Top YouTube comments
In our final collaboration, Sony Alpha Female and I are featuring the work of Ming Smith. Ming Smith is a renowned artist who was the first African American female photographer to have work acquired by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City. She was also the first female member to join Kamoinge, a collective of Black photographers founded in the 1960s, “who depicted Black communities as they saw and experienced them, in contrast to how they were often negatively portrayed in art, media, and popular culture.” Smith’s photographs are fluid and experimental. Her signature style includes double-exposure, collage, and slow shutter speeds amongst others. Over the course of her career, Smith has captured the daily lives of Black people and highlighted through her lens cultural icons such as Nina Simone, Grace Jones, Tina Turner, and James Baldwin. The selection of photographs is some of her most celebrated images from the 1970s and 80s. Smith describes her work as “celebrating the struggle, the survival and to find grace in it.” Her work is influenced by music, specifically jazz and the blues. She states, “In the art of photography, I’m dealing with light, I’m dealing with all these elements, getting that precise moment. Getting the feeling…to put it simply, these pieces are like the blues.” Ming Smith’s work is currently on display at the MoMA. “Self Portrait,” ca. 1988. © Ming Smith. “Dakar Roadside with Figures,” Senegal, 1972. © Ming Smith “Bicentennial Celebration,” Harlem, New York, 1976. © Ming Smith. “Brown-Skinned Model and Steeple,” New York, 1971. © Ming Smith. @sonyalphafemale @mingsmithphoto @blackwomenphotographers
I am excited to share that my first book, “Performance Review,” is now in The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Watson Library Collection (The Met). I am truly honored to be amongst so many amazing authors ❤️ @metlibrary @metmuseum @minormattersbooks @sonyalphafemale @sonyalpha
The theme for this week is LOVE, and the featured photographer for the Sony Alpha Female collaboration is Faith Couch @blackpowerprincess . Born in Durham, NC, her work celebrates the Black experience by uplifting the everyday moments that shape our lives. In an interview with Black Women Photographers, Faith states, "There is so much richness in the mundane and that's what I'm highlighting for Black people is we don't have to be extraordinary or extravagant, super talented to justify our existence. I find the most beautiful gestures of us just being.” Her work embraces the love, peace, and beauty within Black culture while highlighting the importance of representation within a predominately white-dominated industry. The selected photographs are from her series "My Love and I" and "Honey Moon." Both photographic projects include Faith and her partner. She states, "I wanted to preserve the intimacy between my partner and I." Each photo has a cinematic quality. Their embrace within "My Love and I" is tender, emotional, and universal. It transcends race and gender. I am reminded of the love I have for my husband. Likewise, her series "Honey Moon" also explores gesture and lighting. Framed in a single window, the viewer witnesses an intimate moment between two lovers. Their silhouettes display their connection and desire for one another. Follow Faith Couch @blackpowerprincess to learn more about her work. @sonyalphafemale @sony @blackwomenphotographers “My Love and I” © Faith Couch. “My Love and I” © Faith Couch. “Honey Moon” © Faith Couch. “Honey Moon” © Faith Couch.
Thank you for your birthday messages and phone calls. I truly appreciate it. It was a beautiful day. Love y’all ❤️
For the month of February, I will be collaborating with Sony Alpha Female to highlight Black female photographers who laid the foundation for myself and others to thrive in the field. The history of Black women in photography is still being written, and the women who contributed to our history are celebrated today and always. The featured photographs for this week are from the artist Carrie Mae Weems. Weems is one of the most influential contemporary American artists of our time. Her work examines family relationships, cultural identity, sexism, class, political systems, and the consequences of power. Her photographic series, “Untitled (Kitchen Table Series)” is an iconic work having a profound impact for over three decades. In 1989, Carrie Mae Weems began staging and photographing a fictional drama at a simple wooden table in her kitchen. As the central female character, Weems occupies the role of lover, friend, and mother. Before Carrie Mae Weems, the work of Black women photographers within fine arts was rarely discussed or seen. Her work broke ground because it elevated the untold history of the African American experience from a Black, female perspective. Weems stated, “I think that most work that’s made by Black artists is considered to be about Blackness. Unlike work that’s made by white artists, which is assumed to be universal at its core.” “Untitled (Woman and daughter with makeup)” © Carrie Mae Weems. “Untitled (Woman brushing hair)” © Carrie Mae Weems. “Untitled (Man and mirror)” © Carrie Mae Weems. “Untitled (Woman standing alone)” © Carrie Mae Weems. @carriemaeweems @sonyalphafemale @sonyalpha @sony @blackwomenphotographers #sonypartner #bealpha #sony #sonyartisan
I am excited to announce that my photograph of "Sabrina and Katrina" is now in the collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture! I remember meeting the late Phil Freelon at the opening of the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture in 2009. He would later tell me that his firm won the international competition to design the largest African American centered museum in the country. At the time, I recently graduated from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and I was still finding my voice as an artist. I could only imagine my work one day gracing their walls. I am a strong believer that you can speak things into existence. Even if no one can see or understand your vision, it is real to you and that's all that matters. The work will be on view in their upcoming exhibition ❤️ @nmaahc @hbganttcenter @uncchapelhill @philfreelon #artist #art #photooftheday #photography #sony #sonyalpha #bealpha #sonypartner #sonyartisan
New work in progress! I am currently the Practitioner in Residence at Davidson College working on a collaborative project with the student body. Here is an excerpt from an article written by Bianca Hassan, a student reporter for The Davidsonian newspaper. Click the link in my bio to read more. “Using experiences from Davidson College students, Endia Beal, the Visual Arts Center Practitioner in Residence, is creating a collection of photographs. This body of work will be commissioned from Beal with the support of the Graham Foundation. Beal has invited 30 students from all classes and all disciplines to participate in the project. Beginning in August of this year, the project is set to conclude in March of 2023. The inspiration came from an idea of building connections. Students can sign up for listening sessions with Beal to share places on campus where they feel a sense of belonging, or places of personal liberty, and spaces they don’t frequent because of silent forces that make them choose not to go.” @davidsoncollegeartgalleries @davidsoncollege bianchissima_1 #bealpha #sonypartner #alphafemale #sonya1 #newwork #photography #wip #photooftheday
✨ The 2022 Year in Photos is here! Listen to curator @endiabeal share her thoughts on this years’ images and the process of selecting just 100 photos from almost 800 submissions. Click the link in our bio to see Endia’s whole edit and pre-order the 2022 booklet! ✨
Liza Robert's book "Art of the State, Celebrating the Visual Art of North Carolina" is the most comprehensive, informative, and visually rich story of contemporary art in North Carolina. @theartofthestate Thank you Liza for including my work in this important book. #nc #art #contemporaryart #photography #bookstagram #artbook #bealpha #sonypartner #sonyalpha