| Dear Friends, To close our "Emerging Sexualities" issue I invite you to look at the provocative work of a young mexican photographer, Nazareno Vidales. Vidales entered the photography world with a bang, quite literally. "Caliber 45" is an exhaustive exploration of the underworld of male prostitution in northern Mexico. Captured with his cellphone camera, we see the private, many times secret, lives of lackeys, cholos, police officers, trannies, and, migrants displayed as a collection of 45 episodes of sexual encounters. Sometimes Vidales took the role of the buyer, at other times, he was the prostitute. However far from aspiring to be simply a documentary work, "Caliber 45" dwells deeper, making us question status-quo values of what is in reality "fair trade" when it comes t o sex. Lastly, and just to conclude with this topic, we'd like to invite you to read Miguel Santo's article "Lost Extremes" in our Magazine section. Santos reflects upon the relevance of the porn-industry, and how the readily-available, custom-made, fantasy that is just a click away , shapes our desires, fears, and ideals of beauty and arousal. If you are curious to see more on this topic, or missed our previous newsletter, please click here, to go to the "Emerging Sexualities" index. Now, leaving that issue aside, we are proud to bring to you three new galleries. Firstly, Rian Dundon shares with us his piece "Behind the scenes with Fan Bing Bing" a look into the new culture of celebrity in China. For almost a year, he travelled along documenting the life of the Chinese actress and fashion icon Fan Bing Bing and her entourage. His work reveals to us some of the consequences of the newly adopted, and still under construction, consumer culture in this Asian country. Our second gallery is also a behind-the-scenes take on a Buenos Aires reality show star, Hugo Cardoso. When Hugo was 41 years old, he weighted approximately 250 kg. In this project, Jose Sternberg, documents Hugo's struggle to lose weight, his family life, and his participation in an Argentinian TV show. Lastly, we pay homage to a dear friend to many of us, that unfortunately passed away recently, Gerardo Nigenda. Gerardo was a brave artist, who despite being blind left behind an important archive. Gerardo believed that photography shouldn't only be perceived with our eyes, but through all our senses. He photographed with curiosity, with passion, but mostly as way to communicate with his friends and colleagues. We will miss you, Gerardo. As usual, we invite you to take a look at our Portfolio section, which has become more dynamic than ever. It is now open to all of you. Feel free to upload any work in progress that you would like to share with our community. We'll be delighted to see what is in your mind. With my best personal regards, Nadia Baram
Photo Editor | | Galleries Emerging Sexualities  'Caliber 45' by Nazareno Vidales I spent a year touring the areas where male prostitution takes place in Ciudad Trincheras, Mexico. I began my journey on September 15, 2008 and finished on September 16, 2009. I adopted the role that presented itself at the time, whether client or prostitute, making a written and visual record of each episode. Avenida Morelos, the Plaza de Armas, the saloon bars in the Alianza sector and the rest of the historic center were the main settings for these stories.
The title of this project refers to the number of sessions recorded: 45. Taxi drivers, day workers, ex convicts, transvestites, priests, criminals and professionals, among others, contributed to this proposal shot entirely with a cell phone camera. View gallery... | 
Galleries  'Behind The Scenes With Fan Bing Bing' by Rian Dundon This project looks at the culture of fame and celebrity in China from within the context of that country’s blossoming entertainment industry. In 2008 and 2009 I spent nearly a year traveling with the Mainland Chinese actress and fashion icon Fan Bing Bing, photographing her circle of nouveau riche celebrity privilege and its endless series of film sets, promotional events, and luxury hotels. In a China that idolizes material wealth and physical beauty Fan Bing Bing represents the popular ideal; she is one of the most sought after actresses in East Asia and her image is ubiquitous in newsstands and on billboards across the region. View gallery... | | | | 
'Hugo's Struggle' by José Sternberg I met Hugo Cardoso in 2008 through a popular Argentinean TV program (a sort of reality show) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, promoted by a leading physician in slimming treatments and obesity.
Hugo, currently 41 years old, tipped the scales at approximately 250 kilos when he went to the program's casting session, seeking help to deal with his weight problem. View gallery... | | | | 
'A Retrospective Gerardo Nigenda' curated by Domingo Valdivieso Gerardo Nigenda approached photography in the late 1990s out of curiosity, as happens with most photographers, and as a result of circumstances. I do not think it was accidental. Someone came up with the idea of putting photographers and blind persons together in the same place: an 18th century house in Murguía Street in Oaxaca.
Gerardo’s curiosity turned into research on non-visual perception, which he gradually refined through the practice of photography. Gerardo was convinced that approaching photography and the photographic act should not only be done with technical instruments but by using all our senses. View gallery... |
Magazine 
© Installation view at
Peres Projects, Culver City | ' Lost Extremes' by Miguel Angel Santos Monitors and the like know all about the world in images. In the face of this hyper-abundance, I have intuitively reacted with cautious distrust, due to the ease with which my senses are deceived.
In a world full of images chasing desire, eroticism and/or porn and/or whatever, the subject is irrelevant. What does matter is that if I look for them or if they find me, they will set off my sensual behavior.
What I know about porn x.0, prolific and profitable industry, is that it can serve as an example and model of objectivization, stereotypes, illegality, risks for public health and mistreatment that can be brutal and even (according to urban legends) lethal. Others praise its role as a source of information on eroticism and its therapeutic use in dealing with sexual dysfunction. Its main goal is, I admit: self-indulgent pleasure. Read more... | | | |  | 'Five minute film shot and edited with iPhone 4' by LOOPRumors Michael Koerbel and Anna Elizabeth James, students at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, used the iPhone 4‘s video camera and new iMovie editing app to produce this short video titled “Apple of My Eye.” The film took fourteen hours to edit and was completed in less than two days.. Read more... | | | |  | 'No Sex Please, We’re Middle Class' by Camille Paglia Will women soon have a Viagra of their own? Although a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel recently rejected an application to market the drug flibanserin in the United States for women with low libido, it endorsed the potential benefits and urged further research. Several pharmaceutical companies are reported to be well along in the search for such a drug. The implication is that a new pill, despite its unforeseen side effects, is necessary to cure the sexual malaise that appears to have sunk over the country. But to what extent do these complaints about sexual apathy reflect a medical reality, and how much do they actually emanate from the anxious, overachieving, white upper middle class? Read more... | | | | 
| 'Young photojournalist detained for army cadet pics' by Olivier Laurent On Saturday 26 June, photojournalist Jules Mattsson, who is a minor and was documenting the Armed Forces Day parade in Romford, was questioned and detained by a police officer after taking a photo of young cadets.
According to Mattsson, who spoke to BJP, after taking the photo he was told by a police officer that he would need parental permission for his image. The photographer answered that, legally, he didn't. While he tried to leave the scene to continue shooting, a second officer allegedly grabbed his arm to question him further. Read more... | | |
