The possibilities being offered by micro-philanthropy sites like Kickstarter, ProjectSite et al to artists, writers and others of compelling vision is one of the certain bright spots in an otherwise depressing terrain of arts-related budget cuts. By providing a carefully vetted platform for individuals to make their pitch, show what work they've done so far, and offer up a carefully devised plan of attack, crowd-sourcing funds for artists' projects has become a very successful strategy to realize the fulfillment of otherwise hard-to-reach goals.

One of our earliest Hot Shots, Erin Siegal, has been working tirelessly on a project for the past two years that she has recently put up on the Kickstarter site for a final push of funding to complete her research and turn her work into a book.

In a recent interview with Jasmine DeFoore, Siegal explains how her latest research project came to be:

I fell into the world of adoption corruption entirely by accident, and as a result of being a photographer.

My sister and I went to Guatemala on vacation in December 2007. While waiting for our plane in the Guatemala City airport, we were surrounded by Americans leaving with newly adopted children. On a visual level, it was a very striking scene because of the trans-racial element as well as the sheer number of children leaving. I was immediately curious to learn about what was happening.

Taking on a project like this requires more than a few leaps of faith. Finding Fernanda is a book both necessary and overdue. It's traditional investigative journalism done in the service of the public good, exposing wrongdoing and holding those in power accountable. The broader appeal lies in the compelling experience of two very different women, one Guatemalan and one American, whose lives accidentally intersect because of one little girl: Fernanda.

Siegal has been working on this documentary project of investigative journalism since 2008. After she came to the realization that she had been moving towards creating work that was, "more multifaceted, human-rights based [work] that couldn't be told [only with] pictures," she applied and was accepted into the Columbia University's Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism, where she was given the tools, resources and the time to begin a year-long thesis into the world of international adoption fraud. Since graduating from the program, she has secured a publisher for the project, Beacon Press.

Scheduled for release in the fall of 2011, her publisher writes about Finding Fernanda:

Beacon is pleased to announce the acquisition of a book that will tackle the controversial and painful topic of international adoption corruption. Over the past five years, 20% of the 100,000 children adopted into the United States came from Guatemala. Journalist Erin Siegal relates the chilling tale of a Guatemalan mother whose two-year-old daughter and infant child were stolen from her, interwoven with the story of an adoptive mother from Tennessee who began to question the practices of the agency that was handling these two girls. Siegal's book will shed light on an alarming problem that, unchecked, will only continue to grow.

While Siegal's Kickstarter project reached its initial funding goal, there are 30 days left in the donation cycle and her target goal of $5,000 still has a ways to go to be met. If you are interested or invested in the issues that she is trying to bring to light, even a small donation (over half of her supporters fall into into the $15 or more category) will help her do what remains to be done in bringing this book to fruition. Here's a quick breakdown of where the Kickstarter funds will go:

• Two months of living, reporting, and writing in Guatemala City
• Legal costs affiliated with getting the US State Department to respond to the thirty Freedom of Information Act requests I have in-process (some of which are almost two years old!)
• Costs associated with database access, and phone/internet access (international calls, etc)
• On-the-ground transportation support (read: gas!) for my dear friend J.L, my Guatemalan reporting sidekick/ driver/ buddy (Yup, the kind of door-knocking I've been doing requires the buddy system)

In a time where institutions, city, state and federal funding for the arts is in decline, it seems impossible to think that a $5 online donation will really make a dent or impact in the arts at large. But for several recent artists we've featured with similar projects here it already has.

Visit Erin Siegal's Kickstarter project site here.

We're excited to announced that Joe Holmes, JBP artist, Hot Shot and now seven-time edition-maker on 20x200 will be collaborating with the clothing line Rag & Bone in an installation at their new flagship store at 119 Mercer Street in Soho.

The new store officially opens next Monday, October 19th (though you might have seen their doors open during their ongoing soft launch) and will kick-off with a big fashion-and-photo-filled party that evening. Six 30" x 40" prints from Joe's Workspace series will be on display in the store for a run of at least six weeks. Make sure to stop by Rag & Bone starting next Tuesday, to see Joe's work as you browse for some new fall fashions.

Singing, 2009 by Maureen Drennan,

Its that time of year again-the time for MFA graduates to release to the world the bodies of work they've been pouring their energy, blood, sweat and tears into for the past two (or more) years to turn into perfection. The School of Visual Arts is no exception and the 2009 MFA Photography, Video and Related Media Thesis exhibition is currently on view through next Thursday, June 27th. This year the exhibition is curated by faculty member Bonnie Yochelson and features the work of the 21 graduating students, including our own 20x200 artist and Winter 2006 Hot Shot Jessica Bruah as well as Hey, Hot Shot! contender Maureen Drennan.

One of the great things about the work that I see just from browsing it online, is the diversity in each students interests as well as their approach to the medium. There is passionate photojournalism by Scott Houston, personal narrative poured out in book form by Johanna Heldebro and even voyeurism presented as small intimate shrines by Yiftach Belsky. Can't wait to go see the show in person!

The exhibition is displayed at the Visual Arts Gallery, 601 West 26th Street, 15th Floor from June 15th-June 29th. It's open Monday through Friday from 10-5pm, so catch it while you can.

Jen Bekman, and New York Times Photo Director, Kathy Ryan were amongst the curators of this year's American Photography 25, selecting 351 winning photographs from a record-breaking 10,100 submissions to be included in AP25, a hard cover book that will be distributed internationally in November. In addition, 171 images received two votes, and were chosen for the web gallery, which will be launched in conjunction with the book.

Both the book and the website slideshow feature a wide range of images spanning from an iconic portrait of President Obama taken by Peter Yang, to the intimate scene of a family dinner by Hey, Hot Shot! contender Katrina d'Autremont. We also congratulate JB artist Brad Moore, Hot Shot Bob O'Connor, 20x200 edition-makers Kevin J. Miyazaki and Rachel Papo, and HHS! contender Ryan Monaghan who have been selected for either the book or web gallery!

The slide show will be up for a limited time in preparation for the official launch on November 12th and advance copies AP25 will be available in September at ai-ap.com (with a limited-offer discount). Congratulations to those selected for this year's AP25!

Winter 2006 Hot Shot Juliana Beasley (whose work will be featured at Art Fair! opening tomorrow) and Brian Ulrich, who exhibited work in A New American Portrait at Jen Bekman Gallery, are two of the fifty photographers participating in The 50 States Project. The year long project began January 2nd, 2009, when Stuart Pilkington emailed an assignment to all fifty participating photographers (one per state) asking them to capture one or more individuals they felt represented the state they live in under the topic of "People."

He writes,

I asked them to interpret the assignment using their own unique voice and to photograph something/someone iconic, or emblematic, symbolic, or real to their own lives. They were free to interpret the assignment however they wished.

Each photographer had two months to produce one image in response to this assignment, (namely 'people'), and what you are about to see are the results. As you visit each State, (in alphabetical order), hopefully a picture of the United States will be conjured up for you like a quilt made up of 50 parts.

Every two months, photographers will be sent a new assignment by email, then have two months to create an image they feel best represents the topic, as well as expressing their own photographic style. The results from the second assignment, "Habitat" will be visible on May 1, 2009.

To see the images and learn more about the participating photographers, visit the The 50 States Project website and follow the progress of the project on twitter.

Untitled 06
Series: The Chinese 'Dust Bowl'
Ink Jet Art Canvas
39 X 58 cm
2007
Hongsibao, Ningxia, China

Félicitations are in high order for 2006 Hey, Hot Shot! winner Benoit Aquin, as he was awarded the 2008 Prix Pictet prize. In case you are in the dark as to how tremendous this news is:

The Prix Pictet is a major new global prize in photography that focuses on perhaps the greatest single issue of the twenty-first century: sustainability. The award is sponsored by Pictet & Cie, in association with the Financial Times.

With a single annual prize of CHF 100,000, the Prix Pictet will reward photographers and the images they use to tell stories of urgent global significance. Each year the Prix Pictet will focus on a distinct sustainability theme. The theme for 2008 is water.

Now you'll never forget. Once you've earned your ranking as a Hot Shot, who know what good fortune will float your way...

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."

Winter '06 Hot Shot Rebecca Smeyne can be found frequently in the music pages of The Village Voice. See an array of concert photos she shot here, including a just-posted look at Santogold, Diplo, and A-Track in Central Park.

Untitled by Fall 2006 Hot Shot Mette Maersk

Take a look at the Fall 2006 Hot Shots' work. We've got 30 excellent images in our HHS! Winners set, up now on Flickr! Check it out here.

And get ready: you can see all this work live at the Hot Shot! Showcase December 13, 2006 from 6 to 8 p.m. Be there!