You might be celebrating (or mourning) the end of summer this weekend—but either way, here's something you can cheer about: it's 20x200's third birthday! We're not ones to celebrate alone so we're offering an uncommon deal to all of you out there:

Consider this a stock up sale! You'll be saving lots by picking up scores of 8"x10" and 11"x14" prints. (Usually shipping starts at $8.50.) You can put as many prints in these two sizes as you'd like and it's still just $3. One detail to keep in mind: the $3 shipping and handling fee is applied per size, so if you're mixing things up with both 8"x10" and 11"x14" prints, the absolute most you'll pay is $6—still a steal.

Be sure to peruse all the fabulous photography available on the site. Here's a taste of Hot Shots editions that bid adieu to summer and ring in the fall to whet your palate:

Midway, Neshoba County Fair, Philadelphia, Mississippi by Mike Sinclair

Golf Driving Range by James Deavin

Rincon Artificial Island and Pipeline, Ventura, California by Ian Baguskas

Norristown, Pennsylvania by Justin James Reed

Driveway, Ashland, Oregon by Jeffrey Krolick

* Rate is applied per size. Special rate can only be applied to orders within the U.S. and does not apply to international orders.

It's that time of year again and the 20% More Ridiculous Sale is back at 20x200! That means: 20% off your entire order (minimum $50), including these fabulous editions by Hot Shots.

Below are editions from just a few of our many Hot Shots. Many more are available!

Untitled, Swamp #2 by Dorthe Alstrup

Eivind by Michelle Arcila

Rincon Artificial Island and Pipeline, Ventura, California by Ian Baguskas

Untitled #46 from "Stories" by Jessica Bruah

West Forty-third Street (Yellow Cabs) by Joseph O. Holmes

Paris by Gregory Krum

Dutch Club, Anaheim, California by Brad Moore

Uman by Hosang Park

Winter Flags (East Village, New York) by Youngna Park

Las Vegas, Nevada, November 2000 by Mike Sinclair

Untitled #9 by Matthew Tischler

Get them before they're going, going, gone; you've got till Sunday, June 27th at 12:00 noon EST!

And remember: every contender who enters the competition is considered for an edition on 20x200, so get some prints, then send us your best photos!

Today we had the pleasure of releasing Paris, our fourth edition from photographer Gregory Krum on 20x200 and are also excited to announce that he'll have an upcoming solo show at the JBG opening in May 2010. Mr. Krum first exhibited at the gallery as a Summer 2007 Hot Shot, and since then his work has been included in Mixtape, Summer Reading and X Marks the Art.

Sara wrote of Paris in today's newsletter:

It's easy to give this image a minute to study the tangled coils of ropes and hose and foliage, alive and dead, scattered and floating, and the next thing you know, you too are scattered and floating, a glance having gleaned a full ten minutes of your time. For me, ten minutes turned to a half hour as I scoured the web for houseboat rentals on the Seine.

So many of Mr. Krum's photographs share the same dreamy stillness of this very image. It is as though he ambles to faraway places on his tip toes, looking for serene and beautiful moments to enjoy and capture without anyone knowing he was ever there to begin with. Paris comes from the series Sailors' Valentine, a quiet and anticipatory set of photographs of house boats in Paris.

Although Gregory's first two editions, Chateau Pool and Nymphenberg are completely sold out, his two most recent photographs, New York (Peony) and today's Paris are available in three sizes. Pick them up now, and plan to stop by the JBG in May to see Gregory's images up on the walls.

With the 2009 Second Edition Hey, Hot Shot! Exhibition fast-approaching (Friday, March 5th — mark your calendars!), we've had the chance to work closely with our five newest photographers: Justin James King, Marisa Aragona, Leah Tepper Byrne, Alejandro Cartagena and Jessica Eaton. Today, we're excited to release the first of these photographers' editions on 20x200: Justin James King's And Still We Gather With Infinite Momentum 1, adding to a noteworthy collection of prints by Hot Shots now available on the site.

During the competition, Alan Rapp wrote of Justin's work:

Justin James King radically intervenes in the common spectacle of the tourist vista by removing the view itself....By removing the sweeping natural view, Justin undercuts the entire premise of the conventional landscape, pulling off the tricky business of making a photograph about the invisible.

And in today's newsletter, Jen adds,

Road-tripping on the highway and taking long detours on byways, made even slower by the temptation to stop and peer at scenic overlooks, is certainly among our favorite summer pastimes. But just what are we looking at? And what is the appeal of these landmarked spots? Are we looking simply because we have been told to do so? Justin's given us free reign to re-imagine what we might see if given a blank slate -- the opportunity to look at a landscape sans any references to what we anticipate, expect and already know. With fresh eyes, the possibilities are infinite.

Read the newsletter in full here and make sure you're on the mailing list to get the first word about 20x200 editions by the rest of our newest group of Hot Shots in the coming weeks and months.

One of the great pleasures of JBP is getting to work with artists in several different capacities. Today we were pleased to release Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Florida, a contemplative and beautifully quiet photograph by 2009 First Edition Hot Shot Daniel Cheek over on 20x200. The image comes from his series Where We Go, a collection of works about "where people go to enjoy nature, and how we rarely have an unadulterated experience of it." He offers quiet commentary on the places we visit to simulate the experience of the wild, without its true harshness.

In today's newsletter, Associate Director of JBP, Sara Distin describes the visceral experience of running in a snowstorm and how the experience of really feeling the impact of the wind, snow and cold on her face made her understand Daniel's sentiments even more.

She writes:

In the midst of this visceral experience of Brooklyn, albeit abated by concrete, buildings, and bridge, I was keenly aware of Daniel's sense of our separation from it all and realized that he was right and that that might not be such a bad thing. There is value in creating space to look and think from a distance and more so, in highlighting that this is what we're doing. Like the chairs that dot horizons in paintings by Hopper, the empty rockers at Rookery Bay serve to remind us that in these endeavors, we shouldn't separate ourselves from each other, too. In other words, if you're in the snowbound East like we are, rustle up your nearest and dearest and go make some snowmen.

As we mentioned last week, Daniel's work is also currently on view in America Now at the Montserrat College of Art Gallery in Beverly, MA, alongside images by Ben Huff, Shane Lavalette, Laura McPhee, Alec Soth and Zoe Strauss.

This Saturday, February 6th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., join 20x200 | Jen Bekman Projects at the Brooklyn Museum for a Target First Saturday event with 1stfans. We'll be giving away 10"x8" prints by artist Valerie Hegarty to new and renewing 1stfans members and Ms. Jen Bekman herself will be speaking to an intimate group of 1stfans at a meetup. Meetups are an opportunity for 1stfans to interact exclusively with the Museum's staff, its collections, artists, and other members every month at Target First Saturdays.

Jen will be speaking about 20x200 and how all of Jen Bekman Projects, including Hey, Hot Shot!, work together to support artists.

The larger prints sizes in Valerie's edition (14"x11" and 20"x16") will be released on 20x200 the following week of Monday, February 8th. Every print in this special edition comes with a 1stfans one-year membership! To find out about the release online, make sure you're signed up for the 20x200 newsletter.

Target First Saturday at the Brooklyn Museum
Saturday, February 6th, 2010 | 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.
Jen's talk | 8:00 - 8:30 p.m.
Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway, BK, NY

Rincon Artificial Island and Pipeline, Ventura, California by Ian Baguskas

Hope it's not too early to say, Happy New Year everybody! There are only eight days* in the new year to take in Mixtape at Jen Bekman Gallery, which runs through January 9th, 2010. Mixtape is a delirious, kaleidoscopic show, but one reason we're so excited about it is that nearly every photographer included, going back half a decade to our first round in 2005, has held the rank of Hot Shot.

On-screen reproduction just does not do this work justice, but for those of you who can't make it to the gallery, I've taken the liberty of linking up the following list to each photographer's piece in the show so that you can click through and get a peek at the work:

Jessica Eaton—2009 Second Edition
Mike Sinclair—2009 First Edition
Michelle Arcila—2009 First Edition
Colleen Plumb—2008 First Edition
Yijun (Pixy) Liao—2008 Second Edition
Gregory Krum—Summer 2007 Edition
Scott Eiden—Fall 2007 Edition
Kate Bingaman-Burt—Summer 2006 Edition
Ian Baguskas—Spring 2006 Edition
Joseph O. Holmes—Fall 2006 & Fall 2005
Matthew Tischler—Spring 2005 Edition

Another thing to note is that many of the prints in the show are genuine 20x200 editions. If you see something you like at the show, it may be more affordable than you think! Make sure to check the Mixtape page on 20x200 to see what's available for collecting. Stay tuned for news about out 2009 Second Edition Hey, Hot Shot! Showcase which is set to open in early March 2010.

* The gallery is closed on January 1st but will reopen from 12–6 on the 2nd

We're excitedly getting ready to announce our 2009 Second Edition Hot Shots on Friday, but first wanted to let you know about some exciting things happening over at 20x200.

Right now we're offering: 20% off orders of $200 or more until 6:50 p.m. (EST)! Enter code Festivus20 at checkout to redeem your discount.

This discount is only good today, December 16th, so hop to it!

We've also got our brand new gift guide up to help you find art for the sportsman, foodie, shutterbug, wanderer, New Yorker, geek, maximalist, beautiful soul, frienemy, nighthawk, bookworm, nature-lover, colorblind, do-gooder or kid in your life. And, we've also got gorgeous notated guides drawn by our own 20x200 artists. See what Ky Anderson, Jorge Colombo, Dustin Hostetler, Clare Grill, Jane Mount and Mike Monteiro picked out!

The JBP team also made their staff picks -- even though we look at this art every single day, there's lots and lots of it we covet. Take a look at what Sara, Jason, Kika, Raul, John, Jonathan, Jeffrey, David and I picked out to gift to friends and family.

Our drop dead shipping dates to ensure arrival before the 25th is tomorrow, December 17th at 11:00 p.m..

Last, but most definitely not least: we're releasing a gorgeous new edition by world-renowned and 20x200-beloved Starn Twins tomorrow to our mailing list at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow. Their last two editions sold out in minutes! Want to get your hands on a print? Sign up for the 20x200 mailing list!

Mixtape opens at Jen Bekman Gallery tonight, Friday, November 20th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. The group show features forty-five original works and limited-edition prints by thirty-six artists including Hot Shots: Michelle Arcila, Ian Baguskas, Kate Bingaman-Burt, Scott Eiden, Joseph O. Holmes, Gregory Krum, Yijun (Pixy) Liao, Colleen Plumb, , Mike Sinclair and Matthew Tischler, as well as many other 20x200 artists. In the spirit of what Geoffrey O'Brien declared the "most widely practiced American art form," Mixtape brings the studio soundtrack to the gallery walls.

If you're in NYC, we hope to see you at the gallery tonight! If not, please visit the Mixtape exhibition page here, which features the full list of artists and works included in the show.

Mixtape
Opening Reception: Friday, November 20th, 2009, 6 to 8 p.m.
Jen Bekman Gallery
6 Spring Street
(between Elizabeth + Bowery)
NY, New York 10012

The show will remain on view November 21st–January 9th, 2010.

Gosling Lake by Kurt Tong

RAF Vulcan XL-361 by Kurt Tong

See two new editions by 2009 First Edition Hot Shot, Kurt Tong on 20x200 today. Gosling Lake and RAF Vulcan XL-361 both come from Kurt's series Farewell in Labrador, which recently garnered him the Editorial Prize in Blurb's Photography.Book.Now competition.

And remember, the HHS! 2009 First Edition Exhibition at The Gallery closes this Saturday, September 19th, so make sure to stop over before then!

These days, you can find 20x200 photographer Kevin Miyazaki in the classroom at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design where he is busy teaching the course Professional Practices. But Kevin, who you may know for his his blog or his ongoing curated group show on the web, Tiny Tiny Group Show, is not settling for in-classroom teaching alone. His latest web endeavor, MIAD-FA382 (named after the course title), serves as an online photographic resource for his students (and the lucky public). The site, in the form of a blog, includes an extensive collection of artist and industry interviews culled from blogs and magazines, gallery listings, and also features the work of his very own students.

We've picked out a few of our favorite interviews from his listings to get you acquainted. Start with an interview with last week's 20x200 edition maker Liz Kuball who discusses her early beginnings and her most recent series California Vernacular, from which two editions are currently available on 20x200. Other 20x200 artist interviews include an in-depth look at internet phenom Noah Kalina, the creative processes of Curtis Mann, and Joseph Holmes' dialogue on photography from start to finish. Also not-to-be-missed are the interviews with photography heavyweights Ryan McGinley, Cindy Sherman, and Andreas Gursky. Whatever your tastes, you'll come away from Kevin Miyazaki's experiment in education both inspired and informed.

Our own Ms. Jen Bekman had the honor of being the juror for this year's Photo-Op, the 14th Annual Photographic Competition run by Photographic Center Northwest (PCNW). Located in downtown Seattle, PCNW serves as both art education center, gallery, and photographic facility for working artists.

This year's Photo-Op exhibit, which opens next Monday, July 13th and remains on view through September 4, 2009, features many artists familiar to JBP. Of the twenty-two artists featured in the show, HHS! contenders Mary Ellen Bartley, Magda Biernat, Lacey Terrell and Ian Whitmore each have pieces included, as well as 20x200 artists Katie Baum and Kevin Miyazaki, 20x200 artists and Hot Shots! Colin Blakely and Colleen Plumb, and Hot Shot! Shawn Records.

Also featured are: Jowhara Alsaud, Andrea Bakacs, Tim Carpenter, Onejoon Che, Thomas Holton, Stephanie Kirk, Brian Knappenberger, Alex Leme, James Luckett, Liz Obert, Tom Reese, Andy Reynolds and Rebecca Sittler.

We congratulate all photographers who were selected from a very competitive field of over 2500 submitted images.

In addition to the exhibition, Jen will be in Seattle, in person, for a lecture, reception and awards ceremony on July 17th. Come see Jen speak on the topic of Curating & Collecting Contemporary Photography at 7 p.m. next Friday evening at the Seattle Art Museum ($6, $4 PCNW & SAM members & students). The lecture will be followed by a reception at PCNW from 8:30 - 10 p.m. and is free and open to the public. More details about the artists, exhibit, lecture and reception are available on PCNW's website and if you are in Seattle next week, we hope you'll stop by to see this sure-to-be-great show.

Submissions are due next Thursday, July 16th for the prestigious Aperture Portfolio Prize, so head on over and check out the guidelines because the deadline is fast approaching! The judges (including Lesley A. Martin who is one of our very own Hey, Hot Shot! panelists) are looking for an innovative photography portfolio of up to 15 images created in the last five years. One caveat: you have to be an Aperture subscriber to enter.

Here's what's at stake:

First prize is $2,500. The first-prize winner and runners-up are featured in Aperture's website for approximately one year. Winners are also announced in the foundation's e-newsletter, which reaches thousands of subscribers in the photography community.

Be sure to check out last year's winners, which includes Runner-up Colin Blakely, a Winter 2007 Hot Shot and two-time 20x200 edition-maker. In fact, Colin won for the very same portfolio that was the source of his two wildly popular prints on 20x200!

P.S. Both of Colin's prize-winning 20x200 prints (below) have sold out in the smaller sizes. But don't worry, they're both still available in our 30"x40" size for $2000!

Recollection of the Battles Fought Maintaining the Home Front by Colin Blakely

The Seeming Impenetrability of the Space Between by Colin Blakely

20x200 edition-maker and Fall 2007 Hot Shot Colin Blakely, sent us word of a new series, The Histories Beneath, which captures quiet moments inside his family's life and home. The textures and physical layers of walls and windows are humble narration to a family story, told from a distance. His young child is caught--naked--with a popsicle streak running down the toddler's chest, a family photo falls crooked within a frame, and electrical wires hang loose in an unfinished bathroom.

Blakely writes,

This series externalizes a tumultuous year in the life of my family. Our lives are surrounded with facades we put in place for the benefit of others. Yet these shells we create are ultimately fragile, and in time reveal their cracks. In these cracks we see that there are always histories beneath.

See additional images from The Histories Beneath on Colin's site and buy his work on 20x200 (edition of 2 remaining for $2000):

Recollection of the Battles Fought Maintaining the Home Front
The Seeming Impenetrability of the Space Between

Field of mirrors, harvesting the power of the sun by Shuli Hallak

A new project from a summer 2007 Hot Shot that is sure to inspire minds is Shuli Hallak's new ongoing series Green Energy. Starting in Kentucky Coal mine examining energy use and necessities, Shuli recently spent time in the Southern Californian desert photographing a Solar Energy testing site. Sites like the one photographed can generate enough energy to light 300,000 homes! The future certainly looks very bright. From here Shuli will be examining various sources of energy while documenting her quest.

Says Shuli of the project: "We are at the beginnings of a new era, out of necessity. The geopolitical, cultural, and financial climate of our time is revolutionizing the way we think about and use energy. In much the same way that the PC revolutionized information, this new era will change the way we make and consume energy: from a centralized to a decentralized, vast network of systems. We are on the cusp of greatness, and I'm excited to bear witness to it."

First Step: become a Hot Shot. Next Step: Change the World!

To view more images from the series, check out Shuli's Website and also, a reminder that her two prints Cotton Field, Mississippi and Hay Harvest, New Jersey are still available on 20x200! With the sale going on, you should snap them up quickly!

Hello, hello and happy Friday! If you're whiling away the hours, waiting for the weekend, I have good news for you — head on over to 20x200 to browse some art and you'll see that we are offering 20% off every print, now through Saturday at 11:59 p.m.! Enter the code RIDONK at checkout.

$20 prints are now $16
$50 prints are now $40
$200 prints are now $160
$500 prints are now $400
$2,000 prints are now $1,600

As we mentioned here last week, there's a lot of really great photography from Hot Shots available. But some of those editions, won't be around for long.

There are just 17 of Justin James Reed's Idaho Springs, Colorado $20 $16 prints remaining, and only 17 and 14, respectively remaining, from Joseph O. Holmes's amnh #10 and amnh #62. Brad Moore, Birthe Piontek, Colleen Plumb and Youngna Park all have editions that are about to disappear as well!

There's never been a better time to start collecting the work of some of today's most promising photographers. All of these Hot Shots have work available on the site, and it's all 20% off through tomorrow at midnight: Dorthe Alstrup, Ian Baguskas, Nina Berman, Kate Bingaman-Burt, Colin Blakely, Dan Boardman, Jessica Bruah, James Deavin, Scott Eiden, Juliane Eirich, Todd R. Forsgren, Alison Grippo, Shuli Hallak, Brandon Herman, Joseph O. Holmes, Karolina Karlic, Robert Knight, Jeffrey Krolick, Gregory Krum, Pixy Liao, Brad Moore, Chad Muthard, Bob O'Connor, Hosang Park, Youngna Park, Kirby Pilcher, Birthe Piontek, Colleen Plumb, James Rajotte, Justin James Reed, Kelly Shimoda, Mickey Smith, Rachel Sussman, Matthew Tischler, Carlo Van de Roer, Donald Weber and Shen Wei.

Want to be among the first to hear about future 20x200 events and editions? Sign up for the 20x200 Mailing List and get Jen's twice-weekly edition announcements. She'll have new editions from the latest crop of Hot Shots very soon!

We are pleased to report that Juliane Eirich, a 2008 first edition Hot Shot and 20x200 superstar, will be part of SCOPE Basel 2009. On view from June 8th through June 14th, you can see Juliane's solo show Korean Diary as part of Berlin based Galerie Schuster. This series developed out of a 2007 fellowship in Seoul, Korea in which the artist took one photo everyday, creating a visual diary of her stay. Also, this is the first year that the Gallery has represented just one person at Scope Basel, so many congratulations are in order for Juliane!

Luckily for you, two of Juliane's images from this series, Balloons and Fishline are still available on 20x200, get them while they last!

This has been a huge week at JBP HQ for Hey, Hot Shot! We announced the 2008 Ne Plus Ultras on Monday (congratulations again to Hosang + Colleen!) and the 2009 First Edition Hot Shots today.

Through it all, we've been looking at a lot of amazing work, from photographers we consider friends and family as well as from many we hadn't yet had the pleasure of knowing via their entries and websites. It was overwhelming; I can only imagine the burden felt by Ms. Jen Bee and her slew of stellar panelists to make the final calls.

The only thing possibly as exciting and rewarding as working alongside this crew as they culled the best of the best? Looking back on *all* of the Hot Shots named over the last few years and working with many of them to create some pretty excellent 20x200 editions — and knowing that there's more to come!

In celebration of this week's announcements, we pulled together all of the 20x200 editions produced by Hot Shots. Thanks to all-star intern, Kika Gilbert, you can see them right here:

Dorthe Alstrup
Ian Baguskas
Nina Berman
Kate Bingaman-Burt
Colin Blakely
Dan Boardman
Jessica Bruah
James Deavin
Scott Eiden
Juliane Eirich
Todd R. Forsgren
Alison Grippo
Shuli Hallak
Brandon Herman
Joseph O. Holmes
Karolina Karlic
Robert Knight
Jeffrey Krolick
Gregory Krum
Pixy Liao
Brad Moore
Chad Muthard
Bob O'Connor
Hosang Park
Youngna Park
Kirby Pilcher
Birthe Piontek
Colleen Plumb
James Rajotte
Justin James Reed
Kelly Shimoda
Mickey Smith
Rachel Sussman
Matthew Tischler
Carlo Van de Roer
Donald Weber
Shen Wei

I am happy to report that I have more than a few works by these photographers in my collection. Now's the time to pick up prints of your own (if you haven't already or even if you have). It's a great (um, read: affordable) way to have a little art in your home and support fellow artists. Enjoy!

20x200 edition-maker Kevin J. Miyazaki curates and compiles the tinytinygroup show, a mini "electroexhibit" of images centered around a unifying theme. This month's work brings nocturnally-inspired images together on your screen, and features the work of Hot Shots Juliane Eirich and Noah Kalina alongside 18 other photographers.

See the current exhibit here (click twice to make it big) and see past exhibits here!

We're psyched-beyond-words that 20x200 has been nominated for the 13th Annual Webby Awards in the Art category.

The last day to vote is this Thursday, April 30th, and we need your vote! 20x200 couldn't exist without The Web, great art, great design, and all the art lovers out there like you, so we hope you'll vote us to victory.

To submit your vote, click here, sign in (or create an account), scroll down to the "Art" category and look for 20x200!

We've just released two editions by Rachel Papo, drawing from separate projects, Serial No. 3817131 and Desperately Perfect. While the two young women in these photographs exist in distant geographic spheres of the world--Russia and Israel, respectively--their experiences and postures share an alarming similarity. As Jen notes in her newsletter, both of these subjects are in the midst of years where youth and womanhood have begun to mingle, and share a simultaneous sense of experience, ambition, and duty, while also enduring a period of physical awkwardness and emotional uncertainty.

Desperately Perfect glimpses into the lives of competitive adolescent dancers in St. Petersburg, Russia while Serial No. 3817131 delves into the rigor of female soldiers in the Israeli army, who leave their homes at age 18 for a mandatory period of service. Both projects resonate with Papo's own experiences as a former soldier and dancer, and how one maintains their individuality in institutions that value uniformity either in costume or in physical form.

Of the project Serial No. 3817131 she writes,

My service had been a period of utter loneliness, mixed with apathy and pensiveness, and at the time I was too young to understand it all.

Both pieces featured here hone in on adolescents who have to come to terms with an "uncompromising reality" as Papo did more than a decade ago. She stretches her own emotional ties to navigate into the lives and feelings of those experiencing what she has before and lets her camera lead the way.

Papo's work is also currently exhibited at Clamp Art through March 14, 2009. Desperately Perfect is in the main gallery and Serial No. 3817131 is in the project gallery.

Buy one, or both at 20x200.

Today and tomorrow mark your *last* chance to catch our exhibition of photographs by Hot Shots John Mann, Hosang Park, Cara Phillips, Yijun Liao, and Donald Weber.

Swing by the JB gallery stat (!), 6 Spring Street, sometime between noon and 6 p.m., now through Saturday.

If you're not in NYC and won't get to see the show, you haven't missed out on viewing the Hot Shots' work in person. Yijun Liao is the first new Hot Shot to be featured on 20x200 and there are more to come. Resting on a Bush (above) was just released and is available as an 8"x10," 16"x20," or 30"x40" archival pigment print.

It's a charming and endearing image, so very much like Pixy herself.

Okay, okay, so Stefan Ruiz is not a Hot Shot, but his photographs are pretty incredible. Spending time with the rest of his work, especially his portraits, brings light to all the crazy things people do to themselves (sometimes crazy-funny, sometimes crazy-sad) and to each other (often, unfortunately) for the sake of staking claim on some sort of significance. While I haven't had the good opportunity to meet Stefan yet, as Ms. Bekman has, his work appears to be sincere but intense, a tireless exploration of the best and the worst of us, on small and grand scales.

In short, he's excellent company for all of the other photographers on 20x200, many of which also happen to be Hot Shots. If you are a photographer and interested in showing your work to the thousands of collectors who check out 20x200, you're in luck, your opportunity to apply via Hey, Hot Shot! (it's the ONLY way Jen reviews photography for 20x200) is coming up...

We released a third photograph, Amish Horses, from 2008 First Edition Hot ShotColleen Plumb on 20x200 today. Amish Horses and the previous editions, Field Museum Sue and Tiger Rug, Cabrini Green, are from Plumb's series Animals Are Outside Today (she has a flash site so you'll have to click around a bit to get to the work). Immensely popular with 20x200 fans, work from this series has also been collected by the Museum of Contemporary Photography.

Hot Shots' work gets around. In addition to being featured on 20x200 (Hot Shots and Contenders featured here, on the HHS blog, have their work reviewed by Jen for 20x200 editions), Hot Shots exhibit at Jen Bekman Gallery in a group show and are also in the running for solo exhibitions and representation. (Y'all know that the freshest crop of Hot Shots will be opening a show this Friday.)

From 2008's 10 Hot Shots, volume iv, edition i, including Ms. Plumb, and volume iv, edition ii, 2 will be selected as Ultras and slated for their solo exhibitions at the JBGallery. We'll be announcing 2008's Ultras very, very soon, stay tuned.

Another thing we'll be announcing sooner than I can type "hop to it"... the opening of the next round of competition!

Keep your eyes here or sign up for our low-volume mailing list to be automatically notified when 2009's first competition is open.

An original Hot Shot (Spring 2005!), Matthew Tischler's time in the 20x200 limelight is long overdue. At the rate his prints are selling today, it seems as if the delay has not just starved fans old and new (thanks to the Domino Magazine spread on 20x200 that we just can't stop talking about!) but also made them rabid. So, if you're already sold, go Google checkout your Untitled #4 and Untitled #15 without delay. If you're all set, stay awhile and soak up the Sunday afternoon feeling of Tischler's filmic works.

In his statement, Tischler writes:

I shoot through window screens, netting, and scrims, creating grid patterns that become the sharpest focal element of each image. I employ these grids and barriers in order to dissect, pixelate, filter and flatten landscapes and space. Subjects and figures are broken apart and reconstructed in such a way that they are both integrated into their environments and isolated within them. None of the subjects in my photographs have any discernable features; rather they are faceless characters whose identities are defined by their surroundings. Although the photographs originate from 35mm negatives, I hope to reference both video technology and painting techniques.

These photos are so close to Burt Barr's low-tech videos, in particular, Summer 2005 Looped (2005) which debuted at PS 1 in September 2006. Barr's video of a bucolic Long Island afternoon employed a similarly simple technique to Tischler's shooting through screens, recording the reflection of his backyard from a mirror that was being hosed down, giving a likewise dreamy effect. In Barr's loop, very little changes other than the patterns of water washing over the glassy surface; if I remember correctly, you watch a man walk from one end of the yard to the other. Tischler achieves a consonant sentiment without leaving the single frame: an escape to the timelessness of pastoral summers. The work is smart but slow and steady, sure to put you at ease. See more of it on his website.

We just released Gregory Krum's second 20x200 edition, Nymphenburg, above, from his series Hard Times, which might look familiar to regular readers. It's been a favorite on the blog. His first edition, also a regular around these parts, sold out in a matter of minutes.

Jen did a swell job of introducing the new work in today's newsletter. Read it and also check out the rest of Krum's work in Hard Times. Aptly subtitled, "Interiors considering varying degrees of failure," the work is poignant and sometimes funny, altogether charming and disarming if I do say so myself. We are forced to examine our own measurements of failure, and conversely, success, and pin them to the anonymous characters who might inhabit or use these interiors.

A handful of Hot Shots will have work in X Marks the Art, an exhibition of 20x200 limited-edition prints and originals by 20x200 artists opening at Jen Bekman Gallery, tomorrow, Saturday, December 20th, 2008 from 6-8:00 p.m.

Praised among New York Magazine's Best of New York, 20x200 is curated by Jen Bekman and offers limited edition prints (and sometimes original works), from emerging and established artists, exclusively online. Enormously popular among collectors emerging and established, curators, critics, and artists alike, many 20x200 editions sell out within minutes of their release. For the first, and possibly the last time ever, 20x200 prints will be at the gallery, on view and for sale, alongside original drawings and paintings by a selection of our diverse artists.

Featured Hot Shots include: Scott Eiden, Gregory Krum, and Kelly Shimoda. Hot Shot panelist Kent Rogowski will also have work from his, um, lovely series, Love=Love. Kent's editions from Love=Love were among the fastest selling on 20x200. Untitled #9 is completely sold out and Untitled #5 is nearly disappeared as well.

The show rounds out with the following 20x200 artists:
Ky Anderson
William Crump
Kevin Cyr
Beth Dow
Don Hamerman
William Lamson
Carrie Marill
Christina Muraczewski
Amy Park
Jennifer Sanchez
Aili Schmeltz
Luke Stephenson
Todd St. John
Bert Teunissen

X Marks the Art will be on view Saturday, December 20 through Saturday, January 24, 2009 at Jen Bekman Gallery, located at 6 Spring Street, New York, NY.

Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, noon - 6 p.m. or by private appointment
For additional information and images, email press@jenbekman.com or phone 212.219.0166

Untitled (from Sub Rosa)
by Birthe Piontek, Fall '07 HHS Winner
Buy one now

As most of you know, 20x200 is a Jen Bekman Project that introduces two new pieces a week: one photo and one work on paper. Many Hot Shots have easily crossed over to enjoy 20x200 fame.

All of the edition prints that follow are from past HHS winners who currently have prints available in the smallest edition size, which means you can take advantage of our new feature of combined shipping. You'll now be able to group prints and save on mailing (on our small $20 and $50 editions).

But you'd better click quick! Our editions are dwindling as I type!

I Bought All of These
by Kate Bingaman-Burt
Buy one now

Untitled (Hanoi no.2)
by Kelly Shimoda
Buy one now

Untitled (Suzie Hedge), 2006
by Brandon Herman
Buy one now

Kamping Kabins
by Ian Baguskas
Buy one now

Untitled (Bondi Baths, Sydney, Australia) and Untitled (Blue Lagoon, Reykjavik, Iceland) are from Carlo's fantastic Swim series.

There are almost no word to describe my desire to jump into one of Fall '07 Hot Shot Carlo Van de Roer's photographs right now. I spent a lovely evening at the gallery last night, at the Thrilla In Manila opening, and then at dinner, and then on seemingly interminable walks between restaurant and subway and subway and home. We all compared new scarves, and tried to figure out new ways to wrap ourselves up to steel ourselves from the cold. It was new use.

I invite you to look at Van de Roer's work this way too. What an oasis! The blue of the pools! The quiet drama! He's talented; they're beautiful. Buy one, or both, now on 20x200.

These photographs are also available "in an "off-menu" XL editions of 2 at 40"x50."  All the better to swim in.

The entirety of both of these editions is part of 20x200 AAA (Agnostic Art Advent):

"Our gift to you this holiday season is a dazzling array of choices from your favorite 20x200 artists, introduced daily through December 18th. AAA editions are comprised of 2, 3 or 4 images from the same artist. You can buy just one, or collect the whole set! Each image is available in three sizes, and prices range from $20 - $5000. As always, we're committed to art for everyone, so every single edition has a $20 or $50 version. (Some even have both!)"

We talked about Thrilla in Manila already, but we're going to talk about it again. A few times, we promise. Because it is awesome. Right now. Like, literally, right now, Jason Polan and Jane Mount are drawing. They've taken over the Jen Bekman Gallery in the name of some generous charity work and some great drawings.

Do visit them today. Tomorrow! Friday! I'll meet you there.

If you're far away and/or you want to check out the scene, read the Thrilla in Manila blog for tips on finger exercises to aid in prolific drawing, historic background on the event's name, and general fun with Jane, Jason, and whoever happens to stop by to join them.

P.S. There is ONLY ONE PRINT LEFT in Jason's 132 Birds at The American Museum of Natural History edition on 20x200.

Drawing Hours: Wednesday, December 3 - Saturday, December 6, 2008 | Noon - 6pm

20×200 Benefit Edition for 826NYC: On Tuesday, December 9, 2008 @ 2PM, a unique 20×200 edition will be released exclusively to 20×200 mailing list subscribers. (Collectors can sign up here.) The edition will feature a blind selection of 222 original drawings created by the artists and special celebrity guests, hand-picked by Ms. Bekman and priced at $20, $200 + $2000 each.

Reception and 826NYC Benefit Sale: On Monday, December 8, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., the gallery will host a reception and sale to benefit 826NYC. Work will be available to take right off the wall at affordable prices from $50 to $1,000.

For more information: info AT jenbekman DOT com or phone 212.219.0166

Press release available here.

826NYC's mission:

826NYC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around our belief that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success. With this in mind we provide drop-in tutoring, field trips, after-school workshops, in-schools tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications. All of our free programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student's power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in his or her individual voice.

A Man and His Horse, 20x200 edition by Spring '06 Hot Shot Alison Grippo

Today's 20x200 print is the second from Spring '06 Hot Shot Allison Grippo. Ms Bekman writes:

"A Man and His Horse is our second photography edition from Hot Shot Alison Grippo and its subject and setting make it a fitting follow-up for yesterday's Koolman. Alison captured her cop not that long ago, but the photo has a certain timelessness to it, in part because it's black + white, but also because mounted police officers seem more nostalgic than practical in these modern times. (Shouldn't they be on Segways or something by now?)

As with Kevin's commemorations of decay (in yesterday's edition), Alison's lens is often focused on the gritty, everyday city. A city girl like myself, she too finds beauty in what might be dismissed as ugly or overlooked entirely. Unlike me, she's brave enough to be a street shooter who doesn't just survey the landscape. I'm always impressed by someone who's brave enough to take a stranger's picture. (And this one a cop no less!) He seems at ease too -- while he is obviously aware that his picture is being taken, the moment captured is private and tender. Such incongruities afoot! Aren't cops tough guys? Aren't the streets mean? Not always, just sometimes."

Grippo launched her photography career as a Spring 2006 Hot Shot. She was named a Ne Plus Ultra and is represented by Jen Bekman Gallery. She spends most of her time working on a documentary photography book that covers amateur and entry level professional boxing in New York. She says that she has a strong addiction to cheese and generally posts her work on her website and blog.

A bonus, here is one of Grippo's winning images from Hey, Hot Shot!

KC: Do you collect art?

MS: Yes, primarily through trade and auction. I have two sizeable Urban Beasts and a few of Robert Marbury's prints. An enormous Ghost Walrus presides over our living room. The passion for his work likely stems from a treasured stuffed animal collection my dad threw out when I was ten. They're coming back - with a vengeance.

My passion is for collecting is for contemporary jewelry by living artists. The most fashionable people I know who wear junk - when small sculptural, original wonders are available - consistently astound me. In the past, I have invited jewelers like Karen Gilbert and Heinz Brummel to show in my studio.

Smith's work can currently be seen in these shows:

Collocations
The Center for Photography at Woodstock
Woodstock, NY
August 30 - October 26, 2008

Volume
Contemporary Art in Traditional Museums Festival
Pushkin Dom
PRO ARTE Institute
St. Petersburg, Russia
September 27 - October 19, 2008

Soon, you can see Smith's work in these shows:

Pharmakon Library
Created + Curated by Christina McPhee
New York Art Book Fair
New York, NY
October 24 - 26, 2008

Volume
Alvar Alto Library
Vyborg, Russia
October 23 - November 11, 2008

YOU PEOPLE
Invisible-Exports
New York, NY
November 14 - December 21, 2008
Reception: Friday, November 14

SCOPE Miami
Invisible-Exports
Miami, FL
Decemeber 3 - 7, 2008

Today was the kind of day that made me really thankful that Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish year, is in a few days. I think I need a new beginning. I think we all need a new beginning. Banks failing, jobs disappearing, prices rising, and so on. So I can't help but be a little bit enlightened/encouraged by those who are also searching for change:

On 20x200, Kara reports on Art for Obama, a photography auction initiative to raise money for the campaign. Some JB-related -- Alec Soth and Nina Berman -- are even involved.

And then there's this: The Great Schlep. It has nothing to do with photography, and when it was forwarded to me, I immediately assumed I would hate everything about it. But I don't. It is silly, but they have a point. I hope they help.

Also, Lipstick for Change. A few weeks ago I got an e-mail from an old friend asking if I wanted to take some photos for a new project she was about to begin. There was lipstick. And there was exciting thinking. There was hope. And there was, of course, Obama. You should shoot some photos for them too.

P.S. When I went to Flickr, just now, to upload the photo for to complete this post, I found this, from my talented friend, Carrie McClean. It's a photo, so it's related. And it's adorable. You should think about wearing one of her rings. And take photos. (I should stay more on task: photos.)

Needle-Needle-Nee by Coke Wisdom O'Neal on 20x200

I've had one of Coke Wisdom O'Neal's medicine cabinets hanging in my bathroom for years. I got mine, from Mixed Greens, for free. They sent it in the mail a long time ago; I wish I could remember exactly why. It wasn't a bribe; I wrote this sort of overblown blurb in The Village Voice about Coke's work all on my own.

That said, you need one hanging in your bathroom too. Visit 20x200 to see what, if any, of each edition is left. I was happy to see these two pieces in my inbox today. I still love how the cabinet serves as a perfect frame for his portraits. Also, his work makes me think about how I have pills all over my house and maybe I need some structure. Morning medicine near the front door, night medicine near the bed, mid-day pill cases in every purse, etc. It's like I live in a medicine cabinet; as such I'm afraid I'd be a terrible subject for O'Neal.

P.S. Do visit Mixed Greens. It was one of the first places I loved for its art-for-everyone ethos. I knew I'd found a good group when I used the bathroom, on my first visit, and in there they had a shelf lined with a Ryan McGinness work that consisted of tall gold plated sports-figurine topped trophies bearing phrases like "#1 Artist" and "Best Artist Ever in the World."

Katarina, from Hot Shot Karolina Karlic's Dear Diary series

Spring '07 Hot Shot, Ne Plus Ultra, and 20x200 contributor Karolina Karlic is in a show. Work from Karlic's Dear Diary series is up now through November 8 at the Independent Feature Project in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The IFP notes:

The lush large scale prints of ... Karolina Karlic radiate a sensuality revealing everyday lives longing for meaning and connection.

...

Intrigued by the motivations of those that post Internet classifieds through "Missed Connections" on Craig's List, Karolina Karlic sought out the posters to create her images. Perhaps by helping to complete their need for connection she was able to draw them into collaboration to make photographs of vulnerability and longing in our contemporary world of impersonal Internet communication.

On the art-inspired-by Craigslist ads note, check out the songs of Gabriel Kahane's "Craigslistlieder." The music has been touted as, "His song cycle, Craigslistlieder, art-song settings of eight anonymous posts he found on the ubiquitous personals/classifieds website Craigslist, has won over fans and critics with its affiliation of raucous pop culture and deft high-art craft. " And it is true. Perhaps it's time for a music and photo show for Karlic and Kahane together.

P.S. Only one print is left from Karlic's 20x200 edition (pictured above)!

P.P.S. Full disclosure: I shot some photos for Kahane's recent album.

Today's 20x200 edition is from Fall '07 Hot Shot Shuli Hallak

Shuli had this to say about her work:

I am compelled to understand, both visually and conceptually, how things really work, in industry and agriculture, from steel mills to farms. My work is an unveiling of nearly invisible networks that we depend on but of which we know very little.

Photography is my process of discovery and the expression of fascination with what I find.

And Jen Bekman had this to say in her newsletter this afternoon. Sign up for 20x200 news and be the first to hear about great editions like Shuli's.

Greetings collectors! Welcome to your Wednesday dispatch from 20x200 land. I'm a bit bleary-eyed today, having indulged in a night out on the town that kept me up past 2 a.m. One of my favorite things about NYC is that you can stay out till the wee hours on any night of the week; there's always something entertaining going on, usually lots of things, in fact. I might not do it all that often, but there's something comforting about knowing that it's there.

This need for 24 hour living is integral to my city girl identity, which means that all my country living fantasies are just that. I must confess, however, that today's photographs are gorgeous enough to make me consider turning in my night owl wings for a more bucolic life.

Hay Harvest, New Jersey and Cotton Field, Mississippi are from Farms, an evolving body of work by Shuli Hallak. Shuli is a Summer '07 Hot Shot, a recent SVA MFA Photo grad and someone who I happily run into out and about at various photography events in New York City and beyond.

Visually, this new body of work might seem like a dramatic departure from the hard-edged nighttime shots of her Cargo series, but it is gorgeous and monumental evidence of Shuli's ongoing investigation of what she describes as "nearly invisible networks that we depend on but of which we know very little."

The Farms series is particularly resonant for me right now since my literate lefty leanings having me thinking, reading and talking a lot about Slow Food, sustainable agriculture, CSAs and really getting to the bottom of where bacon comes from. Being a city girl makes all of this stuff that much more of a mystery, giving me a voracious appetite for words and images on such matters, not to mention its delicious results. (Although I'm not unquestioning about the inherent privilege of being able to preoccupy myself with such things.)

Many of the photographers that I work with are developing projects related to farms, sustainability and the environment. It's been interesting to see how each artist's individual style is manifested in the results. One of the things that I like so much about the images of Shuli's series is that they are hers, clearly kin to Cargo in spite of the very different subjects, colors, light and environment. To me, being able to establish a distinctive visual style and carry it across a diversity of subjects is one of the true indicators that a photographer is talented.

All this talk of farms and food has given me a hankering for some fresh air and fancy treats. With the editions explicated, that's my cue to take my leave and head out into the sunny afternoon to sniff out some sustenance. As always, you won't have to miss me for long; there's lots of good art in the hopper and I'll be back soon to share it with all of you.

Untitled 5 (wallpaper) and Untitled 2 (raft) by Summer '07 Hot Shot Dan Boardman. Pay no attention to those numbers, prints are moving fast. Check out 20x200 to see what's left.

You're not signed up for the 20x200 newsletter? First, sign up. Then, read this, from Jen's latest note about Summer '07 Hot Shot Dan Boardman's edition:

"... Untitled 2 (raft) and Untitled 5 (wallpaper): These quiet and lovely photos are by Dan Boardman, another member of the JB family by way of his participation in the Summer '07 edition of Hey, Hot Shot!, where he also exhibited work from this series, Home. His statement, much like the work itself, is simple and charming and (dare I say it?) sweet:

To grow up in a small town is to always be looking for something bigger, to be looking out to the next chapter, waiting, daydreaming. To move away from a small town is to long for its innocence and its comfort.

As it has been amply evidenced here, I am a fan of the square format for photography. My enthusiasm about the opportunities for elegant composition within an equally sided image are apparently infectious. (Not to mention alliterative, I see.) A friend is newly fixated on getting himself a Hasselblad and has rented one for the upcoming weekend, just to be sure. I don't even need to see the results! I am sure already.

What could be better than a square photo? Why, two square photos, naturally, especially two that go together as well as these do. All of the images from Home bring out the tender-hearted sentimentalist in me*, but I love how these two are the same and different all at once.

The compositional similarities practically hit you over the head, so much so that I was slightly sheepish when suggesting the pairing to my JBP cohorts. The counterpoints are perhaps a little more subtle -- the opposition of the expansive outdoors against the intimate interior, the bright, cool blues and greens vs. the creamy intimacy of the domestic tableau. It's divine, if you ask me, and the sum of them is better than either on its own."

Untitled (Max) by Fall '05 Hot Shot Dorthe Alstrup

Dear Jen,

The next time you receive a 20x200 newsletter that contains a piece of art you really really want to buy, you need to just buy it. You do not need to first e-mail Jen B. to say, "OMG. I really really love today's 20x200 edition! I am going to buy it right now! XO, Jen S."

When you write notes like that and then click back to 20x200 to buy the edition in question it might be sold out in the size you want. I'm just saying. For next time, remember: purchases first, exclamations second.

Love,
Jen

P.S. I bought this one instead.

Field Museum Sue by Hot Shot Colleen Plumb

One of our newest Hot Shots, Colleen Plumb writes, about one of this week's 20x200 editions:

Animals Are Outside Today

I began this project looking at "fake nature", wondering what substitutions for nature can satisfy in people. Looking deeper I began photographing live/real animals and how they can be a link for us to a world far from the reality and pace of contemporary life, as well as provide an intangible link to a deeper world of instinct and rawness.

This series of photographs examines the essence of our connection, as well as our fragmentation from the natural. I am interested in the increasing disconnection that exists between humans and the natural world. The work explores simulation, consumption, destruction, and reconstruction as well as notions of endurance and the reality of loss.

...

With this series I seek to understand how the human connection to the rest of nature is often developed through assimilation and appropriation. I hope this work will incite contemplation about the lives of animals and generate dialog about resource usage.

Yesterday's 20x200 blog was awash in Hey, Hot Shot! goodness.

First, Kara posted about two Hot Shots, Kelly Shimoda (Spring '07) and James Rajotte (Summer '06), who frequently shoot for the New York Times these days.

Then, Jen announced a special Monday edition of 20x200, by current Hot Shot Kate Orne. Orne's edition is also a benefit for a recently established school for the children of sexworkers in Pakistan which was founded under the umbrella of Sheed Society (an organization Orne founded to address the social issues particular, not to mention particularly brutal, to Pakistani sexworkers.

by Hot Shot Robert Knight

It is shaping up to be a busy summer for Hot Shots from all seasons. Summer '05 Hot Shot Robert Knight was just part of a two-man show titled Things I've Seen, put together by student curator Simeon Durham, of the Hyde Leadership Academy. Knight's photographs explore the personal space of the bedroom. The exhibit was up at ARTSPACE, a non-profit organization presenting local and national visual art, provides access, excellence and education for the benefit of the public and the arts community in New Haven.

You can see some of Robert's interiors work on his well-designed website and you can purchase an edition at 20x200.

Laugaras Iceland by Hot Shot Bob O'Connor, from 20x200

There are only a few left! Merely a handful remain of Winter '06 Hot Shot Bob O'Connor's 20x200 edition that went on sale just this morning.

O'Connor lives in the suburbs outside of Boston with his two Australian Shepherd dogs. His commercial work has appeared in a variety of publications including The New York Times Magazine, Fast Company, Technology Review, Dwell, and London Telegraph magazines. O'Connor's work has also been shown at Jen Bekman Gallery (Hey, Hot Shot! Winter 2006), The Photographic Resource Center, and The Griffin Museum of Photography. He was named one of "30 Emerging Photographers to Watch" by PDN in 2006.

Bob writes:

"The rural landscape of Iceland is full of horses that are allowed to run wild for most of the year. Unfortunately, this also means that the horses aren't that interested in seeing people with cameras. Everytime I got out of the car to attempt a photograph the horses would turn and run away. On the last day of the trip, after two weeks of trying, I found some horses that were cooperative and let me photograph them. It took a bribe, in the form of some green apples and grass, but I think we all won out in the end. I got my photograph and they got a tasty snack."

Torn by Jonathan Allen

The print above -- today's 20x200 edition -- is not a photograph, but it does depict a pack of photographers and Ms. Bekman explains its link to Hey, Hot Shot in her newsletter description:

Jonathan's distinctive style has all kinds of intersections with past and future 20x200 artists. Faux bois has popped up in lots of our editions, and his saturated geometric planes are reminiscent of Paradigm Shift, an early edition from painter Jessica Snow. Those hues and lines are also somewhat unexpectedly akin to new work from 20x200 favorite Carrie Marill, recently completed for her solo show that's opening at the gallery next month. (The suspense might be killing you, but you'll just have to wait!) And don't you see a connection with Curtis Mann's Treetops in Jonathan's choice of subject and media? I sure do. Most randomly, his crowd of shutterbugs reminds me of Michael David Murphy's own photo-journalism and the insightful criticism that you'll find on his blog 2point8. And there are personal connections as well. Jonathan was encouraged to submit to 20x200 by fellow LMCC resident Amy Park and is (perhaps unbeknownst to him) connected to Dorthe Alstrup via their participation in the Bronx Museum's prestigious Artist in the Marketplace program.

Who's Dorthe you say? As Google will tell you in its top results, she's a former Hot Shot. She's also got a great print coming up with us here in a few weeks. Another surprise to look forward to!

And now I'm moving forward myself. This year's first round of Hey, Hot Shot! winners make their debut at the JB on Friday and there are preparations to attend to.

I admit, all that I can think about is swimming. Even the indoor pool at my YMCA is suddenly insanely appealing. How lucky, then, that swimming pools are another oft-photographed subject among Hot Shot entrants.

Above, a great image from Carlo Van de Roer's "Swim" series. Carlo is a Hot Shot from Fall '07 and his work has been featured twice on 20x200 too. Carlo's work pays grand attention to form and function, to the color and feel of these man-made bodies of water, but he also pays particular attention to the human element and emotion in each frame.

Maybe he's working on another series now and I can accompany him on a shoot? A girl can dream.

anhm #30 by Hot Shot and Ultra Joseph O. Holmes

Without fail, each batch of Hey, Hot Shot! entries includes work made inside the American Museum of Natural History. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. We love the museum too. Just a fun fact. And maybe something to keep in mind when shooting. Those scenes have probably been shot before. If you must shoot there, make it work in your own way. (Another day we will discuss shopping carts, for you seem to also really love shopping carts.)

My favorite example of AMNH work is from Fall '05 Hot Shot and Fall '06 Ultra Joeseph O. Holmes. His diorama series is splendid, and can be found on 20x200 as well. (There is only one print of this edition left!)

The Museum itself recently launched an online portal into its own archives of photographs, "Picturing the Museum: Education and Exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History." It is worth a look.

Shoot The Blog reprints a great Sugimoto quote about the dioramas:

"Upon first arriving in New York in 1974, I did the tourist thing. Eventually I visited the Natural History Museum, where I made a curious discovery: the stuffed animals positioned before painted backdrops looked utterly fake, yet by taking a quick peek with one eye closed, all perspective vanished, and suddenly they looked very real. I'd found a way to see the world as a camera does. However fake the subject, once photographed, it's as good as real." - Hiroshi Sugimoto

In New York City, it is hot. In Ultra Ian Baguskas's Kamping Kabins it looks nice and cold. You don't have an air conditioner, eh? Buy a print from 20x200 and dream. There are still some prints, in all three sizes, left of this great work.

Baguskas writes:

Kamping Kabins is from my project, Search For The American Landscape, which looks at the relationship humans have with nature; specifically, the conflict between our inherent love of nature and our desire to alter it and need to take from it.

These images were inspired by photographic surveyors such as Timothy O'Sullivan and Carlton Watkins who explored and documented the land and settlements in the old West by photographing landscapes not only for their beauty but also as a record of places that few people had seen before. My photographs, however, are of landscapes that have experienced human exploration and the subsequent impact from the growing demand for convenience and natural resources.

Brandon Herman's cover photograph for Kaiserin Magazine

Summer '06 Hey Hot Shot winner Brandon Herman has two photographs in the current issue of Kaiserin (including the cover!), a bi-annual art magazine that features emerging artists. Herman also has an edition available on 20x200.

SEED magazine, cover photography by Summer '05 Hot Shot Noah Kalina

Summer '05 Hot Shot Noah Kalina has a stunning photograph on the cover of the current issue of SEED and a 10-page photo essay on "Labs at Night" inside the magazine. And Kalina recently stopped by 20x200 to release an edition and a chat with Jen Bekman.

Carrie Marill, A Dream World Glimmers In The Background Of The Soul (Detail)

Fall '07 Hot Shot Todd Forsgren has six photographs in the latest Jen Bekman show, Ornithology. The group show, which features a stellar array of artists working in various media, opens tonight, from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the gallery, at 6 Spring Street.

Ornithology features bird-themed works by Echo Eggebrecht, Todd Forsgren, Laura Levine, Carrie Marill, Christina Muraczewski, Victoria Neel, Lamar Peterson, Jason Polan, Alec Soth, Amy Stein, Keith Taylor, Bert Teunissen, and Luke Stephenson. Many of these artists will debut exclusive editions on 20x200 during the course of the exhibition.

In the spirit of summer, Ornithology takes its cues from the great outdoors. With their brightly colored plumage, sweet songs, and uncanny ability to fly, birds have captivated humans for centuries, making ornithologists out of even the most casual of observers. From Aristotle to Audubon, Darwin to the binocular-clad of Central Park, our feathered friends have proven to be a source of abundant inspiration.

Of his work, Todd writes:

Ornithologists now use mist nets instead of shotguns. These nearly invisible nets are set up like fences and function as huge spider webs, catching unsuspecting birds. The researcher carefully extracts the bird from the net. Each bird is measured, aged, sexed, and banded with an individually numbered anklet. Then the bird is released.

I photographed these birds while they are caught in mist nets, moments before the ornithologist extracts them. Here, the birds inhabit a fascinating space between our framework of the bush and the hand. It is a fragile and embarrassing moment before they disappear back into the woods, and into data.

Okay, so you like what you see here, and you've done some further investigating at the 20x200 and Jen Bekman sites. Hopefully you've visited the gallery and other galleries too. Now it is time to start shopping.

Join Jen Bekman, Michelle Dunn Marsh, and Amy Stein, and moderator Michael Foley for In Focus: Collecting Photography, a panel discussion, tonight, Thursday, June 12, at 7:00 p.m. at The Affordable Art Fair (135 W 18th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues).

The Affordable Art Fair is, "the place for new and established collectors to discover and buy paintings, drawings, sculptures, video, photography and limited edition prints from distinguished galleries, all priced from $100 - $10,000. This year the Fair will host more than 70 galleries from the US, Europe, Asia, Canada, and South America."

The second part of the Starn twins' 20x200 edition is now for sale. If you missed out last time, or if you want to own both parts, you should really hurry!

Ms. Bekman writes, "Structure of Thought 6a is printed on translucent vellum and is a beautiful print on its own, so if you didn't get the first one, don't hesitate to click through and grab a print. And of course, it can be layered over Structure of Thought 6b."

Carlo Van de Roer's Hey, Hot Shot! winning entry.

Carlo Van de Roer, a Fall 2007 Hot Shot, is almost a sell out. And he will be, soon, surely. For the second time. His Untitled (Bondi Baths, Sydney, Australia), 2007 is today's 20x200 edition. And there are only two prints left! His previous 20x200 edition, Untitled (Astoria Park, Queens, New York), is long gone.

Carlo's work is in high demand. He won the 2006 ADC Young Gun Award, the 2007 IPN Go Indie Award, the 2007 PDN Pix Digital Imaging Award, and most recently he won 1st place for fine art at the 2007 APA Awards. So you should hurry.

Structure of Thought 6b and Structure of Thought 6a by Doug and Mike Starn.

Today's 20x200 edition, a benefit for Blind Spot by Doug and Mike Starn, sold out in seven minutes. Seven minutes! Structure of Thought 6-b proved to be as hot as in-demand concert tickets. Sign up for the 20x200 e-mail list and be the first to hear about the release of another Starn edition — Structure of Thought 6a — which will be printed on vellum paper and can be paired with Structure of Thought 6-b to make a whole new layered piece of art.

You Are Important by Spring '05 Hot Shot Stephanie Cinelli, one of this week's 20x200 editions

9-11-02 by Spring Edition '07 Hot Shot Nina Berman, available now at 20x200

Writing from Fotofest in Houston, Texas, where she's currently conducting lots of portfolio reviews and "hobnobbing with the photorati," Jen Bekman declared, this morning, that it's going to be an all photo week on 20x200.

First up is 9-11-02, by Spring Edition '07 Hot Shot Nina Berman. Berman's work brings the war home in a quietly stunning and heartbreaking way. She's not screaming about the war, but her images are strong and certainly vocal.

Of her Purple Hearts show, last summer at Jen Bekman, Holland Cotter wrote, in the New York Times, "One of the more shocking photographs to emerge from the current Iraq war was taken last year in a rural farm town in the American Midwest. It’s a studio portrait by the New York photographer Nina Berman of a young Illinois couple on their wedding day." That image, Marine Wedding, went on to win a World Press Photo award.

Please join me in congratulating the 2007 Hey, Hot Shot! Ultras:

Nina Berman
Karolina Karlic
Brad Moore
Birthe Piontek

Browse the links below and you'll get an idea of how hard it is to choose just four people from the forty talented photographers who have exhibited in this year's editions of Hey, Hot Shot!:

Fall 2007
Jennifer Boomer * Scott Eiden * Todd Forsgren * Shauna Frischkorn * Georg Parthen * Birthe Piontek * Marie Sauvaitre * Ross Sawyers * Ian van Coller * Carlo Van de Roer

Summer 2007
Dan Boardman * Afshin Dehkordi * Rachael Dunville * Jonathan Gitelson * Shuli Hallak * Beth Herzhaft * Gregory Krum * Kalpesh Lathigra * Ari Salomon * Willamain Somma

Spring 2007
Clint Baclawski * Nina Berman * Michael Julius * Karolina Karlic * Mark Marchesi * Casey Orr * Justin James Reed * Pavel Romaniko * Kelly Shimoda * Daniel Traub

Winter 2007
Holly Andres * Colin Blakely * Jeffrey Krolick * Juho Kuva * Molly Landreth * Brad Moore * Kirby Pilcher * Ben Roberts * Mickey Smith * Ka-Man Tse

Nina, Karolina, Brad and Birthe are now represented by Jen Bekman Gallery and will all participate in the upcoming exhibition Ne Plus Ultra, the Hey, Hot Shot! Annual, which opens on Friday February 8th, 2008.

2007 was a great year for Hey, Hot Shot! We had an amazing array of international talent exhibiting at the gallery, and getting involved in all kinds of other gallery related programs: art fairs, jen@joe and 20x200 among them.

2008 is shaping up to be extra super great. We're making big changes to the competition as it enters it's fourth year: there's a site redesign in the works, there will be some significant (and awesome!) changes to the competition's format and we're cooking up an amazing array of opportunities for Hot Shots past, present and future.

We'll start accepting entries for the Spring edition in a few short weeks, and will be sharing all the juicy details with you then.

For now, be on the lookout for 20x200 editions from the Ultras, and from many of the other talented Hey, Hot Shot! alumni.

Ne Plus Ultra, the Hey, Hot Shot! Annual, opens @ Jen Bekman Gallery on Friday February 8th and will remain on view through Saturday March 15th, 2008.

Image Credit: Ahern Rentals, Westminster, California (2006) by Brad Moore

Jumper by aspiring HS John Wells

It's Halloween and November has arrived whether wanted or not. For the occasion, a slightly darker shot from HS hopeful John Wells. Black and white has become a novelty here on the Hey, Hot Shot! Blog, and just as I have said before, we're givin' you exactly what you're givin' us. I am still in a state of shock and awe over the teeny-tiny amount of b+w that comes our way each round. And sometimes you really do just want to ooze with excitement over some zone system action.

For some seductively superb black and white work [that is also a little creepy], come on down to the jb Friday evening for the opening of Beth Dow's solo-show Fiedwork. AND to really get ahead of the game, you can get your hands on one of Beth's prints over on 20x200. Take a peek.

Happy, happy. We're feeling festive for some photos and you have but just one week, enter before you're time is up!

A last minute heads up to anyone and everyone who happens to be in New York tonight. Ms. Bekman will be giving a special presentation at The Apple Store in Soho [@ Prince + Greene] as part of the NYC Photobloggers event. Come hear about HHS!, the gallery, 20x200, and other excitement! AND Ultra Joe Holmes is also on the bill. This is an event not to be missed.

TONIGHT - Sept 26 - 6:30PM
The Apple Store [Prince + Greene]

PS: There will be goodies involved. Be there or be [ ]

A Hot Shot, an Ultra, a 20x200 staple - Kate Bingaman-Burt is a bonafide bekman star. And tomorrow night her anxiously awaited solo-show opens here at the jb!

Yes, Kate Bingaman-Burt's Obsessive Consumption opens this Friday and quite a show it promises to be. Initially winning us over with her photographs in the Summer 2006 Edition of HHS! [perhaps you recall the rack of wedding dresses or the mountain of shopping carts] this time around she's taking over our humble abode, filling it to the brim with Obsessive Consumption goodies, a KBB wonder world.

And in the meantime [because by this point you're bound to be bursting with excitement] you can get your hands on a Bingaman-Burt print over on 20x200. Ms. Kate is part of our fantastic launch pad, her piece "I Bought All of These" is hand-colored and out of this world in its greatness.

So let's make it a date! Tomorrow night please join us at the jb and help us celebrate Obsessive Consumption with some smashing + schmoozing soiree fun.

Obsessive Consumption - Kate Bingaman-Burt
Opening Reception: Friday September 21 from 6-8PM
September 22 - October 27, 2007

jen bekman
6 Spring Street [between Elizabeth + Bowery]
gallery hours: Wednesday - Saturday 12-6PM

See you soon!

In the July/August issue of STEP magazine, Jen's 20x200 project got a nice little review -- "Art, Afforded" it's titled -- and alongside the great words about 20x200 was a lovely bit on Hey, Hot Shot!.

Her seasonal photography competition 'Hey, Hot Shot!' is like an American Idol for photographers, with a stellar rotating panel of judges and some pretty incredible exposure: winners receive a gallery showcase and an opportunity to be represented by Bekman.

Luckily for you, the next edition of HHS! will be opening tomorrow, your chance to be the next Amer--- I mean, Hot Shot! Check back to this blog for an official announcement at the start of the contest.

Oh the excitement for a Thursday afternoon––Raul Gutierrez has signed on as a panelist for the Spring Edition of Hey, Hot Shot! Raul, already an invaluable member of the jen bekman family, is a Hot Shot himself, a Spring 2006 Hot Shot to be specific. An amazing photographer, writer, and thinker, Raul's website and blog offer endless hours of consuming pleasure. Mr. Gutierrez has also been working hard with Ms. Bekman on the anxiously awaited, awesomely-awesome 20x200 project. [If you find yourself unfortunately out of the loop, read about that excitement here.] And, you're in luck, an old HHS! interview with Raul can be found here.

Raul Gutierrez is a photographer and design consultant who has had an eclectic career working behind the scenes in Hollywood, on Broadway, and on the internet. He recently showed his long term project, Travels Without Maps, at the Nelson Hancock Gallery in New York and has been in of a number of group shows including Hey, Hot Shot! Gutierrez also maintains Heading East, a website that is often (but not always) about photography. He is currently working on a book of Travels Without Maps as well as a number of photography related internet projects.

We love Raul and you should too! So much excitement, such a f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c panel.

Read the announcement over on Personism.

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