Monday, March 2, 2009

STEPHEN WILKES IS GUEST LECTURER AT THE GEORGE EASTMAN HOUSE


March 5 · Stephen Wilkes · Evolution


Stephen Wilkes will be a guest lecturer at the George Eastman House this Thursday, March 5. Stephen Wilkes’s most recent monograph, Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom, was named as one of the 5 Best Photography Books by Time Magazine. His talk reviews the evolution of his fine-arts career, and his personal work on Ellis Island and China. Monroe Gallery of photography is honored to represent the photography of Stephen Wilkes.


The George Eastman House, an independent nonprofit museum, is an educational institution that tells the story of photography and motion pictures—media that have changed and continue to change our perception of the world.


George Eastman House

900 East Avenue

Rochester, NY 14607

585.271.3361

JOE MCNALLY IN SANTA FE

Joe McNally just completed teaching a week-long workshop at the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops. We are always pleased to welcome our photographers to Santa Fe. A selection of Joe's work is on our website, and you can also follow his blog.

We look forward to seeing Joe again when he teaches another workshop this summer.

Friday, February 27, 2009

BILL EPPRIDGE AND ALYSSA ADAMS TO APPEAR ON "MORNING JOE"













Renowned photographer Bill Eppridge will join Alyssa Adams, wife of the late Eddie Adams, on the MSNBC program "Morning Joe" on a date to be announced shortly.. They will be discussing the new book, "Eddie Adams: Vietnam", authored by Alyssa Adams and containg astonishing never-before–seen pictures, articles, pages from journals, and other of Eddie Adams' artifacts.

Bill Eppridge's assignments were as varied, exhilarating and tumultuous as the times themselves. With well over 100 assignments, Eppridge had already proved his talent by the time he was formally made a member of the exalted Life Magazine staff in 1964. He was assigned to cover the New York airport greeting of The Beatles, amidst the hustle and bustle of the working press. He was determined to occupy the perfect camera angle, and found another photographer looking for the same vantage point: Eddie Adams, on assignment for the Associated Press. It was Bill and Eddie's first meeting, and the beginning of a life-long friendship.


Their paths crossed again in Vietnam. Eppridge returned to America to cover Robert Kennedy's 1966 campaign for Senate, and his 1968 Presidential Campaign. Soon after Kennedy's victory speech at the Ambassador Hotel, he heard eight gunshots—“the sound I will never forget”—and snapped the grim final images of Kennedy, bleeding in the arms of a stunned busboy.


Bill Eppridge is one of the most accomplished photojournalists of the Twentieth Century and has captured some of the most significant moments of that time: the civil rights movement, including the Neshoba murders in Mississippi; Woodstock; and assignments for National Geographic, People, and Sports Illustrated.


"Eddie Adams: Vietnam" is the first book by one of the world’s legendary photojournalists, Eddie Adams, is along-awaited landmark. Adams’1968 Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph cemented his reputation in the public eye and stands forever as an icon for the brutality of our last century: the image of Nguyen Ngoc Loan, police chief of Saigon, firing a bullet at the head of a Vietcong prisoner. Adam’s image fueled antiwar sentiment that ultimately changed the course of history.
Monroe Gallery is honored to represent Bill Eppridge's and Eddie Adams' photography. Stay tuned to our blog for the announcement of the day and time of their appearance.





Thursday, February 19, 2009

The first book by one of the world’s legendary photojournalists: Eddie Adams


Eddie Adams: Vietnam


The first book by one of the world’s legendary photojournalists, Eddie Adams: Vietnam is along-awaited landmark. Adams’1968 Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph cemented his reputation in the public eye and stands forever as an icon for the brutality of our last century: the image of Nguyen Ngoc Loan, police chief of Saigon, firing a bullet at the head of a Vietcong prisoner. Adam’s image fueled antiwar sentiment that ultimately changed the course of history.

Adams’ life in the headlines took him to the remotest corners of this troubled, beautiful planet compiling historic record of the days of our lives. His 45-year career covered thirteen wars and amassed some 500 photojournalism awards.


Through astonishing never-before–seen pictures, articles written by Adams, pages from journals and other artifacts, one great journalist’s experience of the war is told in gripping detail.
Edited by Alyssa Adams, with an essay by AP Bureau Chief Hal Buell, and contributions by Peter Arnett, Tom Brokaw, David Halberstam, George Esper, David Kennerly, and more, this is a classic of modern history and photography.


A man to whom Clint Eastwood said, "Good shot;" Fidel Castro said, "Let`s go duck hunting;" and the Pope said, "You`ve got three minutes,” The man behind the Pulitzer Prize-winning picture that changed the world in 1968.


Monroe Gallery of Photography is privilaged to represent the Eddie Adams Estate. Eddie Adams: Vietnam is available from the gallery and most major booksellers. To view Eddie Adams' photography, please vist our website.

Friday, February 13, 2009

STAN STEARNS JOINS MONROE GALLERY OF PHOTOGRAPHY


John F. Kennedy Jr. saluting his father's coffin, November 25, 1963, with Ted Kennedy, Jacqueline Kennedy, Rose Kennedy, Peter Lawford, and Robert F. Kennedy in background.



On the cold November day that America buried its slain president in 1963, UPI photographer Stan Stearns was one of hundreds of journalists who watched Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy and her two children emerge from Washington's St. Matthew's Cathedral veiled with sadness.
As the first lady, Caroline and tiny John stood and watched John F. Kennedy's caisson about to pass by, Stearns poised his camera. Jackie bent down, whispered something into her son's ear, and 3 year-old John's right hand went up.


And with a click, Stearns immortalized John's poignant salute to his young father in a photograph that would crystallize the nation's grief the next morning on the front pages of newspapers and magazines around the world.


...Stearns was a Washington photographer for United Press International when he made the picture that he said lost journalism's Pulitzer Prize by one vote. A Dallas photographer's shot of Jack Ruby shooting Lee Harvey Oswald took the prize that year.


Monroe Gallery is privilaged to now represent Stan Stearn's photography.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

BILL EPPRIDGE HONORED AS "PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR"

Bobby Kennedy campaigns in IN during May of 1968, with various aides and friends: former prizefighter Tony Zale and (right of Kennedy) N.F.L. stars Lamar Lundy, Rosey Grier, and Deacon Jones


The Photo Marketing Association International (PMA), an 83 year-old worldwide community of imaging associations representing 20,000 members in 100-plus countries has named Bill Eppridge as Photographer of the Year. Eppridge will be honored at their annual International covention this year in Las Vegas March 3 -5.


Bill Eppridge is one of the most accomplished photojournalists of the Twentieth Century and has captured some of the most significant moments in American history. Over the last 35 years, his work has appeared in numerous publications, including National Geographic, Life, and Sports Illustrated.


His collective assignments read like a list of the most important historical and cultural events from the latter half of the 20th Century. Eppridge recorded the Beatles’ first momentous visit to the United States. He photographed a young Barbra Streisand—living in a tiny railroad apartment in Manhattan—on the verge of super stardom. He was the only photographer admitted into Marilyn Lovell’s home as her husband, Jim, made his nail-biting re-entry into the atmosphere in the crippled Apollo 13 spacecraft. He captured Clint Eastwood on the set of Dirty Harry. He was at Woodstock. And he was in Vietnam. He covered the funeral of civil rights activist James Chaney in Mississippi. His landmark photographic essay on Needle Park heroin addiction won the National Headliner Award and inspired the motion picture Panic in Needle Park, starring Al Pacino. That photo essay is included in Things As They Are: Photojournalism in Context Since 1955, the 2005 ICP award-winning book by World Press Photo.


Eppridge spent much of 1966 and 1968 on the road with Robert F. Kennedy, covering the presidential campaign for LIFE magazine. It was Eppridge who took one of the decade’s most poignant and iconic photographs: a stunned Los Angeles busboy cradling the candidate in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel of just seconds after he was shot.


Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to represent the photography of Bill Eppridge.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

The Sunday Before Victory, Columbus, Ohio, November 2, 2008


Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to have Peter Turnley's photograph of the now-President Barrack Obama in the gallery collection. Peter Turnley is a renowned international photojournalist who has photographed most of the world's major news stories and important world figures and personalities in the past two decades.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

New Exhibition: "The City of New York"


Santa Fe--Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar, is pleased to announce the exhibition “The City Of New York”, an extensive survey of more than 60 classic photographs portraying the iconic city as captured by renowned photographers. The exhibition opens with a public reception on Friday, February 6, from 5 to 7 PM. “The City Of New York” will continue through April 19.


The City, its buildings, people, streets, and the daily human experience, have been a compelling subject for photographers for over 100 years. Gathered together in this exhibition for the first time are evocative photographs made by over 30 photographers, covering the gamut from iconic and monumental to tender and personal images.


Featured in the exhibition are photographs by Berenice Abbott, Eddie Adams, Margaret Bourke-White, Cornell Capa, Ted Croner, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Vivian Cherry, Andreas Feininger, Paul Flaggmann, Ernst Haas, Brian Hamill, Bill Ray, Carolyn Schaefer, Steve Schapiro, and many, many others. Subjects photographed include the Empire State Building, The Chrysler Building, the old Pennsylvania Station, The Flatiron Building, the Statue of Liberty, Yankee Stadium, and the World Trade Towers; Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, John Lennon, Woody Allen; and the details of people on their daily rounds.


Visit http://www.monroegallery.com/ to view the exhibition.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

LIFE gathering in Santa Fe, New Mexico

LIFE’s 28th floor photographers’ lounge may be a fading memory for some, but these days you could be forgiven for thinking the lounge had picked up and moved west, all the way to Santa Fe, NM.
LIFE Photographer Bob Gomel, Former Senior Editor of LIFE Magazine and Co-founder of PEOPLE Magazine Hal Wingo, one of the legends in American publishing, editor of LIFE magazine and numerous books, and Co- founder of "People" magazine Dick Stolley, Michelle and Sid Monroe, owners of Monroe Gallery of Photography.

Friday, January 9, 2009

LIFE Photographer Bob Gomel Interview


Bob Gomel in an exclusive interview with the Albuquerque Journal. Photographs are on exhibit at Monroe Gallery of Photography in Santa Fe, and at Booth # D20 at Photo LA (Los Angeles).


The Albuquerque Journal


Friday, January 09, 2009 Photographer's Life in Pictures, and Vice Versa


Copyright Albuquerque Journal


By Kate McGraw for the Journal


Good photographs tell stories, and for 75-year-old Bob Gomel there's a story with every photo. One of the most compelling was the cover photo for LIFE magazine that he snagged shortly before leaving the magazine for good in 1969.


The photo, a shot of former President Dwight Eisenhower's casket lying in state in the U.S. Capitol rotunda, won raves around the world. The back story began six years earlier, at the lying-in-state of the martyred President John F. Kennedy's body.


“I had covered the Kennedy campaign and the Kennedy years and had become friends with the head of the Secret Service then, a man named Arthur Godfrey — that's 'Godfrey' without the ukulele,” Gomel told the Journal in an exclusive interview. “When I was covering Kennedy's funeral, I looked around the rotunda and went up onto the second balcony to get a long, wide shot. I thought then, 'If I ever cover another state funeral here, I want to find a way to get a camera up into that 200-foot dome.' “


Six years later, when I was assigned to Eisenhower's funeral, I remembered that and called Godfrey. He said, 'Get your equipment and your assistant here in the middle of the night and don't say anything to anyone.' After all, the Capitol wasn't under the jurisdiction of the Secret Service and if the Senate officers and the Capitol police had known what we were up to, they'd have stopped us.”


Gomel and his assistant rigged a wire across the 75-foot radius of the dome, and a pulley to hold a camera held tight in a block of Plexiglas. Then they rigged another 700 feet of zip cord to a foot switch where Gomel would be standing with the rest of the press. They also put up strobe lights around the dome to light up the darkness between the top of the dome and the rotunda below. “That was a big, big worry, because the strobe lights then were unreliable. They had a tendency to start firing by themselves, which of course would have revealed what we were doing. But they didn't, thank goodness,” Gomel said.


At 2 a.m., Gomel was practicing — running the camera out to the center of the dome with one lens after another, and then sending the assistant in a race to a lab that had stayed open for him. His editor at LIFE found out what he was doing and said, “That's ridiculous. Tell him I said to get out on the street and take pictures of the people.”


Gomel ignored him. “I knew I was deliberately disobeying him and possibly jeopardizing my job, but I also knew in my gut that I was right,” Gomel said. “I kept on practicing. When they brought Eisenhower's casket in, I was ready. And when the editor saw the shot, it ended up on the cover.”


That picture and others like it are in a show at Monroe Gallery through Jan. 25. It was a show hurriedly put together when Sid Monroe learned that the Houston-based Gomel and his wife would be spending the Christmas holidays in Albuquerque because their vacation home in Galveston was destroyed by Hurricane Ike. Monroe asked Gomel to bring some prints of his most famous LIFE photographs to show. For space reasons, the gallery could only hang 10, but there are about 15 more “in the back,” Gomel said, and au courant gallery visitors have learned to ask for them.


“It's my first gallery experience, and I'm thrilled,” the veteran photographer said. “They could not have been more gracious, and people have been so complimentary. It's just been great.”


Gomel is only showing work from his 10 years at LIFE in this show, but he also is known for his work for MONEY and Fortune magazines as well. It was he who exposed the extent of Ross Perot's wealth, which the billionaire had been blurring a little in his independent run for president, when for MONEY magazine Gomel did shots of four of Perot's expensive homes. Gomel left LIFE when “the handwriting was on the wall” for the picture magazine's eventual demise. He established his own studio in New York and then Houston, doing commercial photography for major advertising. He shot VW and Audi print ads and brought the “Merrill Lynch is bullish on America” campaign to fruition.


But it is his career at LIFE that stands out in his memory. “Growing up that's all I wanted,” he said. After college and serving as a naval aviator in the Korean War, he turned down a job with The Associated Press and endured $40-per-week unemployment until he finally was hired full time by LIFE in 1959. “That was a golden era for photographers,” he said. “All the people whose images became icons — Marilyn Monroe, the Kennedys, the Beatles — I photographed them all.”

Visit http://www.monroegallery.com/ to see more of Bob Gomel's photographs.
Monroe Gallery of Photography
505.992.0800