• Barry Rosenthal (USA) – Found in Nature

• Jorge Fuembuena (Spain) – End of Cathedrals

• Elina Ruka (Latvia-USA) – Untitled

• Giovanni Presutti (Italy) – Plastic islands

• Jorma Mueller (Finland-Switzerland) – Their Souls Run Beneath

• César Dezfuli (Spain) – Passengers

• Justyna Mielnikiewicz (Poland-Georgia) – A Ukraine runs through it

• Andrey Semyonov (Russia) – Invasion

• Turi Calafato (Italy) – A day at the beach (Summer in Sicily)

• Paivi Koskinen (Finland) – Monday

• Mayumi Suzuki (Japan) – The Restoration Will

• Jan Caga (Czech Republic) Danube – the Blue River

• Tymon Markowski (Poland) – Brda

• Yann Wang Preston (UK) – Mother River

• Pierfrancesco Celada (Italy) – #Instagrampier, Hong Kong

• John Trotter (USA) – Untitled

According to the initial plan, works of all TOP4 artists would be included in the festival’s program. After the extension of the list, at least 8 of the artists will have works exhibited, and one of them will find out to have been chosen as the KAUNAS PHOTO STAR Winner.
A joint team of curators of KAUNAS PHOTO festival and KAUNAS PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY has taken a decision regarding the KAUNAS PHOTO STAR 2017 Winner, whose exhibition will be held at KAUNAS PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY, with the opening on September 1, 2017.

Artists selected from the KAUNAS PHOTO 2017 Open Call for „Beach Season“ – Intro Exhibition of KAUNAS PHOTO 2017, starting on June 1 and running through September 3, 2017

• Turi Calafato (Italy) A day at the beach(Summer in Sicily)

• Celine Diais (France) See the sea

• Marton Kallai (Hungary) Solotvyno – A Dream of Salt

• Krzystof Racoń (Poland) Zakrzowek

• Emily Wabitsch (Germany-Bangladesh) From Cox’s with Love

Artists, selected from Open Call for the Main program, starting September 1, 2017 and outdoor exhibitions, started to be held from end of May, 2017:

• Tymon Markowski (Poland) Brda

• John Trotter (USA) Untitled, about the Coloraro River

• Jari Silomäki (Finland) My weather diary

• Päivi Koskinen (Finland) Monday

• Eugenijus Barzdžius (Lithuania) Vask

• Jan Caga (Czech Republic) Danube River

• Yan Preston (UK) Mother River

• Russ Flat (New Zealand) Take Me to the River

• Todd Johnson (Australia) Fossils

• Matthew Moore (USA) Seascapes

• Monsieur Kurtis (France) Light the River

• Pierfrancesco Celada (Italy) #Instagrampier, Hong Kong

A total of 17 artists selected from the KAUNAS PHOTO 2017 Open Call via LensCulture.com.
For arrangements, above listed selected artists, will be contacted by Mid-June.

Artistic residencies will be announced on or by the end of June, together with the entire progam of the festival.

Apologies for the delay and appreciations for your patience!

Feature picture: Todd Johnson’s “Fossils”, above: exhibition of “Fossils” on the square at the foot of Žaliakalnis funicular.

The 14th edition of the international photography festival KAUNAS PHOTO launched the exhibition „Fossils“ by the Australian artist Todd Johnson on the 27th of May. The outdoor  display is located at the foot of Žaliakalnis hill where the famous funicular cable car operates. The exhibition continues until the 31st of October.

„Fossils“ is presented in the context of this year’s festival theme „Water“. This series is a result of  a collaboration in between the artist and nature. The displayed photographs are prints from photographic slides, that were submerged in water for a prolonged period of time. Affected by moisture, minerals and contamination the slides displayed transformations in colour and texture. This direct link in between photography and water speaks of beauty and chaos found in nature.

Normally the captions of photographic works provide the details about the type of film or camera used, technical parameters like shutter speed, aperture, film speed or the type of lens.
Todd Johnson chooses the unconventional way of making marks on photographic material and provides us with the detailed description of his method. The duration for which the light sensitive surface is exposed to light determines the image. One hundredth or even a one thousandth of a second is enough to capture the moment photographically.

However the captions for “Fossils” series give us the information on exposure lasting as long as weeks, months and years, during which the soil, water and moisture slowly carve the image into a film. Time in photography is comparable to running water, sharing the beauty and effects of erosion. The cracked image surface resembles paintings and the materiality of the medium.

Todd Johnson is an Australian artist and educator who lectures in photography at Deakin University, MIBT and Australian Catholic University. His research interests include photographic authorship, indexicality and materialism in the digital age. Todd Johnson has exhibited his work nationally and internationally. He has published his work in numerous international journals and magazines such as „Sneaky Magazine“, „Art Ascent: International Art Journal“, „Blame Magazine“ and „Aint Bad Magazine“.

Todd Johnson’s „Fossils“ is a third KAUNAS PHOTO exhibition at the foot of Žaliakalnis hill. Italian photographer Paolo Fusco exhibited his series „Today is … birthday“ in 2016 and the American collaborative duo Hillerbrand and Magsamen showed their „Mandala“ work in 2015.
KAUNAS PHOTO is the longest- running annual photography festival in Lithuania and the Baltic States. It is organised by the NGO „Šviesos raštas“ since 2004. KAUNAS PHOTO is one of the most important annual art events in the country. KAUNAS PHOTO is a member of Festival Of Light organisation.
It is supported by Lithuanian Culture Council, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, Kaunas City Council.
President Valdas Adamkus is the patron of the festival.