Dan Martensen embodies the vibrant energy of his native New York, a whirlwind of passion for family, friends, music, and the city’s cultural fabric. He brings that same passion to his dual vocations: photography and bagels. He moves quickly, recounting significant moments from his life, including interactions with some of the world’s most famous names….
A man’s hand reaches towards an electric light source, his fingers tentatively caressing the glow, obscuring and revealing it at once. The image described is Lionel Wendt’s Bachelor Cruising South, shot in the mid-1930s. The photograph is quietly suggestive, its title a little less subtle, alluding to the pursuit of casual sexual encounters. It is…
Something Curated exclusively publishes the photo essay Gestures and Gazes by photographer Olivia Ghalioungui and stylist Manvi Bhatnagar. Exploring self-expression and craftsmanship across India, the series was shot in Delhi, Jaipur, Goa, and Amritsar, last December. The project weaves together two strands: the gaze, captured through a series of richly textured portraits, and the eloquence…
“I have a lot of photos with chins touching,” said Melissa Schriek over the phone from her Amsterdam home. We were going through some of the photographs from her last book, Ode: an exploration of the dynamics of female friendship. “I like that it’s almost a mouth,” she said, “It’s also very intimate when your…
Yellow cap paired with a blue satin shirt, Grace Jones has arrived at The Savoy. Her thumbnail has a tiny red crown stamped on it. It is 1981 and Sharon Smith is doing her rounds as a camera girl in the Midtown Manhattan club, when she approaches Grace with her Polaroid. It was not the…
Early on this year at Something Curated, we introduced the ‘my best photograph’ series, where we ask a photographer or visual artist we love to share an image that means a lot to them – and to tell the audience the story behind the image. We’ll continue this into 2025, inviting some of the industry’s most…
I made this picture in Vienna some years ago while I was there for a shoot. I was waiting for someone to turn up to have their picture taken and wandered off distracted and saw this butterfly. I always thought the picture was equal parts pretty, romantic, and sad. It’s flying gracefully surrounded by beautiful…
Shining a light on the often overlooked details of day-to-day life, Paris-based photographer Marc Alexander Shelly’s sensitively composed images seek to reframe the ordinary. Following documentary projects shot in Morocco, India and Egypt, Shelly recently ventured to Grand Cayman with the goal of capturing a photographic essay, exploring the daily routines of the Caribbean island’s…