Juror's Choice Masked Figure #2

©Thomas Pickarski

The Darkroom Gallery Difference

Juror's Statement

"What a pleasure it has been to travel the world’s exotic locations and through intimately-known fields, forests and cities via your photographs. In selecting images, I was rather ruthless in rejecting some otherwise wonderful images because they had either a blatant technical issue, such as clipped highlights or a compositional mistake that could have been avoided, such as the top of a head lining up with a horizon line. I also tended to reject images that were simply cute or cliché’s (unless REALLY well done). I retained those that spoke deeply to me about the beauty of the world, or that got me thinking about our relationship to the earth. There were several environmental degradation images that I would have included if they had been stronger in image quality. As you will see from my final selection, I have rather eclectic tastes when viewing others’ works. Each image in the final selection stands on its own with a clear understanding of the photographer’s emotional connection to the scene."

Craig Blacklock,

Moose Lake, MN  October, 2019

Juror: Craig Blacklock

Craig Blacklock is an internationally recognized fine art landscape photographer specializing in the interface of land and water. While he has photographed over much of the country, most of Blacklock’s 18 books have focused on wild areas of Lake Superior. His newest book, ST. CROIX & NAMEKAGON RIVERS — The Enduring Gift, celebrates the 50^th anniversary of the signing of the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act, with the title essay by Vice President Walter F. Mondale, who as a senator, co-sponsored the Act. Blacklock’s photographs are widely exhibited, and included in many collections, including the Tweed Museum of Art and the Minnesota Marine Art Museum. His many awards include a Minnesota Book Award, 3 IPPYs, two PubWest Book Design Awards, many Midwest Book Awards, a Pinnacle Book Award, and an International Color Award (2^nd place book category), and he was the 2018 recipient of the George Morrison Award from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council. As a workshop instructor and lecturer, Craig has influenced thousands of photographers across the country.

Juror's Statement:

Although there are distinct kinds, war is commonly defined as a state of armed conflict between different nations or states or different groups within a nation or state. Most of us would agree that war is not a necessity. It is not even an indispensable option. It is often the choice of a certain category of leaders who recur to it for personal/political/nationalist reasons and to assert their leadership through a demonstration of power by fomenting conflict. In the process those who suffer most are men and nature. The victims of war are not only the dead but also the survivors who carry the trauma and scars for the rest of their life.

As an accurate visual memory photography has the power to disturb when presented in the context of armed conflict, even if it does not depict death and devastation. While reviewing the submissions for this competition I realized that most photographers addressed and expressed mainly the human facet of the aftermath of war, its physical and emotional devastating effects. Therefore my selection was an attempt to assemble a group of works that would also yield an exhibition with an internal logic.

Let us pray and hope that at least the future generations will not have to go through the horrors of war. Without wars peace will become a simple fact of life. 

Dr. Nissan N. Perez

Juror:  Nissan N. Perez