SCOTIABANK CONTACT PHOTOGRAPHY FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES CONTACT PHOTOBOOK FAIR May 5, 2019 at Stephen Bulger Gallery, Toronto

Toronto, Ontario, Canada… Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival today announced the 2nd edition of the CONTACT Photobook Fair will take place on Sunday, May 5, 2019, at Stephen Bulger Gallery. The event is free and open to the public. In conjunction with the Fair, CONTACT is organizing a dynamic series of public programs and initiatives on photobooks throughout the month-long CONTACT Festival in May, including a conference titled Women and Photobooks (May 4) an exhibition of the 2018 Paris Photo–Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards Shortlist (May 1-31), the Book Dummy Reviews (May 6), and the announcement of the annual Burtynsky Grant (June 6).

The CONTACT Photobook Fair brings together independent publishers and leading contemporary photographers to present newly released publications. Publishers include: Archive of Modern Conflict (London, Toronto), Anchorless Press (Toronto), Aperture Books (New York), Bywater Bros. (Port Colborne, ON), Dewi Lewis Publishing (Stockport, UK), Gnomic Book (New York), JMS Press (Toronto), Les Éditions du renard (Montreal), Light Work (Syracuse), Meta/Books (Amsterdam), Self-Publish Be Happy (London), and Sputnik Photos (Warsaw). Book signing events will feature Esther Hovers, Zun Lee, Louie Palu, Birthe Piontek, and Carmen Winant.

“The 2019 CONTACT Photobook Fair and related programs create a space for both local and international practitioners, art-book enthusiasts, and publishers to discover new projects and artists and exchange ideas and perspectives about books and photography,” said the Festival’s Director of Programs Tara Smith. “Building on the success of last year’s small but bustling fair, we anticipate this year’s expanded edition will stimulate a diversity of conversations and vibrant engagements.”

The one-day conference Women and Photobooks held on Saturday May 4, at Jackman Hall in the Art Gallery of Ontario, will look back at the history of photobooks by women photographers while addressing current trends. Bringing together Canadian and international artists, publishers, and curators, the conference aims to explore how to include more female artists (and unrepresented artists generally) in publishing today and what tools or initiatives can facilitate a more progressive future in the photo/publishing industry. Confirmed speakers include Sarah Allen, Assistant Curator at Tate Modern; Delphine Bedel, Meta/Books; Bruno Ceschel, Self Publish, Be Happy; Nelson Chan,TIS Books; Kris Graves, KGP; Dewi Lewis and Caroline Warhurst, Dewi Lewis Publishing; Miwa Susada, Sessions Books; and artists Rose Marie Cromwell and Carmen Winant.

The 2018 Paris Photo–Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards Shortlist exhibition will be presented at Scrap Metal Gallery, from May 1–31, 2019 as part of the CONTACT Festival. Established in 2012, the Paris Photo-Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards celebrate the genre’s contribution to the evolving narrative of photography in three major categories: First PhotoBook, Photography Catalogue of the Year, and PhotoBook of the Year. A series of talks, conversations, and workshops will stimulate dialogue and encourage participation for all levels of interest in photography.

A complete list of CONTACT Festival programs will be announced in early April.

Upcoming Application Deadlines

CONTACT is now accepting submissions from photography-based artists for the following.

The Book Dummy Reviews, held on Monday May 6, 10am – 1pm at Stephen Bulger Gallery, is open to those who are developing a photobook or with well-developed projects considering the book form for their work. The deadline is April 15, and application details are here.

The Burtynsky Grant, a $5,000 annual grant to support a Canadian artist in the creation of a photobook, is intended for photo-based artists who are in the advanced stages of developing a cohesive, rigorous body of work presented in book form. The deadline is May 15, and application details are here.

About Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival

CONTACT fosters and celebrates the art and profession of photography with its annual Festival in May and year-round programming in the CONTACT Gallery in Toronto. CONTACT presents lens-based works by acclaimed and emerging artists, documentary photographers, and photojournalists from Canada and around the world. The curated program of primary exhibitions (collaborations with major museums, galleries, and artist-run centers), and public installations (site-specific public art projects), are the core of the Festival. These are cultivated through partnerships, commissions, and new discoveries, framing the cultural, social, and political events of our times. The featured and open exhibitions present a range of works by local and international artists at leading galleries and alternative spaces across the city. CONTACT also includes a wide range of events including a book fair, lectures, talks, panels, workshops, and symposia during the Festival and hosts exhibitions and programs at its Gallery throughout the year.

CONTACT, a not-for-profit organization founded in 1997, is generously supported by Scotiabank, Scotia Wealth Management, Nikon Canada, Pattison Outdoor Advertising, Toronto Image Works, Transcontinental PLM, 3M Canada, BIG Digital, Waddington's Auctioneers and Appraisers, Four By Eight Signs, Beyond Digital Imaging, Steam Whistle Brewing, Art Toronto, The Gladstone Hotel, The Globe and Mail, NOW Magazine, CBC Toronto, and Canadian Art.

CONTACT gratefully acknowledges the support of Celebrate Ontario, Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund, Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Ontario Arts Council, The Government of Ontario, Partners in Art, Canada Council for the Arts, La Fondation Emmanuelle Gattuso, the Howard Webster Foundation, Hal Jackman Foundation, Mondrian Fund, Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Goethe-Institut, Tourism Toronto and all of their funders, donors, and programming partners.

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