Marks of Honour - 13 contemporary photographers create a striking library Photography

13 contemporary photographers create a striking library

Photography in books has not only influenced collectors and curators, but also generations of photographers. Since Robert Frank published his Les Américains in 1958, the photobook is a source for artistic inspiration and creative reference.

As a homage to the photobook per se the exhibition Marks Of Honour – A Striking Library has been created in a cooperation between Amsterdam galerist Willem van Zoetendaal and Cologne bookseller Markus Schaden. His assistances Nina Poppe and Verena Loewenhaupt were responsible for the organisation and are now curating Marks of Honour 2008 (MoH/08).

In 2005 there have been invited 41 international photographers to choose a photobook which was influential to the formation of their work, and to pay it artistical homage. The resulting works have been shown in Amsterdam in FOAM Museum for photography and the Van Zoetendaal galery.

The basic concept remains the same. In MoH/08 are only 13 photographers participating, to optain a higher focus.

All participating works (limited to three copies, each containing the original photobook and it´s complentary homage) offer a wide spectrum of enthusiasm for photobooks and the variety of inspiration sources of international photoartists.

In sum Marks Of Honour constitutes a singular library and a system of reference on the most sustainable influences as much as the freshest in contemporary photography.

„But who says that a museums fundus should entirely consist of photographic prints? You could start with books all the same... With a pool of a hundred photobooks, one could ensure that the history of modern photoworks of art is recognizable for the museumcrowd, for specialists, consultants and curators in excellent examples.“ Ulf Erdmann Ziegler. Lees een recensie ...

Invited Photographers

Harvey Benge honours William Eggleston
Artist book of 16 pages, hand written text and four tipped in photographs, one inserted loose. Both books contained in a slipcase.

Chris Coekin honours Hendrick Duncker & Yrjo Tuunanen
Book in hay and eco/farmer bag, four pictures of me hitchhiking plus one of the original signs "Hay on the Highway".

Peter Granser honours Robert Frank
Box from linnen with book and a map with four pigment prints on Fine Art Pearl Paper.

Pieter Hugo honours Roland Barthes

Tiina Itkonen honours Pentti Sammallahti
Box with five pictures.

Onaka Koji honours Daido Moriyama
Book, contactsheet and five pictures in handmade wooden box.

Jens Liebchen honours Anthony Hernandez
A sequence of 3 images presented as a Leporello, with text and separate book, in a cardboard box.

Michael Light honours Ansel Adams
Box, Adams book digsawed along landscape lines; M. Light pigment prints atached to certain Adams images.

Mark Power honours Stephen Shore
Custom made box with book and four large format c-prints.

Matthew Sleeth honours Lars Tunbjörk
A fold out book with „Office“ bound to the middle and then two selfmade inkjet books („Fire extinguishers“ and „Houseplants“) each side folding over the top.

Alec Soth honours Andrea Modica
The edition includes a box with two photographs in a small portfolio responding to Andrea Modica’s Treadwell.

Jules Spinatsch honours Block 2008
8 booklets made out of the calender Block 2008; one for each artist in a box with the title: Deblocked.

Raimond Wouda honours Paul Shambroom
3 pictures as inkjets in the book; they continue the book as leporello.

Open publication - Free publishing - More photography