Photobooks

Latest Stories

A Photographic Archive’s Extraordinary Portrait of Black Femininity

Theaster Gates’s recent photobook expands the pioneering legacy of the Johnson Publishing Company, reactivating the archive as an essential document of American culture.

A Three-Volume Book Becomes a Testament to Mary Ellen Mark’s Career

The late photographer, who left behind more than two million images, spent her life in search of the elusive iconic frame.
Mimi Plumb, The White Sky, 2020

A Blazing Suburban Gothic Imagines the American West on the Brink

In the 1970s, Mimi Plumb began photographing adolescent life and the bleached-out landscapes of California. Her suspenseful new book foretells the disasters of the present—and the future.

Why Deborah Willis Thinks the Photobook Can Be Transformative

The renowned scholar speaks about her early career in photography, confronting racism in publishing, and why books about Black life are vital.

Inside an Archive of African Photobooks

Ben Krewinkel’s online archive considers the visual representation of Africa over time—both contentious and nuanced.
Hank Willis Thomas, You Don’t Have to Try So Hard, 2015

Two Photobooks Consider the Pervasive Fantasies of Whiteness

Working with archival imagery or deftly staged portraits, an array of artists lay bare the sinister underpinnings of white respectability.

In “Pleasant Street,” Thirty Years of a Family’s Life

Judith Black’s new photobook traces her home life in New England from 1968 to 2000—and builds upon an American documentary tradition.

A Dark and Lyrical Vision of Latin America

Santiago Escobar-Jaramillo’s photographs reflect the ambiguities of political violence in Colombia, Cuba, and Venezuela.

For Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Books Are a Way to Think About Time

The LA-based artist speaks about the process of editing—and the role that bookmaking has played in the evolution of his work.

In Pictures, a Family's Odyssey from Poland to South Africa

Photographer and writer Terry Kurgan’s recent book considers images, memory, and the reverberations of World War II.

The Expansive Power of Feminist Photobooks

The photobook is a space of creative potential—and a dedicated site of action.

8 Feminist Photobooks that Provoke and Inspire

The question of what makes a photobook “feminist” is entangled with all sorts of creative decisions, as well as worldly ones.

In Harry Gruyaert's Radical Street Photography, Color is the Defining Element

No matter where he turns his eye, the Belgian photographer constantly explores the potential of color in a seemingly colorless urban world.

Photographing Tupac, Biggie, and Everything in Between

Dana Lixenberg revisits her portraits of pop-culture icons and everyday citizens.

A Secret Cache of Polaroids Reveals a Trans Photographer’s Inner World

April Dawn Alison made thousands of pictures focusing on a single subject—herself. But, who was she?

When Women Photographers Went to War

From Gerda Taro to Susan Meiselas, a new book examines the ways eight women have expanded the field of war photography.

What is a Feminist Photobook?

Carmen Winant on feminism, photobooks, and the radical gestures of world-building.

The Publisher at the Forefront of Photographic Literature

Image Text Ithaca is leading the way in experimental and hybrid image-text photobooks.
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Aperture 254

This spring, Aperture presents “Counter Histories,” an issue produced in collaboration with Magnum Foundation and informed by their ongoing Counter Histories grant initiative, featuring artists from around the world who tell new stories about how the past informs the present.