Thank You

Thank you to everyone who made it out last night, despite the weather to hear Mary Ellen Mark speak at the Blanton Auditroium.

A huge thanks to my fellow board member, John Langmore for asking his dear friend Mary Ellen Mark if she would speak at our very first "Icons of Photography" lecture. And thank you to our volunteers–we would not have been able to cover all our bases without your support. I sincerely apologize to those of you who arrived late and found the lecture sold out.

A few comments we've already received:

Congratulations to ACP for bringing Mary Ellen Mark to Austin! Although I was familiar with most of her work, and actually took a workshop from her many years ago in San Antonio at the Southwest School of Art and Craft, I was not familiar with her photography shot on film sets, and really enjoyed seeing and hearing her speak about that work. It is always fascinating to hear photographers/artists speak about their own work. It was fascinating to hear her reflect on the changes she has seen occur in photojournalism over her career.
Trish Simonite, Associate Professor, Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas

"It was great to see such a large turn out. I was especially happy to see so many students at the lecture. The Icons of Photography series is a great resource for student to be introduced to work they might not have seen and to see the artist talk about their own work. Mary Ellen Mark gave great insights into her process and it was great seeing a variation of work than she usually shows. Great way to kick off the series. "
Chase Browder, Photographer, Austin, Texas

"Mary Ellen Mark's Austin presentation... a vignette of true commitment."

Mary Ellen is perhaps one of the last photographic icons that was privileged to work in a culture of photographic accessibility that is no longer true for most working or aspiring photo documentarians. A golden age of accessibility if you will... still possible but ever more challenging and difficult.
Joel Salcido, Photographer, Austin, Texas

It is so amazing to see the photography community in Austin and the greater Texas area being brought together by ACP. I think Mary Ellen Mark was the perfect person to have as part of a lecture series. Her talk appealed to both professionals, film buffs, and enthusiasts. I love that no matter how many years it has been since she has seen a subject, she seemed to know their names and intimate details about where they are today. . . a valuable lesson for any photographer or journalist these days, where subjects seem to be dehumanized by the media.
Jaime Collier, Photographer, Houston, Texas