From Kardashian to Mikhailov

Alec Soth discusses photographic democracy and the following publications:
"White Wolf" by Jim Brandenburg (1988)
Minnesota: Images of Home" by Jim Brandenburg (1990)
"The Face of Minnesota" by John Szarkowski (1958)
"Kanye, Juergen & Kim" by Juergen Teller (2015)
"Selfish" by Kim Kardashian (2015)
"Go-Sees" by Juergen Teller (1999)
"Case History" by Boris Mikhailov (1999)

[@gabrielbenaim5820]

"...the weight of banality crushing down on me." Too good.

[@1337HaxXx0r]

Man... at first I really wondered how the f.. Kim Kardashians book made it in your gallery, then I kind of got lost in the art of Mikhalov - impactful stuff - but when you closed the book and put Kardashians next to it... what moment. You really know how juxtapose anything, not just pictures but whole books. Amazing.

[@jeric3857]

i feel like im in a uni. thanks alec

[@RR-bd4bm]

Keep these coming Alec, please, such a break from the usual youtube photo stuff.

[@ellenjanerogers]

These are such generous and needed videos. Thank you so much for making these. Not everyone has access to these works and you’re not only sharing them but giving your insight too. They are a real gift.

[@andrea_armbruester]

Thank you for pushing boundaries, reflecting and also thank you for the journey, Alec Soth.

[@floberardinucci1435]

Every week I look forward to your vlogs. The books you select challenge us and our ways of viewing the work of other photographers and how we see ourselves within the photographic community.

[@juanglassford]

This connection that you speak of is genuine. I think of it as a partial legacy from Szarkowki's vision and Eggleston's ability to produce such democratic work, allowing us to broaden the way we see and make photographs... The legacy that these two characters have left photography with is unmeasurable.

[@AlloyDiesel]

"okay, we've seen enough". Also said by Eudora Welty before writing the intro to Eggleston's Democratic Forest.

[@Rafael-oz1zf]

its an amazing experience study english with Alec Soth

[@majki3144]

Yeah!

[@phiswe]

The democracy of the ‘snapshot aesthetic’ has long been assimilated by the art world, reveling in their prisons of irony.

[@ReSp0nCeHD]

Hi Alec, Just wanted to let you know that I highly appreciate you making these videos. There is so little content and information shared by photographers i look up to and this is very welcome. I would love if other great art, documentary or fashion photographers would talk about their work or process or inspiration just anything. KZbin and the internet in general is so over saturated with gear related and amateur photography content. Thanks again for doing this!

[@mattbray_studio]

i agree so much with this comment. such a relief to have something personal but high brow on youtube. really hoping more artists take inspiration from these videos

[@animikhchakraborty6259]

I am thoroughly enjoying each one of your vlogs Alec. Please don't stop posting these super informative and engaging videos. Some of us in India do not have the privilege to attend photography workshops and art schools and your videos are helping us learn a lot!

[@altovich]

Greetings from Kharkiv! You're doing great job, Alec, and we're waiting for you in Ukraine again! :)

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I want to come back!

[@SpiritBr34k3r]

this is some genius level connecting the dots on seemingly unrelated things, great video as always, please keep making more!

[@PresleyMartin1]

My photographic education continues. Thanks Alec!

[@juliend4260]

Thanks Alec for sharing this!

[@mvooo]

Thank you for the effort you put in these! Great to watch

[@antoniacafati5602]

another great video!

[@valkomar]

Excellent, once again. Thanks!

[@majki3144]

Thank you for this videos ! Seriously!

[@UlyssesAokiPhoto]

KZbin comments are, sometimes absurd... and some people don't want you to have fun on this platform. Make the videos you enjoy and I'm hoping to see more, I'm loving everything you're doing Alec!

[@ricliquid]

Thanks Alec, this was comedy gold

[@samiolivernakari6827]

These are so inspiring, THANK YOU!

[@BehindThePhoto]

My Friday just got a lot better! Thanks Alec!

[@slicedmittens5296]

hello again alec lovely day for this

[@danielemilazzo432]

This video really was an eye opener.

[@aboutphotography]

Great job! Thank you!

[@xaviegarcia2657]

Thank you for sharing! Powerful stuff. I love it.

[@jonpadrnos3304]

Thank you!!!

[@hoagyguitarmichael]

Brilliant commentary thanks

[@stephenfowler7583]

Thanks for the time and effort, really informative and thought provoking video.

[@JulioFeoUNAM]

Oh, such an interesting talk. Thank you for sharing!

[@nateethington4987]

WOW! What a powerful comparison! Thank you for doing these, Alec.

[@deanpeterson_]

Can't get enough of these.

[@jonathanrhall43]

Yeah, I'm sorry about the "punching down" comment. I get it now. Having now watched more of your videos I realise that I was definitely missing some context.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thanks for saying that Jonathan. I came to realize that people who don't me could find it crass.

[@fado605]

Awesome! Keep going. I love it.

[@ballhockey10]

Really appreciate the sincerity in these talks. Hugely educational.

[@StuartRomulus]

Thank you so much for this video and your others, Alec. They're a fantastic resource for younger photographers like me who are less versed in the history! Would love to see an expanded chat about ethics in photography and the limits of it!

[@Eberglund]

Thanks Alec, interesting to hear you connect the dots between these genres.

[@candymonster795]

id love to see your take on your favorite landscape photographers and books of that genre since you have such a breadth of knowledge on various types of photography. this one was great. have a stellar weekend!

[@chrisbartlett266]

Thank you for vloging your humble and sharp observations. One aspect of the democracy of photography is the freedom to appropriate which is standard operating procedure in the fashion/beauty industries. Teller is a highly trained and skilled photographer who has chosen the snapshot style and has done quite well with it. I was aware of Miknailov’s amazing and disturbing work but seeing it “borrowed” for a Kim and Kanye book is pretty amazing. One can also look at Larry Clark > Terry Richardson, Paul Strand/Weston > Bruce Weber. Its a tired formula: Take visual and emotional depth, subtract the honesty and emotion, add a heaping of artifice, and the result is commercial glory.

[@jimlafferty]

Nice seeing you here Chris. I assume this is the Chris I know of detaineeproject.org? We worked a few times together in the commercial tabletop still life world. Hope you're doing well.

[@chrisbartlett266]

@@jimlafferty Yes, hey Jim! Doin' well, thanks. Still banging away in the salt mines.

[@JeffWernerIthacaNY]

Wonderful! Stop apologizing for "rambling" - I feel like every video has been so wonderfully authentic and focused.

[@Mickey-bo6cv]

Amazing rambling talk! Super inspiring and educational. Thank you.

[@rogerhyland8283]

Photography too will eat itself. I’ve been enjoying your videos on KZbin and the magnum course. I have to thank KZbin as much as anyone for all the content that’s out there. I think the first time I ‘discovered’ you was on the couch with Martin Parr and since then I’ve been absorbing as much as I can of what you share and exploring the different universes photography contains. I (re)started photography to document street art in about 2001 in my home town, Melbourne Australia. It’s still an interest as much as anything you might encounter in the world but no longer my reason to get up early on my days off. In one way it sort of blinkered me to other possibilities but then again it kept me interested in photography as an activity. I’ve spent the last few years looking to find a new direction and of course when i look back at my old photos the direction had been there all the time, just put on a back burner. Anyway, thanks for all you do.

[@JaneAlynnPhotography]

These talks are invaluable for challenging the way we see. Thanks, again.

[@DanFingermanOctopus]

These talks are great inspiration for making music. It was great to see you talk about different parts of the bookstore. That probably applies to any kind of art. It resonated with me anyways, while making music :)

[@rickhauser9698]

Absolutely outstanding insights and thanks 🙏 soo much for sharing your incredible knowledge of photography

[@VedutaV]

Thank you, Alec. Greetings from Ukraine. Have been attendee at your lecture in Odessa.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I loved Odessa!

[@jackspaeth7144]

Also, my biggest goal in photography is to be remembered as a Minnesota photographer and a photographer of Minnesota. You are an inspiration.

[@camaxo79]

All week waiting for Friday!!

[@fauveothon3068]

thank you 🙏

[@AndreaCamiolo]

As a 22 year old photography student I can only thank you for the content you're bringing here on KZbin. Unfortunately I can't find your "funny" videos about photography anymore, I hope they weren't deleted because of those few comments from people who don't understand irony and take photography too seriously. I hope to find them again online because they were really funny ! ♥

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thanks, I did delete it - not in the mood to debate or defend something so silly

[@clementfauquet8419]

@@AlecSothKZbin So glad I caught it on time then. That was something!

[@inconnu4642]

As a young and broke photographer, this is a mine of gold.

[@z00w00zs]

Really interesting observations, thank you very much. We're drowning in a sea of photographs today, but the reflection about it, about the connections and influences in this visual culture, is what's really missing. About 15-20 years ago, in the heydays of fashion magazines, being controversial was all that mattered and Jürgen Teller was on top of the game. Looking at it now, this kind of radical mixture between advertising and conceptual art doesn't seem to have aged well, the most part of it seems pointless and shallow. I knew Mikhailov as well, but I didn't see his influence so clearly. Thanks for making these videos with a lot of food for thought.

[@nealjohnston954]

Taank you Aliec. I admire your work, you're one of my new favourite photographers at work today. I really appreciate the insights you have. Especially your thoughtful and caring approach to your constitution of craft and ideas through the book form. This is very educational and rewarding. 🤲

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thanks so much Neal

[@BilBrown]

“It’s kinda near the poetry shelf that no one goes to’ ha as a poet that became a photographer I hear that hahah

[@ericjudlin5834]

William Wegman’s ‘World of photography’ is funny. I used to show it to my class and around10% recognised the humour

[@abbysandwich]

....and my book collection keeps on growing.

[@katyaspiegel3081]

Thank you so much for doing this! That was such a deep and thoughtful material. I'm from Belarus. This is close to Ukraine. But it's not the same. The next time visit our country, we'll be happy! I was thinking about who is our the most famous photographer... and truth to ne told I don't know...

[@greghawksworth4328]

Thank you so so SO much for these videos Alec. My Fiancé (who has a phd in English literature) is really enjoying learning about photo books and the comparisons that can be taken between the two fields. Please keep making them 🤞 I hope kim kardashian uses “the weight of banality crushing down on me” as the main promotional review when she publishes the 2nd edition. 😂

[@etjernlund]

I don’t have enough words to express my love for this. This. This. The poetry shelf walking around appreciating-and giving *real* critique-the other sections and books. Are all Minnesotans just exiled Swedes? It sure seems that way. Sending love and greetings from “the old country”.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I am 1/4 Swedish (and 1/4 Norwegian...sorry)

[@dianakorniichenko]

Thank you, Alec for introducing me to Mikhailov. As a Ukrainian living in Berlin I have never heard of him. His pictures are gut wrenching and hard to look at , but this talk made me want to research more about him.Don’t think I could own a copy of his book though it’s just too painful to look at. Looking forward to your future vlogs.

[@robertocollo2890]

Painful, yes it is. And same is “Look at me I look at water”. But you can go for “Salt Lake” or “Am boden/ Die dammerung” or “Yesterday’s sandwich”: very enjoyable ones even thoug not joyful. Or you can go for a very cheap old dated little book by Phaidon (the 55 series) which spans over Mikhailov’s entire career since his very beginning in Kharkiv till 2001.

[@adventureStaley]

That was awesome.

[@JeanLucWolff]

amazing synthesis at the end, as in a good movie.

[@dyathink]

phew...took my breath away..what a journey, especially seeing Mikhailov's book in light of the current war in Ukraine...i always found his work excruciating even in small doses. I think if i had his book i would be afraid of the spirits that would emanate from its pages at night while i slept. Another interesting photographer from the Czech Republic was Miroslav Tichý. I have no idea if there is a book of his work but he fascinated me.

[@Yosser70]

I’m learning so much from these vlogs, please keep making them! Also, where can I get a LBM hat like the one I’ve seen you wearing? Selling them would be a way for us to give back a little for this great series.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thanks, we might just do that!

[@yoanncanet9064]

Excellent

[@richardvincil6988]

Thanks Alec. I would not have ever looked at those, nor will i look at/for them again. Interesting to know they're there, but meh. Thanks for the exposure.

[@phorne96]

"The weight of banality crushing down on me." - I felt that in my bones.

[@dqmoser4128]

Thanks, Alec! Another engaging diversion from, well, everything else. Royal Road Trip, there behind you -- love that book. Let's lighten up, how about a bit of humor (now that you took your "photography" video down?)

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Good idea!

[@dqmoser4128]

@@AlecSothKZbin I just started "comedy & gender" but haven't yet watched all of it. you said at the beginning that someone suggested you do something lighter. was that by any chance me? or do I just get partial credit? or no credit? your new best friend, DQ

[@therazor9875]

Enjoyed the video Alec, thanks. You made an interesting comment though, about your little corner in a bookshelf, in the back of the shop, next to the poetry section, where nobody goes.... Have you checked how many editions and copies of Niagara and Sleeping by the Missisipi have been sold???

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I honestly have no idea

[@OskarHallgrimsson]

Best one yet! I am currently in Ukraine and you are correct by saying that Boris is by far the most famous photographer. I went to his show last summer here in Kyiv in the Pinchuk Art Center where they did a "best of" kind a thing and it was amazing, and as you say heartbreaking at the same time. It is interesting to come to this place and see a totally different astetic that from my roots home in Iceland. And for me to see the influemce him, and others from the Kharkiv school of photography on the younger generation of photographers is amazing. And as you mention the Kardasians, and Boris are kinda melting into one another here. (recomend checking out Sasha Kurmaz for example) It is a fasanating place for creativity ingeneral, becaus as you mention in the video the Soviets basically pushed out any real creativity that wasnt talking up the party, and also after the fall Ukraine was so hard hit by poverty and crime that there wasnt really any room for real creativity inside the culture. Its not since perhaps after the 2000 (and really after the 2010s) that art and creativity started leaping forward and all with a new voice. Anyway, thank you for these talks. They are amazing.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thank you for pointing out Sasha Kurmaz. Looks great.

[@BillyKeeney]

Would love to hear your thoughts on the book “Kentucky Renaissance” about the Lexington Camera Club. I saw the exhibition at the Cincinnati Art Museum some years back and it has remained one of my favorites ever since.

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I was meaning to do a newsletter about that book, so yes, I should do a video. You can actually see it on the shelf behind me.

[@RorytheRoman]

Certified laughing yoga instructor?! You NEED to make a video a follow-along video on this

[@AlecSothYouTube]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/qqTGpZaoe7p8o68

[@RorytheRoman]

@@AlecSothKZbin amazing

[@SergioPontillo]

@@AlecSothKZbin wow!!!!

[@EdwardVinas]

@@AlecSothKZbin So glad I read through the comments.....what a gem.

[@mattbray_studio]

@@AlecSothKZbin amazing! india is such a beautiful experience. i need to return

[@purelyonawhim]

Don't listen to KZbin comments, especially this one. Love what you're doing Alec! Thanks.

[@lucialaluce2221]

I’ve always felt that Juergen Teller book Go-Sees was exploitative and sad. How many of those young women were paid? Do they even know he was making a book? Did they give permission? So young and as you say there is a sadness. Really interesting videos. Thank you.

[@mattbray_studio]

@@adbposthumus because it speaks to potential exploitation in its making. dont see why they are not valid questions, in addition to formal or conceptual questions about the work

[@ellenjanerogers]

Interestingly I think this book got rid of Go-Sees. By the time I came to be a fashion photographer this was very frowned upon and this book had really highlighted them as sick. But I agree they were extorted by Teller.

[@moilami1]

That last book would had made a good "on great humanity" showcase.

[@marcopigoni9483]

This video in particular is extremely precious. Extremes taken side by side but appreciating them for what they can give, the point of view. Obviously we all know that if one or two of the books you showed would not exist, nobody would even think about the need of creating one. But the simple fact that exist is an example of democracy, and as you said it sold a lot. But as you said, is it a photo book? Technically yes. In reality is a marketing item as everything theese people do or make. You too make books also for selling them, but I'm pretty sure you don't make book to market yourself. So maybe a more real photographic book you should have chosen, democratically.

[@jimlafferty]

Love these. Thanks for putting in the work. Which was the video "poking fun of photographers"? Did you take it down?

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Yes I did

[@jimlafferty]

@@AlecSothKZbin damn. I'd love to have seen it, especially given what you've said here.

[@JayGrapherTh]

for discussion - what is the difference between the "self portrait" and the modernization of the "selfie"?

[@AlecSothYouTube]

I'll leave that for the photo theorists

[@Huginn1000]

Send you this ❤️ from Moscow, Russia

[@thepioneer9677]

Go sees are primarily to have the photographer take photos for the girls book without the pressure of a full production. From a fashion perspective, this book is interesting as some of the models became main stream and highly successful. Not particularly my fav book or work he has done. But interesting chronologically.

[@b-roll642]

Teller’s male gaze has a cold dominance about it, while Kardashian’s female viewpoint on the same subject matter at least shows some empowerment and agency. It also doesn’t seem appropriate to call photography democratic in a place like Ukraine. I’ve never thought democracy was properly descriptive of photography. The use of the word in that way obscures more than it reveals, and undermines both.

[@vmno6300]

Alec, any way you can post these on Spotify or apple podcast? Would be nice to listen to these on bike rides

[@AlecSothYouTube]

Thanks, but seems awfully weird without the pictures.

[@DLFoto]

no denying that soviet photography has its place towards the front of my bookstore

[@jimbenning2814]

who else could connect the books of photography together

[@louhautdavid6451]

Only the sense of humour can save us in this jungle. Or poetry. That's makes me wondering if both could be the opposed sides of the same coin. This leads me to another question. Could beauty and grotesqueness coexist? And does the bird understands what's the sky about? Good night

[@photomitch]

Kardashian.??? Oh my. Can't get any galleries to look at my work and she publishes a book of selfies. Well, that's the 21st Century celebrity.

[@OGbsmitty]

Do you see a difference from Selfish and Autoportrait?

[@HHCronikO]

Ok, good.

[@Yosser70]

If you have on could you share a link to your Instagram? There seems to be a few using your name on there 🙄

[@AlecSothYouTube]

instagram.com/littlebrownmushroom/

[@tubesticker]

Daniel Arnold brought me here and I see why this would speak to him, as some of his photos are crossovers between street/documentary and subjects from fashion/celebrities etc. I'm not sure why you would call this "democratic" though. To me it seems the result of different worlds/cultures/systems coming together or being brought together by the photographer, which makes it not so much about who is taking the photos but what they bring together in the photo. I mean, the interesting book here is "Kanye, Juergen & Kim", because it combines two genres - the selfie and documentary - to create art. Why are the photos from that book interesting? Probably, because they contain an element of surprise. Mikhailov's pictures are shocking, but not surprising-in fact going through the book wears you out because they are all equally terrible and in that very unsurprising. Kardashian's selfies obviously are also not surprising - they are all exactly what you would expect. And they equally wear you out due to the "weight of their banality". Teller's pictures, however, surprise, because they juxtapose two worlds: the urban/artificial/virtual etc. with a dirtpile in nature. The effect is surprise, confusion, humour and lightness.

[@jackspaeth7144]

Repost the photography video!

[@dmlewey]

Thoroughly absorbing as always and unpretentiously bucking the trend to self title as a photographer rather than artist.

[@Chickennuggetsoup]

You need to stop being so hard on yourself! Back yourself Alec!

[@kikeheebchinkjigaboo6631]

Dear jew, review the