Today the International Center for Photography opens its summer exhibitions, with plenty of surprises in store. Seen at the preview yesterday: Curatorial Assistant Pauline Vermare (row 1 below, background, right) presents Christer Strömholm: Les Amies de Place Blanche, an absorbing view of a Parisian transgender subculture in the 1960s.

Tonight at 6pm: A guided tour of the exhibition; a panel discussion; the screening of a short film about Strömholm's work; and a book signing. Panelists include Joakim Strömholm, the head of the Strömholm Estate and the son of the late photographer; Anna Nilsdotter, Joakim Strömholm's partner and a Swedish poet and illustrator who helped with the book; Gaëtane Niquet ("Jacky"), one of Strömholm's subjects (above and row 1 below, left); Vincent Marcilhacy, Consultant and Publisher of Aman Iman Publishing, the publisher of the French/English reprint of Les Amies de Place Blanche; and ICP Curatorial Assistant Pauline Vermare. Tickets $15/$10. Photo above: Christer Strömholm, Jacky, 1961.

Row 2, above: Senior Curator Brian Wallis leads a walk-through of A Short History of Photography from the ICP Collection Honoring Willis E. Hartshorn, Ehrenkranz Director. During his 18-year tenure as Director of ICP, Willis E. “Buzz” Hartshorn oversaw the development of the institution’s permanent collection, which has more than doubled in size, and its breadth has expanded from its original focus on photojournalism to embrace alternative histories of photography. The exhibition, organized by Wallis, demonstrates ICP’s mission to promote visual literacy through an understanding of how pictures create meaning and help to shape our understanding of our everyday lives.

The International Center of Photography is located at 1133 Avenue of the Americas, between 43rd and 44th Streets, NY, NY. Information.

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