Hulk by Amy Stein

Powerpuff Girls by Amy Stein

Wednesday greetings, collectors. I am a little bleary after an evening spent at the Whitney Museum for their annual gala--an event full of glittering stars! And so many of them already knew about 20x200! Not just Anne Pasternak of Creative Time or Mike Starn or Robert Verdi (who is our #1 fan) but all kinds of people. It was amazing and fun and the best part is that I didn't wipe out in the ridiculously high heels I was wearing. Anyhow, more greatness ahead, including today's editions from Amy Stein, Friday's Hey, Hot Shot! proceedings at Blurb's NYC Pop-Up AND Jessica Snow's opening at JBG on Saturday, the eve before All Hallow's Eve. (Details on all, below!)

Speaking of Halloween, today's editions--Hulk and Powerpuff Girls by Amy Stein--are about as seasonally appropriate as you can get, plus utterly charming. Halloween in Harlem is one of my favorite projects of hers, because, let's face it: kids in costumes are cute. But aside from that, it's the one where I most see Amy's tender heart. Whether in person, online or via her work, I can see how most people who know her might think of her as being all-business and super-focused. And she is, in lots of ways.

Amy also happens to be a very lovely human being, and someone who's utterly devoted to her craft. I've had so many conversations with her about how hard it is to be an artist: to maintain a practice, to progress, to persist. She struggles in the same ways that every artist I know struggles, regardless of what level they're operating at. BUT I have always admired her so much--her commitment not just to her work, but to the photography community overall. She teaches, she blogs and tweets in a way that I think others can use as a standard to try to achieve. She's also involved in lots of photography-community projects, like Piece of Cake.

Her dedication to the community and her medium is universal; how she made this edition is a shining example of her commitment to her craft. I mean, we told her that it was a crazy idea, but she insisted until we found ourselves agreeing that yes, doing the entire edition as printed-in-the-darkroom-by-hand (like the olden days!) c-prints was the way to go. (And when she got into the darkroom and realized that we were right, and yes, it was crazy, she continued to persevere to bring you all these prints.) But she wanted them to be special--they would have been special regardless, I mean LOOK AT THEM--because she gets what 20x200 is about at its heart: creating the authentic experience of being a collector, no matter whether it's a $20 print or a $2000 print.

To purchase the larger digital c-prints from this edition--20"x20", edition of 10, $2,500 each and 30"x30", edition of 5, $3,500 each--along with other images from the series--contact her NYC dealer, Brian Clamp (who I adore! because he is awesome!).

Before I go for the week, here are the promised details about this weekend's big events:

Blurb Pop Up/NYC + Hey, Hot Shot! invite you to celebrate the 2010 Hot Shots!
Who: Hey, Hot Shot! Panelists, contenders, Team JBP + the NYC Photography Community
What: Meet the 2010 Hot Shots
When: Friday, October 29th, from 6 to 9 p.m.*
Where: 60 Mercer Street, New York, NY
Space is limited, so make sure you RSVP here by Thursday, October 28th. Complete event details are on the HHS! blog.
* At 7:00 p.m., I'll announce the five 2010 Hot Shots.

Jessica Snow's Multiple Plot Points Opens at Jen Bekman Gallery
Who: Jessica Snow + the JBP team, friends and family (that's you!)
What: Celebrate Jessica's new work
When: Saturday, October 30th, from 6 to 8 p.m.
Where: 6 Spring Street, between Elizabeth and the Bowery, NYC