THE SMART VIEW 002 / Preview

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C U RAT O R ’ S C H O I C E

T i m e h a s g o n e f a s t.

After the launch of magazine in June 2015 there was no

raising, I went off to Chios, a small island south of

time to pause au contraire the actual work began. The

Lesvos, to join the Chios Eastern Shore Rescue Team.

magazine had to get out into the world and make its

The group of international independent volunteers was

way into the hands of the people. In the months after

established by Greek local Toula and since then was

the release I was mostly occupied with shipping the

patrolling the shores facing Turkey. I spent one month

magazine around the world. Orders came nearly from

on the island, helping the refugees and watching out

everywhere and my small home office turned into a post

for rubber dinghies coming in. I hope this excuses why

office. In September 2015 I opened up the second call

this issue took me so long to release. The experiences I

for submissions, which to my surprise received over

made in Greece definitely changed my life. Times are fast

7000 Instagram submissions and a hundred portfo-

shifting and we should make the best of the time we have

lios. Facing the amount of submissions I realized that

and shouldn't waste precious years with paving our way

it was too soon to open the call. Beginner's mistake! I

until we can finally do what we are passionate about. For

wasn't ready for that and I honestly had no clue how

me presenting the works of emerging talents from online

to view all those submissions even if I was really happy

communities, supporting their success and providing

to receive such a resonance. I had to rethink all over

thought-provoking impulses in a print publication is my

again how to proceed with image selections for the

passion and the magazine is what I'm living for right

magazine in future. I would never be able to view all

now. Two months after being in Greece I quit my job at

submissions the magazine is receiving. I paused and

the office to fully devote myself to THE SMART VIEW.

took a deep breath. Later in November the first issue

A serious risk, but what are you able to reach without

was nominated for Launch of the Year 2015 by Stack

being risky?

Awards. Being listed under the top ten independent magazines from all over the world gives me confidence that all the efforts I made in the face of adversity was worth it and motivates me to continue with what I'm doing. However, in December submissions where still untouched and I was somehow stuck with the flood of pictures, still unsure how to proceed. I decided to free my mind by doing something totally different and made plans to volunteer for the refugee crisis in Greece. In November 2015 I was volunteering for a reception camp in Hamburg and, listening to a lot of personal stories, I was very impressed by the risk those people were taking to leave their countries, their family members, belongings and sometimes their dreams behind to start from scratch in a foreign country. I had the inner drive

R OSA R O T H

to invest more of my time to help the people that are currently seeking shelter in Europe. After nearly two

Founder and Editor-in-Chief

months of intense preparation including a first-aid

@rosa.roth

course, physical and psychological training, and fund

www.rosa-roth.com

002

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P r i m o z Z o r k o (Slovenia)

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V l a d i m i r Z h u l a n o v (Russia)

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M a tt h e w W y l i e (Canada)

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L u d o v i c B r o q u e r e a u (France)

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a n t o n i o D ‘ A g o s t i n o (Italy)

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M i c h a e l a M a i e r (Germany)

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P i e r o P e r c o c o (Italy)

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h P i e r o P e r c o c o (Italy)

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t e x t b y R o s a r o t h (Germany)

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t e x t b y c a r i n a L ü s c h e n (Germany)

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h Kr z y s z t o f C a n d r o w i c z (Poland)

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h B r e n d a n Ó S É (Ireland)

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t e x t b y J o s h u a S a r i ñ a n a (United States)

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h N o a h W a l d e c k (United States)

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t e x t b y D a n i e l R u b i n s t e i n (United Kingdom)

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N e g a r t a k b i r i (Iran)

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J o s è l u i s b a r c i a (Spain)

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A d r i e n B r u n e l (France)

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J o s h u a S a r i ñ a n a (United States)

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A l e x a n d e r A h r e n s (Germany)

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K a r s t e n k r o n a s (Germany)

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i m pr i n t

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i a c o p o p a s q u i (Italy)

THE SMART VIEW 002 - Curator's Choice concentrates on curation in times of picture-sharing platforms.

11 curated Instagram Selections of international mobile photographers are displayed on the following pages divided in the center by a text section, that focuses on the topics of contemporary curation and mobile photography.

On the final pages of the magazine you will find a selection of photo books and some information about the cover feature of Issue 002.

It ‘ s n o t a b o u t t h e c a m e r a b u t t he im age s we c re at e

Primoz Zo r k o

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"I primarily shoot on film. The only digital camera I have is my phone. It has its limitations and its benefits.

I love the fact my phone is always at my reach, being able to capture moments at all times. Even its technical limits are not entirely negative. It forces me to rethink the situation and to adapt, shooting in a way I normally wouldn't. I see and learn new things in the process.

Taking photos with a phone is not always easy, but being able to edit them on the go and share them the very next moment is what makes it so special. I don't see a reason why mobile photography shouldn't be treated as a legitimate form of photography, while some might still argue differently. It is not about the camera, but the images we create."

pr i m o z z o r k o @primozzorko www.primozzorko.com Primoz Zorko is a photographer and graphic designer based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. He is working both on commercial and art projects.

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Vl adimir z h u l a n ov

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"The series of self portraits was born out of my work place. I'm a photographer at the State Museum of Novosibirsk, where I take pictures of the items in the museum's collection. I had only my face to shoot portraits and it became some kind of photodiary, some kind of visual representation of my own metamorphoses. I shoot with a standard lens of Lenovo P780 and edit my pictures with the Vignette app to create multi-exposures."

vladimir zhulanov @zhulano Vladimir Zhulanov is living and working in Novosibirsk, Russia. He is photographer at the State Museum of Local History and Nature.

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M at t h e w w ylie

ca

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"Mobile photography is a medium that has democratized the art world, from photography in particular, to the fine art world in general. More importantly though, it has allowed more human beings to express themselves, to communicate a vision of self, the world, the intangible, the other, more than ever before. The effects of this are only beginning to be felt. It is, in essence, a significant development in the history of how human beings both interact with and understand themselves in the world around them. Mobile photography has changed many things. In my mind, there are a few important dialogues taking place. One of those dialogues involves the art world re-evaluating what a photograph even means anymore, e.g. what is it supposed to do, what should it do, what can it do? This is normal and not new. This is how art has always developed. This is how storytelling has always developed. This is how the world turns. Yes, there are a lot of photographs of food, but is that really any different than the cave paintings of "the hunt" that we continue to uncover from thousands of years ago? The same can be said of representations of self or the other, which is fascinating if one truly thinks about it. In a strange way, the advent of mobile photography parallels the development of scientific progress in the modern era. Another dialogue that is occurring, even if implicitly, is that regarding documentation of "reality". The very discussions that arise in communities regarding Photoshop, or mobile vs. film, is exactly the same dialogue that philosophers have been having about "reality" and aesthetics for thousands of years, which is wonderful, because this is how we, in the 21st century, are contributing to such an eternal question: What is real? What is meaningful?

Who am I?" M a tt h e w W y l i e @m_mateos Matthew Wylie is currently based in Toronto, Canada. He teaches English and Philosophy courses at a private high school and writes academic articles as well as creative fiction and poetry. He is one of the finalists of the LensCulture Street Photography Awards 2016.

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Lu d ov i c broquere au

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"I jumped into mobile photography three years ago when I started to post daily snapshots on my personal Facebook account and rapidly joined the Tumblr and Instagram communities. I see mobile photography as the perfect medium to shoot a continuous flow of pictures exploring the beauty of the daily life, of common places and things. The mobile phone is paving the way for unprecedented opportunities in photography allowing complete freedom to capture beautiful and magical moments anytime anywhere. My work is shaped like a visual diary composed of black & white, color, perspectives, and the flow of life running alongside. In a way I'm documenting my own peregrinations, walking and traveling with the goal to show the richness of the world and the mundane. I currently work with an iPhone and the Snapseed app to edit my pictures. My work encompasses urban surfaces and urbanscapes, street scenes, daily life circumstances, people in the streets, and my holidays. I have a very intuitive approach using my camera phone as a point and shoot device that is always in my pocket or hands!"

l u d o v i c br o q u e r e a u @lbrphotographs www.lbr-photography.tumblr.com Ludovic Broquereau is currently living in Albigny-surSaĂ´ne near Lyon, France. Besides taking pictures with his mobile phone, he is working as a high-tech executive.

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antonio d ’a g os t i n o

it

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"I began taking photographs about ten years ago with my parents’ old Nikon EM. In 2013, I attended a photography school in Milan. I consider myself a photographer of places - my gaze is turned towards spaces, environments, landscapes. I try to create simple images, that reflect my aesthetic identity. I take photographs with both compact and reflex cameras, but for me the iPhone is the ideal resource: it is easy to carry around and offers the photographer the chance to directly communicate with the audience thanks to the diversity of networks. Social media helps to create a stronger focus on photographers' projects, increasing circulation of their work and building a dialogue with the public. Mobile photography has a meaningful impact on visual language and today's photography has become a fluid subject, a hybrid, in constant metamorphosis. I'm curious to find out how it will turn out in the future."

0 3 4 Statale 106 - Calabria, Italy 0 3 5 Statale 106 - Calabria, Italy 0 3 6 Coccorino - Calabria, Italy 0 3 7 Cantanzaro - Calabria, Italy

A n t o n i o D ‘a g o s t i n o @a.dagostino www.antoniodagostino.tumblr.com

0 3 8 Palizzi - Calabria, Italy 0 3 9 Bova - Calabria, Italy 040

Antonio D'Agostino was born in Calabria, Italy. He is a

Roghudi - Calabria, Italy

lawyer by training, but left the profession to fully

0 4 1 Caroniti - Calabria, Italy

devote himself to photography.

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michael a maier

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"I can't imagine my life without mobile photography.

I generally like simplicity and the idea of making the best of something with limited possibilities. Some of my favourite images were taken by a simple smartphone with a below average camera and under low light conditions. Of course, it can't replace a 'real' camera at 'serious' shootings, but I really appreciate all the benefits and possibilities of mobile photography - its directness and elementariness. Not to forget its flexibility - I edit all images with an app, even those I take with my digital camera."

Michaela maier @michaela_maier_ www.michaelamaier.com Michaela Maier was born in Bremerhaven and is now situated in Berlin, Germany. She is a dental technician by training.

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Piero p e r coco

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pictures I like are somehow in between of being amateur and professional. My own pictures are mainly about daily life. Situations I prefer to shoot are everyday life scenes because they depict moments that are very close to reality. The normal life and the monotony of the everyday. I like the contrasts of life and death or in general i n t e rv i e w w i t h P i e r o p e r c o c o

to observe other people's lives – to observe the suffering

by Rosa Roth

and the joy of others.

In which places do you usually take your pictures?

The majority of my pictures have been taken in my

Tell me something about your person! What are you

county. Sometimes it happens that when I'm travelling

doing in life?

that I take pictures somewhere else. For example, I went to Berlin last year, but there I just took a few pictures.

I am Piero Percoco, born in Bari and since then living

I don't travel much. Most of my time I spend in Puglia

in Sannicandro, a small village close to Bari. I take

and in my hometown Sannicandro.

pictures, no photographs! It's an important thing to say that I don't see myself as a photographer. It's a thing

When did you start taking pictures with your smart-

that doesn’t fit me. That's why I'm only taking pictures.

phone?

That's truer than saying I'm a photographer. I'm also taking pictures to earn some money to live.

In 2013 I began using my mobile phone to take pictures.

I was working as photo assistant and I had my phone

Do you have any photographic education?

in my pocket, which enabled me to spontaneously take pictures behind the scenes. I love to use the mobile

No, I didn't study photography. My school is made up

camera because it's almost invisible. When you have

of photobooks. For example books from Stephen Shore,

a big photo camera in front of you it's different than

William Eggleston, Alec Soth and many more. Those are

shooting pictures with a mobile phone. It influences the

the books I'm studying. Italian and not Italian. I'm an

situation. In particular people in public are always afraid

autodidact.

of big cameras. That's why it's good to have a device which doesn't create so much attention. Taking pictures

Which genres of photography do you like? What are

with a smartphone looks more like reading a newsfeed.

the main subjects you're taking pictures of?

I frequently use my mobile phone to take my pictures.

I also have other cameras but my phone continues to be

I like mostly like amateur photography. For example

my favourite instrument.

those pictures you can find on Instagram. There are a lot of people who aren't photographers, but who take

Your pictures are always shot in square format. Why

wonderful pictures. I like those people more than

did you decide for this format?

professional photographers. They definitely belong to the genre of amateur photography, but they are honestly

This has been a deformation. In the beginning I uploaded

very good photographers with true talent. Thus, the

my pictures with a white frame. A white square frame

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A T EX T

by Rosa Roth The likes you give, the clicks you make. The social network era is characterized by choices we as users make. Do you take a picture to share it with your friends or do you take one to share it with the world? The connectedness the Internet creates, changes on the one hand the access

It’s all a b ou t Choice

to photography, which in the last years lead to total

C u r at i o n i n t i m e s o f

way to leave the virtual space to be presented in galleries

p i c t u r e - s h a r i n g p l at f o r m s

and museums.

democratization of the medium, and on the other hand the relevance of photography in general. Photography has turned into a part of our communication. It is part of a new visual language that is used by everyone in possession of a connected device. Each day we are producing billions of photographs to share them on our social networks. Some of them are just particles of a language, of our modern expression, but others become images, go viral, influencing a whole generation or even find their

Having a view on the amount of pictures we are uploading each day, we also have to admit that we will be never able to view all pictures we create. They will vanish in the black hole of the Internet, and while in the past we tried to maintain memories in personal handmade photo albums, most of those pictures are now stored on Facebook timelines, clouds or somewhere on servers in the Antarctic. Pictures are not taken anymore to capture memories for future generations, they are taken to depict the present moment and those pictures that are not present anymore will be forgotten soon or untraceable lost in the worldwide web. The human act of keeping and possessing doesn't go in line with fast developing technology. We as humans are unable to cope with the information overload the Internet provides. We are sitting on a huge data waste dump and we are only able to scratch on its surface.

Art has always been about possession. Having your own portrait captured in a painting or later about owning art

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c arina l Ăź sc h e n

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C u r at i o n a s a soc i a l pr actice in co n t e m po r a r y art A Text by carina LĂźschen

The images that prevail are those that are selected:

that prevail and are perceived in the flood of pictures is

Curating images as social practice requires thought-

contextually bound to social participation, power

ful set-up and selection of images for exhibitions.

structures, and evolution.

Within the art context it is essential to curate images in order to reflect existing power structures of aesthetics,

Numerous writings were composed to understand the

which gradually spread across networks and commu-

relevance of visual assertiveness. A particularly inter-

nities. Accordingly, successful images are those that

esting one comes from two scientists, which consider

unify cultural relevance, assertiveness, and influence

geological events. In 'The Impact of Digital Trans-

on collective identity. The pervasiveness of images

parency' published by Spektrum Verlag, philosopher

through competition and selection reflects the concept

Daniel Dennett and MIT researcher Deb Roy intro-

of mimetic as Richard Dawkins defined it. Powerful

duce a theoretical model based on zoologist Andrew

images treat cyberspace as an ecosystem and were also

Parker's thesis about the Cambrian explosion 543

discussed in popular literature as hommage to William

million years ago. Parker's theory, focusing on the

S. Burrough's 'Language is a virus from outer space':

evolutionary process occuring in the ocean, where

Those pictures can be defined as a pervasive virus. Sub-

camouflage and visibility as mechanisms of adaption

cultures transform and adapt themselves on a visual basis

or factors of natural selection play a major role, is

through appropriation of images and certain aesthetics.

thus related to digital age. His theory of evolution

Perceived images are correlated to one's own identity and

could help to understand the changes brought about

defined as identity-establishing. The question of images

by digital technologies. From previously controversial

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Krz ysztof candrowicz

pl

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h Kr z y s z t o f c a n d r o w i c z

by Rosa Roth

Krzysztof Candrowicz is founder and director of

Krzysztof, tell me something about curation in gene-

the multidisciplinary independent centre - the Łódź

ral. What is contemporary curation about?

Art Center (Poland), organizer of numerous cultural and artistic events like the FOTOFESTIWAL in

In the last ten years the status of curators has changed

Łódź and the Triennial of Photography in Hamburg

dramatically due to the general liberation of the field.

(Germany). In 2015 he was curating the Triennal in

In the 60s, 70s and 80s the concept of being a cura-

Hamburg for the first time. Under the title The day

tor was very functional and clear. Only a few curators

will come... the festival had a thematical focus on the

in each country had the power to support the success

inflation of mobile photography, the omnipresence

of artists and had influence on the entire art scene. For

of the Internet, the accessibility of found images, and

example the great John Szarkowski, artistic director

advances made in digital image production.

and chief curator of MoMA (New York), decided that Stephen Shore will be Stephen Shore or Diane Arbus will be Diane Arbus. Without him we wouldn't know these artists and we would probably have never seen any of their art works in worldwide exhibitions. Referring to the present, I would say that the concept of curation has gone through an enourmous liberation. Most contemporary curators don't necessarily have any professional background in art history or photography. Take me for example - I'm actually a sociologist. The liberation of curation came as well with liberation of photography and art due to the democratization of access to the medium. Furthermore, we are living in the age of festivals. In the past, the meeting place for artists, photographers and art lovers was limited to museums and galleries. Nowadays, the photo festivals take over the role of exchanging knowledge and ideas with a wider

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brendan Ăł sĂŠ

ie

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i n t e rv i e w w i t h B r e n d a n ó s é

by Rosa Roth

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In 2015 Apple launched an award-winning campaign:

would be on billboards and posters in 70 cities in 24

For the Apple World Gallery, meant to promote the

countries. The following Monday came and the page

new iPhone 6, Apple selected professionals and ama-

went live on Apple. It was such a great thrill to see my

teurs to show their pictures on billboards and print

photograph displayed on apple.com with all the other

ads around the world. A breakthrough for mobile

fine images that had been selected. It was magical to

photography, and a showcase of its full artistic

think that a photograph of mine was seen by millions

potential.

of people all over the world. It was on display for six months in locations where thousands of people pass

Brendan, tell me something about your person?

each day. I was lucky enough to get to see it myself in

Where do you come from? What's your background?

Milan and Tokyo and that was an experience I will never

When did you start using mobile devices for your

forget.

photography?

What exactly changed for you as a photographer after I am a self-taught photographer from Cork, Ireland. My

being selected and promoted worldwide?

day job is teaching at my local university here in Cork. I am married and have two kids: Sumi-Anna (8) and James

It brought me to the attention of media around the world

(6). Photography is what I do for fun and to express my

and opened doors for me that otherwise probably would

creativity. I've been shooting on iPhone for about five

have been shut; things like being invited to London

years now, ever since the iPhone 4. It has allowed me to

by Apple as part of their Meet the iPhone Photographer

develop my photographic style simply because it means I

series of interviews. I have also been invited to present

have a camera with me 24/7. As a result, I am seeing and

my photography to The Royal Photographic Society of

thinking photographically.

Thailand and have had a similar opportunity to present and talk about my work in Jakarta, Indonesia. I have a

You were selected as one of those photographers who

very popular workshop series running with galleries in

had the chance to see their pictures adorning walls

Cork and Dublin in Ireland and I must say I truly love

of buildings and billboards all over the world. This

these as it allows me to combine my teaching experi-

must have been a life-changing moment for you.

ence with my passion for photography. Being part of an

How did you learn that you were selected by Apple?

award-winning global advertising campaign with one of the world's biggest brands has been absolutely amazing.

Out of the blue in December 2014 I got a Flickr mail from a person who had zero photos in their Flickr stream

What do you think about the Apple World Gallery

asking me to contact them about a research project. I

and Apple's focus on marketing the iPhone camera

ignored it, thinking it was spam. But when the person

in general?

sent the mail again urging me to be swift in response, I replied. Details were sketchy. Then to my amazement,

We are living in a time when anyone who has a smart-

I saw the name Apple and I was definitely interested.

phone also has a camera and most people are taking

Many emails later we arrived at the end of February and

photos. Apple realised this and also knew of the quality

I got an email congratulating me on my image being

of images which people were creating on their iPhones.

part of the Apple World Gallery. I was thrilled! Later,

The Shot on iPhone 6 campaign was ground-breaking in

I got a phone call to congratulate me and I thought

the advertising world and people sat up and took notice.

I heard the woman say that as part of this my image

It encouraged people to shoot more with their iPhones

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j os h u a sariĂąana

us

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i n s ta g r a m and anxie t y of the photogr apher A Text

by Joshua SariĂŁna

"[We] still look relentlessly to technology for solutions to the very problems technology seems to cause." – David Foster Wallace Over the past few years, the mobile camera has created a new form of photography that has and will continue to re-structure how we interface with technology, gather and generate data, and how we create narratives. Smartphone users employ mobile photography to disseminate mass amounts of information, to subvert cultural institutions, and for political rallying. These behaviors parallel the same strategies of the radical avant-garde art movements of the 20th century.

In this article I will expose the hidden contradiction that exists between mobile photography and the avant- garde described in Wallace's quote through the use of collage.

I'll assert that mobile photography is inherently avantgarde and has resulted in data overload. Which in turn causes dysfunction of two brain regions (the prefrontal cortex and amygdala), and fragments our attention towards environmental information. This fragmented attention parallels the fractured sense of space-time represented by collage. I'll conclude by arguing that mobile devices are the source of the very problems they promote. It is the paradoxical relationship with technology that drives the anxiety of the photographer.

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noah wa ldeck

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What is Subjectively Objective about? When did you come up with the idea to create this special Instagram account?

Originally it started out with my own personal Instagram account. I usually shoot a lot of Fuji Instax film and on January 1st of 2015 I began posting one picture a day, partly to help force myself to scan those images. After I'd been doing that for a couple of months, my audience i n t e rv i e w w i t h n o a h w a l d e c k

was growing and I was getting a lot of good feedback

by Rosa Roth

from it. Besides that, I'd always been interested in doing a curatorial gallery project and this seemed like a great way to launch one. Instagram is very interesting to me

Noah Waldeck is founder and curator of Subjectively

because it has a good sense of community where people

Objective, a curatorial Instagram account featuring

are actively participating. There were already other

emerging artists and publishing photobooks from

people curating on Instagram in interesting ways, but

their work.

the way I approached Subjectively Objective as a project was a little bit different than what I’ve seen before. What I decided to do, in contrast to other accounts that feature only one or two pictures or do account takeovers, is to publish more structured features that actually show 12 images from each artist. The reason I chose 12 is that it's the number you can see at once on an Instagram feed. It fills the screen and gives you a perfect overview of all the featured images.

How can photographers submit to your selection? Via Hashtags or do they send in their portfolios?

It's a combination of both. In the beginning, I started featuring people I found interesting and which aesthetically fit to what I was planning to do on Instagram. I just contacted them and asked them if I could feature their work.

I still do that, but I also receive a lot of submissions now.

It's possible to submit work by email. Obviously there is also the #subjectivelyobjective which right now includes about 80,000 tags. It's really interesting to see that some of the images using the #subjectivelyobjective hashtag are very different compared to the style I typically feature. Over time it has become a hashtag people see and start to use. I don't even know if they really know or

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Daniel Ru b i n s t e i n

uk

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Gif t of thE Selfie A Text

by Daniel Rubinstein

Even someone convinced that selfies are the lowest

shift by offering it as a subject of experience. Not only

form of artistic expression will find themselves repeatedly

because the old categories of space (near/far, bellow/

drawn into debates about them, and the values or the

above, in-front/behind) don't seem to grasp the space of

lack thereof they embody. The objection to selfies has its

the network, but also because the same thing holds true

source in the ethical instinct that measures everything

in respect to other binary categories. Classifications of

according to the seriousness of intention and the rejection

'good' and 'bad', 'original' and 'copy' are less important

of selfies as shallow, self-obsessed and puerile is itself a

online than such questions as how many 'likes' a selfie

self-portrait of the objector as a solid citizen, for whom

gets, how it is hashtagged, retweeted, shared. It is these

art performs a higher function than self-promotion and

considerations, and not questions of aesthetic appeal

the destruction of all aesthetic values. For this much is

that determine its impact.

true: the selfie asks for nothing less than to annihilate all forms of art that came before it, in this lies its claim to

Walter Benjamin has said that language is the highest

be the first art-form of the age of networks.

application of the mimetic faculty since 'it is now language in which objects meet and enter into relationship with

Is there anyone reading this who did not spend some

each other' (Benjamin 2005). For Benjamin, language is

time online in the last 24 hours? The question is, how

the melting pot of all of life because it is both an arti-

does it feel? Perhaps it does not feel like the first time, as

culation of rationality and an expression of imagination

we are so used to it. But on second thought, it is rather

and sensuousness. But this way of thinking is rapidly be-

different from most other things. Sitting at my desk, I

coming redundant as it is the network, and not language

can say that the book is nearer to me than the coffee cup,

that is the perfect expression of life that is produced and

and that the armchair is more far away than the phone.

sustained by computational technologies. Not only the

But what does it mean to say that online something is

selfie, but also the morning cereal and the milk, the shoes

nearer to me and something is more distant? Online dis-

and the socks, the planes in the sky, the water in the

tance is not measured by meters or feet, it is measured

taps and the babies in the prams are the outcomes of

by clicks. How many clicks it takes to get to the book I

complex networked operations that are for the most part

want on Amazon? How many swipes to get to the news

concealed from view and therefore easy to keep out of

feed? This difference suggests that there is another lo-

mind. It is just possible, that the selfie is the first art form

gic working in the online environment, and from this

that offers a concentrated meditation on the networked

a demand is emerging for an art that can handle this

condition of life because the selfie is the interplay of two

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negar ta k b i r i

ir

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"Taking photos with a camera is not very common in my country. Most of the people are afraid of cameras.

In 2014, when I started taking pictures with my mobile camera I was like every ordinary person on the streets and it has been very easy for me to take photos of my subjects. Now I'm mostly involved with taking mobile pictures of myself. Taken from a psychological perspective a selfie is as an expression of our individuality to the outer world. It is, in essence, a reflection of what you would like to be and how you would like to be seen."

N e g a r Ta k b i r i @negartakbiri Negar Takbiri is a photographer and editor based in Tehran, Iran. She studies Photography at the University of Art and Architecture in Tehran and works for Ghaab Emagazine, which is publishing works of emerging young artists from the Visual Arts.

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j os ĂŠ l u i s barcia

es

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JosĂŠ Luis Barcias' series from Dubai reveales corners we wouldn't expect in a city where modernity is swiftly overriding all that is old and authentic. Behind the luxury facades of Dubai's skyscrapers there are places which still have the charme of the patina - of the used, of life. Deira, which is based on the north side of Dubai Creek, is one of the oldest parts of Dubai and its traditional commerce center. There are souks of gold, spices and perfumes, the Abra dock, the fish market and hundreds of interesting alleys full of hustle. These hidden backstreets are far away from the luxury of Downtown Dubai, but they are rich in hospitality and traditional street life.

"I tried to capture a few moments of calmness in the middle of the daily hustle, using warm tones and different textures of walls and surfaces, which are almost like the informalist paintings. My interest in art started when I was 13 and first saw Picasso's Guernica, one of my favorite paintings. I still remember the huge impression that I felt looking at that giant canvas with all its symbolism and meaning. In 2003, I became interested in photography and then I started to coalesce my photography digitally with painting to create digital collages. Between 2004 and 2009 I participated in 20 national and international exhibitions of digital art and photo-graphy. In 2011, I began photographing with my iPhone 4 and it quickly became one of my favorite activities. I am interested in street and architecture photography. For me, photography is a way of expressing emotions and mood states." josĂŠ luis barcia @joseluisbarcia www.lensculture.com/joseluisbarcia JosĂŠ Luis Barcia was born in Pola de Siero, Asturias, and is currently living in Madrid, Spain. He owns a degree in Chemistry and works as a logistics manager in a multinational retail company. He is one of the finalists of the LensCulture Street Photography Award 2016.

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Adrien Brunel

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"I've always been a curious observer of my environment and very passionate about the quotidian conversation between passers-by and the city, its architecture, graphic rhythms, iconography and written messages. The 'constant ballet' of urban surroundings fascinates me. I try to capture the fragile and transient moments in my pictures, as well as the silent dialogue that seems to exist between humans and urbanity. Apart from a few series shot on film long ago, I began to intensely practice photography with a DSLR, which I used to shoot textures for my digital collages. A few years later, Instagram was released and mobile cameras became more efficient, I really started using my smartphone to take photographs. Today I can speak from experience that the smartphone facilitated the act of taking my pictures on the streets. For me, there is no difference between photography and mobile photography. The eye matters more than the equipment."

A d r i e n br u n e l @neriad @lomosapiens (FB) Adrien Brunel is a graphic designer and art director based in Paris, France. He is primarly working as a photographer but still freelances in the advertising business from time to time.

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Jos h u a SariĂąana

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"The contrast between isolation and connectedness creates an uncomfortable space that I often occupy. These images represent that aforementioned space. I aim to invoke feelings of familiarity and detachment through seemingly universal spaces that could be anywhere or no place at all. My goal is to create an empathic connection between the audience and myself, drawing in the viewer while keeping them at an outside distance. Nostalgia advances with technology exemplified by the use of retro filter apps that pays homage to artists such as Stephen Shore and William Eggleston, but repeating to excess the social sharing and instability of images a la the Polaroid camera. Prints are tangible in a way that contemporary images are not; the same way that connection with another person differs when mediated by a screen. Although the feeds of phones are loud there is a quietness brought about by peering into rectangular boxes."

JoShua SariĂąana @j_sarinana www.joshuasarinana.com Joshua is a MIT trained neuroscientist and self-taught photographer from Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In 2015, he won first place of the Mobile Photography Awards and has been finalist of the EyeEm Awards.

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ale x ander Ahrens

de

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A Gentle Collision A Journal

by Alexander Ahrens

"Mobile photography is very much about spontaneity: see a moment, have a camera in your pocket, shoot whether your subject is a person or an object. Most people take pictures of what they see every day. That's simply a result of who we are and where we live. I believe every photographer has a personal vision – at heart we are all storytellers. Without a story, an image is nothing. To be sure, some of us have our strengths in certain genres, but if we are truly meant to convey something of interest in our images we will find those stories and tell them. I like 'street photography' – I enjoy looking at it, I really enjoy doing it. No arrangements, no directions, just brief moments frozen in time. It is the small and seemingly unimportant things that matter. The title of the assemblage A Gentle Collision: Some Random Visual Impressions of Most Everything thus somewhat reflects my approach to photography: the photographs do not share a common trait or underlying idea. They merely reflect what I encounter when I happen to leave the house. Nevertheless, they also reveal a sublime story, after all. What the story is may differ, depending from which angle one looks at them."

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A Gentle Collision: Some Random Visual Impressions of Most Everything is based on an homonymic Tumblrblog where Alexander Ahrens is uploading images from his mobile phone. The idea to create a yearly journal in print version emerged as the reasult of collaboration with the design studio Emphase SĂ rl in Lausanne (Schwitzerland). Basically, the more 'fast altering and ephemeral' material of simple newsprint paper corresponds to the Alexander's concept of mobile photography. The first issue of the journal was limited to 30 copies. The second edition is in progress.

Alexander Ahrens www.agentlecollision.tumblr.com Alexander Ahrens lives and workes in Munich, Germany and Bern, Schwitzerland. He currently teaches Near Eastern Archaeology at the University of Bern.

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k arsten kronas

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Se arching Mr.X A Book by karsten kronas

Every story needs a beginning. I'm not sure if it already

that I had shot in 2011. In addition Mr. X. portrays the

started before my phone got stolen during a night swim

same woman I had photographed during my first trip to

at the city beach of Tel Aviv in 2012. I had no clue where

Tel Aviv. It is the woman I discover as pregnant in my

my phone had gone to until I realized that the Dropbox

pictures and later on with her newborn in those of Mr.

synchronization I installed for my phone camera was

X. I created a contact to the best friend of that woman

still active and Mr. X., as I began to call him after the

to find out some more information about her and the

first signs of him appeared, started to use my phone in

thief, but the track got lost after the young mother had

his everyday life. He was uploading his mobile pictures

no interest to meet up.

to my Dropbox giving me clues about the life he was living and what type of person he was. That's where my

To seek and find. How are both related? About this

research started.

question I'm thinking a lot in these times. I'm currently working on a second part of the story, which is situated

In total, 256 photos and some video files were unwit-

in Eritrea. The origin of Mr.X., the country where he

tingly uploaded by Mr.X., including very private and

was born and a place to continue my photographic

intimate insights into his life. By viewing the material

search. Some stories need no end.

I discovered that we have something in common. I was working on a photo project about Eritrean weddings in Israel and quickly found out that the phone thief belongs to one of those Eritrean communites that I was documenting. Without this coincidence I would never have been able to witness private moments in such intensity,

K a r s t e n Kr o n a s

depicting situations that are nearly inaccessable for me as a photographer.

www.karstenkronas.com

In 2014 I flew back to Tel Aviv to continue my research

Karsten Kronas is a fine art photographer based in

on site. In my luggage was the first draft of a book.

Bielefeld, Germany. 'Searching Mr. X.' can be purchased

During my research I discovered more parallels between

as a signed unique copy in his online shop.

his life and mine. A scene of a neighborhood appears

The research project is ongoing.

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T HE SMA R T V IEW

Thanks to

002 Curator's Choice

Giovanni Albore, Sylvia Ballhause, Birgit Bogatzki,

ISSN 2364-7469

Malte Brenneisen, Krzysztof Candrowicz,

09 / 2016

Ivan Castiglia, Antonio D'Agostino, Davide Mollo, Caroline de Bertodano, Edoardo Delille, Team DJ,

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

Jens Feddersen, Roberta Fiorito, Nancy Garin,

Rosa Roth

Carolina Gheri, Belal Hasna, Gerrit Holz, Ole Jendis, Toula Kitromilidi, Konstantin Konstantinidis,

Art D i r e c t i o n

Anna Marques, Gustav Mechlenburg, Anika Meier,

Rosa Roth

Gerhard Noltze, Borja Olabegogeaskoetxea, Nicolò Panzeri, Piero Percoco, Giulia Piermartiri,

Texts

Bärbel Reinhard, Alexander Rischer, Tristan Rodgers,

Alexander Ahrens, Karsten Kronas,

Filippo Romanelli, Daniel Rubinstein, Danilo Russo,

Carina Lüschen, Rosa Roth,

Joshua Sariñana, Gianluca Scafuro, Elke Scholz,

Daniel Rubinstein, Joshua Sariñana

Steffen Scholz, Sebastian Senff, Antoine Silvestre, Urs Spindler, Kostas Tanainis, Sebastian Timm,

Photographs

Matteo Todisco, Pietro Viti, Vincent Wagner,

Alexander Ahrens, José Luis Barcia,

Markus Weckesser, Matthew Wylie, Wolfgang Zurborn

Ludovic Broquereau, Adrien Brunel, Antonio D'Agostino, Karsten Kronas, Michaela Maier,

Content

Brendan Ó Sé, Iacopo Pasqui, Piero Percoco,

The publisher does not take over responsibilty for the

Joshua Sariñana, Negar Takbiri, Noah Waldeck,

accuracy of the content of this issue. The publisher

Matthew Wylie, Vladimir Zhulano, Primoz Zorko

requires that material submitted for publication is free from third-party rights and doesn't assume liability if

T r a n s l at i o n / P r o o f r e a d i n g

rights of others are touched. The copyright of the sub-

Rosa Roth

mitted texts and pictures belongs to the photographers

Joshua Sariñana

and writers. The published material may only be repro-

Matthew Wylie

duced or used with the permission of the publisher.

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write a mail to: rosa@thesmartview.de

I a copo Pa s qui

it

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“I really love mobile photography because it's immediate, easy and sometimes more comfortable than using a compact camera or a big format camera. Nowadays everyone of us has a camera phone in his pocket. The mobile camera is a magnificent opportunity to shoot on the go, especially for photographers who might not have a camera on hand all times. For me there is no difference: Mobile photography is photography!"

i a c o p o pa s q u i @iacopopasqui www.iacopopasqui.it Iacopo Pasqui has been chosen from over 7000 submissions for our cover feature. His pictures can be seen on the front, back and inside covers. He is a fine-art and documentary photographer. Since 2008 he uses photography as a criticizing tool for the observation of contemporary society, working on medium and long-term projects. He is interested in the use of color to investigate the relationship between human beings, nature, landscape and social behaviour.

He is author of several publications and has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions and photography festivals in Italy. His recent publication "1999" just came out in July 2016 published by Witty Kiwi.

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