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Top 20 Photobooks of 2011 by Alec Soth

While reviewing my favorite photobooks of the year, I noticed that numerous selections could be classified as crime stories. So in creating this year’s list, I thought it would be an entertaining exercise to categorize all of the books by genre. Given the quantity and quality of books being published, it is now feasible to think of photobooks in much the same way as we think of literature and cinema. These genre pigeonholes are reductive, of course, but like year-end lists, they are mostly a lighthearted excuse to analyze and discuss quality work.

 

Crime: A Criminal Investigation by Watabe Yukichi (Xavier Barral-Le Bal). Following a police detective investigating a 1958 murder in Tokyo, Yukichi’s photos almost look like stills from a Chandleresqe noir. Elegantly mixing text and image with perfect printing and design, this is a masterpiece of photographic storytelling. My favorite book of the year. Runner-up: Redheaded Peckerwood by Christian Patterson (Mack). Like A Criminal Investigation, Patterson’s book was inspired by a 1950’s killing spree. But rather than a linear narrative, Redheaded Peckerwood is like an investigator’s dossier in the age of Google Images.

 

Comedy: Paloma al aire by Ricardo Cases (Photovision). A documentary on pigeon racing that manages to be funny, mysterious and strangely touching. Runner-up: Animals That Saw Me by Ed Panar (The Ice Plant). Panar’s book could also be classified as the children’s photobook of the year.

 

Family Drama: In the Shadow of Things by Léonie Hampton (Contrasto). A mother and daughter try to come to terms with shipping boxes, mental illness and memories. Along with the excellent photographs, be sure to read Hampton’s interview with her mother. Runner-Up: Mom & Dad by Terry Richardson (Morel). A fascinating glimpse into the legendary shock-photog’s roots.

 

Romance: Eden is a Magic World by Miguel Calderón (Little Big Man Books). A heartbreaking look into a Korean man’s obsession with a Mexican soap opera actress. The second brilliant narrative photobook by Calderón. Runner-up: Book of Ruth by Robert Seydel (Siglio) Told in photo-collages and poems, the fictional tale of a woman who falls in love with Joseph Cornell.

 

Horror: The Wedding by Boris Mikhailov (Morel). Another hard-to-swallow masterpiece from the great provocateur.  Runner-up: Series by Enrique Metinides. A fascinating opportunity to watch Metinides horrific tragedies play out in time.  Be sure to check out the incredible crime story, The Black Trunk.

 

Regional/Travel: A by Gregory Halpern (J&L Books). A is for Abandoned, Acrid, Animalistic, American and Ambiguous. Runner-up: One to Nothing by Irina Rozovsky (Kehrer). A beautifully understated Israeli travelogue.

 

Female artist monograph: Illuminance by Rinko Kawauachi (Aperture/Foil). An exquisitely produced monograph with wide international distribution. This book should make Rinko a household name. Runner-up: About Love by Gay Block (Radius). With the death this year of Milton Rogovin, it is great to see the tradition of quiet and humane portraiture living on in the work of Gay Block.

 

Male artist monograph: Dirk Braeckman (Roma Publications). Described by Braeckman as “a cross between an artist’s book and a survey publication,” this is a terrific summation of his mysterious and distinctive world. Runner up: A New Map of Italy by Guido Guidi (Loosestrife Editions). Guidi’s complicated excavation of simplicity edited and packaged by John Gossage.

 

Historical/Archive: Photographic Memory: The Album in the Age of Photography by Verna Posever Curtis and Denise Wolff (Aperture).  A beautifully produced book on a fascinating subject. Runner-up: War Primer 2 by Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin (Mack). A searing update of Bertolt Brecht’s Photo-epigrams.

 

Independent/self-published: Lang Zal Ze Levan (Happy Birthday To You) by Anouk Kruithof. Ten joyous birthday celebrations in a psychiatric institution. Runner-up: Gomorrah Girl by Valerio Spada. Another excellent crime book, this one a mashup of documentary portraiture and a Neapolitan police report

Did I miss any genres? Do you disagree with my selections? What were your favorite books of 2011? I want to hear your comments.

48 Replies to “Top 20 Photobooks of 2011 by Alec Soth”

  3. Thank you, Alec – I do have great respect for Milton Rogovin. I spent time with your book at Radius today – it should be on your “best” list. That’s a gorgeous image you made and the story, nightmare really, leading up to it belongs to us all! Your blog is great, as are your pictures.

  4. So glad to see Dirk Braeckman getting some props. And Illuminance by Rinko Kawauchi is a mesmerizing series of invitations down the path of an intriguing mind. So many books I don’t know yet, so once again thank you, Alec, for pointing the way.

  6. Hi Alec,
    Please have a look at Sarah Carlier’s book, from earlier this year:
    http://www.sarahcarlier.nl/

    Four years, three deaths, sweaty armpits and a fetus
    Sarah Carlier
    23 x 30 cm, 132 pages
    Edition size: 500
    type of printing: offset
    Price: 38 euro

    “Four years, three deaths, sweaty armpits and a fetus is a fragmented tale from the life of the Romanian family Fuliash, who I became acquainted with fourteen years ago. The quick succession of events – death, new life and a marriage, all happening in a short period of time – were the reason for me to make this project. Specific for this book is the combination between realistic and metaphorical fictional situations translated in photos, video (stills) and text.” (from Joerg Goldberg’s website)

    Best wishes,
    Iris Sikking

  7. I’m also very happy to see Dirk Braeckman’s opus in the list… his work is, for me, one
    of the most fascinating in Europe.
    And Léonie Hampton was a very fine discovery this year.

    Illuminance was a real deception… as i feel this work like a replay.

    Then i would add in the “Historical category” Aus Anderer Sicht – The Other View, published by Hatje Cantz, documenting the Berlin wall.
    And also, Takuma Nakahira’s Magazine Work 1964-1982 (Getsuyosha) as a counterpoint to Moriyama.

  8. https://plus.google.com/u/0/108863124933581511552/posts
    The best Taiwan Photobook of 2011

    Cheng Shang-Shi The Birds (Origin 1963, reprinted in 2011)
    Shen Chao-Liang Stage
    Wu Piin-Hsien – Memo Flora
    Alishan and Mint Mountain Shashin Cho (origin in Japanese period, reprinted in 2011)
    Deng Bo-Ren – Le Temps Perdu
    Wu Cheng-Chang Taiwan Lanscape II
    Huang Tse-Shiau – 82 Retrospective
    Lou Han-Chang – Mt. Dam Point
    100 peoples, 100 years young
    Wu Yung Shun – Looking at Old Taoyuan
    the eye of times, Taiwan Photographs Retropspective
    Simon Cheng, Midva
    …

  9. Excellent selection, many of my personal favourites of this year are on the list. Thank you Alec!
    I miss, however, Claudius Schulze’s great self-published volume ‘Socotra’ which explores an imaginary adventure island. Claudius’ paid great attention to the detail, making the book a revealing work about the cultural tradition of travel and coffee table books that includes colonial explorers and fiction classics such as Robinson crusoe. Also, he paid great attention to the object ‘book’ with a unique binding, manually inserted photographs, fold outs, etc, that make his book simply stand out.
    I saw (and immediately bought) the book at offprint in Paris. You can browse through the book at http://lonely-island.com – but be warned – the real book is way more impressive than the online faksimile. Try to get hold of the real book… it is a real gem.

  11. uh, what a long christmas wishlist this makes… Some I have at least already! But I have to agree with Tomas. Marc Poussemier of Librairie Photographique in Paris recommended Claudius’ Socotra the other day on Actuphoto (http://actuphoto.com/19963-la-selection-de-marc-pussemier-de-la-librairie-photographique-octobre-2011.html). I haven’t heard of the book before – a trade of self-published books: no marketing? – but truly love it…

  13. I’m thinking of “Canary-Mon”, by Lieko Shiga, “Let’s sit down before we go” – Bertien van Manen, “I don’t sleep” – Aya Fujioka, “Stefan Kielsznia – Ulica Nowa 3” – Ulrike Grossarth, “Visitor” – Ofer Wolberger, “The Knife cuts through the Apple” – Adam Etmanski, “El Taco” – Guillermo Faivovich & Nicolas Goldberg, “83 days of Darkness” – Niels Stomps, “In the Picture” – Lee Friedlander, “Tristes Tropiques” – Laurence Aëgerter i’m thinking about those books that had me engaged the most ..

  17. My Top 20 Photobooks of 2011:
    Verna Posever Curtis and Denise Wolff: Photographic Memory: The Album in the Age of Photography
    Sarah Carlier: Four years, three deaths, sweaty armpits and a fetus
    Michael Wolf: Tokyo Compression revisited
    Heidi de Gier: A Falling Horizon
    Jan-Dirk van der Burg: Desire Lines / Olifanten Paadjes
    Boris Mikhailov: The Wedding
    Paulien Oltheten: Photos from Japan
    Anoek Steketee and Eefje Blankevoort: Dream City
    Pieter Hugo: Permanent Error
    Paul Kooiker: Sunday

    Catherine Opie and Alec Soth: Rodarte
    Paulien Oltheten: A Sort of Lecture
    Jamey Stillings: The Bridge at Hoover Dam
    Anouk Kruithof: A Head With Wings
    Robert Adams: The Place We Live
    Hans Michael Koetzle: Photography in Print A-Z
    Dan Colen: Peanuts
    Chris Killip: Seacoal
    Hans Eijkelboom: Amsterdam by Numbers and New York by Numbers
    Johan Nieuwenhuize: Made in China

  18. Hi Alec,

    Thank you for the very impressive selection!
    I like 4 books too:
    “TELL MUM EVERYTHING IS OK #5”
    http://www.indiephotobooklibrary.org/2011/12/tell-mum-everything-is-ok-5/
    a catalog of the winners of the “ Kolga Photo Competition 2011”
    (photographers from Georgia and Germany participated in this competition)
    http://www.lichtblick-school.com/showcases/tiflis.html
    Tokyo Compression from Michael Wolf
    http://www.peperoni-books.de/tokyo_compression.html
    Permanent Error from Pieter Hugo
    http://bookbla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=159&Itemid=11

    Merry Christmas!

    Andreas

  19. Here are my favorites of 2011: http://bpeters.tumblr.com/post/14227224942/for-what-its-worth-here-is-a-list-of-my-10. The list contains: A New Map of Italy by Guido Guidi – Bad Driving by Louis Porter – Farms by Bernhard Fuchs – Permanent Error by Pieter Hugo – Animals That Saw Me by Ed Panar – The World Won’t Listen by Laurent Champoussin – A Criminal Investigation by Watabe Yukichi – Illuminance by Rinko Kawauchi – On The Plane by Phillip Kalantzis-Cope and 83 Days of Darkness by Niels Stomps.

  21. Alec,

    The comments from you list bring home the fact more forcefully this year than ever before, that none of us see more than a small part of what is being done in photobooks these days. So many things that touch people. A good time to be alive.

    JG

    1. It really is extraordinary, isn’t it? Even more incredible is that it doesn’t appear to be money driven. This engine behind the flood of books seems to be an authentic passion for the medium.

  22. Great books in your list but for a few ones I haven’t sen yet (and one or two I would disagree with) and for a lot that are missing; as John Gossage said “what a good time to be alive” (I am not sure the bankers thinks alike seing such a spending in books and not only for that reason) and it seems that the production as increased in numbers and quality with a year is not over yet.

    Following your categories and a few additional ones (without hierarchy or the ambition to rank them, without even thinking that I have seen it all or mention all that I should) I would add to your list and to the books mentionned by everyone above:

    1. A tout seigneur tout honneur (You must give honor when honor is due):
    ‘Gitans’ by Koudelka (Delpire french edition for the afterword by Robert Delpire), ‘Record #20’ by Moriyama, “Les amies de la place Blanche” by Christer Stromholm, “Pangnirtung” by Robert Frank, “Chromes” by William Eggleston, “The prototype works” by Lewis Baltz

    2. Comedy:
    ‘Predominantly Orange’ by John Reid / “King of photography” by Tiane Doan Na Champassak / “Hose variations” by Bjarne Bare / “New Cars 1964” by Lee Friedlandler

    3. Family Drama:
    “Makulatur” by Paulo Nozzolino / “Sasha” by Claudine Doury

    4. History of Photography and Photobooks:
    “El Fotolibro Suramericano” by Horacio Hernadez”/ “Magnum Contact Sheets” by Kristen Lubben/ Lewis Hine by TF editores/ “Naked Hollywood, Weegee in Los Angeles” by Richard Meyer / “Fabrik” by Jakob Tuggener (Steidl’s facsimile)

    4. Politics:
    ‘Berlusconians/No berlusconians’ by Nico Baumgarten, “Permanent Error” by Pieter Hugo / “Grow Heathrow” by Jessica Summerling

    5. War:
    “Burke + Norfolk” by Simon Norfolk / “Outpost” by Donovan Wylie

    6. Poetry:
    “Mexico Roma” by Graciela Iturbide / “Don’t Fade to Grey” by Olaf Unverzat/ “Pïcture Sculpture” by JSBJ (Je Suis une Bande de Jeune) / “God , Seen at birth” by Seiji Kumagai / “Nature Symbol” by Aya Muto / “On Thin Ice, In a Blizzard” by Paula McCartney / “Parasomnia” by Viviane Sassen / “The Knife cuts through the Apple” by Adam Etmanski

    7. Region/Travel:
    “A Falling Horizon” by Heidi de Gier / “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” by an unknown american photographer, a guy called Alec Soth, anyone heard of him ? (Anyway a very godardian, for its allegories, vision of Rome that also connects with the Grand Painting tradition of the city) / “Mad in Sète” by Tendance Floue / “Black Landscapes and Hidden Interiors” by Calin Kruse / “Murmures” by Yoann Hagnéré & Viola Korosi / “Ama” by Ninna Pope / “Hudson Valley” by Stephen Shore

    8. Society:
    “Boulevard” by Katy Grannan / Tokyo Compression Revisited by Michael Wolf / “Aveugles” by Sophie Calle / “Irene” by Roswitha Hecke/ “Rue des Lombards” by Jane Evelyn Atwood / “Tristes Tropiques” by Laurence Aëgerter / “Showa 88” by Kazuyoshi Usui

    Etc.

  23. Thank you for the wonderful list. for me the best photobooks this year are:

    A Criminal Investigation by Watabe Yukichi
    The heath by Andy sewell
    The brothers by ELIN HØYLAND
    Color Correction by Ernst Haas
    Fabrik by Jacob tuggener– Reprint
    The gypsies by koudelka– Reprint
    Les Amies De place Blanche by christer stromholm– Reprint

  26. Here are a few of my favourites that haven’t been mentioned (or mentioned enough) –
    Monalisen der Vorstädte by Ute & Werner Mahler.
    Höfe/Farms by Bernhard Fuchs.
    Pretty Girls Wander by Raymond Meeks.
    The Auckland Project by Alec Soth & John Gossage.
    Probably my favourite of all this year, A New Map of Italy by Guido Guidi.

  27. I recently met with Serge Clement of Montreal and he showed me his new hand made book from his NY 2010 project. I found his work at Dashwood Books on Bond streeta couple years ago when looking for a Sudek book. Serge is an absolutely amazing photographer, and this new book completely blew my mind. They might have one at Dashwood if you find yourself in NYC.
    Its worth a special trip.
    JB

  29. Also worth a look, but not mentioned so far:

    Foreign Affair by Wallard and JH Engstrom: joyful and raw
    Myth of the Airborne Warrior by Stuart Griffiths: conscientious objection

  32. OK Alec a different question on this subject:

    Is there one book in your list that changed you as an artist? One of these that allowed you to take something from it that you could use to move forward?

    JG

  33. A question for you john Gossage, did any book this year changed you as a photographer/artist?

    The book that impressed me most this year is “The Breothers by Elin Hoyland´´ I am not a photograher/artist i most say.

    1. It was this one that changed me the most:

      Le Luxe, Roe Ethridge – Mack. Another great failure of a book, by someone whose failures are more interesting than others successes. Or to paraphrase Robert Duvall in Apocalypse Now “ Goldman don’t surf”

      JG

  34. Sean B,

    I agree that Foreign Affair by JH Engstrom is a gem. There’s another book not receiving much coverage: Things Here and Things Still to COme by Jose Pedro Cortes. I got a copy at Offprint and keep returning to it.

    Don’t you think it’s been a vintage year for photobooks? To me it seems that well made (material) photobooks will become precious treasures as electronic books arrive.

    Aunt Elly

  36. I know it’s an old book, but I had the chance encounter with Mandel & Sultan’s ‘Evidence’ recently (not recommended by anyone, just browsing the University library) this book had a profound effect on me on a train journey home, as did John Gossage’s The Pond last year, when I really looked at it! (not on a train)
    One of my top finds this year is Julian Baron’s C.E.N.S.U.R.A.
    Are we living in a golden age of the photobook?…I’ve only discovered the wonders of photobook in the last couple of years, there’s an abundance of great work out there new and old to be discovered. exciting times for sure!¬)

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