Without question, one of the highlights of 2017 was Pete Souza's talk with Michael Shaw of Reading the Pictures, which was a special presentation brought to us by the exceptional folks at Photoville. Publisher Shaw and former White House photographer Souza met at St. Anne's Warehouse in Brooklyn before the start of Souza's national tour to promote his bestselling book, "Obama: An Intimate Portrait." 

Above is the 2 minute excerpt but I strongly recommend a large glass of something and the whole 90 minutes, below.

aCurator was given the book on Christmas morning and cried till lunchtime. Here I am telling him.

 © Ruth Orkin

 Sad news from our colleagues that Ninalee Allen Craig, aka Jinx, has died at the age of 90. She was the subject of a series of photographs by Ruth Orkin that includes the iconic "American Girl in Italy," a series made in Florence in 1951 and featuring Ninalee Allen, 23 at the time. 

Read about their story in the aCurator blog.

See the full screen magazine photo feature including "American Girl" and other less well known images from the series.

Read the wonderful obituary in the Washington Post.

It's Women's History Month at D.C.'s National Museum of Women in the Arts, the only major museum in the world solely dedicated to championing women through the arts. I am joining in the  #5WomenArtists social media campaign. Led by the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and now in its third year, the campaign seeks to confront gender inequity and inspire a global conversation. Here are my nominations of five six women artists who I personally love and respect enormously. Here are my five six seven EIGHT:

Janette Beckman is a prolific artist. She not only has an archive that takes no prisoners, she still shoots as much as ever. People love Janette's style and the consistency throughout her work whether she's shooting a big name band, an underground women's fight club, or kids on the street. Check out the breadth of her work on her tip top website. Salt n' Pepa, 1987.

Working in both photography and illustration is youngster Nichole Washington. Nichole has gone from student to shero in the short time I've known her. I can't wait to see what she does next.

March is Women's History Month. At D.C.'s National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), the only major museum in the world solely dedicated to championing women through the arts, there's lots going on. 

First, it's the return of the award-winning #5WomenArtists social media campaign. Led by the museum, and now in its third year, the campaign seeks to confront gender inequity and inspire a global conversation. 

NMWA poses the question: "Can you name 5 women artists?" and invites individuals and cultural organizations to celebrate women artists by using the hashtag #5WomenArtists on social media. In 2017, over 11,000 individuals and 520 organizations from 30 countries and all 7 continents participated. They expect an equally strong response in 2018, when the museum will be encouraging a focus on women artists of color, who experience a double disadvantage in an already challenging field. 

And, just opened is the opening of the exhibition Women House (March 9-May 28, 2018) featuring 36 international artists whose work - photography, sculpture and video - recasts conventional ideas about women in the home. Women House forms a sequel to the famous project Womanhouse, developed in 1972 by Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro. The artists and their students at the California Institute of the Arts transformed a dilapidated Hollywood mansion with works that disrupted conventional ideas about the home as a feminine space. It attracted thousands of visitors and national media attention. A landmark exhibition in art history, Womanhouse was the first female-centered art installation to appear in the Western world. The artists in Women House at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, include Louise Bourgeois, Judy Chicago, Mona Hatoum, Zanele Muholi, Leticia Parente, Martha Rosler, Miriam Schapiro, Cindy Sherman and Laurie Simmons and others. 

I have a feeling of disgust that there's a need for Women's Month, but let's join in while we still need to!  Here's some of what's on view at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in the Women House exhibition. Definitely worth a trip to Washington.

 Northern Soul, © Elaine Constantine

 Hosted at Spectrum in Brighton and part of Brighton Fringe, Behind the Beat is a group exhibition exploring the movements and scenes over the last 50 years that have been defined by the fashion, music and stories associated with them. Through Teds, Punks, Mods, Skins, Rudeboys, B Boys and Girls, Rave to Grime with plenty in between, the exhibition incorporates photographs from some of the UK's most celebrated documentarians, including Dean Chalkley and Harris Elliott, Derek Ridgers, Elaine Constantine, Ken Russell, Stuart Griffiths, Ali Tollervey, Gavin Watson, Olivia Rose and Paul Hallam. Behind the Beat is curated by Miniclick and Ali Tollervey.

In addition to the 9 artists, the exhibition will also incorporate images, memorabilia and unique audio recordings of stories on the scenes, all submitted by the public.

Behind the Beat will be open every weekend through May, from 10am to 6pm at Spectrum, 42 Frederick Place, Brighton, UK.

Read more and see loads more fab photos on the Miniclick website.

Enjoy and share.

 © David McIntyre

David McIntyre's several years of wandering the 13 mile length of Broadway are waiting to be collected into a book. You buy one, one gets donated. Win-win!

"Pushing back against the voices of intolerance by celebrating the beauty and strength of New York's diversity."

When I first met Arthur Drooker, at PhotoLucida portfolio reviews in 2015, his book on conventions was still a twinkle in his hungry eye. Arthur had hit upon the idea of covering a variety of the countrywide events held for certain, specific interests.

"In 2013, while researching a potential photo series about historical reenactors, I came across the Association of Lincoln Presenters website. They were promoting their upcoming convention. When I saw that, a bell went off in my head. That's it! Conventions."

"Each year, according to a Convention Industry Council study, there are 1.8 million conventions, conferences, and trade shows in the United States. These gatherings directly support 1.7 million jobs, $263 billion in spending, and $14.3 billion in federal tax revenue. As impressive as these figures are, they don't interest me as a photographer. I see conventions not as revenue sources but as visual treasures. To me, they're unique expressions of community, culture and connection."

Fast forward a year or so and I'm behind the curve but pleased to report, "Conventional Wisdom" is now in print through our friends at Glitterati.