Rachel Sussman gives a TED Talk on The World's Oldest Living Things

Rachel Sussman's 2,000 year old trees and shrubs have made a few appearances here in the past on both the HHS! and 20x200 blogs. But, there is a new reason to cheer for Rachel's astoundingly (geographically and chronologically) ambitious project, The Oldest Living Things in the World. We find cause to write about Rachel and her project yet again today, as the project is experiencing even more (much-merited!) exposure: Rachel was invited to give a talk about the project as part of the TED lecture series, offering a concise and fascinating account of her ongoing endeavor to track and document of some of the world's oldest living organisms.

Initially inspired by an encounter with the 2,200-year-old Jōmon Sugi tree, while on a trip to Japan, for the past five years Rachel has traveled the globe, hunting and photographing ancient, continuously-living species of plant, fungus and bacteria, among others. She set 2,000 years as a minimum age—the idea being that everything documented would thus pre-date what is commonly thought of as "Year Zero".

On her adventures, Rachel has encountered some amazing things, many of which she describes in the lecture: Siberian Actinobacteria (400,000-600,000 years old!); Baobab trees in South Africa, which grow so large that their hollow interiors have in the past been variously used by people as toilets, prisons, and even bars; as well as a clonal colony of Quaking Aspen trees in Utah, (80,000 years old!) which resembles an entire forest, but is in fact a single tree, all connected by one enormous subterranean root system.

sunland baobab #0707-2301 (2,000 years old; limpopo province, south africa) by Rachel Sussman

Rachel has traveled around Africa, Asia, North and South America, and to Greenland and Scandinavia. She has a map where you can follow her progress—blue markers indicate the places and species she's photographed; red ones are those she has yet to visit, in part funded by her successful campaign on the micro-funding site, Kickstarter. She estimates she will spend another two years on the project, and has trips to Sicily, Australia, Antarctica and others in the works. She also keeps a blog that charts the progression of her research and travels in detail.

She describes The Oldest Living Things in the World as "a record and celebration of our past, a call to action in the present, and a barometer of our future." With the project, Sussman attempts to call attention to these astonishing and little-known environmental phenomena, and in so doing, ensure their continued preservation.

Watch her TED talk above—it's an excellent and thoroughly entertaining introduction to her project, and check out more images from the series on her website, (but be prepared for the frenzy of nature-related Google-ing that it will doubtless inspire).

la llareta, from Oldest Living Things by Rachel Sussman

One of our very first Hot Shots ever, Rachel Sussman, will be representing in the Humble Arts Foundation show 31 Women in Art Photography, opening on Saturday, March 6th.

The image above will be on display in the exhibition, and is part of Sussman's ongoing series Oldest Living Things, a lush and elegiac project documenting, well, the earth's oldest living things. In her artist statement of the work, Sussman writes:

In my ambitious interdisciplinary project "The Oldest Living Things in the World," I find myself researching far outside my field in areas such as mycology, dendrochronology and microbiology in order to travel around the world to make photographs of the oldest continuously living organisms on the planet. This process involves corresponding and working in the field with scientists in plant and planetary biology in order to identify and locate these organisms. My subjects, living in nearly 20 different countries, include over 30 different organisms ranging from trees to predatory fungus to ancient bacteria. This contemporary, interdisciplinary approach has the potential to shed light on the intersection of science with philosophy and belief via an artistic framework. Further, the work is generating a dialogue amongst scientists whose research is otherwise too specialized to provide a comprehensive picture of global species longevity. These themes of longevity, sustainability, the natural sublime and mortality are inherent to the subject matter, which the viewer is encouraged to explore along with implicit sociological and philosophical constructs.

The project has a very cool interactive google location map as well as its own blog.

From the Humble Arts Foundation press release:

January 18, 2010 - In March 2010, in honor of Women's History Month, Humble Arts Foundation in association with Affirmation Arts will present its second edition of 31 Women in Art Photography, a five-week exhibition celebrating 31 of the most innovative women in new art photography. The exhibition, curated by Charlotte Cotton and Jon Feinstein, will present an eclectic mix of new talent, culled from open submissions. 31 opens at Affirmation Arts in New York City on Saturday, March 6 during The Armory Show 2010.

There will be an opening reception for the artist's on Saturday, March 6th from 6–9 p.m. The exhibition will be on view Saturday, March 6 - Saturday, April 10, 2010.

31 Women in Art
Affirmation Arts
523 W. 37th Street
New York, NY 10018
(212) 925.0092

For more information and to RSVP for the reception, please visit the exhibition page.

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

One of our very first Hot Shots from the Spring of 2005, Diane Meyer, has a new show on exhibit at the 18th Street Arts Center in Los Angeles as the fourth installment of the multi-part exhibit, Almost Utopia. Taking its name from the 1982 film Blade Runner, which re-imagines LA in the year 2019, each of the exhibits features work that explores the City of Angels at the intersection of the idealistic future and the current reality.

Diane's series Without A Car In The World is a series of portraits of 100 car-less Los Angelenos. Car-less since 2008, Diane takes her camera, lights and a book to read onto the city bus, setting off to meet others without automobiles. With her images, she calls attention to both the symbolic and functional roles of cars in her sprawling city, where driving is the norm.

Diane writes,

The subjects I am photographing have given up their cars for a variety of reasons ranging from ideological, financial or health-related situations, anxiety after traumatic car accidents, environmental activism, or a simple disinterest in car culture. By bringing together these various voices through the images and text, the project will ultimately address transportation alternatives. It will also provide a voice to a group of individuals often perceived to be disenfranchised in some way for not having an automobile.

The Arts Center will host myriad events in affiliation with Diane's exhibit starting on November 6, including panels about riding bikes, transportation in LA, and a comedy show featuring Kristina Wong that's all about riding the bus. See the full schedule of events on the 18th Street Arts Center website.

Without A Car In The World
18th Street Arts Center
October 17–December 11, 2009
1639 18th St., Santa Monica, CA
310.453.3711

Pickled Ramps, 2008 by Rachel Hulin

Not so long ago, I mentioned a blog written by Spring 2005 Hot Shot, Rachel Hulin. Her blog, A Photography Blog, continues to delight with its inspired musings on all things photographic. Today, Rachel wrote about a film, Herb & Dorothy, that tells the story of a postal clerk and a librarian who love to collect art, and do so on modest means. This immediately reminded me of 20x200, and its humble mission--to make art affordable and enjoyable for all. Speaking of 20x200, keep your eyes peeled on the blog for a chance to purchase an edition print from Rachel. I have it on good authority that one is on the way.

Los Angeles-based artist Jenny Walters, a Hot Shot during the inaugural season of the competition in Spring 2005, currently has a solo show, In Lieu of Gifts, on exhibit at The Green Lantern Gallery in Chicago. Walters is exhibiting both photographs and video, which explore the impact of major life events, and how personal identity is tugged and shaped by these events both during and after they transpire.

The Green Lantern Gallery writes,

A pervasive sense of feminine desire, vulnerability and desperation links a number of these pieces, but they are also marked by an attraction to universally theatrical gestures and scenarios that signal the complexities of relationships with oneself, others and the future. The installation explores the issues of aging, mortality and performance while presenting visual information that allows the viewer to recognize and share the inherent intimacy in failure. Constructing a sort of psychological anthropology via performance and the photo/video document, Walters recognizes that it is in our failures that we begin to see each other and ourselves and draw closer together.

The show is on view by appointment only through June 13, 2009 at The Green Lantern Gallery | 1511 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Second Floor, Chicago, Illinois 60622-2009

Image by Hot Shot Rachel Hulin

Two distinguished Hot Shots, Rachel Hulin and Willamain Somma, along with Meagan Ziegler-Haynes and Marla Leigh Caplan, are members of LUCI, a new curatorial collective. The fab four have curated a satellite show, (super)natural, to correspond with this week's New York Photo Festival in Brooklyn. A reception for the artists will be held this Thursday, May 14, from 5:30 - 7 pm, at the Tobacco Warehouse.

From the press release:

(super)natural is a group show featuring artists whose work engages with and reimagines the idea of nature and natural phenomena. From large format landscape photography to site-specific installation, the work on view gives visible form to the trace of something just beyond - pointing to an excess of visual language and yet an ultimate failure to convey a precise meaning. The awesome and terrifying aspect of the sublime explains the darkness that pervades the show, evident in the depths of Victoria Sambunaris' cave; the threat of storm beneath Christopher Lamarca's rainbow; Theresa Ganz's delicately encroaching vines suddenly strangling. Chasing after the elusive spirit of the landscape, these images explore the expanse of history and possibility beneath a deceptively mundane surface.

(super)natural : May 14th-16th, 10 am to 7 pm
Curated by LUCI
Satellite Show @ The Tobacco Warehouse
Directions: The Tobacco Warehouse is on the corner of Water + Dock streets in Dumbo, F train to Jay st

More info? Click here.

Chess Game, 2008
by Rachel Hulin

Rachel Hulin was crowned a Hot Shot way back in Spring '05. Since then she has built a blossoming career for herself as a working photographer, photo editor and writer. Her blog, A Photography Blog, is a jovial mix of photo news and insights, rambling thoughts (that somehow always seem relevant), and a lovely dose of idiosyncratic humor.

Perusing her blog today I learned that another Hot Shot (Summer '05), Noah Kalina, will be shooting for I.D. Magazine's annual design issue.

Scanning a little further down, I spotted an image from one of our newest Hot Shots, John Mann.

Seems like Miss Hulin truly has her (trigger) finger on the pulse.

Bookmark A Photography Blog today, and it'll make you smile tomorrow, I promise.

It's a little overdue but I'm excited to introduce you all to Youngna Park. Youngna began posting here, quite conspicuously, last week but she's not new to Hey, Hot Shot! Youngna earned her bragging rights way back in the spring of 2005 in the second round of competition, becoming one of the first twenty Hot Shots.

She's familiar with Jen Bekman Projects, having participated in each and every one of them at some point along the way. After being a Hot Shot, she gained Ne Plus Ultra status and representation from Jen Bekman Gallery. When 20x200 came into being, she was one of the first artists featured there as well. She likes food and photography and also maintains her own blog. We're happy she's here and hope you will be too!

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.

I am going to guess that if you are reading this you are an "emerging photographer," or someone who is interested in "emerging photography." And if either of those applies to you then you probably already know about Rachel Hulin and her fantastic blogging about photography (emerging and otherwise).

But did you know that Rachel is a Hey, Hot Shot winner? Spring 2005.

Did you know that Rachel has a new blog?

Bookmark it. If you fall into one of the two categories above then hers is one of the most important voices you should be listening to about photography each day.

By Rachel Hulin, shown in the Hey, Hot Shot! Spring 2005 Showcase

Rachel Hulin at Shoot the Blog has done all of the hard work for you. She's compiled a list of opportunities -- competitive, fellowship, grant, publishing -- open right now to photographers like you. It's an exhaustive list, so, seriously, you should really thank her. And report back on your progress.

P.S. More info about our own competition, Hey, Hot Shot!, coming soon.

P.P.S. Hulin, herself, is a Hot Shot; she showed in Spring '05, our very first show.