Louis Quail – ‘Big Brother’

Big Brother is a moving portrait of Louis Quail‘s older brother, Justin, who suffers from Schizophrenia. It’s a loving call to see beyond the disease, to see the humanity in difference, and a sort of love story, tracking the relationship between Justin and his long-term girlfriend Jackie, and it was the Charcoal Book Club photobook …

Jason Fulford – ‘Picture Summer on Kodak Film’

Jason Fulford‘s Picture Summer on Kodak Film came out more than a year ago now, right as the pandemic was really getting going. I didn’t plan on picking up a copy, as I was in debt reduction mode when it was announced, and to be honest I was surprised when it arrived. I’m not mad …

Nathan Pearce – ‘Right Past Harper Valley’ & ‘Sara didn’t like to be in the pictures’

I’m a long time Nathan Pearce fan, so when I realized he put out two new zines, I jumped on them immediately. Both have good stories and reasons for being: Pearce shot the images for Right Past Harper Valley with his nephew, Journey Carter Withrow, and they share credits for the zine, and Sara didn’t …

Clare Gallagher – ‘The Second Shift’

What is The Second Shift? Well… The Second Shift is the term given to the hidden shift of housework and childcare primarily carried out by women on top of their paid employment. It is physical, mental and emotional labour which demands effort, skill and time but is unpaid, unaccounted for, unequally distributed and largely unrecognised. …

Dylan Hausthor & Paul Guilmoth – ‘Sleep Creek’

Dylan Hausthor & Paul Guilmoth’s Sleep Creek was the Charcoal photobook of the month for February 2020… If you needed any indication of just how far behind I am in reviewing books, well, there you are. It received a ton of press, including some thoughtful comments from Collier Brown in Od Review and some illegible …

Ninagawa Mika – ‘Acid Bloom’

If I was somewhat unimpressed with Ninagawa Mika’s Sugar & Spice, well, it was probably the wrong book to jump into Ninagawa’s work. After all, Ninagawa is very well known for her particular and peculiar use of color, which Sugar & Spice didn’t really show to full effect. To remedy that, I ordered Ninagawa’s new …