FotoWeek DC

So now I've got the press release and all the details on FotoWeek DC:

FotoWeek DC is one of the largest international photography festivals in the world, and it returns to Washington, DC with The FotoWeek DC Awards competition exhibition November 7 – 14, 2009 and an unprecedented roster of events and participating organizations.

Established in 2008, FotoWeek DC "celebrates the profession, the art and the sweeping influence of photography, embracing local, national and international communities of photographers, students, amateurs and the general public during its week long festivities in Washington, DC and the surrounding region."

"FotoWeek DC, in just two years, has evolved from a city wide photography festival to one of international scope,” said Theo Adamstein, Founder of FotoWeek DC. “Through our partnership with world-renowned photographers, we are thrilled to present numerous exhibitions, lectures and programs that encompass a broad spectrum of photography from editorial photojournalism to experimental fine art--and everything in between. This inspiring week-long festival celebrates what photography means to people today, from both a local and a global perspective.”

Highlights include:

• The 2009 FotoWeek DC Awards competition, which has received more than 3,500 images from photographers in 39 states and 28 countries. Photojournalism, editorial, commercial and fine art imagery from twenty-eight countries has been submitted both in single and series form, as well as in multimedia pieces that combine the strength of still images with video, sound and graphics. Open to professionals, amateurs and students with $21,500 in cash awards, including the $5,000 prestigious Spirit of Washington Award, the FotoWeek DC 2009 Awards are judged by a panel that includes many of the industry's most elite editors, photographers and executives. Awards in 12 categories will be presented at the National Geographic Society’s Headquarters on Thursday, November 5, 2009, and the finalists’ work will be featured in the Awards exhibition at FotoWeek Central 1, located at 3338 M Street NW.

• FotoWeek DC and curator Lucian Perkins, himself a Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist, will present special exhibitions of work never before seen in Washington, DC, including new images from Iraq, Russia, and Cuba. Also on view will be “Thy Brother's Keeper,” a powerful exhibition of work by twenty-five esteemed photojournalists who “chronicle the complex multidimensional issues related to global justice and human rights transgressions.”

• The FotoWeek DC Lecture Series, featuring renowned photographers including Tim Hetherington, Lincoln Schatz, Deborah Willis, Matthew Niederhauser, and Ernesto Bazan at American University’s Katzen Arts Center and the Corcoran Gallery of Art.

• NightVisions, the first-ever, all night FotoWeek DC live photo shoot in which area photographers are encouraged to participate by shooting and delivering their images to FotoWeek Central 1 (3338 M Street NW) for immediate downloading, printing and displaying.

• NightGallery DC, where visitors will experience the ephemeral magic that comes when light meets surface during a dazzling display of multi-story, large scale projections on the façade of FotoWeek Central 1(3338 M Street NW) of finalists’ work from the FotoWeek DC Awards competition and of selected images from FotoWeek DC special exhibitions. Select buildings in Rosslyn (November 6-8) and Crystal City (November 8-10) will also feature projections, all beginning at dusk.

•FotoWeek DC's 2nd ANNUAL PORTFOLIO REVIEW DAY, Sunday, November 8, 2009 organized by The American Society of Picture Professionals and the Corcoran College of Art + Design, brings 20 nationally acclaimed photography professionals to review the work of participating photographers who sign up in advance.

• Multiple embassies sponsoring FotoWeek DC exhibitions and events, including the official opening reception on November 7, 2009 at the House of Sweden, co-hosted by the American Film Institute featuring “What Lies Beneath: Nature & Urban Landscape in EU Photography,” curated by Judith Turner Yamamoto.

• From DC to Maryland to Virginia, galleries and arts organizations throughout the area are presenting exhibitions, lectures, book signings and more. Whether displaying the work of local photographers or photography of national renown, the gallery community will be united by its focus during FotoWeek DC.

Please visit www.fotoweekdc.org for a full itinerary of events, registration for portfolio reviews, and donation opportunities.