Ann Mitchell
In the studio:
I've been working on two very different series - in one I've been exploring the use of color on imagery inspired by my personal Los Angeles icons, while the second starts from my Chance Chronicles method and integrates people for a more narrative journey.
To get an overview of my work, please visit my home page which has links to all my portfolios.
Links: Current Exhibitions and Recent Activity
Photographers and Identity Showcase
The “Photographers and Identity” showcase for www.thinkingaboutphotography.com runs from March 22nd - June 19th. The photographers in this showcase are exploring the spaces between personal and cultural identity - how to balance what is within, with what is demanded of from the outside world. Several have looked at trauma, personal and generational, and how it shapes and reframes how they see their own identities. We are also fortunate to have reviews from PhotoBook Journal, with selections from Gerhard Clausing, Douglas Stockdale and their team of contributing editors on books exploring this theme.
Webinar: Visual Storytelling Through Composite Imaging
Saturday, April 6th, 10:00am - 11:30am
Los Angeles Center of Photography
The webinar’s focus is on helping you understand the key elements that are essential to a successful composite and how they can be used to create compelling visual stories that engage the viewer’s imagination. It’s part of LACP’s Saturday Morning webinar series and is open to both members and non-members - Love to see you there!
Maximize your "Calls for Entry"
Whether you’re looking to gain exposure for your work, or funding for a project, “Calls for Entry” and project submissions are a fact of life for most artists. On the plus side, you could get a project funded, exposure for your work and another line in your CV. You’ll get to post on social media and grow your community. However, the submission process takes time, effort and often there’s a fee involved. So, how do you make sure it’s a good investment of that time and $$? Here are some suggestions:
5 Books to Expand Your Thinking in 2024
You know the books that stay on your shelves no matter how many times you move or clear things out? The kind you’re continually telling your best friends about? The following books are in that category for me and, since they’re about how we think, I see these all as creativity books.
The usual creativity-related suspects that you might already know are: The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland...
Photographers and That Which is Absent Showcase
The photographers in this showcase have faced absence with grace. Some have explored memory by creating spaces that allow us to reflect and reframe our own past. Others echo the heartache of those who are no longer with us, or use humor to celebrate those that are. Several have created spaces that have never existed - dreamlike landscapes that speak to a collective unconscious. We also have book reviews, from PhotoBook Journal, covering an excellent group of artists exploring this subject matter.
To learn more about the showcase and my curation process use this link.
To go directly to the showcase use this link.
Call for Entry: A Smith Gallery "Interiors"
Very honored to be the Juror for "interiors" at A Smith Gallery.
interiors: inside, lining, midst, details, furnishings, details, space, indoors, lining, within, internals, contents ….
Entrees due: December 28th, 2024
Shake Up Your Status Quo - latest creativity journal post
My most recent Creativity Newsletter's post on my experiences this past month - which shook up my status quo - in a very good way.
Los Angeles Center of Photography Print Auction
"In Either Case" is one of my favorite images and I am so proud to donate it in support of the Los Angeles Center of Photography’s Online Print auction on @artsy . The auction closes Nov 28th - so don't miss out! Community art organizations like LACP are essential to all of us - help celebrate their mission to provide a dynamic hub for creative practice.
Monthly Creativity Journal
I've started a new venture - a monthly post on creativity and my experiences as an artist. I wanted something that was an email - but also a bit more designed and would exist outside of your inbox afterwards. It will be interesting to see how this works. Love to have you check it out!
Photographers and Water
Water is a broad theme and the photographers here are good examples of looking at our relationship to water and how it transforms both our external and internal landscapes. They also explore the fight for control over access to water, how we interact with the substance, and what it means to us politically and metaphorically. Once again, many thanks to the editors at PhotoBook Journal for curating a set of very interesting books on the subject.
Photo-Compositing Workshop at Viewpoint Photographic Art Center
Saturday, October 21st, 9:00am - 3:00pm
Viewpoint Gallery: 2015 J. Street, Suite 101,
Sacramento, CA, 95811-3124
Join me in Sacramento for my first hands-on, in-person compositing workshop! Viewpoint Photographic Art Center is a great mid-state photo organization and resource and I'm so pleased to be giving this one day workshop. In addition to the meeting, I'll be creating exclusive video content for the participants to use afterwards...because it's hard to remember what you learned once you get home and try it on your own!
Enrollment is limited so sign up early!
Photography and Community
The seven artists in this showcase have expanded the dialogue in photography by creating space for others to develop their own voice. Whether through education, curation, publishing or organizing, they’ve helped change our photographic landscape. I wanted to shine a light on their own work, because all of that community building can take time away from one’s artistic practice, no matter how satisfying it is. Join me in celebrating the magic of their voices.
Photography and Collage
In this showcase we look at six photographers who are exploring imagery through the use of collage. Juxtaposition, layering, fragmentation and the use of paint, or other media, are all collage and assemblage techniques and are a way to think outside the box and create new metaphors. These can convey emotion and other dimensions, adding depth and meaning that reach the viewer's mind at a subconscious level, allowing them to create their own narrative.
This showcase was a collaboration with Amandine Nabarra, whose work was featured in my last showcase on Artist’s Books. It was very interesting to work hands-on with another artist. You often are unaware of your own process until you need to walk someone else through it and I found it very invigorating.
Chance Chronicles at Viewpoint Photographic Art Center
Ann Mitchell: Chance Chronicles
Exhibition on View: February 8th through March 4th, 2023
Artist’s Reception: Sunday, February 19th, 2023, 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Viewpoint Photographic Art Center, 2015 J Street, Suite 101, Sacramento CA, 95811
In this series of photo-montaged platinum palladium prints, I am creating a world that feels somewhere between a dream and a cinematic still. Where we have a sense that the space and narrative continues beyond the frame, with echos from a past existence. The title, Chance Chronicles, comes from the process I used to create the images, which starts with a randomly selected written meditation prompt. I then start writing and the writing process leads to me images…which are the basis for the work you see here. I’ve chosen to print these in hand-coated Platinum / Palladium, a 19th Century process which I love for its luminous mark of the hand.
VoyageLA interview
Check out my interview on VoyageLA - Local Stories.