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Photoblogger Sneak Preview of Adams/Eisenstaedt at the AGO

Posted by Tanja / November 15, 2006

10 Comments

20061115-AGObloggers.jpgThe exhibit: Photography by Ansel Adams and Alfred Eisenstaedt.

The event: A Photobloggers Sneak Preview and Photography Panel with Louie Palu (G&M Photojournalist), Rannie Turingan (Photojunkie.ca) and John Reeves (Pro Photographer).

The exhibit: Brilliant and worth seeing - particularly Eisenstaedt's photojournalistic work. You'll find yourself smiling at the work on the wall.

The event: A well-attended and well-organized gathering of Toronto's photobloggers, but otherwise - if I may be brutally honest - completely uninspiring. The "photography" discussion lasted 5 minutes before becoming a "photography industry" discussion in which John Reeves went on fidgeting wildly in his seat and dropping names of all the 'great men' who have made and are making ground-breaking photography in the industry... before dismissing photoblogging as a way to make an impact.

Suddenly I didn't feel so bad that I had to wake up my friend and sneak out early to attend a previous engagement.

Discussion

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Hamish Grant / November 15, 2006 at 12:16 pm
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That was more or less the feeling I had too - Jerrold and I had to book early as well to make it to another thing and I don't think either of us felt like we missed much as far as the discush was concerned.

Just as you say - the works were presented well and it was a distinct pleasure to even be in the presence of prints made by the hands of these two cornerstones of photography, offset only by the pleasure provided by the works themselves.

Nice to meet you finally, as well!
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Tyson Williams / November 15, 2006 at 12:34 pm
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I think the exhibition was great - full of interesting and rare photographs. As for the event discussion - I believe it lasted a little longer and personally I enjoyed it very. I hope AGO continues to facilitate this kind of events for the Bloggers in the future.
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Chester Pape / November 15, 2006 at 12:35 pm
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I'm so glad I pay for a premium membership to the AGO so they can give free, uncrowded access to a bunch of whiny ingrates instead of adding an extra evening of member's preview.
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Tanja / November 15, 2006 at 12:59 pm
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Nice to meet you too, Hamish. I agree, despite what another bitter commenter might have misread between the lines, that it was a well-organized and thoughtful event. I commend the AGO on a job well done and would encourage everyone to see this exhibit.

I can still see the skaters and bridge players images in my head... :)
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jerrold / November 15, 2006 at 02:48 pm
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"skaters and bridge players"

My favourite image in the collection :)
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Carrie / November 15, 2006 at 05:05 pm
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The skaters shot was my fave, as well...the only one that actually really stuck with me.

Allowing us in to see the exhibit early was really great of the AGO, and I'm totally appreciative of the opportunity to experience the collections live. The talk, however, was a bit too all over the place for me, too. I didn't come away from that with any valuable information. :(
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Hamish Grant / November 16, 2006 at 08:55 am
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Agreed - the AGO mosdef deserves a big thanks for allowing us bloggers the opportunity to preview the show and to generate discussion about it - I just think that the 'discussion' might have been more productive if it was handled differently. What if, instead of it being a 'fireside chat', it had been a focus/brainstorm session? How cool would that be - gather the bloggers and sprinkle ppl like the photog. curator for the AGO, a prof from Sheridan, a couple of photojournos and have a couple of roundtables with specific topics to run through - it could be a terrific learning experience for everyone. Just a thought.

Once again, it was a real treat to see those images in a non-pressured, open environment without the crowds, and I'm totally recommending this to all my photo-appreciative friends. Thanks AGO!
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Ouimet / November 16, 2006 at 09:10 am
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I'm a premium member too, and I'm happy to pay to open the doors to people who don't make as much as me, or who might not be usual visitors to the AGO.

It's one way to get a fresh perspective on what is going on in the gallery and the arts, something you don't always get at a members-only preview.

And if the plebs whine, well maybe the AGO deserves it.
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photojunkie / November 16, 2006 at 01:14 pm
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For the record, the talk did not go as originally planned, Each of us were supposed to talk for 15 minutes about our own thing. But basically it got spun into something else, which I totally wasn't prepared for. Basically everything I had for the discussion was thrown out the window, as I tried to steer the conversation into something I thought the bloggers present would find useful.

I'll be posting my notes on what I was supposed to be talking about on my blog later this week.
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Tanja / November 16, 2006 at 01:36 pm
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Aw, Rannie. It's certainly not your fault! Kuddos to you for that trying. I could tell right from the top that things were going off on a tangent where you didn't seem to be prepared to go. I later asked Sean if they had even given you a change to speak amidst all that, and he said that you tried to bring things back to relevant topics... Way to go.
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