FotoWeek DC
The first annual celebration of photography in the nation’s capital
November 15 - November 22
FotoWeek DC will feature a photography contest and juried exhibition
open to professional and amateur photographers, along with gallery
openings, lectures, educational workshops, portfolio reviews, book
signings, and special offers on photographic services and merchandise
from local area retailers. The week-long celebration will culminate in
a gala awards ceremony hosted by FotoWeek DC sponsor National
Geographic, recognizing area photographers across several genres,
including photojournalism, commercial, fine art, amateur, and student
photography. FotoWeek DC will issue a call for competition entries this
summer.
National Geographic joins Chrome Imaging, FotoWeek DC’s founding
sponsor, as a major contributor to the event. Comments Chrome Imaging’s
founder, THEO ADAMSTEIN, “Washington, D.C., is an important center for
photography, thanks to its unique position as the nexus of news,
politics, public policy, and culture. Washington is also home to some
of the world’s finest photography collections—including the
Smithsonian, National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, and National
Geographic. We hope this multifaceted celebration of photography places
Washington, D.C., firmly on the international map as an epicenter of
photographic excellence.”
The culminating gala and awards ceremony will be held at the National
Geographic Society’s headquarters in downtown DC on Saturday, November
22, 2008; a fall photography exhibition in Explorers Hall is planned
during FotoWeek DC to introduce National Geographic’s valuable and
historically important photographic archive. Comments JOHN Q. GRIFFIN,
President of NGS Publishing: “For 120 years National Geographic has
been committed to raising awareness of the world through excellent
photography. We are pleased to play a role in celebrating photography
right here in our own community.” National Geographic editors and
photographers will participate in several events during FotoWeek DC.
Adds FRANK VAN RIPER, photography columnist for The Washington Post:
“Photographs in Washington are used to promote a cause, elect a
president, re-elect members of Congress, sell an idea, create an
agenda. But they also are used-as they are everywhere-to help people
feel, to help them appreciate beauty: to better connect with their
world. We hope FotoWeek DC becomes a major cultural event for
Washington, much more than a local event, reflecting D.C.'s role as an
international city.”
The organizers of FotoWeek DC include representatives from a wide range
of fields and disciplines, including Theo Adamstein of Chrome Imaging,
Lynn Ackerson of National Geographic Traveler Magazine, George Hemphill
of Hemphill Fine Arts, and educator Barbara Tyroler of the University
of Maryland. Founding organizers and photographers Paul Fetters and
Irene Owsley, Co-presidents of the DC Chapter of the American Society
of Media Photographers, offer their long-time experience in the DC
photography community, as they interact with a vibrant and talented
group of photographers and photography professionals on a daily basis.
The two see their involvement with FotoWeek DC as a way to recognize
the extraordinary caliber of work produced and shown locally,
nationally, and abroad. Says FETTERS, “A festival that highlights
striking imagery benefits our artistic community and enriches the city
as a whole.”
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