tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43139107524768127452024-03-14T00:33:51.293+03:30GREATER MIDDLE EAST PHOTOPHOTOGRAPHY FROM OR ABOUT THE GREATER MIDDLE EASTGMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.comBlogger72125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-50897308107993987912011-11-06T16:09:00.000+03:302011-11-06T16:09:48.211+03:30Time is Now, Yalla! JR Goes to Israel and Palestine
© Time is Now, Yalla!
Giant billboards with smiling faces may not be something french photographer JR pioneered, but the secretive photographer did adopt the approach in a unique and meaningful way.
JR rocketed to fame in 2008 with his portraits of women in Brazilian favelas enlarged to sizes capable of covering the walls and roofs where he pasted them - right where he shot them - in the GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-81529142880740837822011-10-03T21:18:00.001+03:302011-10-03T21:21:32.547+03:30STERN, D la Repubblica and a Holiday
By now you have noticed GMEP has taken a summer holiday. It is not all rest though - we are working to relaunch a new and improved GMEP later this month. While we have been away from writing though, we have been getting some nice attention from the super giant and super stylish Italian magazine D la Repubblica who featured us (page 170) along with a photo by Omani photographer Nadia Alamri. If GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-35370099843799478102011-07-02T19:01:00.001+04:302011-07-02T19:02:16.981+04:30Paradoxical Iran
Ali Nadjian & Ramyar Manouchehrzadeh
Ali Nadjian and Ramyar Manouchehrzadeh have individual photography practices, but it is in their co-created series We Live in a Paradoxical Society that they really excel. Alone, each of the Iranian photographers have dark and moody, staged images, and at times have seemingly both used the same panoramic camera - or at least presented their images GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-66342716881344143742011-06-20T18:02:00.000+04:302011-06-20T18:02:53.287+04:30Antoin Sevruguin and the Qajar Dynasty
Antoin Sevruguin
Antoin Sevruguin was a photographer in Iran during the Qajar Dynasty. Many contemporary Middle East photography fans will be familiar with this 1795 - 1925 dynasty through Shadi Ghadirian's reference of the period in her Qajar series which GMEP wrote about HERE.
Sevruguin ran one of Tehran's most successful photo studios for about 65 years, ending at his death in 1933. GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-18988155575013628012011-06-03T17:21:00.002+04:302011-06-03T17:24:01.552+04:30AMIT SHA'AL'S NEW–OLD WORLD – THE WORLD PRESS PHOTO CONTROVERSY
© Amit Sha'al
With the unfortunate news that World Press Photo closed its Beirut exhibition early due to protests over the inclusion of Israeli photographer Amit Sha'al's work, the series has now been thrust into the spotlight even more than that afforded it by its inclusion in the prestigious touring exhibit.
The work was originally made for the weekend magazine Calcalist. Sha'al GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-34678449050018940652011-05-28T18:52:00.003+04:302011-05-28T18:56:06.964+04:30Lonely Soldier: Selim Sume's Mandatory Army Service
© Selim Sume
"This is a kind of diary about a lonely man in the army. Not a journalistic work. This book is about me and my loneliness and missing life. You can understand my feelings about army."
This is how Rec Collective member Selim Sume describes his series and book 289KD. Photographed nine years ago during his eight months of mandatory service in the Turkish army, the black GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-60950019112225726452011-05-15T18:00:00.002+04:302011-05-15T20:47:47.389+04:30The Bearded Lady: Monira Al Qadiri
© Monira Al Qadiri
The work of Senegal born Kuwaiti Monira al Qadiri is reminiscent of Byzantine paintings. The warm colours – golds, yellows and browns – the halos around the heads, the combination of photography and paint – and even the wardrobe of these self portraits – work together to create images that look like they come from the 10th century rather than today.
Of course, if you GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-28987559680058576512011-04-23T02:07:00.002+04:302011-04-23T03:16:53.820+04:30SISSI FARASSAT / SEQUINED GLAMOUR
© Sissi Farassa
The sequined photographs of Sissi Farassat can't help but recall the work of fellow Iranian artist Farhad Moshiri. Like Moshiri's art, Farassat's work has an element of kitsch infused in it. Kitsch can be overpowering and can easily overshadowed the substance of an artwork. Farassat has so far avoided this pitfall.
Using self-portraits, family photos and pictures of strangers, GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-83623009988161859292011-04-16T18:22:00.002+04:302011-04-16T18:26:18.094+04:30TAKE ME TO THIS PLACE: I WANT TO DO THE MEMORIES
© Atfal Ahdath
The three room exhibition by collective Atfal Ahdath may be the most amusing part of the suddenly controversial Sharjah Biennial. The three Beirut based artists pay homage to the ubiquitous photo studios which are so much a part of the fabric of the greater Middle East.
The Aftal Ahdath collective members – Vartan Avakian, Hatem Imam and Raed Yassin – have been given a GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-3359156258311939472011-03-31T20:33:00.001+04:302011-04-16T23:12:08.154+04:30The New Newsha Tavakolian
© Newsha Tavakolian
As one of the main go-to photographers for international media, Newsha Tavakolian's work is pretty well known outside her home base of Iran.
After five years spent taking photos for regional newspapers, Tavakolian began shooting for publications such as Time, National Geographic, Stern, Der Spiegel, Le Monde, Newsweek, and other high profile titles.
Until GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-59311531452936699812011-03-27T16:55:00.002+04:302011-04-16T23:13:14.558+04:30Nadia Alamri / Oman Conceptual
© Nadia Alamri
It is always exciting to meet new and exciting photographers. It is even more rewarding when they are young and full of potential for greatness. This is the case of 22 year old Muscat based Omani-Russian photographer Nadia Alamri.
Alamri began taking photos when she was 19 and joined the local camera club in Muscat. She credits the other club members with teaching her a lot of GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-55639479945499105732011-03-20T22:59:00.000+03:302011-03-20T22:59:49.894+03:30FASSIH KEISO / EAST / WEST SEXUALITY
© Fassih Keiso
Syrian born artist Fassih Keiso is at times photographer, installation artist, video artist or teacher. Often provacative, Keiso's works have one foot in the East and one in the West. Though the images and installations may not be all include themes of sexuality, it does seem to be a thread throughout his work.
It could be (and has been) said Keiso's work is about contrasting GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-75072181669118831202011-03-07T17:59:00.004+03:302011-04-16T23:15:10.157+04:30YANIV WAISSA / POETIC AND FAMILIAR
© Yaniv Waissa
Yaniv Waissa and his photography are what I would call poetic. With titles such as Butterflies I Haven't Seen There, Here They're Flying...Flew...Already Gone, and In Silence, his website seems to support my assumption about him.
In his text for Disintegration Of A Revived Nation, Waissa writes, " I create an intimate atmosphere in every frame and put my personal feelings, GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-15323387611092220192011-02-19T17:53:00.002+03:302011-04-16T23:16:26.479+04:30WALID RAAD / THE ATLAS GROUP
© Walid Raad
The Atlas Group is a fictional company created by artist Walid Raad. Through photo, video and texts, the Atlas Group is a sometimes foggy window to the modern history of Lebanon.
With 'File Types' of Authored Documents, Found Documents and Documents Produced by the Atlas Group, we are introduced to text and visuals pertaining to car bombs, the intelligence officer who can't keep GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-25606322355378645922011-02-03T19:49:00.000+03:302011-02-03T19:49:17.252+03:30KEVIN FRAYER / HELMAND FROM ABOVE
© Kevin Frayer / AP
The Sacramental Bee has posted a series called Helmand Province From Above, by AP photographer Kevin Frayer. The black and white work is striking, in the way that aerial photography often is, due to the scale, and the less common perspective. Since these aerials are taken over one of the most dangerous places on the planet however, they also have the appeal of offering a GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-68143656015599983772011-01-20T12:46:00.002+03:302011-01-20T12:48:31.088+03:30OPEN EYE: LEBANON'S MISSING
© Dalia Khamissy
Dalia Khamissy and Duckrabbit's Benjamin Chesterton worked together on a BBC Open Eye project about Khamissy's series Lebanon's Missing. The series, about "...the estimated 17000 victims of enforced disappearance in Lebanon" went live on the BBC website yesterday.
You can also listen to Dalia on the 23 minute radio show also on the BBC.
This is a sobering look at what we GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-75588256131438286492011-01-02T20:00:00.001+03:302011-01-02T20:01:41.675+03:30PALESTINIAN WOMEN PHOTOJOURNALISTS
Karimeh Abbud
Thanks to Yumi Goto for drawing our attention to ChiqClicks which in turn republished an article from Palestinian Mothers...which we are going to suggest you read.
The essay, titled Palestinian Women Photojournalists by Iqbal Tamimi focuses "...on Palestinian women photojournalists working within the Palestinian territories; thus excluding hundreds of Palestinian women journalistsGMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-34032988191854590772010-12-26T19:16:00.000+03:302010-12-26T19:16:37.701+03:30GUY MARTIN / IN RAMALLAH I CAN BREATH
© Guy Martin
I was just reading Alec Soth's book From Here To There: Alec Soth's America. In it, we are treated to his thoughts on the importance of titles for photography projects. I was immediately reminded of a project by Guy Martin titled In Ramallah I Can Breath. To me, this a title that is memorable and entices, but is not so abstract that there is no hint of the story. It is beautifullyGMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-51647438015115584642010-12-19T17:30:00.001+03:302010-12-19T17:31:40.767+03:30ORIENTALISM / ONE MAN'S TREASURE
From the collection of John Toohey
I have only recently discovered John Toohey's blog One Man's Treasure which explores 'the art and history of photography using images from (his) personal collection'.
Toohey's collection favors old over new, and anonymous over famous. Alongside the images Toohey writes a blend of history, philosophy, fact and speculation that weaves a combination of context GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-70671024548081576832010-12-14T22:16:00.001+03:302010-12-14T22:16:46.276+03:30MATILDE GATTONI / WATER CRISIS IN YEMEN
© Matilde Gattoni
Matilde Gattoni has a project on the water crisis in Yemen that is beautiful and worrisome and informative.
Water is one of the most important global issues and we're starting to see it in more projects from around the globe. Yemen is an especially heartbreaking example of a population running desperately low on a vital resource. A country that in many ways already has GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-61882544456652890172010-12-02T21:50:00.000+03:302010-12-02T21:50:46.804+03:30UNITED ARAB EMIRATES NATIONAL DAY
© Rich-Joseph Facun/The National
Our friend and picture editor Clint McLean at The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi alerted us to a stills and video project they have been building today to document National Day in the UAE. The gallery is a contact sheet of images and videos from around the country which is being added to almost in real time.
The project paints an interesting picture of GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-12809922286418257892010-11-28T21:58:00.001+03:302010-11-28T21:59:26.400+03:30Natalie Naccache-Mourad
© Natalie Naccache-Mourad
Anyone who has spent time in Lebanon will know how seriously the Lebanese take their beauty salons. Natalie Naccache-Mourad's series Kteer Jeune (Very Young) takes a look inside the beauty salons at the people who frequent them.
The project statement written by Naccache-Mourad tells us "The First National Bank in Lebanon offers plastic surgery loans to women whoGMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-16618060768718165122010-11-24T18:52:00.000+03:302010-11-24T18:52:40.365+03:30NIKI KOOHPAIMA
©Niki Koohpaima
Niki Koohpaima's collages are based on photographs she takes of beautiful boys and girls in Iran. Just as she is a product of both Iran and the United States, the images also seem heavily influenced by both countries.
The collages give a nod to magazine covers of teen heart throbs, though the cover-boys and girls in these instance are all Iranian. The flavor of kitsch alsoGMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-18781842608579256962010-11-17T23:04:00.001+03:302010-11-20T20:34:03.020+03:30ANAS AL SHAIKH
© Anas al Shaikh
Bahraini artist Anas al Shaikh, as a child, lived in Saudi Arabia. As an adult later living in Bahrain, memories and nostalgia of this time influenced his installation-with-photography work titled Memory of Memories.
Memory or Memories was exhibited in a garage in one of the less affluent areas of Manama. It was here the memories of his childhood combined his present and the GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4313910752476812745.post-42037508080811678052010-11-15T21:40:00.004+03:302010-11-26T13:03:20.461+03:30HENRY ROLLINS AND SHIRIN NESHAT?Here's a fun clip from a German TV show called Into The Night With... featuring Iranian photographer Shirin Neshat with former Black Flag front man Henry Rollins. Too bad Rollins did most of the talking, but least he showed a healthy amount of respect for her. Speaking about the show, in an interview with Melanie "Sass" Falina on Unrated Magazine , Rollins said,
"I just hung out with one GMEPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04762432731324654289noreply@blogger.com0