Every March, just as daffodils begin emerging from dead leaves and mud around town, the photo world converges on the Park Avenue Armory for AIPAD. I probably say this every year, but it is the cream of the photo fairs - with this year being no exception.

For the 30^th anniversary of the show, more than 70 of the finest galleries from around the globe are present, showing contemporary and 19^th-century work. To celebrate the longevity of this annual show, organizers are offering an exceptional roster of special events, including panel discussions on Saturday and Sunday with experts from the fields of collecting, curating, and conservation. The schedule is pasted in below.

Top row: Left and center, Yancey Richardson Gallery; right: Robert Mann Gallery. Row two, left and center: Jeff Brouws's After Trinity series at Robert Klein Gallery; right: Bryce Walkowitz Gallery. Row 3, right: Dan Cooney, Sasha Wolf and Brian Clamp at the Project 5 Limited Edition booth; center: this year's unusual William Eggleston photo, Untitled, ca. 1978, at Deborah Bell Photographs; right: Edwynn Houk Gallery. Photos: Peggy Roalf.

What makes this show so exciting to attend - apart from the incredible display of photographs - is the hands-on access available to limited edition portfolios and books. This year was full of surprises, including a coffee-table-sized box portfolio of Leo Grannis's surf images from the 1950s and 60s, presented by Shannon Richardson at M + B Gallery. At Robert Klein Gallery, Eunice Hurd showed me the portfolio of Jeff Brouws's After Trinity, a series he made in 1987 at Los Alamos and at various missile silos throughout the West.

At Lee Marks Fine Art, I was captivated by a group of 6 contact prints from Mike Smith's new landscape series made with an 8 x 10 camera. Funny, just yesterday I was looking for a copy of You're Not From Around Here (Center for American Places, 2004); and here at AIPAD I had a chance to preview his most recent body of work and page through the book I had been searching for. In addition to the books you'll see at the galleries here, rare editions can be found at Harper's Books and Jeff Hirsch Books.

The AIPAD Photography Show continues through Sunday, March 21 at the Park Avenue Armory, Park Avenue at 67^th Street, New York, NY. Hours are 11 am to 8 pm on Friday and Saturday; 11 am to 6 pm on Sunday. Please check the website for additional information. Admission is $25 daily; the $40 run-of-show ticket includes the catalog; student admission is $10 with I.D.

Special Events on Saturday and Sunday, March 20 and 21, 2010
Six panel discussions bringing together leading curators, dealers, artists and journalists are planned for Saturday, March 20, and Sunday, March 21, in the Veteran's Room at the Park Avenue Armory. AIPAD programs are free with same day admission to The AIPAD Photography Show New York. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Saturday, March 20, 2010
10:00 a.m.
WHAT COLLECTORS NEED TO KNOW: THE ART OF CARING FOR PHOTOGRAPHS
Top experts explore the most important issues involved in caring for photographs. Topics will include: hanging, framing, storage, conservation, ethics and more.
Christiane Fischer, President and C.E.O., AXA Art Insurance Corporation, North America, Moderator
Stephen Bulger, President, AIPAD; Stephen Bulger Gallery, Toronto
Anne Gibbs, Owner, White Mule Picture Frames, New York
Nora W. Kennedy, Sherman Fairchild Conservator of Photographs, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Peter Mustardo, Photograph Conservator, President, The Better Image, New York/Milford, NJ
12:00 noon
NEW TOPOGRAPHICS: LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY THEN AND NOW
The 1975 exhibition, New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape, signaled the emergence of a new approach to landscape photography emulated by generations of photographers. A new version of this seminal exhibition is currently touring eight international venues. This discussion will focus on the impact of both exhibitions and the role of landscape photography today.
Rick Wester, Rick Wester Fine Art, New York, Moderator
Frank Gohlke, Artist
Theresa Luisotti, Gallery Luisotti
Alison Nordström, Curator of Photographs, George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, Rochester, NY
Britt Salvesen, Department Head and Curator, Photography Department, Prints and Drawings Department, The Los Angeles County Museum of Art
2:00 p.m.
STREET SEEN: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL GESTURE IN AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY, 1940-1959
This new exhibition, on view at the Milwaukee Art Museum from January 30 through April 25, 2010, examines a unique and pivotal moment in American photographic history. The first major examination of street photography of the 1940s and „50s in nearly 20 years includes work by Lisette Model, Robert Frank, Louis Faurer, Ted Croner, Saul Leiter, and William Klein - and uncovers a crucial time in American art, when global media was in its adolescence and photography was just beginning to achieve recognition in the contemporary art world. A highlight will be the New York debut of Time Capsule, a recently discovered short film by Louis Faurer.
Lisa Hostetler, Curator of Photographs, Milwaukee Art Museum, Moderator
Tom Gitterman, Gitterman Gallery, New York
Saul Leiter, Artist
William Meyers, Critic, The Wall Street Journal
Ann Thomas, Curator, Photographs, National Gallery of Canada
4:00 p.m.
THE COLLECTOR'S VIEWPOINT: MARTIN MARGULIES
The world-renowned collector of contemporary art discusses 30 years of collecting.
WM Hunt, Hasted Hunt Kraeutler, New York, Interviewer
Martin Margulies, Collector, Miami
6:00 p.m.
CONTEMPORARY PHOTOGRAPHY NOW
An insider‟s look at contemporary photography today with leading AIPAD experts examines trends from digital photography to new media.
Susan Bright, Independent Curator and Writer, New York, Moderator
Kim Bourus, Higher Pictures, New York
Martin McNamara, Gallery 339 Fine Art Photography, Philadelphia
Andrea Meislin, Andrea Meislin Gallery, New York
Robert Morat, Robert Morat Galerie, Hamburg, Germany
Bryce Wolkowitz, Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery, New York
Sunday, March 21, 2010
12:00 noon
A CONVERSATION WITH MEMBERS OF THE PHOTO LEAGUE
In the critical years leading up to World War II, the Photo League flourished as a progressive center for American photography in New York City. In 1947, the League was listed as a "subversive" organization, leading to its demise in 1951. The panel presents a rare opportunity to hear first-hand accounts from the artists themselves during this turbulent period.
Moderators:
Catherine Evans, Chief Curator, Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio
Mason Klein, Curator of Fine Arts, The Jewish Museum, New York
Artists/Speakers:
Vivian Cherry, New York,
Sonia Handelman - Meyer, Charlotte, NC
Arthur Leipzig, Sea Cliff, NY
Rebecca Lepkoff, New York
Jerome Liebling, Amherst, MA
Marvin E. Newman, New York
Erika Stone, New York
Ida Wyman, Madison, WI

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