Within a Sky Full of Earth

A global up-to-the-minute overview of international contemporary photography.

Curated by Shahidul Alam, Marcelo Brodsky, Joan Fontcuberta, Alasdair Foster, Dennis Freedman, Christine Frisinghelli, Shino Kuraishi, Simon Njami, Wendy Watriss and Paul Wombell

BLINK. presents the work of 100 of the world's most exciting contemporary photographers, selected by 10 internationally acclaimed critics, curators and creative directors. An exhibition in a book, BLINK. showcases up-and-coming talent from all parts of the world, enabling the reader to stay one step ahead of emerging trends in the fast-changing world of photography.
It serves as a unique reference tool for photographers, artists, designers and all those interested in contemporary culture and the image. BLINK. further provides a rare insight into the deliberations of an esteemed, international panel of selectors: the 'experts' making key decisions about the future of photography.
Each curator was commissioned to choose 10 photographers who have broken new ground on the international photography scene in the last four years. BLINK. includes some acclaimed figures, such as Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Vik Muniz and Rineke Dijkstra, whom the selectors consider set to become household names over the next few years. Other photographers, such as Tomoko Isoda, Shirana Shahbazi and Marc Asnin, are gaining recognition for their innovative work and are on the verge of global emergence.
The photographers' pages are listed in A-Z order, featuring two double-page spreads of recent, exemplary images, a short explanatory text from the curator, and detailed biographical information. In a series of 10 essays written especially for this publication, the curators describe their decision-making process and reflect on the nature of contemporary photographic practice.
In addition to the photographers, each curator has chosen an extract - written since 1995 - which they feel best illustrates the cultural context surrounding contemporary photography. The 10 works reproduced in the book range from cultural studies to fiction, from criticism to journalism.
BLINK. takes its place in a series of surveys identifying 100 of the most interesting, cutting-edge practitioners of key art forms. Earlier surveys include cream and Fresh Cream: Contemporary Art in Culture, 10x10 and 10x10_2: 10 critics, 100 artists. BLINK. is an incredibly exciting event in the world of photography and, like its precursors, is set to become a highly sought-after collector's item.
[FROM THE PUBLISHER]

BLINK. • PHAIDON PRESS • 2007
Paperback Version • 448 pages • 480 colour photographs • 320 black and white photographs