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Her self-portraits sell for millions and have made her a superstar of the art world, so why does photography's master of disguise crave anonymity?

What's on in the world of photography, including events, exhibitions and talks in the UK and abroad.

As an artist, and a man, Lucian Freud pulled no punches. On the eve of a definitive exhibition of his unsparing portraits, the painter's cousin tells Mark Hudson how Freud lived by his own rules - and why she can never forgive him

William Daniels is looking for funding for his series examining the poorest levels of Kyrgyz society.

Four times World Press Photo winner Judah Passow documents Jewish life in Britain for a new exhibition the Jewish museum.

A new photography exhibition provides a poignant and beautiful retrospective of London's East End.

The shortlisted entries for the 2012 Sony World Photography Awards.

We scour the Internet for inspiring sites and stories related to photography.

The photographer's new series 'She' opens at London's Brancolini Grimaldi gallery this week.

February 3-March 11, 2012, New York

Sean Kelly Gallery is delighted to announce the opening of Alec Soth’s new exhibition, Broken Manual. The opening will take place on Thursday, February 2, from 6pm until 8pm. The artist will be present.

Broken Manual will be Soth’s premiere exhibition with the gallery and the first opportunity to view such a large selection of this important body of work in New York. The majority of photographs that comprise this compelling series were taken over a four-year period, from 2006-2010. They reflect Soth’s increasing interest in the mounting anger and frustration that some—specifically male—Americans feel with societal constraints and their subsequent desire to remove themselves from civilization. The resultant work is a group of portraits of men and the landscapes they inhabit that are poignant, disturbing and mysterious. Soth’s uncanny ability to gain the trust of those whom he photographs gave him unprecedented access to these notoriously elusive individuals, in moments, variously, of brooding, deep reflection or vulnerability.

The genesis of the work is Soth’s fascination with the life of Thomas Merton, the Trappist monk who, prior to his death in 1968, lived for almost three decades at the remote Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky. Additionally, Soth studied the years that Olympic Park bomber Eric Rudolph spent evading the authorities in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. In visits to these two locations, Soth realized that both these men’s stories ignited “a fantasy of retreat”.

Soth’s alter ego, Lester B. Morrison, was borne out of his research on this topic. Morrison created a text—the eponymously titled manual that accompanies the exhibition—written to aid others who, like him, choose to retreat from society and live off the grid in a remote area of the country. In it, he offers helpful hints on everything from disguising one’s appearance to creating a pseudonym. Soth, in turn inspired by Morrison’s manual, traveled the country taking photographs that illustrated Morrison’s ideas. Morrison proclaims: “Let this book be your guide. Over the last few years I’ve studied the experts of escape. Let us now praise these lonely men: hermits and hippies, monks and survivalists.” He goes on to explain, “I’ve included a number of photos by my comrade Alec Soth. When you look at these scenes, try to put yourself in the picture. Visualize your new life on the lam. Before you know it, you just might make the break.”

In addition to the photographs in the main gallery, gallery two will include a site-specific installation of the special edition of the Broken Manual book. This highly sought-after, signed and numbered edition is placed inside larger found books, the interiors of which have been carved out to create a secret repository for the manual, an action that mimics the concealment of covert material by someone living a double-life, who must hide evidence of their alternative existence from those around them. A very limited number of the special edition books will be available for sale from the gallery.

Gallery one will feature the 2011 full-length documentary, Somewhere to Disappear (running time: 57 minutes). Directed by Laure Flammarion and Arnaud Uyttenhove, and produced by Mas Films, the film follows Soth as he travels across America in search of the subjects for Broken Manual. The screening schedule for Somewhere to Disappear will be posted in the gallery and on our website. For more information about the film, please visit the Somewhere to Disappear website.

Soth has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions. In 2008, a large survey exhibition of Soth's work was exhibited at the Jeu de Paume in Paris and the Fotomuseum Winterthur in Switzerland. In 2010, the Walker Art Center mounted a comprehensive exhibition with an accompanying catalogue entitled From Here To There, Alec Soth’s America. His first monograph, Sleeping by the Mississippi, was published by Steidl in 2004 to great critical acclaim. Since then, Soth has published NIAGARA (2006), Fashion Magazine (2007), Dog Days, Bogotá (2007), The Last Days of W (2008) and Broken Manual (2010). Steidl will release the trade publication of Broken Manual in early 2012. In 2008, Soth started his own highly-regarded publishing company, Little Brown Mushroom. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Brooklyn Museum of Art; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, amongst others. Soth became a nominee of Magnum Photos in 2004 and a full member in 2008.

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When & Where

Tues - Fri: 11am - 6pm
Sat: 10am - 6pm

Sean Kelly Gallery
528 West 29th Street
New York, NY 10001
United States

Phone: 212.239.1181

February 29-March 24, 2012, Sydney

Produced in conjunction with the publication Magnum Contact Sheets (Thames & Hudson, Nov 2011) the Stills Gallery is delighted to present a complementary exhibition featuring early and original contact sheets by Magnum photographers.

A landmark new book, Magnum Contact Sheets presents an unparalleled wealth of unpublished material, revealing the story behind many iconic and historical images of modern times taken by the world’s most celebrated photographers. The book shows their creative process and also acts, in the words of Martin Parr, as an ‘epitaph to the contact sheet’ as it marks the end of the analog era as we move to a digital generation.

Often compared to an artist’s sketchbook, the contact sheet, a direct print of a roll or sequence of negatives, is the photographer’s first look at what he or she captured on film, and provides a uniquely intimate glimpse into their working process. It gives a behind-the-scenes sense of walking alongside the photographer and seeing through their eyes.

The images featured in the book – both celebrated icons of photography and lesser-known surprises – encompass over seventy years of history: from the D-Day Normandy landings by Robert Capa, the 1968 Paris riots by Bruno Barbey and war in Chechnya by Thomas Dworzak, to René Burri’s filmic sequence of close-ups of Che Guevara, classic New Yorkers by Bruce Gilden, and Eve Arnold’s iconic portrait of the charismatic and image-savvy Malcolm X. Further insight into each contact sheet is provided by texts written by the photographers themselves or by experts chosen by members’ estates.

Magnum Contact Sheets includes 139 contact sheets together with the accompanying final image, representing 69 photographers, as well as zoom-in details, selected photographs, press cards, notebooks, annotations and spreads from important publications, including Life magazine and Picture Post.

The accompanying exhibition features over 30 intriguing contact sheets. Some are displayed alongside their final images, such as Thomas Hoepker’s vintage contact sheet featuring Muhammed Ali jumping and Susan Meiselas' powerful Carnival Strippers. As well as classic Magnum material the exhibition features a variety of diverse contemporary photographers, such as the large format contact sheets of Alec Soth & Stuart Franklin and medium format contact sheets by Mark Power.

This unequalled book and exhibition provides a unique insight into the inner workings and though processes of some of the world’s greatest photographers.

A special edition book consisting of a clothbound copy of Magnum Contact Sheets placed in a presentation case is available. It contains an individual 16 x 12” contact sheet selected from a series of 10, with each contact sheet printed in editions of 50. Each contact sheet is numbered, embossed with ‘Magnum Photos Collection’ on the white border, and hand-stamped with the photographer’s copyright on the verso. All contact sheets have been produced at Magnum’s own print room as archival Giclée prints and to Magnum’s exacting standards.

Magnum Contact Sheets, published 7th November, is edited by Kristen Lubben, Associate Curator of the International Center of Photography, New York. Among her previous books are Susan Meiselas: In History and Amelia Earhart: Image and Icon, both published by Steidl.

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When & Where

Tues - Sat: 11.00 am - 6.00 pm

Stills Gallery
36 Gosbell Street / Paddington
Sydney, New South Wales 2021
Australia

Phone: 61-2-9331 7775

Photographer Justin Jin explores the winners and losers in a country that has risen from the ashes of the Soviet Union.

February 15-April 1, 2012, Huelva

“It is foolish to change the vector of chaos. You shouldn’t try to control it, but fall into it. An artist cannot be nourished by self-will. Curiousity melts you down to the size of the lens’ opening-so you can slip into the unknown. «No one’s gone that far before» is the singular compliment for the insatiable imagination. It’s not a sin to get lost. You should lose your way, just be sure to find a way to get back ! The return after all, is the most touching- like Breu¬ghal’s hunters coming back to the hearth, or Rembrant’s prodigal son returning home. That is the heart of it all, at the end. But it starts, of course, with the feet!” -Gueorgui Pinkhassov

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When & Where

Festival Latitudes 21

Huelva,
Spain

The droll conceptualist may have played a major part in the construction of California's identity.

The droll conceptualist may have played a major part in the construction of California's identity.

January 20-April 7, 2012, Walsall

Black Country Stories brings renowned Magnum photographer, Martin Parr, on a photographic journey across the Black Country. Starting in 2010 and finishing in 2014, Martin is visiting markets, temples, factories, social clubs, tea dances, dog training classes, summer fetes and a whole mixture of other places in Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton and Dudley.

This special display showcases the photographs Martin took in Walsall throughout 2011. Over the last 12 months he visited local leather and metal factories and met the people that keep these industries alive; various places of worship that reflect the cultural diversity of our borough; experienced our vibrant social scene; sampled traditional Black Country foods and joined our Royal Wedding celebrations!

You can also listen to a selection of stories from Walsall residents talking about their lives, work, families, and experiences of the Black Country and share your own experiences in our ‘memory wall’. A final exhibition will take place at the gallery in 2014, followed by presentations in Wolverhampton and Dudley.

The New Art Gallery Walsall is grateful to Launer London, Kirkpatrick Traditional Ironwork, J.& E. Sedgewick & Co and Pat Gorman Pies for donating some of their products for the exhibition.

Black Country Stories is commissioned and produced by Multistory, a community arts organisation based in West Bromwich.

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• More Information

When & Where

Tues-Sat: 10am - 5pm

The New Art Gallery Walsall
Gallery Square
Walsall, West Midlands WS2 8LG

Phone: +44 (0) 01922 654400

February 10-April 8, 2012, Helsinki

Renowned photographer Martin Parr takes a look at Finnishness.

Laboratory’s opening exhibition is British photographer Martin Parr’s eye-opening Think of Finland. Parr’s exhibition presents a never-before-seen body of work from the internationally renowned photographer and member of the Magnum Photos agency. In August 2011 Parr travelled between Helsinki in the south and Oulu in the north, capturing images of Finns and the Finnish way of life. The photographs depict Finns without sentimentality but with warmth and tenderness.

“I have long been fascinated by Finland, since I was Professor of Photography at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki in the early 90s, so how good to have this chance to return with my camera and create a new body of work,” Parr says. “The Finns are a delightfully quirky people, so I wanted to show this and also the tension between tradition and modernity.”

A making of film on Martin Parr’s journey across Finland will be screened at the gallery during the exhibition.

Martin Parr (b. 1952) is a British photographer known for his intimate photographs tinged with satirical humour, showing the society we live in. Parr has photographed, among other things, British suburban life, the superrich – and last year, Finns and Finnishness. Parr is a member of the renowned Magnum Photos agency. He has published almost 50 books of photography and his work has been shown in 80 exhibitions around the world.

A making of film on Martin Parr’s journey across Finland is screened at the gallery during the exhibition. Video was shot with Nokia N8 and directed by Rami Hanafi.

Exhibiton brought to Laboratory by Nokia.

Related Links

• More Information
• Martin Parr's Spotify Playlist

When & Where

Tue–Sun: 11–18

Laboratory
Erottajankatu 9 B / (Courtyard)
Helsinki,
Finland

February 10-April 8, 2012, Turin

Magnum Photos together with Fondazione Merz presents Traces by Josef Koudelka.

TRACES features an important selection of black and white panoramic photographs, which are part of the Piemonte Project that the Regione Piemonte commissioned to Koudelka in 2004 on the occasion of the 2006 Winter Olympic Games. The work reveals a region rich in culture, history, memories, and innovations, but also full of strong contradictions.

To give an historic overview of Josef Koudelka’s work three videos Invasion (1968), Gypsies (1975) and Chaos, as well as his most important books published throughout his career, from the early 1970’s to the recent edition of Gypsies published in 2011 will accompany the exhibition.

TRACES is produced in conjunction with the publication Piemonte (Ed.Xavier Barral in France and Contrasto Editore in Italy, 2009), featuring 82 pictures introduced by Italian contemporary writer, Giuseppe Culicchia.

Related Links

• Exhibtion Images
• About Josef Koudelka

When & Where

Tues-Sun: 11 a.m - 7 p.m

Fondazione Merz
Via Limone, 24
Turin, 10141
Italy

Phone: 011.19719437

February 14-April 14, 2012, Paris

"These images were not intentional. I did not set out to make this body of work. These photographs are an organic response to an experience that is at the same time the most unique and the most universal of experiences: the birth of a child. The photographs that resulted from that response are simple pictures of my family made during the first two years of my son's life. At the same time that I was experiencing the intense joy of new life, my father was diagnosed with lung cancer. It's fair to say that I found myself reflecting on obvious themes of life and death. Through my son, my role as the son took on new meaning and my senses were hypertuned to the evidence of my own life passing. Then these photographs just sort of happened. They are a record of love and a reflection on the seasonal nature of life."
-Christopher Anderson, January 2012

This exhibition presents this very personal work of Christopher Anderson accross a selection of about fifteen prints that records his intimate life with his wife and son.

With this series Christopher Anderson comes back to color photography after Capitolio, a wonderful black and white corpus about the upheavals of contemporary Caracas,Venezuela

Christopher is also well known for his work on politics, war and other news.

Born in 1970 in Canada he is a Magnum Photographer since 2010.

Related Links

• More Information
• Photographer’s website

When & Where

Tues - Sat: 11am - 7pm

Magnum Gallery
13 Rue de l'Abbaye
Paris, 75006
France

Phone: +33 1 46 34 42 59

An artist disguised by body paint disappears into the background.