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Matthew Steaffens
Matthew Steaffens
Matthew Steaffens

Matthew Steaffens

Country: United States
Birth: 1985

Matthew Steaffens is a photographer based in Denver & Washington DC , whose contemporary practice explores themes of connection, relationship, and moments. His images are rooted in the tradition of street photography and photojournalistic projects.

As a graphic designer, Steaffens navigates the intersection of creativity and authenticity in both urban landscapes. This dual role allows him to bridge the worlds of dynamic compositions and genuine moments, creating a visual narrative that reflects the pulse of everyday life. Through his lens, Steaffens invites viewers to engage with the subtle poetry found in the ordinary, highlighting the beauty inherent in the ebb and flow of human connections. Accolades include a Communication Arts 2018 Photo Annual Award of Excellence. His work as been featured in Leica UK, and Leica Fotographie International. His work has been selected best in show in the Exposed DC Exhibition Summer 2023.

Websites

www.matthewsteaffens.com

@matthew.steaffens

 

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More Great Photographers To Discover

Simon Johansson
Simon Johansson
Sweden
Simon Johansson is a self-taught freelance photographer and journalist/writer based in Stockholm, Sweden. Member of The Swedish Union of Journalists (SJF). Simon has been working as a freelance photographer since 2000. He takes both editorial and commercial assignments. 2016 he released his first photo book "Across the Bridge" (Journal) about everyday life on the Swedish island Öland. In 2018 his second photo book, "A Familiar Place" (Journal), was released and this time it's about everyday life in Stockholm. In November 2019 his third book "The Young Ones" (Journal) will be released. Simon works in a classic documentary black and white tradition and he rarely takes a photo if it's not a human being in the frame. Simon wants his photos to be timeless, therefore he avoids modern references and time markers.
Jason Au
Jason Au
Hong Kong
1994
Born in 1994, Jason Au is an award-winning street photographer based in Hong Kong. His black & white photography incorporates creative, geometric and balanced compositions with prominent use of contrasting light and shadows. He thinks black & white has the mesmerizing quality to transform ordinary things from everyday life into something dramatic and powerful, so he is intrigued to seize those fleeting street moments around. In 2021, Jason's high-aesthetic works won him 2nd Place in LensCulture Street Photography Awards (Single Image), 1st Place in International Photography Awards (IPA) Street Photography Category, 1st Place in IPA - One Shot (Isolation Category), 1st Place in ND Awards Street Photography Category and 2nd Place in Fine Art Photography Awards Street Photography Category. His street photography series "Geometric Hong Kong" comes with the compositional approach of isolating urban subjects, geometric elements and forms from the chaotic urban environment of his hometown. The series portrayed the way of life of different urban subjects in the context of their surrounding geometric environment, which were all culled from mundane everyday scenes. Nevertheless, those subjects look trapped and lost inside an artificial geometric labyrinth without realizing it - perhaps this series is also a metaphorical view of urbanity and the hectic contemporary way of life within a metropolis like Hong Kong.
Lala Deen Dayal
Lala Deen Dayal
India
1844 | † 1905
Lala Deen Dayal, (famously known as Raja Deen Dayal) born in 1844 in Sardhana, Uttar Pradesh, is revered as one of India's most influential photographers. His journey into photography began after he completed his education in engineering at Thomason College of Civil Engineering (now IIT Roorkee). Initially working as a draftsman for the Public Works Department, Deen Dayal's interest in photography soon turned into a passionate pursuit, transforming him into a pioneer of the craft in India. In the late 19th century, when photography was still a nascent field, Deen Dayal's talent quickly garnered attention. He established his first studio in Indore, gaining the patronage of Maharaja Tukoji Rao II. His reputation for capturing intricate details and the essence of Indian life, architecture, and landscapes soon spread, leading to numerous commissions from Indian royalty and British officials. This period marked the beginning of his illustrious career, during which he documented India's rich cultural heritage with a distinctive artistic vision. Deen Dayal's photographic expertise reached new heights when he was appointed the court photographer for the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad, Mahbub Ali Pasha, in 1885. This prestigious position allowed him unparalleled access to the royal family and their opulent lifestyle. His photographs from this era are renowned for their exquisite composition and detail, providing a rare glimpse into the grandeur of princely India. Deen Dayal's work from this period includes portraits, architectural studies, and documentation of royal ceremonies, all characterized by their meticulous attention to detail. Throughout his career, Deen Dayal's contributions to photography extended beyond his royal commissions. He established studios in Mumbai, Indore, and Hyderabad, training a generation of Indian photographers and expanding the reach of professional photography in the country. His innovative techniques and commitment to quality earned him international recognition. In 1897, he was awarded the Royal Warrant by Queen Victoria, a testament to his exceptional skill and the impact of his work on a global scale. Lala Deen Dayal passed away in 1905, but his legacy endures through his extensive body of work that continues to be celebrated for its historical and artistic significance. His photographs are invaluable records of India's architectural and cultural history, capturing the essence of a bygone era with clarity and depth. Deen Dayal's pioneering spirit and dedication to his craft have left an indelible mark on the history of photography, establishing him as a true trailblazer in the field. His work remains a source of inspiration for photographers and historians alike, preserving the rich tapestry of 19th-century India for future generations.
Luca Bernardini
Luca Bernardini
Italy
1990
I am an amateur photographer born in Pesaro in 1990. I have always loved photography but, not sure why, I never thought of making it my own until about 3 years ago. I work as an engineer in a refrigeration company, here a colleague lent me my first equipment and incited me to try, giving me some tips. After a few days, During Covid's first pandemic lockdown, I bought my personal camera, a handful of books, and began to immerse myself in what is now my greatest passion. The goal is always to improve and to look for the right instant to get trough the lens, but the days spent walking around discovering and shooting are the greatest joy I could ever wish for. I am a very introverted person and thanks to this passion I am managing to get closer to the other people, I also hope, with time, to be able to tell more about myself and my thinking. Winner AAP Magazine #30 Shadows
Armineh Johannes
Armineh Johannes
United States/France
I was born in Tehran, Iran and studied in England where I obtained a Journalism Diploma, and later in France, where I obtained a B.A. in History and a B.A in English. I started my photography career in 1986 with my first assigned in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. My work has been mainly on the Middle East and ex- Soviet Union countries. I started working on various assignments in Armenia since 1989 and continue to do so up to this day. In 1989, a year after the earthquake in Armenia, I went there for the first time. I am Armenian born and raised in Iran. Setting foot on the land of my ancestors for the first time brought great emotion for me. Since that first trip to Armenia and the deep connection I felt with the people and the land, I have continued to make regular trips to all corners of Armenia and Artsakh, depicting the lives of my fellow Armenians. In 1989-1990, I made my first trip to Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and photographed the first Nagorno-Karabakh conflict; I was one of the few photojournalists who managed to travel to the village of Getashen and the villages of the Shahumyan/Shahoumyan region (northern Artsakh) just before Operation Ring in 1991. I continued to travel across Armenia for decades and my humanitarian photo stories have been widely published in magazines and newspapers around the world, such as Los Angeles Times (USA), Washington Post, Newsweek, Le Monde, Peuples du Monde, Libération, L 'Express, Révolution (France), Photo Reporter, France - USSR, UN Multimedia, Foto Pratica (Italy), l'Autre Journal, Marie Claire (Italy), Pop Eye (Japan), Asahi Graph (Japan), Asahi Magazine ( Japan), AIM (USA), Photography (England), etc. In 1997 I decided to go to Armenia and stay there for one year in order to have a more profound understanding of their lifestyle and customs. That period was one of the most enriching and interesting experiences of my life… During the past thirty years I has been documenting the life of Armenians in Armenia, in Karabagh as well as in the Middle East and around the world. I held several exhibitions in France in Portugal and in the United States. In 1990, the prestigious French Newspaper “Le Monde” organized a solo photo exhibition of my work in its halls in Paris. I currently work as a freelance documentary photo-journalist but also collaborate with “Les Nouvelles d’Armenie Magazine”, an Armenian magazine published in France. I am working on having a photo book published of my work on Armenia and Artsakh (Karabagh). I started travelling to Armenia since 1989. I am of Armenian origin (born in Iran) and have continued to travel there on regular basis depicting the lives of Armenians. I travelled to Artsakh (H. Karabagh) several times starting in 1990 and covered the first conflict with Azerbaijan which ended in 1994. During my travels to Artsakh I also photographed moments of their daily lives.
Janet Sternburg
Janet Sternburg
United States
1943
Janet Sternburg is a fine art photographer, a writer of literary books, a maker of theatre and films, and an educator. Since 1998 when she began taking photographs, her work has appeared in Aperture (2002), that same year on the cover of Art Journal, and in 2003 in The Utne Reader (“A New Lens,” 2003), in which she was selected as one of forty international artists and writers who “with depth, resonance, ideas and insights, challenge us to live more fully.” A monograph of her photographs, Overspilling World: The Photographs of Janet Sternburg, was published in 2016–17 by Distanz Verlag with a Foreword by Wim Wenders, in which he writes, “Photographers don’t have eyes in the back of their heads. Janet Sternburg does.” A second monograph followed in 2021, also from Distanz, I’ve Been Walking: Janet Sternburg Los Angeles Photographs, taken by Sternburg during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her photography has been exhibited in solo shows in New York, Los Angeles, Berlin, Milan, Munich, Mexico, and Korea, where she received a commission for a full-building installation at Seoul Institute of the Arts. In 2018, the USC Fisher Museum of the Arts presented her solo show LIMBUS. She pioneered in the use of disposable cameras to create images in which elements interpenetrate, a visual world without borders. Her literary books include the classic two volumes of The Writer on Her Work (W.W. Norton, 1981 and 1991), called “landmarks” and “groundbreaking” by Poets & Writers magazine; her papers for that book are now archived at the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas. Other critically praised books followed, among them Phantom Limb (University of Nebraska American Lives Series, 2002) and White Matter (Hawthorne Books, 2016), both using a hybrid form of memoir and essay to probe family, neurology, and history, as well as a collection of poetry, Optic Nerve: Photopoems (Red Hen Press, 2005). Other creative work includes her film, El Teatro Campesino, a feature-length documentary on the Chicano theatre troupe (1969) selected for the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center; her film Virginia Woolf: The Moment Whole (1971), broadcast on National Educational Television and winner of a Cine Golden Eagle, as well as her play, The Fifth String (2011–2014), about Arab and Jewish expulsions throughout history, produced in Berlin, New York, and Los Angeles. Sternburg lives in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and also has a residence in Downtown Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo. She has been the recipient of numerous grants, fellowships, and artist residencies, among them from the National Endowment for the Humanities and MacDowell. She has taught in the Graduate Media Program at The New School University and in the Critical Studies School at the California Institute of the Arts. In 2016, she was co-recipient of the REDCAT Award, given to “individuals who exemplify the creativity and talent that define and lead the evolution of contemporary culture.”
Bear Kirkpatrick
Bear Kirkpatrick
United States
1965
Bear Kirkpatrick’s work has been exhibited at the Center for Fine Art Photography (Ft.Collins), The Rayko Center (San Francisco), wall-space Gallery (Santa Barbara and Seattle), photo-eye Gallery (Santa Fe), Flowers Gallery (New York), and the PRC Gallery (Boston). His Wallportrait series was recently awarded a solo exhibitions at the Center for Fine Art Photography by Amy Arbus who juried the Portraits 2014 exhibition. His work has been published in Eyemazing (Netherlands), The Opera (Germany), Photo+ (South Korea), and Musee (New York City).He works with the American artist Robert Wilson as the chief installer of his video portraits in private residences, museums, and galleries around the world.He lives and works in Portsmouth, NH.
Robert Hutinski
Robert Hutinski
Slovenia
1969
I was born in 1969, Celje; this is where I live. I have held some solo and several group exhibitions at home and abroad. I have received several Slovenian and international awards and prizes for my photos. Some nominations and awards: PX3 2009, 2010, 2011 (official selection), 2012 ; Black & White Spider Awards 2010, 2011; Photography Master Cup 2010; IPA International Photography Awards 2010, 2011, 2012; Photographic association of Slovenia -Photography of the year 2007, 2008, 2009; EMZIN Photography of the year 2010, 2012, 2013; Art of Photography 2012Today, the political permeates most practices in the everyday of an individual who both executes and produces them and only rarely (in most cases) questions and examines their origin. The complex array of topics pertaining to the notion of the political affect the individual from cradle to tomb without (in most cases) the individual's awareness thereof. All these practices and ideas which are in constant conflict are translated and assimilated via various fields into the individual's everyday. One such field is photography whose very power lies in being politically incorrect in practice. Only thus can it be morally and ethically pure – a factor of reflection and promotion of awareness.
Sarah Ketelaars
Sarah Ketelaars
United Kingdom
Sarah Ketelaars is a British photographer from Brighton, UK. She has a BA and an MA degree in English Literature from Jesus College, Cambridge, an MSc in Social Science from the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen and a Diploma in photography from City College, Brighton. She began her career as a journalist and her images have appeared on book, CD and magazine cover. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is represented by Trevillion Images & Getty, and by 35 North Gallery in Brighton. In 2021 she was selected as one of the Lensculture Critics’ Choice winners for her project ‘Windows’ shot during lockdown in Houston, Texas and in 2024 she was selected as a finalist for her project ‘The 544’ in the Lensculture Art Photography Awards. The 544 This ongoing project is a memorial to 544 psychiatric patients murdered by the Nazis in 1941 in Latvia. The figurative images I’ve made are all cyanotypes. Eventually there will be one for each man, woman and child killed. My grandmother was working at the hospital from where the patients were taken. I have visited the hospital and found that although the story is known no memorial exists. The only official record seems to be a short paragraph in the Nuremberg report. So far I have found no record of the names. Using a historic photographic process feels fitting for a project examining a historical event. An ancient pagan Latvian folk symbol is drawn on by hand in gold ink to each piece. It is impossible for me to look at these images without thinking about how the lives of these people ended. However, the project is primarily intended as a memorial. I wanted the images to hint at some more celebratory moments, to remember the lives lived before these people entered the hospital; before they died. Not knowing anything about the identities of the dead, I have tried to imagine each one as a unique, precious being, and give each back a little of the character stripped from them when they were murdered and reduced by history to a number on a list of nameless victims. The project is the second in a trilogy looking at my family history, examining themes of cultural inheritance, identity and intergenerational trauma.
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Interview with Maureen Ruddy Burkhart
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Exclusive Interview with Peter Ydeen
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Call for Entries
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