congrats kesha & myra!

En Foco News Blast New Works #11 Winners Announced! November 2007 Greetings! After much anticipation, we are pleased to announce the 2007-08 New Works Photography Award Winners and Honorable Mention Awardees! This year's talents were selected by Melissa Harris, Editor in Chief at Aperture. Stay tuned for information on the exhibition of their works in the Spring of 2008. Sincerely, Miriam Romais

KESHA BRUCE (Re)calling and (Re)telling Indianapolis, IN "I use drawing photography and collage to examine the historical and metaphysical aspects of storytelling as they relate to the modern African Diaspora. Through collage and layering, each work becomes a repository for memories, dreams, and historical tales. Together they give voice to the lives, experiences, and creative expressions of individuals whose lives and wisdom remain largely marginalized by the dominant cultural agenda." ADRIANA KATZEW Y se repite Burlington, VT "Many of my images capture memories of the Mexico I grew up in as a girl-the raspados de tamarindo (shaved ice with tamarind syrup), the gelatinas sold in the streets, and my grandparents' home, where I spent every Saturday, old and tilted due to frequent earthquakes. Through my photography I also attempt to unravel and unveil my Mexican identity in the U.S., capturing the sense of being in a labyrinth, the multiple identies that come into play, the sense of isolation at time, and other times familia and community." DONALD DAEDALUS If I Were Beautiful and Symmetrical, Too Seattle, WA "This basis of the project is that in each cultural group there are different characteristics we as humans use to differentiate one another. Perhaps the boldest or most definitive is whether a person is physically beautiful. For example, in much of Western society, it is thought that symmetry is the basis for beauty.. However, according to wabi-sabi, a Japanese view of aesthetics, the asymmetrical, imperfect, and incomplete constitute beauty." MYRA GREENE, CHARLIE GROSSO, ESTHER HIDALGO and WANDA ACOSTA Honorable Mention Awards Myra Greene, Character Recognition Chicago IL "My body responds to the camera, and simple shifts in gaze and movement offer complex readings about my control in how others read both my race and these images. Gesture starts to override race, offering readings of sensuality, defiance, aggression and fear." Charlie Grosso, Wok the Dog Los Angeles CA "In my work as a photographer I examine how we live our lives. Each photo is an investigation, each series a quest. The focus of the question differs from project to project, yet the essence is the same: how do we live, love and dream?" Esther Hidalgo, En El Idioma Washington, DC "I often combine original photography with pre-exisiting imagery and culturally significant objects. Employing traditional and alternative photographic practices allows me to lend myself more intimately to the process of image making as these require a deeper involvement and commitment on the part of the artist." Wanda Acosta, Starlette Van Dyke New York, NY "I am interested in the visual representation of identity: how my personal experiences as a queer Latina woman construct my sense of self and how different socio-political contexts might perceive, pressure, as well as re-construct, that self."