion and sheer readability into arguments that consistently stimulate and surprise.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times for her trenchant and witty television criticism, engaging readers through essays and reviews that feature a conversational style and the force of fresh ideas, and Jen Graves of The Stranger, a Seattle weekly, for her visual arts criticism that, with elegant and vivid description, informs readers about how to look at the complexities of contemporary art and the world in which it’s made.

11. EDITORIAL WRITING

For distinguished editorial writing, the test of excellence being clearness of style, moral purpose, sound reasoning, and power to influence public opinion in what the writer conceives to be the right direction, using any available journalistic tool, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to the Editorial Staff of The Oregonian, Portland, for its lucid editorials that explain the urgent but complex issue of rising pension costs, notably engaging readers and driving home the link between necessary solutions and their impact on everyday lives.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Dante Ramos of The Boston Globe for his evocative editorials urging Boston to become a more modern, around-the-clock city by shedding longtime restrictions and removing bureaucratic obstacles that can sap its vitality, and Andie Dominick of The Des Moines Register for her diligent editorials challenging Iowa’s arcane licensing laws that regulate occupations ranging from cosmetologists to dentists and often protect practitioners more than the public.

12. EDITORIAL CARTOONING

For a distinguished cartoon or portfolio of cartoons, characterized by originality, editorial effectiveness, quality of drawing and pictorial effect, published as a still drawing, animation or both, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Kevin Siers of The Charlotte Observer for his thought provoking cartoons drawn with a sharp wit and bold artistic style.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: David Horsey of the Los Angeles Times for his wide ranging cartoons that blend skillful caricature with irreverence, causing readers both to laugh and think, and Pat Bagley of The Salt Lake Tribune for his adroit use of images and words that cut to the core of often emotional issues for his readership.

13. BREAKING NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY

For a distinguished example of breaking news photography in black and white or color, which may consist of a photograph or photographs, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Tyler Hicks of The New York Times for his compelling pictures that showed skill and bravery in documenting the unfolding terrorist attack at Westgate mall in Kenya.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: John Tlumacki and David L. Ryan of The Boston Globe for their searing photographs that captured the shock, chaos and heroism after the bloody Boston Marathon bombings, and Goran Tomasevic of Reuters for his sequence of photographs that chronicle two hours of fierce combat on the rebel frontline in Syria’s civil war.

14. FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY

For a distinguished example of feature photography in black and white or color, which may consist of a photograph or photographs, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to Josh Haner of The New York Times for his moving essay on a Boston Marathon bomb blast victim who lost most of both legs and now is painfully rebuilding his life.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: Lacy Atkins of the San Francisco Chronicle for her revealing portrait of an Oakland school’s efforts to help African- American boys avoid neighborhood risks and profit from education, and Michael Williamson of The Washington Post for his portfolio of pictures exploring the multi- faceted impact of the nation’s food stamp program on 47 million recipients.

B. LETTERS AND DRAMA PRIZES

1. FICTION

For distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “The Goldfinch,” by Donna Tartt (Little, Brown), a beautifully written coming-of-age novel with exquisitely drawn characters that follows a grieving boy’s entanglement with a small famous painting that has eluded destruction, a book that stimulates the mind and touches the heart.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “The Son,” by Philipp Meyer (Ecco), a sweeping multi-generational novel that illuminates the violence and enterprise of the

American West by tracing a Texas family’s passage from lethal frontier perils to immenseoil-boom wealth, and “The Woman Who Lost Her Soul,” by Bob Shacochis (Atlantic Monthly Press), a novel spanning 50 years and three continents that explores the murky world of American foreign policy before 9/11, using provocative themes to raise difficult moral questions.

2. DRAMA

For a distinguished play by an American author, preferably original in its source and dealing with American life, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “The Flick,” by Annie Baker, a thoughtful drama withwell-crafted characters that focuses on three employees of a Massachusettsart-house movie theater, rendering lives rarely seen on the stage.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence,” by Madeleine George, a cleverly constructed play that uses several historical moments – from the 1800s to the 2010s – to meditate on the technological advancements that bring people together and tear them apart, and “Fun Home,” book and lyrics by Lisa Kron, music by Jeanine Tesori, a poignant musical adaptation of a graphic memoir by cartoonist Alison Bechdel, exploring sexual identity amid complicated family constraints and relationships.

3. HISTORY

For a distinguished and appropriately documented book on the history of the United States, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832,” by Alan Taylor (W.W. Norton), a meticulous and insightful account of why runaway slaves in the colonial era were drawn to the British side as potential liberators.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “A Dreadful Deceit: The Myth of Race from the Colonial Era to Obama’s America,” by Jacqueline Jones (Basic Books), a deeply researched examination of how race as a social invention has retained its power to organize, mark and harm the lives of Americans, and “Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident and the Illusion of Safety,” by Eric Schlosser (The

Penguin Press), a chilling history of the management of America’s nuclear arsenal, exploring the fateful challenges and chronicling the “near misses” that could have triggered a cataclysm.

4. BIOGRAPHY

For a distinguished and appropriately documented biography or autobiography by an American author, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “Margaret Fuller: A New American Life,” by Megan Marshall (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), a richly researched book that tells the remarkable story of a 19th century author, journalist, critic and pioneering advocate of women’s rights who died in a shipwreck.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “Jonathan Swift: His Life and His World,” by Leo Damrosch (Yale University Press), a seminal work that illuminates the famous yet enigmatic satirist who was also a crucial figure in 18th century Anglo-Irishpolitics, and “Karl Marx: A Nineteenth-Century Life,” by Jonathan Sperber (Liveright), an impressively researched work that provides a fresh perspective on Marx and his ideas by placing him in the social and intellectual swirl of the 1800s.

5. POETRY

For a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “3 Sections,” by Vijay Seshadri (Graywolf Press), a compelling collection of poems that examine human consciousness, from birth to dementia, in a voice that is by turns witty and grave, compassionate and remorseless.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “The Sleep of Reason,” by Morri Creech (The Waywiser Press), a book of masterly poems that capture the inner experience of a man in mid-life who is troubled by mortality and the passage of time, traditional themes that are made to feel new, and “The Big Smoke,” by Adrian Matejka (Penguin), an imaginative work by a commanding poet who engages the history and mythology oflarger-than-life boxer Jack Johnson.

6. GENERAL NONFICTION

For a distinguished and appropriately documented book of nonfiction by an American author that is not eligible for consideration in any other category, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation,” by Dan Fagin (Bantam Books), a book that deftly combines investigative reporting and historical research to probe a New Jersey seashore town’s cluster of childhood cancers linked to water and air pollution.

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “The Blood Telegram: Nixon, Kissinger and a Forgotten Genocide,” by Gary J. Bass (Alfred A. Knopf), a disquieting exploration of the role played by the American president and his national security advisor in the 1971 Pakistani civil war, a bloodbath that killed hundreds of thousands and created millions of refugees, and “The Insurgents: David Petraeus and the Plot to Change the American Way of War,” by Fred Kaplan (Simon & Schuster), an engrossing look at how a tenacious general became the ringleader of efforts to reshape America’s military strategy in thepost-Cold War age.

C. PRIZE IN MUSIC

For distinguished musical composition by an American that has had its first performance or recording in the United States during the year, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Awarded to “Become Ocean,” by John Luther Adams, premiered on June 20, 2013 by the Seattle Symphony, a haunting orchestral work that suggests a relentless tidal surge, evoking thoughts of melting polar ice and rising sea levels (Taiga Press/Theodore Front Musical Literature).

Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “The Gospel According to the Other Mary,” by John Adams, staged version premiered on March 7, 2013 by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, a monumental oratorio about the final period of Christ’s life that is marked by impassioned music – sometimes forceful, sometimes lyrical – and an ingenious variety of evocative sounds (Boosey & Hawkes), and “Invisible Cities,” by Christopher Cerrone, staged version premiered on October 19, 2013 by The Industry and L.A. Dance Project in Union Station, Los Angeles, a captivating opera based on a novel by Italo Calvino in which Marco Polo regales Kublai Khan with tales of fantastical cities, adapted into an imaginary sonic landscape (Outburst-Inburst Musics).

The members of the Pulitzer Prize Board are: President Bollinger; Danielle Allen, UPS Foundation professor, School of Social Science, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, N.J.; Randell Beck, retired president and publisher, Argus Leader Media; Robert Blau, executive editor, Bloomberg News; Katherine Boo, staff writer, The New Yorker; Steve Coll, dean, Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University; Gail Collins, op-ed columnist, The New York Times; John Daniszewski, vice president and senior managing editor for international news, Associated Press; Joyce Dehli, vice president for news, Lee Enterprises; Junot Díaz, Rudge and Nancy Allen professor of writing, MIT; Stephen Engelberg, editor-in-chief, ProPublica; Paul A. Gigot, editorial page editor and vice president, The Wall Street Journal; Aminda Marqués Gonzalez, Jeanette P. Nichols professor of history, University of Pennsylvania; Quiara Alegría Hudes, playwright; Eugene Robinson, columnist and associate editor, The Washington Post; Paul Tash, chairman and CEO, Tampa Bay Times; Keven Ann Willey, vice president/editorial page editor, The Dallas Morning News; and Sig Gissler, administrator of the Prizes.

Journalism

PUBLIC SERVICE - Two Prizes: The Guardian US and The Washington Post

BREAKING NEWS REPORTING - The Boston Globe Staff

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING - Chris Hamby of The Center for Public Integrity, Washington, D.C.

EXPLANATORY REPORTING - Eli Saslow of The Washington Post

LOCAL REPORTING - Will Hobson and Michael LaForgia of the Tampa Bay Times

NATIONAL REPORTING - David Philipps of The Gazette, Colorado Springs, CO

INTERNATIONAL REPORTING - Jason Szep and Andrew R.C. Marshall of Reuters

FEATURE WRITING - No award

COMMENTARY - Stephen Henderson of the Detroit Free Press

CRITICISM - Inga Saffron of The Philadelphia Inquirer

EDITORIAL WRITING - The Editorial Staff of The Oregonian, Portland

EDITORIAL CARTOONING - Kevin Siers of The Charlotte Observer

BREAKING NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY - Tyler Hicks of The New York Times

FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY - Josh Haner of The New York Times

Books, Drama and Music

FICTION - “The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt (Little, Brown)

DRAMA - “The Flick” by Annie Baker

HISTORY - “The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832″ by Alan Taylor (W.W. Norton)

BIOGRAPHY - “Margaret Fuller: A New American Life” by Megan Marshall (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

POETRY - “3 Sections” by Vijay Seshadri (Graywolf Press)

GENERAL NONFICTION - “Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation” by Dan Fagin (Bantam Books)

MUSIC - “Become Ocean” by John Luther Adams (Taiga Press/Theodore Front Musical Literature)

Newseum on Pennsylvania Avenue. Credit: Sam Kittner/Newseum

On Friday, April 25, 2014, the Newseum will open “Pictures of the Year,” an exhibit that showcases dramatic, award-winning images of the people, events and issues that shaped the world in 2013 (and  the result of an ongoing partnership between the Newseum and POYi, which began in 2011 when the Newseum exhibited winners of the 2010 competition). The photos are a selection of the best news images from Pictures of the Year International (POYi), one of the oldest and most prestigious photojournalism contests in the world. Nikon is the exclusive sponsor of the 2014 “Pictures of the Year” exhibit (see winners list here), which will be on display through Sept. 1, 2014.

Impoverished African migrants crowd the night shore of Djibouti city, trying to capture inexpensive cell signals from neighboring Somalia—a tenuous link to relatives abroad. For more than 60,000 years our species has been relying on such intimate social connections to spread across the Earth.
Credit: John Stanmeyer, Freelance

Visitors will see images from some of 2013′s biggest news stories, including the war in Syria and the Boston Marathon bombing, along with lighter moments such as Detroit Tigers right fielder Torii Hunter flipping over the wall of Boston’s Fenway Park as he tries to catch a grand slam during the American League Championship Series.

Magnus Wennman , Aftonbladet, “MERULLAH”
Merullah is blind and lives with his family next to the Swedish military base in Mazar-e-sharif, Afghanistan.
Every day, he listens when their heavy vehicles roll past. He feels the earth shaking. He would like to get to know them, but they stay behind their walls or passes by.
- If they came here, I would tell my story for them about the goat and the lion.
2014, his neighbors, the foreign militaries, pack up and go home. What follows in their footsteps, no one knows.

The exhibit also features photographs taken by New York Times photographer Tyler Hicks moments after Islamist militants stormed a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, killing 67 people in a four-day siege. The photos won first place in the POYi News Picture Story/Newspaper category, and on April 14, 2014, Hicks was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news photography for his photos of the attack.

Deanne Fitzmaurice, Freelance, “The Kiss”
In 2013, as nine additional states in the USA made gay marriage legal, it has become the civil rights issue of our time. The national conversation in the week leading up to the Super Bowl was fueled by San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver making homophobic comments and a player on the opposing team in Super Bowl XLVII, Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo showing support and bringing attention to marriage equality and anti-bullying. In a gay bar in San Francisco, the moment the 49ers won the NFC Championship game to advance to the Super Bowl two men kiss in celebration.

The mission of POYi is to extend the reach of photojournalists through educational public exhibitions and to engage citizens worldwide with great documentary photography. POYi is a program of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. Through exhibitions and workshops, POYi serves those photojournalists who chronicle the news events, political trends and social issues facing our world. Now in its 71st year, POYi continues to recognize and promote excellence in photojournalism.

Mark J. Terrill, Associated Press
Pablo Cesar Cano, right, lands a punch against Ashley Theophane in the eighth round during a welterweight fight, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2013, in Las Vegas.

To kick off the new exhibit, on Saturday, April 26, 2014 at 9:00 AM,  award-winning photographers Barbara Davidson, Patrick Smith and Tyler Hicks will take part in Photo Day at the Newseum, offering professional advice to visitors and revealing the stories behind their photographs.

Davidson, a photographer at the Los Angeles Times, was named newspaper photographer of the year by Pictures of the Year International, one of the world’s oldest, largest and most highly respected photojournalism competitions. Smith, a freelancer, was named sports photographer of the year. New York Times photographer Tyler Hicks won first place in the POYi News Picture Story category. Hicks’s compelling photos documenting the unfolding terrorist attack at Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, also won him the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news photography.

Jabin Botsford, Freelance, “UNTITLED”
Southwestern high school cheerleaders, in class 2A – small, walk up to receive their second place trophy at the KHSAA Competitive Cheer Championships on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013, at E.A. Diddle Arena is Bowling Green, Ky. Jabin Botsford

Schedule of Events

9 a.m.– 5 p.m.: Photo Scavenger Hunt
Find examples of the First Amendment freedoms throughout the Newseum. Post them using #NewseumPhotoDay on Instagram or Twitter. Winners will be selected the week of April 28 and receive a Newseum prize.

10:30 a.m.: Sports Photographer of the Year Patrick Smith
Freelance sports photographer Patrick Smith talks about his work in 2013 which earned him the honor of Sports Photographer of the Year
Knight TV Studio, Level 3

11:30 a.m.: Covering Underreported Issues Worldwide
MaryAnne Golon, assistant managing editor and director of photography of The Washington Post, will moderate a panel discussion, “Covering Underreported Issues Worldwide,” with independent photographer Mary F. Calvert; Annie Griffiths, founder and executive director of Ripple Effect Images; and independent photographer and filmmaker Ami Vitale.
Knight TV Studio, Level 3

Noon: Photo Safari With Award-Winning Photographer Lacy Atkins of the San Francisco Chronicle
The Newseum’s iconic architecture and exhibits provide the backdrop for this roving hands-on workshop for amateurs and aspiring photojournalists. Bring a camera and take home interesting photographs from the Newseum while learning some new tricks for your next photo opportunity.
Starts at The New York Times – Ochs-Sulzberger Family Great Hall of News

1 p.m.: Gallery Talk: Pictures of the Year exhibit
Learn more about the stories behind the news events chronicled in this exhibit of the best photojournalism of 2013.
Concourse Level

1:30 p.m.: POYi Newspaper Photographer of the Year Barbara Davidson
Los Angeles Times photographer Barbara Davidson, who was named newspaper photographer of the year, talks about her 2013 portfolio
Knight TV Studio, Level 3

3 p.m.: Award-Winning New York Times Photographer Tyler Hicks on the Nairobi mall attack
New York Times photographer Tyler Hicks, who won first place in the POYi News Picture Story category, discusses his coverage of the deadly terrorist attack at Nairobi’s Westgate Mall.
Knight TV Studio, Level 3

4 p.m.: College Photographer of the Year Sara Lewkowicz
Ohio University graduate student Sara Lewkowicz, winner of the College Photographer of the Year competition, discusses her award-winning series on domestic violence.
Knight TV Studio, Level 3

The mission of the Newseum is to champion the five freedoms of the First Amendment through education, information and entertainment. One of the top attractions in Washington, D.C., the Newseum’s 250,000-square-foot news museum offers visitors a state-of-the-art experience that blends news history with up-to-the-second technology and hands-on exhibits. The Newseum Institute serves as a forum for First Amendment study, exploration and education. The Newseum is a 501(c)(3) public charity funded by generous individuals, corporations and foundations, including the Freedom Forum. 

Filed under: Museums & Exhibitions, Photography Tagged: 'Pictures of the Year' Photo Exhibit, Newseum

• American photographer Sara Naomi Lewkowicz wins L’Iris d’Or and $25,000 prize
• Professional category winners announced
• Chen Li, China, named Open Photographer of the Year
• Mary Ellen Mark receives Outstanding Contribution to Photography award
• British student wins Student Focus and German photographer collects Youth Award
• Winners of KKF Book Awards for Best Photography and Moving Image Books revealed

Thirty-one year-old American photographer Sara Naomi Lewkowicz is the winner of the 2014 L’Iris d’Or, Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year award. Beating over 139,554 entries from 166 countries, this represents the highest number of entries in the awards’ seven year history. The photographer collected her award – Sony digital imaging equipment and $25,000 (USD) prize money – at the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards Gala Ceremony held in London last night.

2014 Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA)
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 30: Winner of the L’Iris d’Or award Sara Naomi Lewkowicz and award presenter Masaru Tamagawa, President Sony Europe during the 2014 Sony World Photography awards (SWPA) at the London Hilton on April 30, 2014 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images for World Photography Organisation)

The judges voted unanimously for Lewkowicz’s hard-hitting series, ‘Shane and Maggie’, – an intimate examination of domestic violence as a process – as this year’s winner. Through her project, Lewkowicz seeks to take a deeper, unflinching look at domestic abuse as a process as opposed to a single incident.  She examines how a pattern of abuse develops and eventually crests, as well as its short and long-term after-effects on victims, their families, and their abusers. The story is inescapable; horrific and tender, fierce and unfathomable, luridly colored.

‘Shane and Maggie’, – an intimate examination of domestic violence as a process: One month into their courtship, Shane had Maggie’s name tattooed on his neck in large black letters.

Talking about her win, Lewkowicz comments: ”I’m completely stunned; there was such extraordinarily strong work, I figured there was no way I would win – I was just excited to receive one award! I am completely overwhelmed”

‘Rain in an ancient town’ by Chinese amateur photographer Chen Li was announced as the Open Photographer of the Year at this year’s Awards

Talking about the winning series, jury chair, W.M. Hunt commented: “Vibrating colour, crackling, dramatic and full of impact, intimate and unsettlingly provocative.”

Lewkowicz is a native New Yorker pursuing a master’s degree in visual communication from Ohio University in Athens. She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina. Her work has been published in publications such as Time Magazine, Stern and Days Japan. She has won several grants and awards, including the 2013 Alexia Student Grant, first place in the Contemporary Issues Category for World Press Photo and the 2013 Ville de Perpignan Remi Ochlik Award. She has been named the 2013 College Photographer of the Year by COPY and other awards and honours include POYi, Days Japan, the World Report Award by Festival for Ethical Photography in Italy and numerous others.

Chosen by our esteemed Honorary Judging Committee, the L’Iris d’Or – the competition’s most distinguished award – is presented to one single photographer whose work represents the pinnacle of the entries received. The photographer is chosen from within the first place winner of all the professional categories. The L’Iris d’Or winning series of work, alongside those of the other winners announced tonight at the awards, will be displayed as part of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition at Somerset House from 1 – 18 May. The images will also be published in the 2014 edition of the Sony World Photography Awards book.

Open Photographer of the Year – Chen Li, China
Chinese amateur photographer Chen Li was announced as the Open Photographer of the Year at this year’s Awards. Chen Li’s winning image, ‘Rain in an ancient town’, was selected from over 65,000 entries from across the world in a competition that sought to find the world’s single best image taken by an amateur photographer or photography enthusiast. Chen Li, who lives in Fenghuang County, Hunan Province, has been a keen amateur photographer for over 30 years. 

Professional category winners and finalists
The winners, plus the 2nd and 3rd placed photographers of the Professional competition, were also revealed at the awards ceremony. The Professional winners were flown to London to collect their award.

The wining series of works showcase the very best in international contemporary photography – from still life and architectural images forcing the viewer to find something surprising within the everyday – to witty images of wet dogs. The winners are:

Echangeur de la Porte de la chapelle, Boulevard Périphérique de Paris. 100×100 cm en 15 exemplaires.

•    Architecture  – Ludovic Maillard, France
•    Arts and Culture – Viviana Peretti, Italy
•    Campaign – Spencer Murphy, UK

Channel 4 Racing – The Original Extreme Sport: A series of portraits of jump jockeys post race, showing the extremes the jockeys go to in pursuit of their sport. To illustrate a campaign entitled – The Original Extreme Sport

•    Conceptual – Thomas Brummett, US
•    Contemporary Issues – Sara Naomi Lewkowicz, US
•    Current Affairs – Guy Martin, UK
•    Landscape – Roei Greenberg, Israel
•    Lifestyle – Myriam Meloni, Italy
•    Nature & Wildlife – Michael Nichols, US

The Short Happy Life of a Serengeti Lion: We habituated the Vumbi pride to a remote-controlled toy camera car and were able to make very intimate ground-level images. This gave a dignified insight into lion social behavior. The fragile car would morph into a rugged robot tank as the assignment continued.

•    People – Mario Wezel, Germany
•    Portraiture – Sophie Gamand, France
•    Sport – Salvatore Di Gregorio, Italy
•    Still Life – Amanda Harman, UK
•    Travel – Ricardo Teles, Brazil

The World Photography Organisation (WPO) supports professional, amateur and young photographers, lending a global platform for the photographic industry to communicate, converge and showcase current trends across all genres of photography. Delivering various initiatives to this global community, these programmes involve the photographer in commercial, cultural and educational activities within the many industry sectors, whilst also creating events for the public to participate in. Currently included within the WPO portfolio are: the Sony World Photography Awards; the World Photography Student Focus Competition and Youth on Assignment. In addition the WPO have recently launched Photo Shanghai, Asia-Pacific’s premiere international Art Fair focused on photography and The Magazine, a monthly online publication where photography is explored, debated and discussed.  WPO also has a thriving online presence via its website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and engages its online audience via regular PhotoTALK discussions. For more information please visit worldphoto.org

A Creative Collaboration With Eric Valli To ‘Win Hearts Not Just Heads’

Swarovski has announced a major creative collaboration with the distinguished film director and photographer Eric Valli which aims to use film as a positive medium to generate empathy and awareness about the importance of clean, sustainable water sources. Since 1981 Eric Valli has captured on camera some of the most inaccessible locations in the world, working for titles such as National Geographic, Life, GEO, Paris Match, Stern and Smithsonian magazines, and The Sunday Times of London.

TEA – Swarovski – Eric Valli (PRNewsFoto/Swarovski)

Swarovski Waterschool – Eric Valli (PRNewsFoto/Swarovski)

Painter – Swarovski – Eric Valli (PRNewsFoto/Swarovski)

Eric specializes in mountain scenery and is an expert on the Himalayas, in particular Nepal, Tibet andAfghanistan. In 1987, his photo story Honey Hunters – documenting the cliff-climbing Gurung tribesmen of west-central Nepal – won a World Press Award.In 1990 Eric and his Australian wife Diane Summers shot Shadow Hunters, which captures the gathering of birds’ nests for soup in a vast cave in western Thailand. The film received an Academy Award nomination for best documentary. In 1999 he directed the adventure story Himalaya – a tale of survival in the mountain region – which became the first Nepalese film to receive an Academy Award nomination for best foreign film. Eric has published 14 books to date, including in 2006 The Sky Will Be My Roof, a memoir of adventure and travel. In total, his photography has been recognized with three World Press Awards. In addition he has shot commercial work for Hermes and Louis Vuitton. For his most recent project – a book and film about the Yangtze river in China, made in conjunction with Swarovski – Eric spent six months documenting life along the world’s third largest waterway. An exhibition will accompany the launch in 2015.

‘Living Yangtze’, a multi-media project which tells the stories of the communities living along the great Yangtze River, was previewed yesterday by Eric Valli at the closing session of the Nature Conservancy’s Global Water Summit.

“‘Living Yangtze‘ started with a basic observation: as human beings we have a tendency to forget numbers, data and things we don’t like to hear about,” Valli told an audience of 400 scientists, practitioners, corporate leaders and policy makers at the Art Institute of Chicago‘s Rubloff Auditorium. “But we remember what emotionally touches us – beauty, tenderness, passion, and harmony – for the rest of our lives. So instead of bombarding people with data and gloomy statistics, we decided to do the opposite. We wanted to make them aware of the beauty of their own heritage and traditions; to make them proud; to motivate them to act rather than discouraging them with guilt.“

The award-winning photographer was joined by film maker Jamie Redford and Producer Dave Allen in a panel discussion exploring the role of media and entertainment in “winning hearts, not just heads” by generating awareness and inspiring consumers to action around environmental issues like the importance of clean water. During a panel talk entitled “Entertainment as a Conservation Strategy”, Valli argued that the best way of raising environmental awareness was to inspire new audiences with an appreciation of the beauty of our natural landscapes, not “with doomladen statistics”.

Swarovski commissioned Eric Valli to spend six months documenting the lives of communities around the locations of its Waterschools along the Yangtze River. The Swarovski Waterschool China is a not for profit organisation which has been working in the Yangtze basin since 2008. It is active in nine regions along the Yangtze from the source in the Tibetan plateau down to the river mouth were it flows into the Chinese sea. Working alongside the Shangri-La Institute and with the support of local governments and the Ministry of

The Swarovski story began in 1895 when Daniel Swarovski invented a machine for cutting and polishing crystal. This machine not only revolutionized jewelry manufacturing, it has inspired the worlds of art, design, fashion and cinema for over a hundred years. Today Swarovski is the world’s leading producer of precision-cut crystal and gemstones, with over 2,350 stores in about 170 countries, 25,135 employees and revenues of 2.38 billion Euros in 2012.

Education in Shanghai, the program teaches in 59 schools and will have reached 200,000 children by the end of 2014. Founded in Austria 15 years ago and now a global network located on some of the world’s greatest rivers, Swarovski’s Waterschools teach children and their families about the importance of clean, sustainable water sources through engaging images and storytelling.

Nadja Swarovski, Member of the Swarovski Executive Board, commented: “Our global water challenges call for creative solutions, but also relevant information for this pressing topic. We are therefore thrilled to collaborate with Eric Valli on this exciting project, which tells the uplifting story of communities living in harmony with their environment and their river.

“It was an abundance of fresh water that first drew our founder, Daniel Swarovski, to the Alpine valley where our company is still headquartered today. But water is not just a key element in our production, it also flows through the culture and philosophy of our business, and it inspired the Swarovski Waterschool program. We hope that Eric’s beautiful images will bring to vivid life the urgent issues around our reliance on water, elevating the story of water through creativity.“

Water has always been a key element in the production of Swarovski crystal, but it also runs through the company’s culture and philosophy, which from the earliest days 120 years ago demanded a respect for human and environmental values. The objectives of the Swarovski Waterschools are to create awareness of the fact that water is essential to our survival; to teach the principles of sustainable water management; and to provide clean drinking water and water sanitation in schools and surrounding communities where the Waterschool program is active.

Fifteen years ago the first Swarovski Waterschool was established on Austria’s Inn River. Since then Swarovski has set up Waterschools around the globe on the world’s greatest rivers – in India’s Ganges Delta, on China’sYangtze River, in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, and in the Amazon Forest of Brazil. The program has reached 200,000 children and their families and been taught in 2,655 schools worldwide. Around 1,470 teachers have been trained and 264,995 community members have been involved in various water projects.

Swarovski delivers a diverse portfolio of unmatched quality, craftsmanship, and creativity that goes beyond the manufacturing of crystal. Founded in 1895 in Austria, Swarovski designs, manufactures, and markets high-quality crystals, genuine gemstones and created stones, and finished products such as jewelry, accessories, and lighting. In addition, Swarovski Crystal Worlds was established as a unique venue dedicated to showcasing artistic interpretations of crystal. Swarovski Entertainment collaborates with established industry partners and exceptional talent to produce international feature films, while the Swarovski Foundation supports creativity and culture, promotes wellbeing, and conserves natural resources. Now run by the fifth generation of family members, Swarovski Crystal Business has a global reach with approximately 2,480 stores in around 170 countries, more than 24,000 employees, and revenue of about 2.33 billion euros in 2013. Together with its sister companies Swarovski Optik (optical devices) and Tyrolit (abrasives), Swarovski Crystal Business forms the Swarovski Group. In 2013, the Group generated revenue of about 3.02 billion euros and employed more than 30,000 people.

Images from Living Yangtze by Eric Valli for Swarovski will be published in a book next year, accompanied by an exhibition of images and short films.

Iconic Photographs by Stephen Somerstein Capture the Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement

Early next year, the New-York Historical Society will showcase a powerful selection of photographs by Stephen Somerstein that chronicle the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery Civil Rights March, honoring the 50th anniversary of the protest that changed the course of civil rights in America. On view from January 16 through April 19, 2015, the exhibition Freedom Journey 1965: Photographs of the Selma to Montgomery March by Stephen Somerstein will feature the work of the 24-year-old City College student, who felt he had to document “what was going to be a historic event.” He accompanied the marchers, gaining unfettered access to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, James Baldwin, Joan Baez, and Bayard Rustin.

Stephen Somerstein, Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. speaking to 25,000 civil rights marchers
in Montgomery, 1965. Courtesy of the
photographer

Through 55 black and white and color photographs, Freedom Journey 1965 will document the quest for equality and social justice over the five-day march. Then the managing editor and picture editor of the City College newspaper, Stephen Somerstein recalls “When Dr. King called on Americans to join him in a massive protest march to Montgomery, I knew that important, nation-changing history was unfolding and I wanted to capture its power and meaning with my camera.”

The Selma-to-Montgomery March marked a peak of the American civil rights movement. From March 21 to March 25, 1965, hundreds of people marched from Selma to the State Capitol Building in Montgomery, Alabama to protest against the resistance that the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and other groups had encountered in their mission to register black voters. By March 25, the group had grown to 25,000 people, which Dr. King addressed from the steps of the Montgomery State Capitol. Three months later, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Stephen Somerstein, Folk singer Joan Baez
in Montgomery, 1965. Courtesy of the
photographer

Stephen Somerstein, Two mothers with
children watching marchers on porch, 1965.
Courtesy of the photographer

Somerstein took approximately 400 photographs over the five-day, 54 mile march. Exhibition highlights include images of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. addressing the crowd of 25,000 civil rights marchers in Montgomery; folk singer Joan Baez, standing before a line of state troopers blocking the entrance to the State Capitol; white hecklers yelling and gesturing at marchers; families watching the march from their porches; and images of young and old alike participating in the demonstration.

Somerstein pursued a career in physics, building space satellites at the Harvard Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Lockheed Martin Co. Upon retiring, Somerstein revisited the Selma photographs. Though he had sold a few of them, the majority were not showcased until he participated in a civil rights exhibition at the San Francisco Art Exchange in 2010. “I realized that I had numerous iconic and historic photographs that I wanted to share with the public,” says Somerstein.

Stephen Somerstein, Hecklers yelling and
gesturing at marchers, 1965. Courtesy of the
photographer

Stephen Somerstein, Marchers on the way
to Montgomery as families watch from their
porches, 1965. Courtesy of the
photographer

Stephen Somerstein, Man with American
flag and marchers walking past federal
troops guarding crossroads, 1965. Courtesy
of the photographer

On February 11, 2015, Randall Kennedy will examine the origins, designs, and consequences of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. How does this landmark act continue to resonate a half-century later, especially in the wake of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling? Kennedy is a former clerk to Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Michael R. Klein Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, and the author of For Discrimination: Race, Affirmative Action, and the Law.

In 2015, the National Gallery of Art will commemorate the 25th anniversary of its photography collection with three major exhibitions exemplifying the vitality, breadth, and history of the Gallery’s photography holdings. The celebration commences in the spring with two exhibitions—In Light of the Past: 25 Years of Photography at the National Gallery of Art (May 3–July 26, 2015) and The Memory of Time: Contemporary Photographs at the National Gallery of Art, Acquired with the Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund (May 3–September 7, 2015). It concludes in the fall with Celebrating Photography at the National Gallery of Art: Recent Gifts (November 1, 2015–February 28, 2016), a selection of gifts and acquisitions made in honor of this anniversary. In addition, a series of lectures and other programs highlighting the importance of photography at the Gallery will be presented throughout the year.

Photograph by Vera Lutter, whose  most prominent works utilizes a room-sized camera obscura to capture large black and white negative images. The subject matter of her images varies greatly between urban centers, industrial landscapes, abandoned factories, and transit sites, such as shipyards, airports, and train stations. Many of her images present locations in and around New York, as well as several international venues.

The Collection got its start when, in 1949, Georgia O’Keeffe gave the Gallery an unparalleled collection of Alfred Stieglitz photographs. In December 1948, she was deciding where to place the largest and most significant collection of photographs by her late husband, the seminal American photographer Alfred Stieglitz, she visited the National Gallery of Art. She wrote to a friend a few days later, “Stieglitz worked for the recognition of photography as a fine art—the National Gallery means something in relation to that.” The following year, O’Keeffe and the Alfred Stieglitz Estate laid the cornerstone for the photography collection at the museum by donating the “Key Set” of more than 1,600 Stieglitz photographs. It is the largest and most complete collection of his work in existence. The entire collection is documented in a two-volume publication Alfred Stieglitz: The Key Set(2002) and will soon be accessible on the Gallery’s website.

And while the museum did not actively committed itself to collecting photography until 1990, under the stellar leadership of Sarah Greenough, senior curator and head of the department, the collection has since expanded to nearly 14,000 American and European photographs, spanning from 1839 to the present, spanning the entire history of the medium, including a choice group by British photographer William Henry Fox Talbot (1800–1877), the inventor of photography. Other 19th-century British photographers represented in the Gallery’s collection include Julia Margaret Cameron (1815–1879), David Octavius Hill (1802–1870), Robert Adamson (1821–1848), Roger Fenton (1819–1869), and Peter Henry Emerson (1856–1936).

The Gallery also has exceptional examples by 19th-century French photographers, including Gustave Le Gray (1820–1884), Charles Nègre (1820–1880), Henri Le Secq (1818–1882), Édouard-Denis Baldus (1813–1889), and Charles Marville (1813–1879)—many of whom were trained as painters and brought highly refined aesthetic sensibilities to the new art of photography.

Nineteenth-century American photography is also well-represented in the collection with works by Albert Sands Southworth (1811–1894) and Josiah Johnson Hawes (1808–1901); Timothy O’Sullivan (1840–1882); Carleton Watkins (1829–1916); Eadward Muybridge (1830–1904), and William H. Rau (1855–1920), among many others.

Among the greatest strengths of the collection are large, often unparalleled groups of photographs by several major 20th-century American practitioners, including Paul Strand (1890–1976), Ansel Adams (1902–1984), Walker Evans (1903–1975), André Kertész (1894–1985), Ilse Bing (1899–1998), Frederick Sommer (1905–1999), Robert Frank (b. 1924), Harry Callahan (1912–1999), Irving Penn (1917–2009), Lee Friedlander (b. 1934), and Robert Adams (b. 1937). Modeled after the Stieglitz collection, each of these holdings includes works from throughout the photographers’ careers and illustrates all aspects of their contributions to the art of photography. Often formed with input from the photographers themselves, each of these collections frequently contain exceptionally rare works.

The Gallery has also established an international reputation for its photography exhibitions and publications. In the last 25 years, it has organized and mounted more than 40 shows, often award-winning, of both 19th- and 20th-century photography, most with highly acclaimed scholarly catalogs and many which have traveled both nationally and internationally. Among the most notable are: Garry Winogrand (2014); Tell It with Pride: The 54th Massachusetts Regiment and Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ Shaw Memorial (2013); Charles Marville: Photographer of Paris (2013);The Pre-Raphaelite Lens: British Photography and Painting, 1848–1875 (2010); Looking In: Robert Frank’s “The Americans,” (2009); The Art of the American Snapshot, 1888–1978 (2008);Impressed by Light: British Photographs from Paper Negatives, 1840–1860 (2007); Foto: Modernity in Central Europe, 1918–1945 (2007); Irving Penn: Platinum Prints (2005); André Kertész (2005); All the Mighty World: The Photographs of Roger Fenton, 1852–1860 (2004); Modern Art and America: Alfred Stieglitz and His New York Galleries (2001); Harry Callahan (1996); Robert Frank: Moving Out (1994); Walker Evans: Subways and Streets (1991); and Paul Strand (1990).

In Light of the Past: 25 Years of Photography at the National Gallery of Art (May 3–July 26, 2015) charts the evolution of photography from the birth of the medium in 1839 to 1990. Some 100 works will be drawn from the Gallery’s photography collection that have been acquired since its founding a quarter of a century ago, including stunning 19th-century works, turn-of-the-century pictorialist prints, examples of international photographic modernism of the 1920s and 1930s, the most influential mid-20th-century American photographers, and ending with the new directions photographers explored in the 1970s and 1980s, including color and conceptual work. The curators of this exhibition are Sarah Greenough, senior curator and head of the department of photographs, and Diane Waggoner, associate curator, department of photographs, National Gallery of Art.

The Memory of Time: Contemporary Photographs at the National Gallery of Art, Acquired with the Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund (May 3–September 13, 2015)

Representing the past in the present is one of photography’s essential characteristics, but its relationship to time is by no means straightforward. Each photograph contains multiple layers of time, including the instant of exposure, the moment of viewing, and the lapse in between. This exhibition explores work by contemporary photographers—such as Sally Mann (b. 1951), Vera Lutter (b. 1960), Hiroshi Sugimoto (b. 1948), Carrie Mae Weems (b. 1953), and Sophie Calle (b. 1953)—who investigate this rich subject and explore the complexity of time, memory, and history. A fully illustrated catalog will accompany the exhibition.

All of the featured works were recently acquired through the generosity of the Alfred H. Moses and Fern M. Schad Fund. The curators of this exhibition are Sarah Greenough, senior curator and head of the department of photographs, and Andrea Nelson, assistant curator, department of photographs, National Gallery of Art.

Celebrating Photography at the National Gallery of Art: Recent Gifts (November 1, 2015–February 28, 2016)

This exhibition will feature a selection of photographs donated to the Gallery in honor of the 25th anniversary of the museum’s collection. Marking the culmination of a year-long celebration of photography at the museum, this exhibition brings together an exquisite group of gifts, ranging from experimental photographs made in the earliest years of the medium’s history to key works by major 20th-century figures, as well as contemporary pieces that examine the ways in which photography continues to shape our experience of the modern world.  The exhibition will be accompanied by a major publication celebrating 25 years of photography at the National Gallery of Art.

The curators of this exhibition are Sarah Greenough, senior curator and head of the department of photographs, and Sarah Kennel, associate curator, department of photographs, National Gallery of Art.

“Each exhibition tells a concise and fascinating story about photography in general—and photography at the National Gallery of Art, specifically,” said Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art, Washington. “We start by charting the history of the medium and probing its relationship to time, memory, and history, and end with an abundant display of gifts given in honor of our celebrated collection and programs for photography.”

“Anniversaries should be a time to celebrate, and to reflect on the past and contemplate the future,” said Greenough. “Our intention is to present some of the most significant and compelling photographs we have acquired over the years, which both chart the development of the medium and reveal the beauty and dynamic versatility of photography over its course of more than 175 years.”

Due to the fragility of photographs, which are subject to deterioration if exposed to light for extended periods of time, the greatest part of the collection is kept in storage. While dedicated photography galleries, opened in the West Building in 2004, have enabled the Gallery to highlight many works in the collection during the past decade, numerous photographs in this trio of exhibitions will be on public view for the first time at the Gallery.

(Students and other visitors may take advantage of the Gallery’s photograph study room—open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to noon and 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.—to examine works not on view. To book an appointment, please call (202) 842-6144.)

The James Beard Foundation is proud to announce the final nominees for the 2015 James Beard Foundation Awards presented by Lexus. The nominees were announced today during a breakfast at the James Beard House in New York City, hosted by Susan Ungaro, James Beard Foundation president; executive vice-president, Mitchell Davis; Emily Luchetti, chair of the Foundation’s board of trustees; and John Washko, trustee and chair of the Awards committee. The 2015 James Beard Foundation Book Awards For books published in English in 2014. Winners will be announced on April 24, 2015. The winner of the Cookbook of the Year Award and the Cookbook Hall of Fame inductee will be announced on April 24, 2015.

Nominees in 59 categories were announced in the Foundation’s various awards programs, including Restaurant and Chef, Restaurant Design, and Book, Broadcast and Journalism. In addition, previously announced special achievement award honorees were highlighted, including Lifetime Achievement, Humanitarian of the Year, Who’s Who, and the America’s Classics.

Photo Credit: http://www.jamesbeard.org/

Multiple James Beard Award–winning TV host, author, and chef Alton Brown will host the 2015 James Beard Foundation Awards presented by Lexus. The highly anticipated James Beard Awards ceremony and gala reception will take place on Monday, May 4, 2015, at Lyric Opera of Chicago. On Friday, April 24, 2015, Carla Hall, co-host of ABC’s The Chew, will host the annual James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards Dinner, an exclusive event honoring the nation’s top cookbook authors, culinary broadcast producers and hosts, and food journalists, at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers in New York City.

The James Beard Foundation Awards Ceremony and Gala Reception will be open to the public, and hand out awards for the Restaurant and Chef including America’s Classics and Restaurant Design categories will be handed out, along with special achievement awards including Humanitarian of the Year, Lifetime Achievement and Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. A gala reception will immediately follow, featuring top chefs and beverage professionals from across the country.

A native of Nashville, Hall’s food journey began at L’Academie de Cuisine in Maryland, after returning from a trip throughout Europe that awakened her passion for food. Upon completing her culinary training, she went on to work as a sous Chef at the Henley Park Hotel in Washington D.C. and later served as Executive Chef at both The State Plaza Hotel and The Washington Club. Hall’s approach to cooking blends her classic French training and southern upbringing, both of which she has carried through to her artisan cookie company, Carla Hall Petite Cookies, as well as her restaurant, Carla Hall’s Southern Kitchen, slated to open in New York City later this year.

The 2015 James Beard Foundation Awards Nominees are:

2015 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards

Winners will be announced on May 4, 2015

Outstanding Chef Presented by All-Clad Metalcrafters Presented to a working chef in America whose career has set national industry standards and who has served as an inspiration to other food professionals. Candidates must have been working as chefs for at least the past 5 years.

Michael Anthony, Gramercy Tavern, NYC

Sean Brock, Husk, Charleston, SC

Suzanne Goin, Lucques, Los Angeles

Donald Link, Herbsaint, New Orleans

Marc Vetri, Vetri, Philadelphia

Rising Star Chef of the Year Presented by S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water A chef age 30 or younger who displays an impressive talent and who is likely to have a significant impact on the industry in years to come.

Tanya Baker, Boarding House, Chicago

Alex Bois, High Street on Market, Philadelphia

Erik Bruner-Yang, Toki Underground, Washington, D.C.

Jessica Largey, Manresa, Los Gatos, CA

Cara Stadler, Tao Yuan, Brunswick, ME

Ari Taymor, Alma, Los Angeles

Best Chef: Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH)

Curtis Duffy, Grace, Chicago

Jonathon Sawyer, Greenhouse Tavern, Cleveland

Paul Virant, Vie, Western Springs, IL

Erling Wu-Bower,

Nico Osteria, Chicago

Andrew Zimmerman, Sepia, Chicago

Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic (D.C., DE, MD, NJ, PA, VA)

Joe Cicala, Le Virtù, Philadelphia

Spike Gjerde, Woodberry Kitchen, Baltimore

Rich Landau, Vedge, Philadelphia

Greg Vernick, Vernick Food & Drink, Philadelphia

Cindy Wolf, Charleston, Baltimore

Best Chef: Midwest (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD, WI)

Paul Berglund, The Bachelor Farmer, Minneapolis

Justin Carlisle, Ardent, Milwaukee

Gerard Craft, Niche, Clayton, MO

Michelle Gayer, Salty Tart, Minneapolis

Lenny Russo, Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market, St. Paul, MN

Best Chef: Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NH, NY STATE, RI, VT)

Karen Akunowicz, Myers + Chang, Boston

Barry Maiden, Hungry Mother, Cambridge, MA

Masa Miyake, Miyake, Portland, ME

Cassie Piuma, Sarma, Somerville, MA

Andrew Taylor and Mike Wiley, Eventide Oyster Co., Portland, ME

Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)

Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quiñónez Denton, Ox, Portland, OR

Renee Erickson, The Whale Wins, Seattle

Blaine Wetzel, The Willows Inn on Lummi Island, Lummi Island, WA

Justin Woodward, Castagna, Portland, OR

Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi, Joule, Seattle

Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs)

Marco Canora, Hearth

Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi, Carbone

Mark Ladner, Del Posto

Anita Lo, Annisa

Ignacio Mattos, Estela

Jonathan Waxman, Barbuto

Best Chef: South (AL, AR, FL, LA, MS, PR)

Vishwesh Bhatt, Snackbar, Oxford, MS

Justin Devillier, La Petite Grocery, New Orleans

Jose Enrique, Jose Enrique, San Juan, PR

Slade Rushing, Brennan’s, New Orleans

Alon Shaya, Domenica, New Orleans

Best Chef: Southeast (GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, WV)

John Fleer, Rhubarb, Asheville, NC

Edward Lee, 610 Magnolia, Louisville, KY

Steven Satterfield, Miller Union, Atlanta

Jason Stanhope, FIG, Charleston, SC

Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, Memphis

Tandy Wilson, City House, Nashville

Best Chef: Southwest (AZ, CO, NM, OK, TX, UT)

Kevin Binkley, Binkley’s, Cave Creek, AZ

Aaron Franklin, Franklin Barbecue, Austin

Bryce Gilmore, Barley Swine, Austin

Hugo Ortega, Hugo’s, Houston

Martín Rios, Restaurant Martín, Santa Fe, NM

Justin Yu, Oxheart, Houston

Best Chef: West (CA, HI, NV)

Matthew Accarrino, SPQR, San Francisco

Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski, State Bird Provisions, San Francisco

Michael Cimarusti, Providence, Los Angeles

Corey Lee, Benu, San Francisco

Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo, Animal, Los Angeles

Outstanding Pastry Chef

A chef or baker who prepares desserts, pastries, or breads and who serves as a standard-bearer for excellence. Candidates must have been pastry chefs or bakers for at least the past 5 years.

Dana Cree, Blackbird, Chicago

Maura Kilpatrick, Oleana, Cambridge, MA

Dahlia Narvaez, Osteria Mozza, Los Angeles

Ghaya Oliveira, Daniel, NYC

Christina Tosi, Momofuku, NYC

Outstanding Restaurant Presented by Acqua Panna® Natural Spring Water Presented to a restaurant in the United States that serves as a national standard-bearer for consistent quality and excellence in food, atmosphere, and service. Candidates must have been in operation for at least 10 or more consecutive years.

Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Pocantico Hills, NY

Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham, AL

Momofuku Noodle Bar, NYC

Per Se, NYC

The Spotted Pig, NYC

Outstanding Restaurateur

Presented to a working restaurateur who sets high national standards in restaurant operations and entrepreneurship. Candidates must have been in the restaurant business for at least 10 years. Candidates must not have been nominated for a James Beard Foundation chef award in the past 10 years.

JoAnn Clevenger, Upperline, New Orleans

Donnie Madia, One Off Hospitality Group, Chicago (Blackbird, Avec, The Publican, and others)

Michael Mina, Mina Group, San Francisco (Michael Mina, RN74, Bourbon Steak, and others)

Cindy Pawlcyn, Napa, CA (Mustards Grill, Cindy’s Back Street Kitchen, and Cindy’s Waterfront at the Monterey Bay Aquarium)

Stephen Starr, Starr Restaurants, Philadelphia (The Dandelion, Talula’s Garden, Serpico, and others)

Best New Restaurant Presented by True Refrigeration® – Presented to a restaurant opened in 2014 that already displays excellence in food, beverage, and service and is likely to have a significant impact on the industry in years to come.

Bâtard, NYC

Central Provisions, Portland, ME

Cosme, NYC

Parachute, Chicago

Petit Trois, Los Angeles

The Progress, San Francisco

Spoon and Stable, Minneapolis

Outstanding Baker

Joanne Chang, Flour Bakery + Cafe, Boston

Mark Furstenberg, Bread Furst, Washington, D.C.

Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery, NYC

Belinda Leong and Michel Suas, B. Patisserie, San Francisco

William Werner, Craftsman and Wolves, San Francisco

Outstanding Bar Program Presented by Tanqueray No. TEN® presented to an establishment that displays and encourages excellence in cocktail, spirits, and/or beer service.

Arnaud’s French 75 Bar, New Orleans

Bar Agricole, San Francisco

Maison Premiere, Brooklyn, NY

Trick Dog, San Francisco

The Violet Hour, Chicago

Outstanding Service Presented by Goose Island Beer Company – Presented to a restaurant that demonstrates high standards of hospitality and service. Candidates must have been in operation for at least the past 5 years.

The Barn at Blackberry Farm, Walland, TN

Marea, NYC

Quince, San Francisco

Restaurant August, New Orleans Topolobampo, Chicago

Outstanding Wine Program – Presented to a restaurant that displays and encourages excellence in wine service through a well-presented wine list, a knowledgeable staff, and efforts to educate customers about wine. Candidates must have been in operation for at least 5 years.

A16, San Francisco

Bern’s Steak House, Tampa, FL

FIG, Charleston, SC McCrady’s, Charleston,

SC Spago, Beverly Hills, CA

Outstanding Wine, Beer, or Spirits Professional Presented by BACARDÍ® GRAN RESERVA – Presented to a winemaker, brewer, or spirits professional who has had a significant impact on the wine, beer and spirits industry nationwide. Candidates must have been in the profession for at least 5 years. Sam Calagione, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE

Ron Cooper, Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal, Ranchos de Taos, NM

Ted Lemon, Littorai Wines, Sebastopol, CA

Rajat Parr, Mina Group, San Francisco

Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, KY

2015 James Beard Foundation America’s Classics

Archie’s Waeside, Le Mars, IA. Owner: Robert Rand

Beaumont Inn, Harrodsburg, KY Owners: Elizabeth and Dixon Dedman, Helen and Chuck Dedman

Guelaguetza, Los Angeles. Owners: The Lopez Family

Sally Bell’s Kitchen, Richmond, VA. Owners: Martha Crowe Jones and Scott Jones

Sevilla Restaurant, NYC. Owners: Jose Lloves and Bienvenido Alvarez

2015 James Beard Foundation Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America Inductees

The James Beard Foundation’s Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America is a list of the most accomplished food and beverage professionals in the country. Though they represent a diverse cross-section of the food and beverage industry—from chefs to journalists to farmers to business executives to scholars—each has been identified by his or her peers as having displayed remarkable talent and achievement. Begun in 1984 by Cook’s Magazine, the Who’s Who has been administered by the James Beard Foundation since 1990. Each year, a ballot of 20 possible candidates is created and distributed to the entire Who’s Who group for voting.

“This year’s Who’s Who honorees join an impressive group of over 250 of our country’s most respected food industry leaders,” said Susan Ungaro, president of the James Beard Foundation. “Their impact on cultural cuisine, food production and mixology is both substantial and exciting.”

Allan Benton, Pork Producer and Purveyor, Madisonville, TN – The owner of Benton’s Smoky Mountain Country Hams, Allan Benton has been described by Saveur magazine as “one of the most respected producers in the United States.” Benton grew up in a family that raised hogs and cured their own country hams and bacon, and he has continued this tradition ever since giving up a career as a guidance counselor and purchasing a small, ramshackle ham business in 1973. Since then Benton’s hams and bacon have become the standard against which all others are measured. Slow-cured with salt, brown sugar, and sodium nitrate and aged for at least 9 months, the meat maestro’s pork products are sought after by top chefs like Sean Brock, David Chang, and Hugh Acheson.

Dale DeGroff, Mixologist, NYC –  Master Mixologist Dale DeGroff, a.k.a. King Cocktail, developed his extraordinary talent tending bar at esteemed establishments, most notably New York’s famous Rainbow Room, where in the 1980s he pioneered a gourmet approach to recreating classic cocktails. DeGroff has since been credited with reinventing the bartending profession and setting off a cocktail revival that continues to flourish. Winner of the 2009 James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional and author of The Essential Cocktail and The Craft of the Cocktail, DeGroff has been hugely influential in the bar world for over three decades. He is also a partner in the award-winning bar training program Beverage Alcohol Resource (BAR) and the founding president of the Museum of the American Cocktail.

Wylie Dufresne, Chef and Restaurateur, NYC – Wylie Dufresne is a celebrated chef and restaurateur and a pioneer of molecular gastronomy. Dufresne began his career at the International Culinary Center (formerly the French Culinary Institute) before working for Jean-Georges Vongerichten at JoJo and Jean Georges in New York and Prime Steakhouse at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. In 1999 Dufresne became the opening chef at 71 Clinton Fresh Food, where he quickly established himself as a culinary trailblazer. He opened wd~50 in 2003, where his creative, eclectic, hyper-modern cooking earned national acclaim and a three-star review in the New York Times from Frank Bruni in 2008. The restaurant also received one star from the Michelin Guide in 2006, an accolade it retained in each subsequent year until its closing in November of 2014. Dufresne has been nominated for multiple James Beard Awards, including seven consecutive years in the running for Best Chef: New York, an award he won in 2013. Alder, Dufresne’s second restaurant, opened in Manhattan’s East Village in March 2013.

Nathalie Dupree, Cookbook Author and Television Personality, Charleston – Nathalie Dupree is the author of fourteen cookbooks and the host of more than 300 national and international cooking shows that have aired on PBS, the Food Network, and the Learning Channel. She has earned wide recognition for her work, including three James Beard Awards and numerous other honors. Dupree is best known for her approachability and her deep understanding of Southern food; her 1986 book and television series, New Southern Cooking, helped introduce the rest of the country to both traditional and modern Southern cuisine. A former chef, Dupree spent ten years directing Rich’s Cooking School in Atlanta, where she taught thousands of students. She is a founder and past president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP), a founder and board member of Southern Foodways, and a founder and past president of two chapters of Les Dames d’Escoffier, who awarded Dupree the prestigious national honor of “Grande Dame.” The Maître Cuisiniers de France gave Dupree its 2013 Woman of the Year Award. She continues to write about food and is currently working on a memoir.

Maricel Presilla, Chef, Restaurateur, and Cookbook Author, Hoboken, NJ  – Maricel E. Presilla is an award-winning author, chef, and restaurateur who is widely recognized as one of the nation’s preeminent experts on the cuisines of Latin America. In 2013 her magnum opus, Gran Cocina Latina: The Food of Latin America, was honored as Cookbook of the Year by the James Beard Foundation and Best General Cookbook by the IACP. She was named the Beard Foundation’s Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic in 2012, and is a semifinalist for the 2015 Outstanding Chef award. A Cuban native and Miami émigré, Presilla is currently the chef and co-owner of restaurants Zafra and Cucharamama, as well as Latin gourmet market, bakery, and chocolate shop Ultramarinos, all of which are in Hoboken, New Jersey. Presilla is also extremely knowledgeable about Latin American chocolate production: in addition to having authored The New Taste of Chocolate: A Cultural and Natural History of Chocolate with Recipes, she’s also the president of Gran Cacao, a Latin American marketing company that specializes in heirloom cacao beans, a board member for the Fine Chocolate Industry Association and America’s partner of the International Chocolate Awards, the world’s largest independent chocolate competition.

2015 James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year – Michael Nischan, CEO, President and Co-Founder of Wholesome Wave Westport, CT

2015 James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award – Richard Melman Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Chicago

2015 James Beard Foundation Outstanding Restaurant Design Awards. Winners will be announced on May 4, 2015

75 Seats and Under  – For the best restaurant design or renovation in North America since January 1, 2012

Design Firm: Bureau of Architecture and Design

Designers: James Gorski and Tom Nahabedian

Project: Brindille, Chicago

Design Firm: Condor Construction

Designers: Matthew Maddy

Project: Colonia Verde, Brooklyn, NY

Design Firm: Michael R. Davis Architects & Interiors

Designers: Michael R. Davis and Ronald J. Nemec

Project: Fish & Game, Hudson, NY

76 Seats and Over

For the best restaurant design or renovation in North America since January 1, 2012

Design Firm: Parts and Labor Design

Designers: Andrew Cohen and Jeremy Levitt

Project: The Grey, Savannah, GA

Design Firm: Shea, Inc.

Designers: Cori Kuechenmeister and David Shea

Project: Spoon and Stable, Minneapolis

Design Firm: SOMA

Designers: Michel Abboud

Project: Workshop Kitchen + Bar, Palm Springs, CA

American Cooking:

Heritage, Sean Brock (Artisan)

The New England Kitchen: Fresh Takes on Seasonal Recipes, Erin Byers Murray and Jeremy Sewall (Rizzoli New York)

Texas on the Table: People, Places, and Recipes Celebrating the Flavors of the Lone Star, State Terry Thompson-Anderson (University of Texas Press)

Baking and Dessert Baking Chez Moi: Recipes from My Paris Home to Your Home Anywhere Dorie Greenspan (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

Della Fattoria Bread: 63 Foolproof Recipes for Yeasted, Enriched & Naturally Leavened Breads, Kathleen Weber (Artisan)

Flavor Flours: A New Way to Bake with Teff, Buckwheat, Sorghum, Other Whole & Ancient Grains, Nuts & NonWheat Flours, Alice Medrich (Artisan)

Beverage

Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails, with More than 500 Recipes, Alex Day, Nick Fauchald, and David Kaplan (Ten Speed Press)

Liquid Intelligence: The Art and Science of the Perfect Cocktail, Dave Arnold (W. W. Norton & Company)

Sherry: A Modern Guide to the Wine World’s Best-Kept Secret, with Cocktails and Recipes Talia Baiocchi (Ten Speed Press)

Cooking from a Professional Point of View Bar Tartine: Techniques & Recipes Nicolaus Balla and Cortney Burns (Chronicle Books)

Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef Massimo Bottura (Phaidon Press)

Relæ: A Book of Ideas Christian F. Puglisi (Ten Speed Press)

Focus on Health

A Change of Appetite: Where Healthy Meets Delicious Diana Henry (Mitchell Beazley)

Cooking Light Mad Delicious: The Science of Making Healthy Food Taste Amazing Keith Schroeder (Oxmoor House)

Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans Henry Fong and Michelle Tam (Andrews McMeel Publishing)

General Cooking

The Kitchn Cookbook: Recipes, Kitchens & Tips to Inspire Your Cooking Faith Durand and Sara Kate Gillingham (Clarkson Potter)

Marcus Off Duty: The Recipes I Cook at Home Marcus Samuelsson (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

Saveur: The New Classics Cookbook The Editors of Saveur (Weldon Owen)

International

The Cuban Table: A Celebration of Food, Flavors, and History Ana Sofía Peláez (St. Martin’s Press)

My Paris Kitchen: Recipes and Stories David Lebovitz (Ten Speed Press)

Yucatán: Recipes from a Culinary Expedition David Sterling (University of Texas Press)

Photography

In Her Kitchen: Stories and Recipes from Grandmas Around the World Photographer: Gabriele Galimberti (Clarkson Potter)

A New Napa Cuisine Photographer: Jen Munkvold and Taylor Peden (Ten Speed Press)

Sherry: A Modern Guide to the Wine World’s Best-Kept Secret, with Cocktails and Recipes Photographer: Ed Anderson (Ten Speed Press)

Reference and Scholarship

Butchering Poultry, Rabbit, Lamb, Goat, and Pork: The Comprehensive Photographic Guide to Humane Slaughtering and Butchering Adam Danforth (Storey Publishing)

Inventing Baby Food: Taste, Health, and the Industrialization of the American Diet Amy Bentley (University of California Press)

The Spice & Herb Bible (Third Edition) Ian and Kate Hemphill (Robert Rose)

Single Subject

Bitter: A Taste of the World’s Most Dangerous Flavor, with Recipes Jennifer McLagan (Ten Speed Press)

Charcutería: The Soul of Spain Jeffrey Weiss (Agate Surrey)

Egg: A Culinary Exploration of the World’s Most Versatile Ingredient Michael Ruhlman (Little, Brown and Company)

Vegetable Focused and Vegetarian At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen: Celebrating the Art of Eating Well Amy Chaplin (Roost Books)

Plenty More: Vibrant Vegetable Cooking from London’s Ottolenghi Yotam Ottolenghi (Ten Speed Press)

Vegetarian Dinner Parties: 150 Meatless Meals Good Enough to Serve to Company Mark Scarbrough and Bruce Weinstein (Rodale Books)

Writing and Literature

The Chain: Farm, Factory, and the Fate of Our Food Ted Genoways (HarperCollins Publishers)

The Language of Food: A Linguist Reads the Menu Dan Jurafsky (W. W. Norton & Company)

The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food Dan Barber (Penguin Press)

2015 James Beard Foundation Broadcast and New Media Awards Presented by Lenox Tableware and Gifts For television, webcast, and radio programs aired in 2014. Winners will be announced on April 24, 2015.

Podcast

Eat This Podcast

Host: Jeremy Cherfas

Producer: Jeremy Cherfas

Airs on: eatthispodcast.com

The Feed

Podcast Hosts: Rick Bayless and Steve Dolinsky

Producers: Matt Cunningham and Steve Dolinsky

Airs on: soundcloud.com/thefeedpodcast

Gravy

Host: Tina Antolini

Producers: Tina Antolini and the Southern Foodways Alliance

Airs on: southernfoodways.org/gravy

Radio Show/Audio

Webcast All Things Considered’s “Found Recipes”

Host: Melissa Block, Audie Cornish, and Robert Siegel

Producers: Julia Redpath Buckley, Serri Graslie, and Melissa Gray

Airs on: NPR

Hidden Kitchens World

Hosts: The Kitchen Sisters (Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva)

Producer: The Kitchen Sisters (Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva)

Airs on: NPR

Quick Bites

Host: Vivian Goodman

Producer: Vivian Goodman

Airs on: WKSU

Special/Documentary

A Film About Coffee

Director: Brandon Loper

Producers: Dalia Burde and Brandon Loper

Airs on: vimeo.com/ondemand/afilmaboutcoffee

Food Chains

Host: Forest Whitaker

Director: Sanjay Rawal Producers: Hamilton Fish, Smriti Keshari, Eva Longoria, and Eric Schlosser

Airs: iTunes and Netflix

Hey Bartender

Host: Douglas Tirola

Producers: Susan Bedusa and Douglas Tirola

Airs on: Showtime

Television Program, In Studio or Fixed Location

Bobby Flay’s Barbecue Addiction

Host: Bobby Flay Producers: Bobby Flay and Kim Martin

Airs on: Food Network

Martha Stewart’s Cooking School

Host: Martha Stewart

Producers: Greta Anthony, Kimberly Miller Olko, Martha Stewart, Calia Brencsons-Van Dyk, and Lisa Wagner

Airs On: PBS

Sara’s Weeknight Meals

Host: Sara Moulton

Producers: Natalie Gustafson, Adrienne Hammel, and Sara Moulton

Airs on: PBS

Television Program, On Location

Bizarre Foods

Host: Andrew Zimmern

Producers: Andrew Zimmern and Tremendous Entertainment

Airs on: Travel Channel

A Chef’s Life

Host: Vivian Howard

Producers: Cynthia Hill, Vivian Howard, Ben Knight, Selena Lauterer, Malinda Maynor Lowery, and Rex Miller

Airs on: PBS

The Mind of a Chef

Host: Anthony Bourdain

Producers: Jared Andrukanis, Anthony Bourdain, Joe Caterini, Chris Collins, Michael Steed, and Lydia Tenaglia

Airs on: PBS

Television Segment

CBS This Morning’s “The Dish”

Host: Anthony Mason and Vinita Nair

Producers: Brian Applegate, Greg Mirman, and Marci Waldman

Airs on: CBS

The Hungry Hound

Host: Steve Dolinsky

Producer: Irit Nayden

Airs on: ABC 7 Chicago

WCCO This Morning’s “DeRusha Eats”

Host: Jason DeRusha

Producer: Jason DeRusha

Airs on: WCCO

Video Webcast, Fixed Location and/or Instructional

ChefSteps

Host: Grant Lee Crilly and Chris Young

Producer: Kristina Krug

Airs on: chefsteps.com

Thirsty For…

Producers: Jay Holzer and Eric Slatkin

Airs on: youtube.com/tastemade

You’re Eating It Wrong

Hosts: Dan Pashman

Producers: Joe T. Lin, Alex Lisowski, Fritz Manger, Justin Marshall, Max Osswald, Adam Silver, and Michael Singer

Airs on: cookingchanneltv.com/wrong

Video Webcast, On Location

food.curated

Host: Liza de Guia

Producer: Liza de Guia

Airs on: foodcurated.com

Kitchen Vignettes

Host: Aube Giroux

Producers: Aube Giroux

Airs on: pbs.org/food/blogs/kitchen-vignettes

The Perennial Plate: Africa and the Americas

Hosts: Mirra Fine and Daniel Klein

Producers: Mirra Fine and Daniel Klein

Airs on: theperennialplate.com

Visual and Technical Excellence

A Chef’s Life

Producers: Cynthia Hill, Vivian Howard, Ben Knight, Selena Lauterer, Malinda Maynor Lowery, and Rex Miller

Airs on: PBS

The Grill Iron

Producers: Jay Holzer, Gab Taraboulsy, and Clenét Verdi-Rose

Airs on: tastemade.com

Wall of Fire: A ChefSteps Story

Producer: Kristina Krug

Airs on: chefsteps.com

Outstanding Personality/Host

Host: Vivian Howard

A Chef’s Life

Airs on: PBS

Host: Ina Garten

Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics

Airs on: Food Network

Host: Pete Evans

Moveable Feast with Fine Cooking

Airs on: PBS

2015 James Beard Foundation Journalism Awards For articles published in English in 2014. Winners will be announced on April 24, 2015. The winner of the Publication of the Year Award will be announced on April 24, 2015.

Dining and Travel

“Eating Well at the End of the Road”

Julia O’Malley

Eater

“How the Vikings Conquered Dinner”

Brett Martin

GQ

The India Issue

The Editors of Saveur

Saveur

Food and Culture

“The Lost Apples of the South”

Rowan Jacobsen and the Southern Living Test Kitchen

Southern Living

“The Toxic, Abusive, Addictive, Supportive, Codependent Relationship Between Chefs and Yelpers” Rebecca Flint Marx, San Francisco Magazine

“What Happens When All-Star Chefs Get in Bed with Big Food?”, Mike Sula, Chicago Reader

Food and Health

“Against the Grain”, Michael Specter, The New Yorker

“Bred to Perfection”, Ben Paynter, Wired

“The Wild World Within”, Gretel H. Schueller, EatingWell

Food-Related Columns

“David Chang’s Kitchen”, David Chang, GQ

“The Food Lab”, Kenji López-Alt, Serious Eats

“Unearthed”, Tamar Haspel, The Washington Post

Food Coverage in a General-Interest Publication

GQ, The Editors of GQ

Los Angeles Magazine, Lesley Bargar Suter

Roads & Kingdoms, The Editors of Roads & Kingdoms

San Francisco Chronicle, The “Food + Home” Staff

Food Politics, Policy, and the Environment

“California Goes Nuts”, Tom Philpott, Mother Jones

“Hungry for Savings,” “Save Money. Live Better,” “The Secret Life of a Food Stamp”, Krissy Clark, Slate/Marketplace

“The Quinoa Quarrel: Who Owns the World’s Greatest Superfood?”, Lisa M. Hamilton, Harper’s

Group Food Blog

First We Feast

Food52

Grub Street

Home Cooking

“Cabbage Craft”, Kathy Gunst, EatingWell

“Lunch al Desko”, Julia Kramer, Bon Appétit

“The Truth Behind Cookbook Recipes”, Julia Bainbridge, Yahoo! Food

Humor

“Giving & Thanking”, Ben Schott with the Bon Appétit Editors, Bon Appétit

“Goodbye to All That Sugar, Spice, and Fat”, Lisa Hanawalt, Lucky Peach

“Underfinger”, Chris Stang, The Infatuation

Individual Food Blog

Orangette, Molly Wizenberg

Poor Man’s Feast, Elissa Altman

Three Little Halves, Aleksandra Mojsilovic

Personal Essay

“Deus X-Mas China”, Lucas Peterson, Lucky Peach

“Life in Chains: Finding Home at Taco Bell”, John DeVore, Eater

“Requiem for a Fish Sandwich”, Rick Bragg, Garden and Gun

Profile

“Élite Meat”, Dana Goodyear, The New Yorker

“Jeremiah Tower’s Invincible Armor of Pleasure”, John Birdsall, Eater

“The Leftovers: Paula Deen and the Martyrdom Industrial Complex”, Taffy Brodesser-Akner, Matter

Visual Storytelling

“Food52’s Guide to Thanksgiving” Ryan Hamilton, Michael Hoffman, Timothy McSweeney, Ryan Merrill, and James Ransom, Food52

“Le Kale Project”, Caitlin Riley, Dark Rye

“Make”, Gillian Duffy, New York

Wine, Spirits, and Other Beverages

“In New Orleans, Terrific Cocktails Never Went out of Fashion”, M. Carrie Allan, The Washington Post

“Into the Vines”, Gabrielle Hamilton, AFAR

“OMFG it’s the PSL!”, Allecia Vermillion, Seattle Met

Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Review Award

“Abe Fisher,” “Mole Poblano,” “Volvér Lays It on Thick”, Craig LaBan, The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Artisanal-Everything Roberta’s Defies the Stereotypes” “Once an Icon, Per Se is Showing its Age,” “Six Reasons Why Cosme is One of NYC’s Most Relevant New Restaurants”, Ryan Sutton, Eater

“Bollywood Theater’s Spicy Sequel in Southeast,” ”Charting the Rise of Portland’s Hottest UnRestaurants,” “How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Måurice”, Karen Brooks, Portland Monthly

MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award

“Fixed Menu”, Kevin Pang, Lucky Peach

“Life in Chains: Finding Home at Taco Bell”, John DeVore, Eater

“That Fish Cray”, Adam Gollner, Lucky Peach

Established in 1990, the James Beard Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and further the Foundation’s mission to celebrate, nurture, and honor America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. Each award category has an individual committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards program. All JBF Award winners receive a certificate and a medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes.

The 2015 James Beard Foundation Awards are presented by Lexus; in association with HMSHost, the Illinois Office of Tourism and Mariano’s; and the following partners: Premier Sponsors: All-Clad Metalcrafters, American Airlines, BACARDÍ® GRAN RESERVA, Lenox Tableware and Gifts, True Refrigeration®; Supporting Sponsors: Acqua Panna® Natural Spring Water, Brand USA, Breville, Fine European Wines from Bulgaria, Goose Island Beer Company, Lavazza, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, Skuna Bay Salmon, Valrhona; Gala Reception Sponsors: Braveheart Black Angus Beef from PERFORMANCE Foodservice, Celebrity Cruises®, Ecolab, Groupon, Tanqueray No. TEN®, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts; with additional support from: Chefwear, VerTerra Dinnerware, and Wisconsin Cheese. The James Beard Foundation also gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Chicago Department of Aviation, Choose Chicago and the Illinois Restaurant Association.

Founded in 1986, the James Beard Foundation celebrates, nurtures, and honors America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, James Beard, who died in 1985, was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts, instilling in them the value of wholesome, healthful, and delicious food. Today JBF continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships for culinary students, publications, chef advocacy training, and thought-leader convening. The Foundation also maintains the historic James Beard House in New York City’s Greenwich Village as a “performance space” for visiting chefs. In September of 2012, JBF launched the Diplomatic Culinary Partnership with the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Protocol and helped create the American Chef Corps as a way to champion American chefs abroad, promote American food products, and foster an interest in American culinary culture and history through international programs and initiatives. One such project is the next world’s fair, Expo Milano 2015, for which the James Beard Foundation is co-leading the effort for the State Department to design and produce the USA Pavilion, a global gathering of 147 countries addressing the challenges of how we will feed ourselves in the future. The pavilion, whose theme will be “American Food 2.0: United to Feed the Planet,” will showcase America’s contributions to global food security and gastronomy. For more information, please visit jamesbeard.org. Find insights on food at the James Beard Foundation’s blog Delights & Prejudices.

When The Whitney Museum of American Art‘s new Renzo Piano-designed home on Gansevoort Street (99 Gansevoort Street, New York, NY 10014 (212) 570-3600) opens its doors on May 1, 2015, the inaugural installation will be the largest display to date of the Whitney’s permanent collection. The inaugural exhibition, America is Hard to See, presents a distinctly Whitney narrative drawn entirely from the Museum’s unparalleled permanent collection of 20th- and 21st-century American art. This ambitious display will offer new perspectives on art in the United States since 1900, following the Whitney’s in-depth analysis of its collection of more than 20,000 works, an initiative that has been underway since 2012. The opening presentation will fill over 60,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibition space, utilizing all galleries in the building, and it will celebrate the Whitney’s extraordinary new home and the richness of American art. The sweep of the collection is echoed in the building’s magnificent multiple perspectives: the new Whitney looks south toward the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, east into the city, and west across the Hudson toward the expanse of the country.

The Whitney Museum of American Art. View from the Hudson River, October 2014. Photograph by Tim Schenck.

Following this distinctly Whitney narrative will be an array of exhibitions devoted to the work of Archibald Motley, Frank Stella, Laura Poitras, and David Wojnarowicz, as well as a show of hundreds of works gifted to the Whitney and the Centre Pompidou in Paris by Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner.

“The Whitney has been steadily building a remarkable world-class collection of American art since our founding by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney in 1930, much of which has remained largely unseen,” said Adam D. Weinberg, the Whitney’s Alice Pratt Brown Director. “This transformative moment—the opening of our beautiful new home downtown—calls for a fresh look at ourselves and is the perfect occasion for us to celebrate our collection, the essence of who we are.”

Led by Donna De Salvo, Chief Curator and Deputy Director for Programs, a team of Whitney curators, including Carter Foster, Dana Miller, and Scott Rothkopf, has conducted an unprecedented study of the collection in consultation and debate with other members of the curatorial department as well as artists, curators, and scholars from a variety of fields. Throughout this process, the team has rediscovered forgotten works and figures that will be shown alongside the Museum’s iconic treasures in order to provide a challenging and revealing take on more than a century of art in the United States. This narrative will be propelled by a dynamic sense of invention and even conflict, as artists struggled to work within and against established conventions and often directly engaged their political and social contexts. Works of art across all mediums will be displayed together, acknowledging the important ways in which modern and contemporary artists have engaged various modes of production and broken the boundaries among them.

Miss De Salvo noted, “The new building is a game changer for the Whitney and, we hope, New York’s cultural landscape. Our program—a mix of exhibitions, screenings, performances, and permanent collection presentations—will demonstrate that while the Whitney remains committed to embracing the art of the present, it can now do so against the backdrop of over a hundred years of history. Our aim is to present history and artistic production as an open, rather than closed chapter.”

On the occasion of the opening of the new building, the Museum will publish an expanded handbook of the collection, its first since 2002, featuring 350 artists. A companion volume will explore the Whitney’s core philosophy through essays discussing the Museum’s history and the ongoing reinvention of its display strategies and changing definitions of American art in a global context. Following is a list of selected exhibitions that will be presented during the Museum’s first year downtown.

ARCHIBALD MOTLEY: JAZZ AGE MODERNIST
OCT 2, 2015–JAN 17, 2016

Archibald Motley (1891—1981) was one of the most important figures associated with the Harlem Renaissance and is best known as both a master colorist and a radical interpreter of urban culture. Archibald Motley: Jazz Age Modernist is the first full-scale survey of his paintings in two decades. The exhibition will offer an unprecedented opportunity to carefully examine Motley’s dynamic depictions of modern life in his home town, Chicago, as well as in Jazz Age Paris and Mexico. Specifically, it will highlight his unique use of both expressionism and social realism and will resituate this underexposed artist within a broader, art historical context. The exhibition will be presented in the sky-lit eighth floor galleries of the new Whitney during its inaugural year.

Archibald Motley: Jazz Age Modernist is organized by the Nasher Museum at Duke University and curated by Professor Richard J. Powell. The installation at the Whitney Museum will be overseen by Carter E. Foster, Steven and Ann Ames Curator of Drawing.

FRANK STELLA  – OCT 30, 2015–FEB 7, 2016

Frank Stella, Gran Cairo, 1962. Synthetic polymer on canvas, 85 1/2 × 85 1/2 in. (217.2 × 217.2 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase with funds from the Friends of the Whitney Museum of American Art 63.34. © 2010 Frank Stella / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The Museum will present a career retrospective of Frank Stella (b. 1936), one of the most important living American artists. This survey will be the most comprehensive presentation of Stella’s career to date, showcasing his prolific output from the mid-1950s to the present through approximately 120 works, including paintings, reliefs, maquettes, sculptures, and drawings. Co-organized by the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and the Whitney, this exhibition will feature Stella’s best-known works alongside rarely seen examples drawn from collections around the world. Accompanied by a scholarly publication, the exhibition will fill the Whitney’s entire fifth floor, an 18,000-square-foot gallery that is the Museum’s largest space for temporary exhibitions.

This exhibition is curated by Michael Auping, Chief Curator, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, with the involvement of Adam D. Weinberg, Alice Pratt Brown Director, Whitney Museum of American Art.

THE WESTREICH/WAGNER COLLECTION
NOV 20, 2015–MAR 6, 2016

Christopher Wool, Untitled, 1990-91, Enamel on aluminum, 108 × 72 in. Promised Gift of Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner. © Christopher Wool

Co-organized by the Whitney and the Centre Pompidou and composed of selections from the noted collection of Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner, this exhibition celebrates American and international work from the 1960s to the present day. Featuring renowned pieces by, among many others, Diane Arbus, Robert Gober, Jeff Koons, Sherrie Levine, Richard Prince, and Christopher Wool, the exhibition will also include recent work by artists such as Liz Deschenes, Sam Lewitt, Laura Owens, and Frances Stark. Of the 800 works included in the gift from Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner, 500 will enter the Whitney’s permanent collection, and approximately 300 will become part of the collection of the Centre Pompidou.

This exhibition is curated by Elisabeth Sussman, Sondra Gilman Curator of Photography, Whitney Museum of American Art, and Christine Macel, Chief Curator, Centre Pompidou, Musée national d’art moderne, Paris. The exhibition travels to the Centre Pompidou after debuting at the Whitney during the inaugural year in its new building.

LAURA POITRAS – FEB 5–MAY 15, 2016

Laura Poitras (b. 1964), Laura Poitras filming the NSA Utah Data Repository construction in 2011. Photograph by Conor Provenzano

Artist, filmmaker, and journalist Laura Poitras will create an installation of immersive environments using materials, footage, and information that build on themes she has been exploring in her filmmaking, including NSA surveillance and post-9/11 America. This exhibition continues the Museum’s involvement with Poitras, whose work was included in the 2012 Whitney Biennial. It will extend beyond the discrete gallery space through extensive programming that will occur concurrently at the Whitney and in close collaboration with the artist. Poitras’s reporting on NSA surveillance was recently awarded a Pulitzer Prize. This exhibition is organized by Jay Sanders, Curator and Curator of Performance.

DAVID WOJNAROWICZ – FALL 2016/WINTER 2017

David Wojnarowicz, Untitled (One day this kid . . .), 1990. Photostat, 30 × 40 1/8 in. (76.2 × 101.9 cm). Edition of 10. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase with funds from the Print Committee 2002.183. Courtesy of The Estate of David Wojnarowicz and P.P.O.W Gallery, New York, NY

This exhibition, a must see event, presented during the new Whitney’s inaugural year, will be the first major, monographic presentation of the work of David Wojnarowicz (1954–1992) in over a decade. Wojnarowicz came to prominence in the East Village art world of the 1980s, actively embracing all media and forging an expansive range of work both fiercely political and highly personal. Although largely self-taught, he worked as an artist and writer to meld a sophisticated combination of found and discarded materials with an uncanny understanding of literary influences. First displayed in raw storefront galleries, his work achieved national prominence at the same moment that the AIDS epidemic was cutting down a generation of artists, himself included. This presentation will draw upon recently-available scholarly resources and the Whitney’s extensive holdings of Wojnarowicz’s work. This exhibition is co-curated by David Kiehl, Nancy and Fred Poses Curator, and art historian David Breslin.

The Whitney Museum of American Art is the world’s leading museum of twentieth-century and contemporary art of the United States. Focusing particularly on works by living artists, the Whitney is celebrated for presenting important exhibitions and for its renowned collection, which comprises over 20,000 works by more than 3,000 artists. With a history of exhibiting the most promising and influential artists and provoking intense debate, the Whitney Biennial, the Museum’s signature exhibition, has become the most important survey of the state of contemporary art in the United States. In addition to its landmark exhibitions, the Museum is known internationally for events and educational programs of exceptional significance and as a center for research, scholarship, and conservation.

Founded by sculptor and arts patron Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney in 1930, the Whitney was first housed on West 8th Street in Greenwich Village. The Museum relocated in 1954 to West 54th Street and, in 1966, inaugurated its present home, designed by Marcel Breuer, at 945 Madison Avenue on the Upper East Side. While its vibrant program of exhibitions and events continues uptown, the Whitney is constructing a new building, designed by Renzo Piano, in downtown Manhattan. Located at the corner of Gansevoort and Washington Streets in the Meatpacking District, at the southern entrance to the High Line, the new building, which has generated immense momentum and support, will enable the Whitney to vastly increase the size and scope of its exhibition and programming space. Ground was broken on the new building in May 2011, and it is projected to open to the public in spring 2015.

Renzo Piano’s design takes a strong and strikingly asymmetrical form—one that responds to the industrial character of the neighboring loft buildings and overhead railway while asserting a contemporary, sculptural presence. The dramatically cantilevered entrance to the Museum along Gansevoort Street shelters an outdoor plaza or “largo,” a public gathering space steps away from the southern entrance to the High Line. The upper stories of the building stretch toward the Hudson River on the west side and step back gracefully from the elevated park of the High Line on the east side. Renzo Piano Building Workshop is designing the building in collaboration with New York-based architects Cooper, Robertson & Partners.

The 220,000 square-foot building, comprised of glass, steel, and concrete, includes approximately 50,000 square feet of indoor gallery space and 13,000 square feet of outdoor galleries and terraces; an Education Center offering dedicated space for state-of-the-art classrooms; a multi-use black box gallery for film, video, and performance with an adjacent outdoor gallery; a 170-seat theater with double-height views of the Hudson River; and a Works on Paper Study Center, large art Conservation Lab, and Library Reading Room. The classrooms, theater, and study center are all firsts for the Whitney

A highlight of Philadelphia’s multiday Fourth of July celebration, the fireworks over the Philadelphia Museum of Art wow onlookers along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and all over the city. In Fairmount Park, Lemon Hill is perfectly perched for optimal viewing, and those in the know head to the lesser-known spot to watch the dazzling show. Credit: Photo by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

When Fourth of July rolls around, Philadelphia—America’s birthplace—paints the town red, white and blue thanks to eight days of music, exhibitions, Colonial characters and re-enactments, patriotic ceremonies and fireworks. This year, the city (through the efforts of VISIT PHILADELPHIA^®) amps up the revelry surrounding the annual Wawa Welcome America! festivities with Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden, the largest sailing event in North America; and a citywide celebration of the 50^th Anniversary of the Gay Rights Movement.

On VISIT PHILADELPHIA^®’s official visitor website and blog, visitphilly.com and uwishunu.com, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.

Here are a few highlights of Philadelphia’s patriotic party:

When the Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden pulls into port from June 24-28, 2015, visitors can watch the colorful parade of sail that includes the Gazela (pictured here) and L’Hermione, a replica of the ship that brought General Lafayette to the aid of the fledgling United States during the Revolutionary War, along with many other vessels from around the world. Ships will be docked on both sides of the river at Penn’s Landing and along the Camden Waterfront. Also on tap: live entertainment, hands-on activities and a dazzling fireworks display. Credit: Photo courtesy of Draw Events

• The billowing sails of more than a dozen majestic vessels mark the arrival of the Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden festival. Docked along both sides of the Delaware River waterfront will be elegant tall ships from France, Brazil, Canada and all around the globe. Visitors can tour the ships, including the L’Hermione, a replica of the French naval ship that brought General Lafayette to America to help fight the British. Also on tap: live entertainment, hands-on activities, games and a spectacular fireworks display to close out the largest sailing event in the United States in 2015. June 25-28. Penn’s Landing, Columbus Boulevard at Walnut Street; Camden Waterfront, tallshipsphiladelphia.com

Hundreds of aspiring salsa dancers dance the day away on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for the Party on the Parkway, one of many events taking place during Wawa Welcome America!, Philadelphia’s multi-day celebration of the country’s birthday. Credit: Photo by R. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

• Wawa Welcome America! kicks off with a lively block party and wraps up with the nation’s largest free Fourth of July concert and a fireworks grand finale. In between are movies, a concert by the Philly Pops in front of Independence Hall, patriotic ceremonies, Wawa Hoagie Day and more free, family-friendly fun. Various locations. June 27-July 4. (215) 683-2202, welcomeamerica.com

Some of the top names in music have performed at the annual Fourth of July concert at Penn’s Landing. The event, which draws huge crowds every year, is a favorite during Wawa Welcome America!, Philadelphia’s multi-day Independence Day celebration. Credit: Photo by J. Smith for Visit Philadelphia™

• Signature events marking the 50^th Anniversary of the Gay Rights Movement take place over Fourth of July weekend, with a reenactment of the Reminder Day demonstrations in front of Independence Hall, a wreath-laying ceremony at the historic marker that acknowledges the site of the demonstrations, panel discussions, a festival, concerts and more. July 2-5. Also on view throughout the weekend and beyond: Speaking Out for Equality: The Constitution, Gay Rights, and the Supreme Court, an exhibition at the National Constitution Center that tells the story of the gay civil rights movement through artifacts, photographs and legal precedents. June 5-September 7. During the weekend, visitors can delve into other aspects of LGBTQ history at exhibitions at the Free Library of Philadelphia, Taller Puertorriqueño, the National Museum of American Jewish History and The African American Museum in Philadelphia. Constitution Center, 525 Arch Street, (215) 409-6700, constitutioncenter.org; various locations for other happenings, reminder2015.org, lgbt50.org

Philadelphia’s rainbow colors shine brighter than ever during PrideDay in June, International Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. A fun, colorful and prideful parade winds through the Gayborhood, Historic Philadelphia and Penn’s Landing, where food, drinks, performances and more celebrating await. Credit: Photo by R. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

The month of July also includes the following events:

Through July 2015
FRAMING FRAKTUR: A CONTEMPORARY RESPONSE. The Free Library of Philadelphia collaborates with contemporary visual artists to reinterpret and reframe the Fraktur collection through a contemporary lens. The exhibition features a group of artists with thematic ties to Fraktur. (215) 567-7710, freelibrary.org

July 1-October 31, 2015
NIGHTSCAPE: A LIGHT AND SOUND EXPERIENCE. This innovative display at Longwood Gardens takes guests on a colorful journey throughout the grounds as they experience moving imagery and lights timed to music. (610) 388-1000, longwoodgardens.org

July 7-12, 2015
QFLIX PHILADELPHIA. This annual festival celebrates all genres of film that pertain to or were created by members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. This year’s venues are clustered along and near the Avenue of the Arts: Kimmel Center, Prince Music Theater and The University of the Arts. qflixphilly.com

July 10-12, 2015
BLOBFEST. This three-day extravaganza in Phoenixville is centered around the horror/sci-fi flick The Blob and includes screenings, themed competitions, a street fair and the recreation of the pivotal scene where hundreds of scared townspeople flee the Colonial Theatre. (610) 917-1228, thecolonialtheatre.com

July 11, 2015
BASTILLE DAY. The masses storm the castle on Eastern State Penitentiary as re-enactors and audience members playfully recreate the storming of the Bastille at the nation’s first “modern” prison. Emceed by “Edith Piaf,” Philly’s version of this historic event includes performances by experimental cabaret troupes, dancing baguettes, Napoleon, Joan of Arc and Marie Antoinette throwing more than 3,000 Tastykakes out to the assembled crowd. (215) 236-3300, easternstate.org

July 24-26, 2015
XPONENTIAL MUSIC FESTIVAL. WXPN, the public radio station of the University of Pennsylvania, brings together musical legends and new performers at Wiggins Park and the Susquehanna Bank Center on the Camden waterfront. xpn.org

July 30-August 2, 2015
BLACK STAR FILM FESTIVAL. Hailed by Ebony magazine as “the black Sundance,” this festival screens dozens of films about the global black experience and films by people of African descent. (267) 603-2755, blackstarfest.org

VISIT PHILADELPHIA^®, formerly known as Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, makes Philadelphia and The Countryside^® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases the number of visitors, the number of nights they stay and the number of things they do in the five-county area.

What are some other words for summer fun? Tall Ships. Fireworks. Festivals. Beer gardens. Pop-up parks. Philadelphia. This summer will go down as a season of non-stop, pull-out-all-the-stops fun in the city that scored a #3 placement on The New York Times’ influential “52 Places to Go in 2015” list.

As the birthplace of America, Philadelphia knows how to shine. Fireworks blazing over the Philadelphia Museum of Art are a Fourth of July tradition during Philadelphia’s multi-day Wawa Welcome America! bash. Timed perfectly with exhilarating live music, the fireworks paint the skies over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Credit: Photo by G. Widman for Visit Philadelphia™

Some of the summer highlights include the Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden Festival; the launch of Indego, Philadelphia’s bike-sharing program; the eagerly awaited return of the acclaimed Spruce Street Harbor Park; and the season-long showing of Discovering the Impressionists: Paul Durand-Ruel and the New Painting at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Add in plenty of pop-up beer gardens and public art displays for an unforgettable Philly summer.

Here’s a look at what’s happening:

New Amenity: Bike Share:

West Philadelphia is one of the most easily traveled areas of the city. People can easily access the neighborhood from Center City via cabs, the Market-Frankford Line (also called “the el” for its elevated section) and one of the nation’s few remaining streetcar networks. The trolleys run from City Hall down Market Street and through University City, with lines servicing the neighborhood’s three main corridors of Lancaster, Baltimore and Woodland Avenues. West Philly also boasts some of the most bicycle-friendly streets in the city, with a network of roughly 25 miles of bike lanes. Credit: Photo by J. Fusco for Visit Philadelphia™

• What has 1,200 wheels and runs on pedal power? Indego, Philadelphia’s bike-share program set to launch this spring. The long-awaited human-powered public transportation system launches with 600 bikes available at 60 kiosks in Center City and parts of North, South and West Philadelphia. The easy-to-use system allows riders to rent a bike at one location and drop it off at another. May. Various locations. rideindego.com

Special Events:

• 2015 marks 100 years for the S. 9^th Street Italian Market Charter, but the monthly celebratory events prove that the market itself still boasts a youthful energy. Food is always at the forefront of events here, and hungry visitors can chow down at the annual S. 9^th Street Italian Market Festival (May 16-17) and the Vendy Foods Awards Winners Circle Food Truck Event (June 19). Also on the docket are Multicultural Music Month activities (July) and the bocce and scopa tournaments (August). 9^th Street between Wharton & Fitzwater Streets, (215) 278-2903, italianmarketphilly.org

Always a bustling neighborhood, the Italian Market turns it up a notch during the 9th Street Italian Market Festival in May. Live entertainment and games accompany the mouthwatering cannolis, homemade sausages, imported meats and cheeses, luscious cappuccino, specialty cookware and fresh pastas that have made the market a favorite for visitors and residents alike. Credit: Photo by R. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

Standing directly across the street from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell Center at 6th and Chestnut Streets, this historic marker was erected to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the first Annual Reminder, a demonstration led by gay activists on July 4 from 1965 to 1969. Credit: Photo by K. Ciappa for Visit Philadelphia™

• The 50^th Anniversary of the Gay Rights Movement kicks off in June with three exhibitions, including the opening of Speaking Out for Equality: The Constitution, Gay Rights, and the Supreme Court at the National Constitution Center. Other exhibitions and activities celebrating LGBT culture and heritage are planned for the William Way LGBT Community Center, the Free Library of Philadelphia, The African American Museum in Philadelphia, the Opera Company of Philadelphia and Taller Puertorriqueño, among others. The celebration’s signature events take place over Fourth of July weekend, with a reenactment of the Reminder Day demonstrations in front of Independence Hall, a wreath-laying ceremony at the historic marker that acknowledges the site of the demonstrations, panel discussions, a festival, concerts and more. June-December. Constitution Center, 525 Arch Street, (215) 409-6700,constitutioncenter.org; various locations for other happenings, reminder2015.org, lgbt50.org

When the Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden pulls into port from June 24-28, 2015, visitors can watch the colorful parade of sail that includes the Gazela (pictured here) and L’Hermione, a replica of the ship that brought General Lafayette to the aid of the fledgling United States during the Revolutionary War, along with many other vessels from around the world. Ships will be docked on both sides of the river at Penn’s Landing and along the Camden Waterfront. Also on tap: live entertainment, hands-on activities and a dazzling fireworks display. Credit: Photo courtesy of Draw Events

• The billowing sails of 15 majestic vessels mark the arrival of the Tall Ships Philadelphia Camden festival. Docked along both sides of the Delaware River waterfront will be elegant tall ships from France, Brazil, Canada and all around the globe. Visitors can tour the ships, including the L’Hermione, a replica of the French naval ship that brought General Lafayette to America to help fight the British. Also on tap: live entertainment, hands-on activities, games and a spectacular fireworks display to close out the largest sailing event in the United States in 2015. June 25-28. Penn’s Landing, Columbus Boulevard at Walnut Street; Camden Waterfront, tallshipsphiladelphia.com

Pop-Up Parks & Gardens:

The Delaware River Waterfront Corporation’s new Spruce Street Harbor Park offers a summer getaway right in Philly. From June 27 through August 31, visitors can enjoy festivals, concerts and movies on the Great Plaza; relax in one of the giant hammocks in the Hammock Lounge; cool off under the Mist Walk; lounge under an umbrella at the Urban Beach; and indulge in their favorite summer foods and beverages at The Oasis, a series of floating barges accented with a lily pad garden and hang-out area.
Credit: Photo by M. Edlow for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

• Following a smashingly successful first season that earned “Best Urban Beach in the World” status from The Huffington Post, Spruce Street Harbor Park returns to Penn’s Landing to brighten up the summer. The hammocks, lounge chairs, oversized games, floating beer garden and twinkling lights all return, along with some new surprises. Opens May 22. Spruce Street at Columbus Boulevard, (215) 629-3200, delawareriverwaterfront.com

Back on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for its second summer of outdoor fun, The Oval features food, musical performances, movies, mini golf and a beer garden on Wednesday through Saturday nights through August 16. The pop-up park is sandwiched between two spectacular views: the Center City skyline and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Credit: Photo by M. Fischetti for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

• Philadelphia is one of four cities from around the world and the only U.S. city to host Saint-Gobain’s never-before-seen traveling exhibit Future Sensations, a high-concept, immersive experience featuring five distinct ephemeral pavilions. Science, storytelling and art highlight the innovations, wonders and advancements that have changed the face of the world over the past few centuries and show off future innovations. Founded in 1665, Saint-Gobain celebrates 350 years as a world leader in high performance materials and solutions for sustainable building with this epic traveling exhibit, making stops in China, Brazil and France. May 30-June 6. The Oval, 24^th Street & Benjamin Franklin Parkway, (215) 422-4169, theovalphl.org, futuresensations.com

Arts Inside & Out:

Internationally known for its collection of artwork by three generations of Wyeths and other Brandywine River School artists, the Brandywine River Museum exhibits American illustration, still life and landscapes depicting the rolling Chester County countryside. Visitors can also enjoy the wildflower and native plant gardens in bloom around the museum.
Credit: Photo by J. Smith for Visit Philadelphia™

• Horace Pippin: The Way I See It is the nation’s first major exhibition of the artist’s works in more than two decades. The show at the Brandywine River Museum of Art features more than 60 works that capture Pippin’s bold, colorful and candid paintings reflecting life in the African-American community and commenting on race, religion, war and history. April 25-July 19. U.S. Route 1 by Creek Road, (610) 388-2700, brandywine.org

Barnes Foundation architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsiem designed a “gallery within a garden and a garden within a gallery,” a concept that honors the work of both Dr. Albert Barnes and his wife Laura. Blending art, nature, education and aesthetics, the 4.5-acre Barnes campus is a fitting addition to the culturally rich Parkway. Philadelphia’s tallest building, the Comcast Center, stretches 975 feet high in the distance.
Credit: Photo by B. Krist for Visit Philadelphia™

• Mark Dion, Judy Pfaff, Fred Wilson: The Order of Things features three new large-scale installations by these internationally renowned artists. Commissioned for the show, each work is a response to the unconventional way that Dr. Albert C. Barnes chose to display his collection. The exhibition also features an installation designed by Barnes—a small room in the Merion gallery building that was replaced by an elevator shaft in the 1990s. May 16-August 3. The Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, (215) 278-7000, barnesfoundation.org

Meg Saligman’s “Philadelphia Muses” at 13th and Locust Streets is one of 3,000 works commissioned by the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, which began in 1984 as a component of the city’s Anti-Graffiti Network.
Credit: Photo by K. Ciappa for Visit Philadelphia™

• There’s big, bigger and then there’s Mural Arts’ new project: Open Source: Engaging Audiences in Public Space, the city’s biggest site-specific public art project to date. Fourteen artists from around the world work in various communities around the city to create a major piece of public art resulting from their interactions. Among the artists, whose works range from sculpture to murals to street art, are JR, Shepard Fairey, Sam Durant, Odili Donald Odita, Sterling Ruby, SWOON and Michelle Angela Ortiz. June launch, with most events taking place in October. Various locations. (215) 685-0750,opensource.muralarts.org
• Opera Philadelphia, will celebrate its 40^th anniversary with a season of premieres and casts that possess an unprecedented roster of operatic firepower. The acclaimed Lawrence Brownlee will star in the world premiere of Charlie Parker’s YARDBIRD, a dramatic imagining of the tortured jazz soloist’s personal purgatory, revisiting the inspirations, demons and women who fueled his creative genius. June 5-14. Kimmel Center, Broad & Spruce Streets, (215) 893-1018, operaphila.org

The area’s largest outdoor juried arts and crafts festival takes place every June along energetic Main Street in Manayunk. Each year, the Manayunk Arts Festival presents an eclectic variety of fine arts and crafts from about 300 artists from across the country.
Credit: Photo by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

• Main Street transforms into a giant outdoor art gallery for the Manayunk Arts Festival. The juried show represents works by more than 300 artisans from around the country. June 20-21. Main Street, (215) 482-9565, manayunk.com

The Philadelphia Museum of Art was forever immortalized in the classic Rocky film franchise. While the “Rocky Steps” draw a slew of visitors who want to reenact Stallone’s on-screen training regimen, the museum is even more impressive inside. The astounding art collection here comprises more than 200 galleries housing more than 227,000 works in media, including photography, sculpture, paintings, textiles and more.
Credit: Photo by M. Fischetti for Visit Philadelphia™

• Discovering the Impressionists: Paul Durand-Ruel and the New Painting celebrates the ambitious and visionary Parisian art dealer who supported and helped elevate a new style of painting. On view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, its only U.S. stop, the exhibition showcases approximately 95 impressionist works, making it bigger and more comprehensive than its showings at the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris and the National Gallery in London. Art lovers enjoy works by Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley, Degas, Manet and others. June 24-September 13. 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, (215) 763-8100, philamuseum.org

The region’s premier horticultural wonderland, Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Chester County rambles over 1,050 acres of gardens, woodlands and meadows. The illuminated fountain shows brighten the vast gardens at night during the summer and holiday seasons.
Credit: Photo by B. Krist for Visit Philadelphia™

• Come for the flowers, stay for Nightscape: A Light & Sound Experience at Longwood Gardens. As visitors wander through the evening gardens, they encounter moving images that originated in the studios of the Klip Collective, but use the plants, trees and landscape as the canvas. Enhancing the visual images are choreographed lights, specially commissioned soundscapes and scores by John Barthmus, Julian Grefe and Justin Geller. July 1-October 31. 1001 Longwood Road, Kennett Square, (610) 388-1000, longwoodgardens.org

A Historical Perspective:

The world’s only museum dedicated to the U.S. Constitution, the National Constitution Center puts into historical context the most famous four pages ever written through multimedia exhibitions, sculpture, film, artifacts and interactive displays. In Signers’ Hall, visitors walk among the life-sized statues of the 39 signers of the Constitution—and they can choose to sign their own John Hancock or to dissent. Credit: Photo by J. Smith for Visit Philadelphia™

• Creating Camelot: The Kennedy Photography Of Jacques Lowe offers a peek into the private and public lives of President Kennedy and his family in the years leading up to his election. The 70 photographs in the exhibition at the National Constitution Center, many of which have never been seen before, were among the few that could be restored after more than 40,000 of Lowe’s original negatives, which had been stored in a vault in the World Trade Center, were destroyed. Through September 7.525 Arch Street, (215) 409-6700, constitutioncenter.org

Visitors to Historic Philadelphia can’t help but notice the striking National Museum of American Jewish History, located right on Independence Mall just steps from the Liberty Bell. The glass façade reflects the open nature of America and the perennial fragility of democracy, and the Religious Freedom statue welcomes all who enter.
Credit: Photo by M. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

• The National Museum of American Jewish History is the exclusive U.S. venue for Richard Avedon: Family Affairs, featuring striking photographs that helped define America’s perceptions of beauty, politics and power. The exhibit showcases more than 70 works by the renowned photographer, including a massive mural of beat poet Allen Ginsberg and his family, a group portrait of Andy Warhol and the Factory and a series of portraits published by Rolling Stone on the eve of the 1976 presidential election. April 1-August 2. 5^th & Market Streets, (215) 923-3811, nmajh.org
• From an illiterate, unsophisticated warrior to a world conqueror, Genghis Khan evolved into one of the most powerful leaders in history. In The Franklin Institute’s blockbuster interactive exhibition Genghis Khan: Bring the Legend to Life, visitors can time travel to 13^th-century Mongolia. Vibrant marketplaces and battlegrounds, hundreds of weapons, jewels, saddles and armor recreate a vanished world. They can even launch catapults and fire arrows and play a general, princess or spy. May 9-January 3. 222 N. 20^th Street, (215) 448-1200, fi.edu

A Family Affair:

• It took a staggering one million-plus LEGO bricks to create The Art of the Brick, on view at The Franklin Institute and comprised of more than 100 works of art made using the popular toy. All ages will appreciate the LEGO recreations of acclaimed artworks such as van Gogh’s Starry Night and Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, a 20-foot-long T. rex, a Liberty Bell created especially for the Philadelphia iteration of this exhibit and much more. Through September 6. 222 N. 20^th Street, (215) 448-1200, fi.edu

The Philadelphia Zoo, the nation’s first and one of the most animal-packed zoos in the country, sits among a charming 42-acre Victorian garden. With tree-lined walks, ornate iron cages, animal sculptures, and wide-open exhibits, visitors can connect with hundreds of animals in a naturalistic setting.
Credit: Photo by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA ™

• Recycling is second nature at the Philadelphia Zoo, so, of course, their new art installation Second Nature is fashioned from recycled materials. A dozen artists have reused and repurposed unexpected materials to draw attention to the plight of endangered animals. The exhibit includes a 13-foot-tall blue gorilla sculpted entirely of recycled car parts, two giant nine-foot-tall pink rabbits fashioned from recycled plastic and a menacing five-foot-long alligator molded from chewing gum. April 11-October 31. One month later on May 16, the zoo opens its Gorilla Treeway, the newest addition to its first-in-the-world animal travel and exploration trail system called Zoo360. The treeway gives the zoo’s Western lowland gorillas the ability to enjoy long-distance travel in a mesh passageway positioned overhead. 3400 W. Girard Avenue, (215) 243-1100, philadelphiazoo.org

Kids go wild over the Rock Around the Block Parade at Sesame Place, the only theme park in the nation featuring the popular TV show’s most lovable characters, including Zoe and Big Bird. A water park, rides, interactive activities, fireworks and the brand new Sunny Day Carousel add to the fun.
Credit: Photo by R. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

• Sesame Place turns the big 3-5 this year and celebrates with a birthday-themed parade, birthday décor throughout the park and three new seasonal rides. Even Elmo’s Eatery gets a makeover for the occasion. As always, everyone’s favorite, furry monsters pop up to greet their adoring fans. May 2-December 31. 100 Sesame Road, Langhorne, (866) GO-4-ELMO (464-3566), sesameplace.com

At more than 200 years old, The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is America’s oldest natural history museum. Visitors of all ages can wander through a tropical garden filled with live butterflies, meet live animals, see three continents of wildlife in their natural habitats and get face to face with towering dinosaurs.
Credit: Photo by J. Fusco for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

• It’s slimy, stinky and downright yucky, which means kids will love Animal Grossology, an exhibition about the ickiest creatures on earth. Based on the best-selling children’s book series Grossology, the interactive exhibit at The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University oozes with disgusting science and entertaining learning games that explain why the dung beetle is called nature’s pooper scooper, why cows chew cud and how snail and slug slime could potentially become medical treatments. May 16-August 30. 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, (215) 299-1000, ansp.org
• Fans of Lyle, the city-dwelling crocodile that lives in a Victorian brownstone with the Primm family, will be delighted with the exhibition Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile And Friends: The Art Of Bernard Waber at the National Museum of American Jewish History. Original illustrations and writings reveal how Waber created the lovable hero of the classic children’s picture books and also highlight his work as a designer. Special activities and programs are also in the works. August 27-November 1. 101 S. Independence Mall West, (215) 923-3811, nmajh.org

Annual Favorites:

Back on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for its second summer of outdoor fun, The Oval features food, musical performances, movies, mini golf and a beer garden on Wednesday through Saturday nights through August 16. The pop-up park is sandwiched between two spectacular views: the Center City skyline and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Credit: Photo by M. Fischetti for VISIT PHILADELPHIA™

Beer lovers sample the suds during Philly Beer Week’s Opening Tap kickoff night. Brewers and ale aficionados come from all over the U.S. and beyond for the 10-day festival, overflowing with dinners, tastings, tours, workshops, meet-and-greets and more that highlight Philly’s brewing culture.
Credit: Photo by G. Widman for Visit Philadelphia™

• It’s the largest beer celebration in the United States. Lasting 10 days and nights, Philly Beer Week attracts people from all over who come together for beer-pairing dinners, beer gardens, spirited homebrew competitions, citywide pub crawls and meet-and-greets. New this year: a one-day stop in Philly for Street Pub, the world’s biggest transportable bar; special activities for Yards Brewing Company’s 20^th anniversary; and Beer Oyster Cult, a special night of oyster and beer pairings at various bars and restaurants. May 29-June 7. Various locations, phillybeerweek.org

Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson of the pioneering hip-hop group The Roots adjusts his signature hair pick during the second annual Roots Picnic at Penn’s Landing on June 6, 2009. The Roots are Philadelphia’s honorary creative ambassadors for 2009, part of the new Philly 360º initiative that highlights the city’s creative scene. The day-long concert also featured Philly’s own Santigold, Writtenhouse, Back to Basics, TV on the Radio, The Black Keys, Public Enemy and others.
Credit: Photo by M. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

• For music lovers, the unofficial start of summer begins with the Roots Picnic, a daylong festival featuring Philly’s hometown heroes and house band for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Once again, the guys have locked down some of the hottest names in the music business, including The Weeknd, Erykah Badu, A$AP Rocky, Phantogram, DJ Mustard and Rae Sremmurd. May 30. Festival Pier, Columbus Boulevard & Spring Garden Street, rootspicnic.com

Before crossing the finish line on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the international field of pro cyclists must complete the grueling 156-mile course, which includes 10 laps up the infamous 17% grade Manayunk Wall. This event is commonly called the “Bike Race.”
Credit: Photo by R. Kennedy for Visit Philadelphia™

• Cheering crowds pack the streets for the giant neighborhood party that accompanies the annual Philadelphia International Cycling Classic. This race brings some of the world’s best riders to take on “The Wall,” Manayunk’s steepest topographic challenge. New this year, recreational cyclists can ride the closed course before the pros. June 7. philadelphiainternationalcyclingclassic.com

The Odunde Festival, held each June on Philadelphia’s South Street, is the largest African-American street festival in the nation. The festival covers 12 city blocks and features 100 art, craft and food vendors, as well as two stages of live entertainment by African and Caribbean performers.
Credit: Photo by M. Edlow for Visit Philadelphia™

• Based on Yoruba traditions, ODUNDE, the largest African-American street festival in the country, celebrates its 40^th anniversary in 2015. The festival marks the New Year for Africans and African-Americans around the world with a procession, ceremonial offering, live entertainment and an African marketplace with crafts from more than 100 vendors stretching over 12 city blocks. June 14. (215) 732-8510, odundefestival.org

Singers, dancers, color guards and entertainers highlight Philadelphia’s Independence Day Parade, just one of the many activities that is part of the city’s Wawa Welcome America! celebration. The festivities also include several fireworks shows, family activities, patriotic ceremonies and the nation’s largest free outdoor Fourth of July concert.
Credit: Photo illustration by G. Widman for Visit Philadelphia™

• Philadelphia celebrates America’s birthday like no place else. In the week leading up to Independence Day, Wawa Welcome America! lights up the city with concerts, fireworks, historic re-enactments, Wawa Hoagie Day and other family-friendly activities. Then on July 4, the granddaddy of all concerts takes over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway with chart-topping artists hitting the stage and a grand-finale fireworks display. June 27-July 4. Various locations. welcomeamerica.com

VISIT PHILADELPHIA® makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases the number of visitors, the number of nights they stay and the number of things they do in the five-county area. On VISIT PHILADELPHIA® ’s official visitor website and blog, visitphilly.com and uwishunu.com, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
Artists’ Carnival in Cologne, 1931 from People of the 20th Century: Festivities
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

The Museum of Modern Art announces the acquisition of a complete set of August Sander’s People of the Twentieth Century (1892–1954), the artist’s comprehensive visual examination of German society that remains among the most ambitious undertakings in the history of photography. Produced over a 60-year period, the 619 photographs are widely celebrated for embracing photography’s unique ability to capture detail, and its potential to evoke meaning through straightforward description. MoMA acquired the set through the generosity of the Sander family, and is the only museum to hold the body of work in its entirety.

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
Blind Miner and Blind Soldier, c. 1930 from People of the 20th
Century: Idiots, the Sick, the Insane and Dying
Gelatin silver print, 10 3/16 × 7 3/8″ (25.8 × 18.7 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

All 619 works were printed with extreme sensitivity from the artist’s glass plate negatives by Gerd Sander, the artist’s grandson and a leading authority on his work, and Jean-Luc Differdange between 1990 and 1999 in an edition of seven. The only public exhibition of the complete project was at the 30th São Paulo Biennial, in 2012.

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
The Painter Otto Dix and his Wife Martha, 1925-26 from People of the
20th Century: Woman and Man
Gelatin silver print, approx. 7 3/8 × 10 3/16″ (18.7 × 25.8 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
Farming Family, 1913-14 from People of the 20th Century: The Farmer’s Family
Gelatin silver print, approx. 7 3/8 × 10 3/16″ (18.7 × 25.8 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

Sander first exhibited a selection of 100 prints in 1927 at the Cologne Art Union. Two
years later, 60 portraits from this body of work were published in the book Antlitz der Zeit (Face
of Our Time), which marked the beginning of its international recognition.

“In the history of photography there are few works that rival August Sander’s People of the Twentieth Century in scope or influence,” said Quentin Bajac, The Joel and Anne Ehrenkranz Chief Curator of Photography at MoMA. “It is exhilarating to bring it into the collection to contextualize not only Eugéne Atget and Walker Evans, but also the Bechers, Diane Arbus, Judith Joy Ross, Rineke Dijkstra, and many others who cite his achievement as essential to the development of their own.”

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
Publisher [Kurt Neven DuMont], 1933 from People of the 20th Century:
The Businessman
Gelatin silver print, 10 3/16 × 7 3/8″ (25.8 × 18.7 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

August Sander, German, 1876–1964
Revolutionaries [Alois Lindner, Erich Mühsam, Guido Kopp], 1929 from
People of the 20th Century: Working Types–Physical and Intellectual
Gelatin silver print, 10 3/16 × 7 3/8″ (25.8 × 18.7 cm)
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Acquired through the generosity of the Sander family

PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK OF OVER 200 LGBT STUDENT ATHLETES BY JEFF SHENG, AFTERWORD BY JASON COLLINS 

All Images courtesy of Jeff Sheng, Fearless Project

“If there is any great theme of the book, it’s that of family. And the love of one’s family to their LGBT child.” – Jeff Sheng, Writer, Sociologist, Photographer, Artist, Founder, The Fearless Project 

After 13 years of photography by American artist and photographer Jeff Sheng, a very successful Kickstarter campaign, and 3 years of writing, design and production, Fearless: Portraits of  LGBT Student Athletes will finally become a book and be released in late June 2015.  Somebody Books announces the release of FEARLESS, a photography book and personal memoir by Jeff Sheng. Recalling his experience as a closeted high school student athlete in the 1990s, Sheng uses his own story as a foundation for a wider exploration of the current LGBT rights movement.

Derek on the cover of FEARLESS: Portraits of LGBT Student Athletes, a photography book and personal memoir by American artist Jeff Sheng. Photo courtesy Jeff Sheng, Fearless Project/www.jeffsheng.com

Working this on book, says Sheng, “I have mostly learned about the power of the individual. And hard work and perseverance. I never thought that this book would come out as beautifully as it did. It hasn’t fully hit me yet – having worked on something for 13 years, to finally see it in print. I’m sure the emotion will get to me soon at some point.”

Woven throughout the 316-page book are photographic portraits of 202 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender high school and college athletes from the United States and Canada taken by the author over a 13-year span between 2003 and 2015. The book also includes intimate writings from some of the featured athletes and concludes with an afterword essay by retired professional NBA basketball player Jason Collins, the first player in the NBA to come out as openly gay while still competing.

The titles for the images use first name, sport(s), school, and the year in which the photograph was taken. For high school athletes, the state of their high school is noted and also a varsity distinction if that was told to Sheng at the time of the shoot. Most college athletes are varsity NCAA team athletes, though a few are on club/recreation teams. This distinction is not made in the title for college athletes. In certain cases, select photo shoots were done in the year or two following the athlete’s graduation, but most were done while the athlete was still in school and competing.

Fearless is truly a revelation. In the first three chapters, Sheng talked about his childhood, his teenage years (“Growing Up Jeffrey, 1980 -1998“), early years in college (“Into A New Life, 1999-2002“) and the post-grad years of searching for a purpose (“Step Inside The Court, 2003-2005“) in an open, honest way that is quite reminiscent of an earlier autobiography, 1973’s The Best Little Boy In The World (written by Andrew Tobias as “John Reid“),  a classic account of growing up gay in America, which is also voiced in equal parts honesty and logic and humor. The same can be said of Sheng’s story Fearless. It is told not in a straight line narrative but a story that circles back, time and time again, to the ideal that one should be true to one’s self if one is to be truly happy, a sentiment we should all embrace and hold near. The early years, it should be said, informed his future and propelled him to begin, shepherded through the good (and bad) times and bring to fruition the Fearless Project.

Jeff Sheng is an American artist whose photographic work over the last decade has focused on the 21st century LGBT rights movement. Please see www.jeffsheng.com for more information about the artist. (Photo Credit: Jeff Sheng)

Chapter four (“To Change The Way People See, 2006-2008“) delved into the process of photographing the student athletes, and the way in which his interactions with them served to change him for the better. I have never been more affected by a photograph than I was as I view each image of the 202 student athletes dispersed throughout Fearless. There is indeed something very fearless about these young people. The way they look dare you to judge them (at your own peril) give me hope for the next generation of LGBTQ leaders. We are in good hands with these guys.

The last chapter (“This Is Our Collective Story, 2012-2015“) and the individual essays that followed it is, absolutely, the underlying reason to buy and read this book. These essays allowed some of the featured student athletes to tell their stories, all the better to understand and celebrate their accomplishments as students, athletes, successful human beings and budding leaders of America and the free world.

Alyssa Sialaris, a four-time all-American collegiate athlete, on the cover of FEARLESS: Portraits of LGBT Student Athletes, a photography book and personal memoir by American artist Jeff Sheng. (Photo Credit: Jeff Sheng/www.jeffsheng.com)

The emotion heart and soul of Fearless belongs to Alyssa Sialaris, a four-time all-American collegiate athlete Sheng had photographed just a few months earlier in 2013, who had suddenly and unexpectedly passed away (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-sheng/photographer-responds-to-parents-of-lgbt-athlete-who-passed-away_b_7542036.html). Her loss is deeply felt, from her photo on one of the covers to the heartfelt essay written by her close friend, Jordan Vega.

Sheng praised the young people profiled: “I don’t want this book to be about me. It’s about the athletes, the 202 brave young individuals who had the courage to come out while still in high school or college, something that I could never do as a student athlete.  While the book is my personal memoir, it is also a celebration of everyone’s collective accomplishments as an LGBT community, each one of us doing out part to advance our rights to just be who we are. It’s our collective memoir for the movement.”

Photo courtesy Jeff Sheng, Fearless Project

To capture the diversity of the LGBT community, the book has 8 different speciality covers, each one with a different athlete from Fearless, representing the wide spectrum of sport, experience, race/ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation/gender identity of the LGBT sports community. When stacked together, the 8 different book versions form a three-dimensional representation of the original 1978 LGBT pride flag. While each of the 8 covers is different, the inside of every Fearless book is the same.

FEARLESS: Portraits of LGBT Student Athletes (Hardcover, 8.5” x 11” vertical, 316pp, published by Somebody Books, is now available for sale ($39.50) at [fearlessbookstore.com]) and will start shipping to the public the last week of June, the timing coinciding with the 45th anniversary of the first LGBT pride marches held in New York and San Francisco in 1970. It was printed using five-color process inks, by offset lithography, and Smyth sewn in 21 signatures. The book was designed by New York-based design firm Isometric Studio and printed by Colonial Printing, a division of Integrity Graphics Inc., in Warwick, Rhode Island.

Jeff Sheng is an artist, photographer, writer and sociologist based in Los Angeles. For over the last decade, his work has explored issues of LGBT rights and acceptance in the 21st Century, and his photography on this topic has been published by Time Magazine, Newsweek, the New York Times Magazine, the Advocate, and The New Yorker, among others.

Since 2006, his photo series Fearless, which this book is based on, has been exhibited at over 70 different venues, including the headquarters of Nike, Goldman Sachs and ESPN, as well as select locations at the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2012 Summer Olympics. His other well known series, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (2009-2011), about closeted United States military service members, was profiled in 2010 by The New York Times, ABC World News Tonight, and CNN.

Sheng completed his undergraduate degree at Harvard College in Visual and Environmental Studies (VES), and has a Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) in Studio Art from the University of California, Irvine.  He is also a PhD Candidate in sociology at Stanford University.

Ultimately, FEARLESS will reach a wide-ranging audience across the spectrum but Sheng has a primary target audience in mind:  “The book was designed with the target audience of ‘PFLAG parents’ in mind. Seriously. We thought that the person who should read it the most were the parents of an LGBT high school or college student, and who wanted to understand and connect with their child more.  If there is any great theme of the book, it’s that of family. And the love of one’s family to their LGBT child.”

Jason Collins is a retired American professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Collins was selected in the first round of the 2001 draft and played for 13 years until his retirement in 2014. Throughout his career he played for New Jersey, Memphis, Minnesota, Atlanta, Boston, Washington and the Brooklyn Nets (formerly the New Jersey Nets). After the 2012-13 NBA season concluded, Collins publicly came out as gay in a cover story for Sports Illustrated, becoming the first active male player in any of the four major American professional sports to announce that he is gay. In April 2014, Collins was featured on the cover of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World.”

Collins writes: “Coming out is one of the bravest actions that a person can take. The fact that these individuals are so young, still in high school and college, makes their decision to step forward even more remarkable. It gives us hope and makes us proud to see the next generation boldly embracing their true selves at such a young age. They are individuals that come from different races, religions, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Their images displayed in this book are truly inspirational.”

(All the photographs taken between 2003–2013 were shot on medium format, 6×7 film. The photographs in 2014 and after were all taken with a digital SLR Nikon D810 Camera.)

Somebody Books is an independent publisher based in Los Angeles. The firm works with artists, photographers, and graphic designers, connecting them with funding sources and production agents, to oversee the creation of specialty books and works of art that would normally not be produced by mass-market publishers.

Featuring Instagram–famous photographers, YouTube hit “Through The Lens” documents the inspiring stories of social media’s most popular image-takers; more photographer collaborations and events coming soon from Adorama, plus – 7th episode just released.

“Through The Lens” documents the inspiring stories of social media’s most popular image-takers

Adorama, one of the world’s largest photography, video, audio, imaging and electronics retailers, recently launched a new web docuseries called “Through The Lens” on its AdoramaTV online channel. An insta-hit, the YouTube series profiles Instagram’s most popular photographers, highlighting their unique photography styles in each episode. Followed by hundreds of thousands of social media users, these artists share their journeys, biggest inspirations, tools and best tips in brief AdoramaTV episodes, which has gained popularity with every new release. Most recently, episode 7 of “Through The Lens” featuring Jason Peterson was just released yesterday – watch now here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ4ua-CaETU.

“Through The Lens” offers an interactive experience that caters to the young, social media savvy

“Through The Lens” documents the inspiring stories of social media’s most popular image-takers

audience, introducing them to photography from a relatable perspective. A second season is already in the works, and it is set to showcase even more photographer collaborations, tips and inspiration, plus concurring local events to give the audience a more immersive experience with “Through The Lens” artists.

“The feedback from our audience has been overwhelmingly positive,” states Salvatore D’Alia, video content producer at Adorama. “They really appreciate the message of the show and admire the production value. We’re really proud of how ‘Through The Lens’ has taken off and are looking forward to working with more inspiring photographers.”

The first six episodes of “Through The Lens” have been extremely well received, earning statuses as some of the most liked and commented on videos on the channel. Featured Instagram

photographers are also pleased with the response from the show, saying:

“Since being featured on ‘Through The Lens,’ I have received such great feedback on how I’ve inspired others to follow their passion for photography. It has given me an even greater sense of determination to give back and connect deeper with the community.” – Jose Tutiven aka@Tutes “Through The Lens,” Episode 2

“Being able to share my photography journey and inspire my fans through Adorama’s ‘Through The Lens’ has been an absolute honor.” – Natalie Amrossi aka @Misshattan “Through The Lens,” Episode 5

(To watch full episodes of “Through The Lens,” please visit http://adorama.nyc/category/through-the-lens/.)

Go “Behind The Lens” on a Photo Walk With Antonio Jaggie and Sony
On Sunday, July 19th, Adorama will host a Sony Day PhotoWalk with featured “Through The Lens” episode 3 photographer Antonio Jaggie. Taking place on the scenic streets of Chelsea, attendees can explore New York City through their own lens and capture great moments. Food and beverages will be provided by Telegraph Coffee before the photo walk commences at Adorama, where the friendly staff from Sony will be showcasing their newest cameras for the crowd to test out. (Register for Adorama’s Sony Day PhotoWalk now: http://www.adorama.com/alc/browse/pages/instafamous-photowalk-antonio-jaggie-presented-sony.)