<![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL]]>https://fotostaal.substack.comhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KQTB!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fad03be3d-d18c-4017-8d3d-28b5cfdcc9a9_600x600.pngFOTOSTAALhttps://fotostaal.substack.comSubstackThu, 03 Sep 2026 02:06:37 GMT<![CDATA[INDUSTRY INSIGHT]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insight-070https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insight-070Sun, 23 Aug 2026 19:08:56 GMTOnce again, non-payment of sales income to artists, from a gallery following the sale of artworks, is making headline news. Without going into the details, the scenario is pretty much the same. An artist consigns work to a gallery for exhibition/sale. The gallery exhibits and sells the work. The artist is not paid the monies owed to them from that sale. After several months of chasing down the gallery for payment, and along the way receiving promises and/or excuses—the money owed, remains unpaid. Last resort; the artist sues the gallery and the press pick up the story. The whole affair becomes dramatized, everyone has something to say about it, and sadly all galleries are unfairly tarred with the same brush.

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]]><![CDATA[JURY DUTY]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jury-duty-e28https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jury-duty-e28Tue, 10 Mar 2026 21:33:40 GMT
A black and white diptych, made as a photo gravure by Lisa Nebenzahl, depicting the ground on the left, and the sky on the right.
Fall/Clouds, by Lisa Nebenzahl

Once a year, I have the enormous pleasure of working with the New York Center For Photographic Art (NYC4PA)—an online entity operated by photography duo, Maddi Ring and Patricia Gilman. My role is that of a juror for an open call, and this year the theme assigned was water. These yearly open calls are an absolute delight to judge, as I’m presented with photographs I don’t normally come across, often by photographers whom, I later discover are completely new to me.

Forty-seven individual photographs were selected from the, almost 1,000 images submitted. The process of judging was blind ie; no names were attached to the images during the judging process.

Water is a wonderfully versatile subject in photography. As a symbol, it can represent the polar opposites of life and destruction. It’s a disruptor of physical form (through literal reflection), and it’s also widely utlized, to represent subconsious states of mind and spirit.

As such, the versatility of the subject presents an opportunity to select an equally variable set of photographs for this open call. The selections offer up a wide spectrum of subjects; physical interactions with water, traditional vistas, abstraction, water in different states of animation, color and black-and-white. In some cases the water is the key component of the image, whilst in others it performs a supporting role for something else, such as urbanism, architecture, leisure activiities, fauna, and so on.

The Grand Prize Winner is Fall/Clouds, from the Seeing Through series by Lisa Nebenzahl. This is a diptych, that is at once quite simple, but also sophisticated in its construction. She successfully interconnects literal physical attributes of the natural world, and at the same time, brings about a good measure of abstraction. We see in the photograph; tone, texture, and details of the natural world—with some of the elements laid bare to question. The vantage point of looking down and looking up, is used to good effect; in making each side of the diptych fully integrated, and inter-dependent—as a diptych should be. Time and place is ambiguous, reminding me of the exquisite Equivalents photographs by Alfred Stieglitz. This is a photograph that takes time to reveal itself, and one that I suspect will continue to resonate and alter in its storytelling.

View the Seeing Through series on Lisa Nebenzahl’s website here.
View the NYC4PA Water Photography 2026 award here.

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL150 No. 5]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-5-vaune-trachtman-boundhttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-5-vaune-trachtman-boundWed, 04 Feb 2026 18:42:57 GMT

Bound, by Vaune Trachtman, is a 14.25” x 17.5” hand-pulled photopolymer gravure. It’s from the artist’s exquisite Now Is Always series. The artist combines portraits—from an archive of vintage negati…

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL150 No. 4]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-4https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-4Fri, 21 Nov 2025 00:15:29 GMT
A black and white photograph of a female nude from behind. Photograph is a silver gelatin AP, with copyright owned by John Blakemore.
Nude (1971) by John Blakemore

Nude (1971), by John Blakemore, is a 9” x 5 3/4” Gelatin Silver Print. The photographer is renowned for his meditative landscapes and still life photographs, making this …

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL150 No. 3]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-3https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-3Tue, 16 Sep 2025 18:21:00 GMT
A color photograph of a figure behind netting, with a starry background. Photograph is by Stephanie Duprie Routh, and is a limited edition print. Published on the Fotostaal Blog, with text by Debra Klomp Ching.
Phoenix #33: Gaga Floating In the Metaverse (2024), by Stephanie Duprie Routh

Phoenix #33: Gaga Floating In the Metaverse (2024), by Stephanie Duprie Routh, is an archival pigment print, available in …

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL150 No. 2]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-2https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-2Sat, 30 Aug 2025 14:01:41 GMT
A color photograph, incorporating classic still life and collage, by artist Kelda Van Patten. Written about by Debra Klomp Ching, for the Fotostaal Blog.
Garden Magic (2023), by Kelda Van Patten

Garden Magic (2023), by Kelda Van Patten, is a small-scale archival print from the artist’s ongoing production of still life photographs. The artist leans into…

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL150 No. 1 ]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-1https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaal150-no-1Fri, 11 Jul 2025 14:02:21 GMT
A color photograph of a winter landscape, by Lisa M. Robinson, depicting a frozen lake and lakeside houses among barren trees.
Solstice (2007) by Lisa M. Robinson

Solstice (2007), by Lisa M. Robinson, is a 28” x 36” chromogenic print from the artist’s acclaimed Snowbound series. It makes good use of the recurring color palett…

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]]><![CDATA[ONLINE PRESENTATION]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/online-presentationhttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/online-presentationTue, 01 Jul 2025 18:42:24 GMT
A color photograph depicting an installation of artworks at the Klompching Gallery in Brooklyn, New York.
Installation view of Helen Sear artwork, at the Klompching Gallery

I’m launching my Summer/Fall schedule of online presentations with this popular topic. It’s 2 hours of advice and insight, regarding what every artist should know about working with a gallery.

Date: Sunday, August 3rd, 4:00pm–6:00pm
Platform: Zoom Meeting
Cost: $60
More Information and Registration: via Eventbrite

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]]><![CDATA[INDUSTRY INSIGHT]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insight-d50https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insight-d50Sun, 01 Jun 2025 14:01:28 GMT
A color photograph of a framed photograph, wrapped in foam and plastic, with the word 'glass' written on it. ©fotostaal
A framed photograph, wrapped for storage/shipping.

Maintaining detailed records regarding image and sheet size, mounting and framing is often overlooked. This can be crucial information; especially for replicating the presentation of your artwork, whether for exhibition or for sales.

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]]><![CDATA[JENNIFER GREENBURG]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jennifer-greenburghttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jennifer-greenburgFri, 16 May 2025 12:02:57 GMT
A large-scale, color photograph by Jennifer Greenburg, depicting a collaged woman sitting on a bed. Shared online on the fotostaal substack, written by Debra Klomp Ching. Image is ©Jennifer Greenburg.
Photograph by Jennifer Greenburg. Golda, 2024

The Constructed Portraits, are fascinating, challenging, innovative, complex and conceptually rigorous. Exquisitely printed, the large-scale color photogr…

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]]><![CDATA[INDUSTRY INSIGHT]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insighthttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/industry-insightTue, 13 May 2025 12:00:24 GMT

When an artist is represented by a gallery, it’s good practice to acknowledge that representation when marketing yourself and your artwork.

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]]><![CDATA[JURY DUTY]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jury-dutyhttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/jury-dutyMon, 12 May 2025 12:02:48 GMT
A black and white photography by James Pryor. The image depicts people on a crowded train carriage. ©James Pryor.
Photograph by James Pryor. The Cummute from Life Beneath.

Earlier this year, New York Center For Photographic Art (NYC4PA), invited me to be the juror for an open call on the broad theme of Street Pho…

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]]><![CDATA[FROM THE ARCHIVE]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archive-810https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archive-810Mon, 05 May 2025 12:02:07 GMT
A black and white photograph, showing an urban scene. Photograph is made by Beth Dow, entitled Colosseum, from the Ruins project.
Photograph by Beth Dow: Colosseum from Ruins.

There are many photographers who bring attention to the materiality of the photograph, and one is Beth Dow. On first observation her series, Ruins (c. 201…

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]]><![CDATA[FROM THE ARCHIVE]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archive-44fhttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archive-44fFri, 02 May 2025 18:41:47 GMTExcerpt; originally published in PQ, Issue 99, 2010

A dark, moody photograph looking out of a hotel room window at night. In foreground, is a lampshade, in the distance a building with lights on. Photograph is ©Debra Klomp Ching

Photography was not a 19th Century discovery. It was a construction that arose from a pictorial strategy, originating in the Renaissance system of p…

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]]><![CDATA[FROM THE ARCHIVE]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archivehttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/from-the-archiveThu, 01 May 2025 20:09:26 GMTBOOK REVIEW
Mårten Lange: Another Language
Publisher: 1000 Words, c. 2013

A black and white photograph, of a whirlpool, looking at it from a high vantage point. Photograph is by Mårten Lange from the book, Another Language. Reviewed by Debra Klomp Ching, on the 1000 Words online photography journal.

Image: ©Mårten Lange

To say that the self-publishing of photo books is a practice that is popular, is quite an understatement – a…

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]]><![CDATA[FOTOSTAAL]]>https://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaalhttps://fotostaal.substack.com/p/fotostaalThu, 01 May 2025 13:20:32 GMT

FOTOSTAAL is authored by Debra Klomp Ching. Who am I? I’m really just a person who is passionate about photographs, and whose professional life has continually circled around being equally in awe, an…

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