Keep The Channel Open

Jonas Yip is a photographer and musician in the Los Angeles area, not to mention a friend of mine. I first met Jonas several years ago at the first Medium Festival of Photography, where we immediately hit it off. As he puts it in his bio, Jonas is "more interested in capturing feeling than in capturing detail," something that I've always found to be true about his work. For today's show we talked about several of his bodies of work, including his "Somewhere Between" series and his "Paris: Dialogue" series. For the second segment, we talked about the idea of the Internet as an archive, and what that might mean for our culture as we move into the future. (Conversation recorded March 22, 2017.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Jonas Yip Jonas Yip - Instagram Jonas Yip Photography - Instagram Jonas Yip - re:place Jonas Yip - Somewhere Be

Barbarella Fokos is a writer and filmmaker based in San Diego, CA. I came to know Barbarella's work through The Artist Odyssey where, as one of the executive producers, she creates documentary films about artists and their processes and motivations. In our conversation, we talked about her work with The Artist Odyssey as well as her previous work, including her Emmy-winning show Art Pulse TV. I was also pleased to get her perspective on San Diego's burgeoning art scene. Finally, in the second segment, Barbarella chose as her topic the distinction between art and craft. (Conversation recorded February 27, 2017.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Barbarella Fokos The Artist Odyssey David Fokos David Fokos - The Book Pages Project Keep the Channel Open - Episode 1: Trinh Mai The Artist Odyssey - Trinh Mai The Artist Odyssey - Tribal Baro

Paul Turounet is a photographer who lives and works in the San Diego area. Paul's work focuses on the border region between the United States and Mexico, which is a topic that is always relevant here in San Diego, but which has taken on even greater import over the past few months. Using forms from traditional darkroom prints to artist books to site-specific installations, Paul's photography encompasses a wide range of experiences, and I was happy to get the chance to talk with him for today's show. We talked about three of his series, "Tierra Brava," "Bajo La Luna Verde," and "Estamos Buscando A," all of which deal with various psychological aspects of the border region. For the second segment, we talked about the idea of artistic commitment. (Conversation recorded February 24, 2017.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Paul Turounet P

Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib is a poet from Columbus, Ohio. For today's episode I was pleased to talk to Hanif about his 2016 book The Crown Ain't Worth Much, one of my favorite reads of 2016. The poems in this book are an intensely personal account of his experiences growing up in Columbus, and in our conversation we talked about Hanif's approach to writing from experience, and how art can engender empathy. We also talked about music, a subject he's very familiar with as a music and culture writer for MTV News. For the second segment, we talked about a subject near and dear to Hanif's heart: the Columbus Blue Jackets. (Conversation recorded January 23, 2017.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib - The Crown Ain't Worth Much Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib - They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us Hanif W

José Olivarez is a poet living and working in Chicago, Illinois, and is also co-host of one of my all-time favorite podcasts, The Poetry Gods. In our wide-ranging conversation we talked about how The Poetry Gods came to be, toxic masculinity in the poetry world, and how discovering poetry allowed José to find his artistic voice. In the second segment, we talked about beginnings and endings. (Conversation recorded January 1, 2017.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: José Olivarez The Poetry Gods Adirondack Center for Writing - Online Writing Class Registration Jon Sands Aziza Barnes Jamie Foxx Ruins Doug Williams T-Pain: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Louder Than a Bomb Celeste Ng - Everything I Never Told You José Olivarez - I Walk Into the Ocean Young Chicago Authors Urban Word NYC Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib - Searching for a New Kind of Op

Ginger Shulick Porcella is the Executive Director of the San Diego Art Institute, an experimental, bi-national contemporary arts center in San Diego, CA. In the three years since Ginger has been leading SDAI, it has grown to become one of most vibrant, innovative art spaces in San Diego, something that has been exciting for art-minded folks in San Diego, like me. In our conversation, Ginger and I talked her curatorial background, the changes she's made at SDAI, how it's grown, what's to come, and how she engages with the San Diego arts community. In the second segment, we talked about one of Ginger's favorite topics: conspiracy theories. (Conversation recorded December 5, 2016.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: San Diego Art Institute AMT Festival 2016 Southern California/Baja Biennial MIXTAPE: Volume 2 Kite Sticks of the Sun, Ashes

Christina Riley is a photographer and musician currently based in Seaside, California. When I first saw Christina's 2014 book Back to Me, I was immediately blown away by the emotional power and authenticity of the photographs. We talked about Christina's experience with bipolar disorder, her photographic process, and what it's like to move from Ontario, Canada to a small coastal community in Northern California. For the second segment, Christina chose change as her topic. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Christina Riley Christina Riley - Back to Me Christina Riley - Instagram Tony Fouhse Straylight Press Tony Fouhse - drool Burnt Palms Burnt Palms - Instagram Burnt Palms - Facebook And Gone Kurt Vile Carrie Brownstein - Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl

Rachael Short is a fine art photographer based in Carmel, California. After graduating from the Brooks Institute, Rachael had a thriving wedding and portrait photography business, which ended in 2010 when she was in a car accident that broke her neck and left her paraplegic. Nowadays, Rachael uses her iPhone as her primary tool, and makes beautiful platinum prints from her iPhone images. I talked with Rachael about her work, the town we're both from, the gallery she owns, and her experience as a board member with the Center for Photographic Art. For the second segment, we talked about the importance of supporting the people in our communities. (Conversation recorded November 20, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Rachael Short Gallery Exposed Viktor Klinger Evynn LeValley Zach Weston Tom Gundelfinger O'Neal Crosby, Stills, Nash &

Matt Eich is a documentary and editorial photographer based in Charlottesville, Virginia. I've been a fan of Matt's work for several years now, and I was excited to get the chance to talk about his four-part project The Invisible Yoke. We talked about his approach to documentary photography, how he reckons with and avoids stereotypes in his work, and what he hopes the work can accomplish. For the second segment, we talked about how to balance family live with an art practice. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Matt Eich Conscientious Extended - A Conversation With Matt Eich Matt Eich - Love in the First Person Eugene Richards - Cocaine True, Cocaine Blue James Nachtwey Matt Eich - Carry Me Ohio Matt Eich - Sin and Salvation in Baptist Town Matt Eich - The Seven Cities Matt Eich - We, the Free Stacy Kranitz - Speak Your Piece Shane Lava

Alexander Kohnke is a San Diego-based artist and graphic designer (originally from Germany) whose work incorporates a variety of different disciplines and genres, from printmaking to drawing to photography. Alex and I had a great conversation about his artistic process, especially about the value of randomness and how that interacts with intention. In the second segment we talked about politics. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Alexander Kohnke Keep the Channel Open - Episode 14: Pastilla Alexander Kohnke - Untitled Dots 15 x 22 Alexander Kohnke - A-A-Alpha-B ___Bet This American Life - Episode 596: Becoming a Badger Stranger Things Denis Johnson - Jesus' Son The Mountain Goats - All Hail West Texas 2016 Southern California/Baja Biennial - San Diego Art Institute Airlock Gallery Leave a review!

I knew that I was going to read Lindsay Hatton's debut novel, Monterey Bay, as soon as I saw the title—I grew up in that area, after all—and I was pleased to discover that between the covers of the book lay a story that is by turns funny, sexy, and profound, an alternate history of a place I know and love so well. I talked to Lindsay about her book, about our shared experiences growing up on the Monterey Peninsula, and a lot about John Steinbeck (both as a real-world literary figure and as a character in her book). In the second segment, we talked about how to navigate multiple modes of creative expression, parenting, and artistic legacy. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Lindsay Hatton Lindsay Hatton - Monterey Bay Monterey Bay Aquarium Connie Chiang - Shaping the Shoreline John Steinbeck - Working Days Lindsay Hatton - My Mother, Mo

Chantel Paul is the Program Coordinator of the San Diego State University Downtown Gallery, a space which has rapidly become an important part of the vibrant art scene here in San Diego. In this wide-ranging conversation we talked about the Downtown Gallery, her role as a curator, the burgeoning San Diego arts community, and photography portfolio reviews from the reviewer's perspective. In the second segment we talked about slowing down, technology, and its effect on our quality of life. (Recorded August 25, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Chantel Paul SDSU Downtown Gallery San Diego Art Institute With Abandon: Works by SDSU Alumni 2011-2016 Museum of Photographic Arts Ship in the Woods Space 4 Art Helmuth Projects Public Art in the San Diego Central Library San Diego Airport Art Program Joseph Bellows Gallery Quint Gallery Mo

David Emitt Adams recently won the 2016 Clarence John Laughlin award for his photography, and if you've ever seen it before, you know why. In his work, David uses the wet-plate collodion process to create images on objects from his students' used film canisters to discarded cans found in the desert to oil drum lids, and the interplay between the photographs and the objects on which they're exposed adds a whole new dimension. (No pun intended.) David and I had a great talk about his work, and then in the second segment we moved on to discuss the ideas of permanence and impermanence. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: David Emitt Adams 2016 Clarence John Laughlin Award David Emitt Adams - 36 Exposures David Emitt Adams - Conversations With History Etherton Gallery photo-eye Roswell Museum and Art Center

Shaindel Beers is the author of two full-length collections of poetry, A Brief History of Time and The Children's War and Other Poems, and her poems have also been published in numerous journals and anthologies. I found both of her books deeply moving, from her depictions of growing up on a farm to poems inspired by child survivors of war, and I was pleased to get to talk to her about her books. For the second segment we talked about artists' collaborations. Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes Shaindel Beers Shaindel Beers - A Brief History of Time Shaindel Beers - The Children's War and Other Poems E. B. White - Once More to the Lake William Shakespeare - Sonnet 18 John Keats - Ode to a Grecian Urn Shaindel Beers & Jesse Ahmann - Self Portrait as Rosin Back Rider Shaindel Beers (Twitter) Shaindel Beers (Facebook)

José Iriarte and I go way back, and it's been with great pleasure that I've watched his writing career start to take off over the past few years. He's had short stories appear in a number of publications, including Motherboard, Strange Horizons, and Fantastic Stories of the Imagination, and what I particularly love about his stories is that how he uses genre and genre elements to put a new perspective on or provide a means of entry into more familiar emotions and experiences. José and I talked about a few of his recent stories for the show, and then for the second segment we talked about online communities and the function of public "shaming." Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: José Iriarte José Iriarte - Of Unions, Intersections, and Empty Sets José Iriarte - Spirit of Home José Iriarte - Life in Stone, Glass, and Plastic José Iriarte

Esmé Weijun Wang's debut novel The Border of Paradise is one of my favorite books so far this year. A multigenerational epic centered on an interracial family, the Nowaks, this book touches on so many profound topics, from mental illness to intergenerational trauma to culture clash to the very question of what it means to be a family, all done in stunningly beautiful prose. Esmé and I had a great conversation about her book in the first segment, and in the second segment we chatted about our favorite social media platform: Twitter. (Conversation recorded July 19, 2016.) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Esmé Weijun Wang Esmé Weijun Wang - The Border of Paradise Esmé Weijun Wang - With Love and Squalor (e-letter) Heather Havrilesky - Ask Polly Get Bullish Conference Esmé Weijun Wang - “You Are Not Lazy” Esmé Weijun Wang - “I’m Chronica

In his lecture at the 2014 Medium Festival of Photography, photographer Kurt Simonson said that the common thread running through his work is the idea of longing; whether through family or friendship or community, the desire for connection is something we all feel, and that feeling is something he examines in his work. For this episode Kurt and I talked about his 2015 book The Northwoods Journals, an intimate, powerful, and sometimes funny look at the family and place that shaped him. For the second segment Kurt chose community as his topic, particularly the photographic community that he and I are a part of. (Recorded July 15, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Kurt Simonson Kurt Simonson - The Northwoods Journals Kurt Simonson - I Love You, Man Kurt Simonson - A Thin Silence Flash Powder Projects

This week, our very first poetry episode with Ohio poet Hannah Stephenson! I first started reading Hannah's blog, The Storialist, a year or so ago, and although most of the poems she posts there are short, they really invite you to spend some time with them. For this week's show, Hannah and I had a great talk about her 2013 book In the Kettle, the Shriek, and the thought process behind her poems. (Recorded June 28, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Hannah Stephenson Hannah Stephenson - In the Kettle, the Shriek Paging Columbus! (YouTube) Gold Wake Press Robert Bly - A Little Book on the Human Shadow New American Press - New Poetry from the Midwest @thestorialist (Twitter)

Tucson-based photographer Ken Rosenthal's work has always stuck in my mind for both its striking visual style and the way that he uses images to represent and explore his internal emotional and psychological state. Whether he's looking at landscapes or family members or familiar objects, his photographs resonate because they represent the personal. We talked about several bodies of work, including his recent series The Forest and a work in progress called Days On the Mountain. For the second segment, Ken and I talked about change, and how when it comes in our personal lives it can spur us to new heights in our work. (Recorded June 22, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patreon | Leave a review Share: Tweet this episode | Share to Facebook Connect: Email | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr Show Notes: Ken Rosenthal Ken Rosenthal - Photographs 2001-2009 Ken Rosenthal - The Forest Medium Festival of Photography Mary Virginia Swanson Diane Arbus Sally Mann - Hold S

Aline Smithson may well be the busiest person in photography. Not only is she a brilliant artist in her own right, she is also the editor of one of the top photo blogs in the world, Lenscratch, where she posts new material every single day. On top of that, she teaches workshops around the country, gives lectures at photo festivals internationally, participates as a portfolio reviewer, juries all manner of photo competitions, and still manages to exhibit and make her own work. It's astonishing that one person can do as much as she does, and yet there she is, day in and day out, doing it. In this episode I was pleased to talk with her about her recent book Self & Others: Portrait as Autobiography, which spans nearly twenty years of her photographic career. And for the second segment, we had a great conversation about the rising role of women as gatekeepers and curators in the artistic community. (Recorded June 14, 2016) Subscribe: iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | SoundCloud | RSS Support: Support our Patre