The last few weeks before Xmas have been very busy with meetings, tests and producing for the very large group portrait of all the workers, (well... most of them) involved in the construction of the Kings Cross new concourse. The idea was to do a shoot to celebrate the end of the main construction which also coincided with Christmas. Network Rail invited everyone who collaborated with the project: architects, engineers, property developers, construction workers, etc...  to get together and immortalise the moment. A team from the Argent Group Plc was there, architect Hiro Aso from John McAslan was present, Vinci & NJ Bailey team and Network Rail representatives also attended as well as most of the construction workers, creating in total a group of nearly 600 people. I was lucky to have a great group of assistants with me making sure the day run as smooth as possible + Site Eye simultaneously shooting a time-lapse video of the event. See a few images below: 

Interesting weekend last one. On Saturday I went to a very inspiring talk by curator Charlotte Cotton, (previously the Department Head of Photographs at Los angeles County Museum of Art & currently back in UK at the National Media Museum). The event took place at the Phoenix Gallery in Brighton.and was organised by the Brighton Photo Fringe "Open 11". Charlotte has been involved with the "Open 11" as a mentor curator. On Sunday I woke up to see one of my images printed very large (full bleed double page) in the Sunday Times magazine, the image had been commissioned a couple of weeks prior, to illustrate a story the Sunday Times were writing about One Hyde Park, currently the most expensive flats in the World. See the image below....

Neon Blue, the large size: 120x80cm is SOLD OUT. The small edition of 5 + 2 AP became very popular since the show "You Are Here", at Flaere Gallery in London Knightsbridge, Oct/Nov 2010 and is now part of a few international collections. Number 1/5 is in a private collection in London, 2/5 in Miami, 3/5 in Singapore, 4/5 in Paris and 5/5 was sold last week at the AAF Hampstead to a London collector. The medium size (90x60cm - edition of 20) is also going fast. For further info on current availability please contact Helene or Camilla at Flaere Gallery. Below is Neon Blue no 1/5 just before the opening of "You Are Here" last year in London.

Licht series has been nominated to the final of the Terry O'neil Awards. It is always good to receive good news, specially theses days when we are constantly bombarded by negativity from the media. Below is a short extract from the email received:

Dear Andre,

Good news, is that one of the judges has shortlisted your work for the Terry O'Neill Award. This means that your work has been nominated to go to the final judging date on 4th November, where the judges will decide the ten shortlist and winners...  Each judge nominates 10 photographers from 100's of entrants, it is a tough competition and so congratulations on being nominated.

Yours sincerely
Lucy Bell
 

The Terry O'neil Award is one of my favourites annual competitions, it has been going strong for several years and it always has a very interesting judging panel, this year's including: Terry O'neil himself, Jon Jones (Sunday Times magazine), Hua Er (curator from SEE+ Gallery in Beijing),  Colin Finlay (Director of London HotShoe Gallery)... to name a few. Below one image from the Licht series.
 

I have been visiting some really interesting high locations lately, while researching and working on a few ongoing personal projects. This week I was at the top of The Shard in London Bridge area. The Shard was designed in 2000 by Renzo Piano (known by creating the Pompidou Centre, Paris) in collaboration with Richard Rogers. The building will be around 330m high and the tallest in the European Union. The structure is so high that it can play games with ones sense of perception. Everything from up there seems very small and distant underneath. Big and powerful buildings by the Thames front and famous London landmarks suddenly appear to be small toy buildings in a kind of legoland city... absolutely stunning! More images coming soon. 
 

Flaere Gallery will be showing the "Licht series" for the first time in UK at the new Affordable Arts Fair - North London (Flaere had only exhibited the series in Spain a few months ago at the MadridFOTO 2011). The AAF North London will be open from Wed 26th to Sunday 30th of October in Hampstead. The gallery which has been very busy over the summer, being involved in projects over NYC and Paris, will also exhibit the Vertigo series, as well as some others contemporary photographers recent work. AAF Hampstead: Lower Fairground Site, East Heath Road, Hampstead,  London NW3 1TH

It is confirmed, Flaere Gallery will be showing a selection of limited edition contemporary photography (including the Vertigo series 2008 and Licht series 2010) at the CHIC Art Fair 2011, Paris, at the end of October. The fair, now in its second edition, will have 45 international contemporary art galleries and a special section dedicated to street photography. Chic 2011 will open on Friday 21st October and run until the evening of Monday 24th. The address is: CHIC Art Fair - at la Cité de la Mode et du Design - 34, QUAI D’AUSTERLITZ - 75013 PARIS. More info at Flaere Gallery website.

The massive scaffolding covering Kings Cross impressive new concourse is finally been taking down, allowing the light to enter the partly see through and gorgeous new roof. This is another historical moment for London to celebrate; a city where so many interesting architectural projects seem to be happening all at once. The Kings Cross station new concourse (designed by John McAslan + partners) will look stunning when it's ready. I was there this week, invited to take a portrait of Norman Baker who was overseeing the advance of the redevelopment. The place is still a building site and will be open to the public sometime in 2012, but I have attached here two images taking in between the portraits to give you a little taster of what to expect.

I've recently came back from a trip to Izmir (Turkey third largest city) where I've spent a few days shooting for a british travel client. Izmir is not your traditional "bazaar" turkish city, its central area is modern, cosmopolitan and has a southern european or even south american feel. I explain: in the back streets of neighbourhoods like Alsancak, one can get the impression that one is, for example, in Brazil... I mean: it is a bit like bairro Jardins in Sao Paulo or bairro Moinhos de Vento, in Porto Alegre.. or for the european readers: similar to Malasana neighbourhood in Madrid.  Those are beautiful, creative & traditional residential areas where most of the old houses have been converted into trendy shops, art galleries, cool bars, cafes and restaurants... great for shopping, for a drink, an alfresco lunch or even just for people watching. The back streets of Alsancak are stunning... full of tall dense trees giving a welcoming shade to the otherwise very hot city, beautiful architecture and the people are friendly, trendy, tanned & gorgeous looking. In almost every corner you can find a small bar or even a stall selling freshly made orange juice. All in all, a great place to explore on foot. I was staying at the Hilton  (thanks to my client) which happens to be the tallest building of the city and I obviously asked permission to have access to the roof top of the building in order to document the city best views. See below...

Marcel Wanders HQ in Holland have been in communication recently, they were enquiring about using some of my photographs, from the London's Mandarina Duck Flag ship store, in a new Interiors book published by Rizzoli New York. This is the first large-format monograph on the interiors and building projects from the highly creative, energetic and tall Dutch designer. "Marcel Wanders’s distinctive output combines a flair for the theatrical with a unique understanding of space that has vaulted him into the top ranks of contemporary design. His interiors projects range from iconic hotels like the Mondrian South Beach in Miami, to fairy-tale private residences in Amsterdam, Mallorca, and Jakarta. Developed integrally with his product design, his spaces incorporate a romantic, monumental sensibility that has redefined interior design. Starting with his work for the Morgans boutique hotel chain (The Rivington in New York) and the London flagship for Mandarina Duck, Wanders’s work has spread to four continents. He also has recently partnered with Philippe Starck’s and John Hitchcox’s design-focused property development brand, yoo". Anyway... the book looks great! Below is one of the images published (an evening exterior of the London store) in the book.

I have just come back from a photographic travel project (a kind of small road trip) in western Sicily. It has been a great place to explore. The landscape of the island is really interesting and full of history....  there are plenty castles and greek temples scattered around, small old cities with incredibly narrow lanes (amazing for a drive actually, when you are allowed), salt lakes, vineyards, gorgeous sandy beaches (San Vito lo Capo, one of them), and lots of impressive mountains with unusual shapes and thick low clouds hanging over its pics. (see image below...). The shoot went well but on the way back (Sat night) when it was already late & I was tired. My flight got delayed and the train back in UK was cancelled... Oh well, joys of travel.

Friday 27th of May is the 2011 Artists Open Houses (AOH)  & HOUSE Awards Night. The Brighton Festival Prize will be presented to the winning artist by Andrew Comben (Chief Executive, Brighton Festival and Dome). The Visit Brighton Award will be chosen from votes cast by the public and presented by John Carmichael (Marketing Manager, Visit Brighton), and finally, the Latest 7 Best Open House Award will be presented by Andrew Kay from The Latest. It should be fun, I hope to see some of you there for a drink.

For the second year in a row, my images have been selected for the annual exhibition at the Regency Town House. This year unfortunately I've missed the private view as it was the same day as the MadridFoto opening in Spain. Below are some images I took last Sunday while helping to invigilate the exhibition, showing "Two Hills" under closely inspection. The show is very impressive and the house itself is well worth the visit. There is a mixture of photography, paintings & sculptures in the two floors of the stunning listed building, including a whole room (in the ground floor) showing a recent project of British photographer David Spero.  The show is on every weekend of May, until Sunday 29th. from 11 to 5pm.
Regency Town House - 13 Brunswick Square - Brighton - UK - BN3 1EH

Just to keep things simple and in one place... below are the details for the private views and openings in May where my work is on show:

Just received some good news that my recent work: "Two Hills", from the "licht series", part of the Full Moon project, has been selected for the HOUSE Open exhibition 2011 in Brighton. 

The HOUSE Open exhibition is an annually curated show part of HOUSE & Brighton Festival.

This year exhibition (

which is celebrating 30 Years of the Brighton Artists Open Houses) has been 

curated by 

Nicola Coleby (Keeper of Exhibitions, Brighton Museum & Art Gallery), 

Simon Martin (Curator, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester) and

Woodrow Kernohan (Director of Permanent Gallery and Director of Brighton Photo Fringe). The s

elected work will be shown upstairs at the Regency Town House, Brunswick Square in Brighton, during the May festival. The exhibition will run from 7th May - 29th May 2011, opening 12-6pm Saturdays an Sundays. This is very exciting news for myself and the "Licht series" which will also be exhibited in Spain in May, with Flaere Gallery at the MADRIDFOTO 2011.

HOUSE Open Exhibition - 7th to 29th of May 

13, Brunswick Square - Brighton - BN3 1EH

Sat & Sun only - 12am to 5pm

After the very successful London Arts Fair in March, Flaere Gallery will be exhibiting the Vertigo series & Light series (for the first time) at the MADRIDFOTO 3. This is very exciting news since those series have not been shown in Spain yet. MADRIDFOTO 2011 (3rd edition) is a unique international fair specialized in Contemporary Photography. The fair, based in Spain, and designed for an audience of private, corporate and institutional collectors, will take place from May 5th to 8th, 2011, inclusive. MADRIDFOTO will be located at the Feria de Madrid (Ifema), in the Pavilion 1, for further info please visit:  http://eng.madridfoto.es/

This is the week of the Renaissance Photography Prize 2011 exhibition. Important dates: Sunday 20th, the hanging day, all artists were invited for an informal private view at the Mall Galleries... a chance to celebrate with a glass of champagne, see the work on the walls and meet the hardworking Renaissance Committee.  Monday 21st is the official opening of the show to the public and Wed 23rd: the celebrity private view and silent auction. This is when the winners are announced and the artist finally get a chance to meet and chat with the judges of the competition which this year included names such as: Michael Hoppen from the Michael Hoppen Gallery, Philippe Garner from Christie's, Brigitte Lardinois from the Barbican Art Gallery, Lorna-Mary Webb from Rhubarb-Rhubarb and celebrity photographer, Brian Aris. I have had two images selected for the show, "Red Dot" the Vertigo series (2008) and "Stairs" from the Full Moon series (2010). The exhibition is open from March 21 to 26, 2011 at The Mall Galleries, London SW1 - More info at: http://renaissancephotography.org/ 

In the last week of March, Wed 30th of April, I will be giving a talk at the AOP Gallery in London. The event is called the "AOP Careers Talks" and happens monthly at the AOP HQ. in Old Street/Hoxton area. This month the Careers Talk will coincide with the "AOP Students Awards exhibition", where I was one of the judges. This will be a great opportunity to meet and chat with some of the students involved in the show and have a chat about photography and the industry in general. If you are interested in coming along, the event will be from 3 - 5pm. It is advisable to check with the gallery first, as numbers are limited in the gallery space.  
AOP Gallery: 81 Leonard Street, London EC2A 4QS - Tel: 020 7739 6669 

I am very pleased to have been told that Flaere Gallery, http://www.flaere.com  was included as part of the "walking tour at the London Affordable Arts Fair 2011".  Below is an image of Vanessa Curry, Director of Fine Art Source, an independent fine art advisory service, discussing the Vertigo series to a group at the AAF.

10 to 13 March - Flaere Gallery will be exhibiting the Vertigo Series at the Affordable Arts Fair 2011 - London (AAF) - Battersea Evolution - stand A3 -  SW11

I'll be going for a quick visit to Brazil at the beginning of March. The intention is to get into some new head space, see family & friends, develop new work, defrost from a cold winter in UK and relax...  well it will be hard to achieve all of those in the short space of time I am going for... but one can only try. The pity is that I'll miss the AAF - Affordable Arts Fair - London, where my work will be on display as part of Flaere gallery collection. On a positive note, a few days after I come back, there will be the private view and launch of the Renaissance Photography Prize 2011 at The Mall Galleries in London, in which I have had two images shortlisted for. Can't wait...
Below an image from the Full Moon series in Rio (2007). It shows a view not normally seen of Copacabana with the famous statue of Jesus Christ lit up at the top of the Corcovado mountain in the background.

Monday 7th of Feb. 7:30am. This was the first email I opened today on my phone... the morning after my birthday. What a fantastic way to start the day.

"Dear Andre Lichtenberg,

I am delighted to inform you that the Renaissance judges Michael Hoppen, Brian Aris, Philippe Gardner,Brigitte Lardinois and Lorna-Mary Webb from Rhubarb-Rhubarb have selected both: "Red Dot" and "Licht 1" from over 4,500 entries as two of the 100 Renaissance finalist images which will be exhibited at the Mall Galleries from 21 - 26 March 2011.  To see the judge's selection, go to www.renaissancephotography.org 

Wed 26th Jan - Had a very interesting day seeing & discussing photography with the other judges of the AOP student Awards 2011. It was the last judging stage of the competition and our final task was to decide the AOP Student of the Year, the merits and the judges choice. I always find fascinating debating photography as opinions and taste can change substantially, however this time our overall winner was very clear. As from the merits, there could have been a few different options and it took some debate to finally decide the two winning students. The standard of the final was very high and I am looking forward to meet the artists at the exhibition and see the prints on the wall. In the panel of judges were: Aine Donovan (Art Buyer @ AMV BBDO), Miranda Gavin (Deputy and online Editor @ Hotshoe), Alyson Jones (Photographers Agent), Greg Funnel (photographer) and myself. Also facilitating the event were Bridget Flynn (AOP Awards project manager) and Marina Syrmakezi (AOP Gallery). Of course after such focussed & serious debates most of us decided to end the day with a quick drink and a relaxed chat at the pub across the road in lovely Old Street. The exhibition opens Wed 23rd March 2011.
AOP Gallery - 81 Leonard Street - London EC2A - for further info visit: http://awards.the-aop.org

I'm pleased to announce that after the very successful exhibition "You Are Here" in London Knightsbridge, Flaere Gallery will be showing the Vertigo Series at the next London Affordable Arts Fair in March 2011. The Affordable Art Fair is the leading showcase in the UK for contemporary art under £4,000. The Fair was launched in London in 1999 and now takes place biannually in London and New York... and annually in Bristol, Amsterdam, Brussels, Milan, Singapore. For more info about the artwork please visit:  http://www.flaeregallery.com -  for further info on the AAF:  http://www.affordableartfair.com

I finally got hold of a copy of the 27th Photographers Awards book (the post has been delayed due to Xmas & heavy snow). Well done everyone involved in the AOP! The book looks gorgeous with a classic, simple & timeless design. The AOP (Association of Photographers) was founded in 1968 in London and aims to promote and protect the rights of professional photographers. The AOP Awards is an annual competition for its members and has received over 4000 entries in it 27th edition. The lucky ones to be selected have their images immortalised in an exhibition and book. This year I have had the pleasure of 3 images (Wish Series) being selected for the "Non-Commissioned Environment Series".See copy of pages 178 and 179 below. 
AOP Ltd. - 81 Leonard St - London - EC2A 4QS - www.the-aop.org

The below images are from a walk between my studio and home in early Dec.  I woke up to a very silent day... looked through the window and saw a gorgeous view of an all white street. It was a busy day for me so I wrapped up warmly & walked to the studio to work on some projects and deadlines. I decided to finish a bit early (before it got dark again) and go for a walk with my camera... (I love snowy days - I was born in Brazil and snow was rare in my childhood) to charge up & explore some of the beauty, peace and silence of that unusual day.

The Aesthetica Creative Works Annual 2011 have just been delivered though my door. Thanks to the post man who is still working while some mild snow is falling form the sky. Well done to him as most of the country seems to stop when it snows in UK. The book looks beautiful and I'll look forward to seat down during the Xmas holiday (with a cup of tea or glass of wine) and go through all the artists and work selected. Neon Blue, from the Vertigo series, has been shortlisted this year and is on page 63. In London, Aesthetica Magazine is stocked in WH Smith and prestigious locations such as Tate Modern, Serpentine and National Portrait Gallery. Visit www.aestheticamagazine.com to find stores Worldwide.

I'm pleased to announce that Red Dot and Neon Blue (from the Vertigo series) will be on show in December at the new Temporium concept design store opening today in Knightsbridge (221, Brompton Rd - London SW3) in collaboration with Flaere gallery. 

Another freezing and silent day in Brighton. The city woke up all white and my back garden had 20cm of fresh thick snow. Beautiful!!!  Yet mad... no trains running to London, airports and schools closed, motorways not coping.  Anyway... back to images.  Yesterday while on my way back from dropping my daughter to School... I came across a massive HMI in the sea front, lighting the landscape in a gorgeous way. I quickly went home to get my camera and back hoping the light would still be there. For my luck it was, and the crew busy producing a TV ad. didn't mind me hanging around taking pics. People tend to become really friendly in snowy days...  This is one of the images from the series with the snow flakes lit by the light in the foreground. Warning... This image needs to be seen large to be fully appreciated.

350 leading photographers have been invited to donate an original signed print not bigger than A5 in size to the annual AMV BBDO Charity Arts sale. 

I feel honored to have been one of the artists invited to participate and have donated a print from a recent series (the artist/work are supposed to be kept secret, so cannot reveal which print... but can assure it is an interesting one as, it has been recently selected to another major Award and exhibition). The Abbott Mead Vickers event will be held at agency head quarters in Marylebone Road (London) on the 25th of Nov. (7pm) with all the prints being hung anonymously and available for sale for £ 35.00 - All the profits will go to Kids Company charity.

Sometimes good news can come in an email... I received a fantastic one a few hours ago from Aesthetica, an international Art & Culture publication based in the UK.  "Dear André Lichtenberg... With 4000 entries this year, I am pleased to announce that you are a Finalist in the Artwork & Photography category for Neon Blue in this year’s Aesthetica Creative Works Competition. Congratulations – this is a fantastic achievement". The winners will be announced early in dec when the Aesthetica Creative Works Annual 2011 gets launched. Can't wait to see it!!!  For further info on Aesthetica magazine and the Annual, just follow the link:  www.aestheticamagazine.com

Last week to see "You are Here" at Flaere Gallery, the exhibition finishes on the 12th Nov. The show & Vertigo series, have had an incredibly positive response, receiving great reviews & images being sold & shipped to collections all over the world.  The other week, the curators of the show asked to bring an extra image to the gallery, "Sunday Shoppers", (see below) as one collector was interested in seeing the large version framed. Within two days of the image arriving at the gallery... two pieces were already sold, including one to a collector in Vienna. But the most exciting news for the Vertigo was that the first two Neon Blue (from the small series of 5 images) have been purchased by the board members from the Tate. If you haven't seen it yet, this is your last chance. Further info at:  www.flaere.com 

Was invited to work as a visiting lecturer the other day at The University of Westminster (London). Had to run whole day class teaching B/W film processing and dark room printing. I must admit it was a very interesting day and full of nostalgia... as I used to be an expert in that field (when I was a student myself) spending days in the dark room, working tirelessly on my portfolios and exhibition prints. Life & photography have changed so much in the last decade and now most of the work I produce is digital. So... the day before the lecture I shot some B/W and did the whole processing, contact sheets & printing again, (I wanted to be true and fair with the students) and it was great fun. Once you know something well... it naturally comes back to you. The students (well... the ones who really care) learnt a lot and some very interesting work was produced by the end of the day.

The first week of "You Are Here" has been incredibly busy & positive. Apart from the fantastic overall interest & feed back... just a few days ago Flaere Gallery has had some very interesting visitors.  A Trustee of the Board of Museum of Contemporary Modern Art in Miami", who used to be a benefactor of the Tate, have bought (with her partner), "Neon Blue" no 1/5 and 2/5. One to stay in a collection in London while no 2 will be sent to Miami. If you haven't seen the show yet,  you still have time... The exhibition will only end Nov 12th.  

Flaere gallery - 221 Brompton Road - London SW3
Opening time: Tuesdays to Sundays - 12 to 8pm. 

"You Are Here" opened last night at London's stunning new Flaere Gallery, 221 Brompton Road - SW3  The night was magical with the very large two floors gallery totally packed. Upstairs a fantastic DJ kept the crowd entertained (some even dancing) while socializing and looking through the art work. Downstairs the bar was really busy and the party atmosphere went on till very late for a Tue night. Flaere is a new gallery based in London & Paris which specializes in contemporary limited edition photography. The show will run in London's Knightsbridge till Nov 12th 2010. For further info visit: www.flaere.com   
Below a couple of images from the new gallery with the Vertigo - Neon Blue at the window. 

Opening times: 
Mon: 10.00 - 13.00
Tue to Sat: 10.00 - 18.00

Brighton Arts Fair 2010 has just finished. Every year the organizers and curators of the "Made Collection" choose two pieces between all the artists and galleries exhibiting to celebrate the best in show. The pieces selected (between paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs, ceramics, etc...) are then purchased directly from the artist or agent and become part of the ever growing "MADE Collection". I'm very pleased to announce that Atlantico 1, from the "Oceano" series, currently no 2 of an edition of 20, has been selected as a prize winner this year.    

Vertigo series will be showing at the new London's Flaere Gallery in Knightsbridge, 221 Brompton Road - SW3 2EJ - from the 12th of Oct to the 12th of Nov.

Brazilian photographer André Lichtenberg’s award-winning opus VERTIGO presents the kind of original insight into a familiar landscape that only an outsider can achieve. 

Lichtenberg is known for exploring the voids that exist on the very margins of his subjects - often shot in remote locations - composing what he finds, with anatomical precision, into characteristically high definition, deep perspective pictures, epic in scale, and cinematic in their narrative complexity and heightened reality. VERTIGO is Lichtenberg’s personal take on Britain’s iconic capital city. 
 

Looking beyond the classic images of London endlessly reproduced and imprinted in the national and international consciousness, Lichtenberg took his camera to the top of the UK’s highest building, sited in Canary Wharf, home of the financial elite including Barclays, Credit Suisse, HSBC and Citigroup, and looked down. In the following moments, captured here, the viewer’s eye is drawn down into a visual story, both beautiful and terrifying, that explores both the connection between form and function of these late 20^th-century buildings, and the financial district’s relationship with society and the wider world beyond. 
 

One striking effect of Lichtenberg’s framing of the cityscape below him is an extraordinary abstraction of scale – there are few familiar objects to give a sense of perspective, or classifiable reference points to enable the viewer to read what they are seeing. Are we looking at an enlarged microscopic image of a computer chip, or a section of circuit board? Only when a recognizable form, such as a vehicle or a road marking, is identified does the illusion of a microcosmic world fall away in an instant into the macrocosmic reality, the visceral impact of height and drop giving the name to the series. 
 

Once the viewer has been pulled into this vortex, they can reflect on what they are seeing with a new understanding born of this sudden gestalt-like switch in perception. A fascinating aspect of these towering symbols of financial prowess, is the sense that as they reach for the sky they disconnect from the earth below. Why are these corporate monoliths built on such a scale that their human creators are defined only by the uniform long shadows their distant ant-sized forms cast in the setting sun – appearing like so many models stuck on an architect’s miniature? And what do these gleaming geometrics, dominating the underlying topography to the point of obliteration - even the mighty river Thames is annexed in perfect perpendicular borders - say about the city’s relationship to the natural world? 
 

With VERTIGO Lichtenberg poses such questions with a profoundly original insight into his subject, the poetic narrative of a master storyteller, and a breathtaking aesthetic grace.
© Michael Bentham - 2010.
 

Last month Full Moon was a very challenging one. We had Gale Force winds in the South Coast and plenty of clouds and rain - testing any artist's determination to wait for the right conditions. I was at home recovering from a whole day shooting on location under similar conditions, when my phone rang... it was another friend & artist, Gavin Peacock who also likes to explore the full moon light. So we decided to go for a quick session in a possible location (1 hours drive) found on a Goggle maps search. My tripod is heavy but I had to really hold and press it down to earth to cope with the blasting wind. Very difficult to keep several minutes exposure sharp, but hey... there's plenty of atmosphere! Below are two images from the shoot.

The largest visual art exhibition on the south coast, Brighton Arts Fair returns to the city's Corn Exchange this Autumn. Artists will be showing and selling their work directly to the public, giving you the chance to actually talk to the makers before you buy. Paintings, prints, photography, sculpture and ceramics will all be on display. This year, we'll be looking out for work by André Lichtenberg, Ian Peterson and Matthew Chambers. ELLE Decoration No 218 - Oct 2010 - pag 134

Red Dot, from the Vertigo series has been selected for the 4th Photography Masters Cup - International Color Awards 2010 - the image was nominated for the Aerial Professional category. The news came early this morning via email. I was still in bed and saw it in my phone (it is amazing to observe how much technology & life have changed over the last 10 years or so... ). Anyway,  this is fantastic news for the Vertigo Series which has been winning awards in both sides of the Atlantic for two years consecutively. To view all the categories and shortlisted images, you can visit: http://www.thecolorawards.com/gallery/    
The selected image, Red Dot, can be seen below. 

The results of the AOP Photographers Awards 2010 have been announced, and I am very pleased to let you know that the "Wish Series" has been selected for this year book and exhibition, following the success of last year "Vertigo Series". The Wish series was created during the winter 2010 in Brighton, when the UK went through its most severe winter in the last 30 years. In short, the images were inspired by the fantasy of a group of 10 year old kids who were doing group wishes at a specific appointed time (from their respective bedroom windows) hoping for more snow in therefore further school holidays. The three images were selected for the "Non-Commissioned Environment Series". The official book launch, exhibition and private view dates will be announced in the next week or so. Below is one of the three images selected.

Good news from my personal archive! Gatwick Airport is displaying one of my images (Pier & Seagulls) from 2005 in the Airport, so if you happen to be traveling to/from Gatwick in 2010, keep an eye for it - (see image below). Also the Condé Nast group (New York) is using another image of mine from that same year. A large urban crowd seen from above, as an editorial, in one of their publications. 

I have just uploaded a new series of images in the portfolio, called "Edge". In fact the name of the series is "Living at the Edge", but that was too long for my website lay-out. They are a visual night study of suburban neighborhoods situated in between towns and on top of the White Cliffs in Southern England. The images were created with very long exposures late at night. The result is an eerie and atmospheric set of images, where real homes look like miniatures houses or small toys in deserted streets. The combination of the diffuse moonlighting combined with the homes ambient lights & the hardly existing street illumination help to create a surreal palette of colors with a incredibly strong cinematographic feel... as if, each image depicts a scene from an imaginary suspense movie. To view it, just follow the link: http://www.photoandre.com/portfolio/  or click in the portfolio section. I hope you get excited as much as I do.

Spent a couple of nights wandering the South Coast of UK with another artist (Gavin Peacock) looking for interesting lighting, locations, backgrounds & playing with ideas. The below images were created in a deserted foot path that connects the motor-way to the sea, crossing a train line & passing through some old ruins. The night was very bright (Full Moon) and I decided to create a series of images by experiment with some slow traveling light with some ridiculously long exposures (up to 9min). It was a kind of therapeutic process, a test for patience and almost mathematical in some ways. In the end, the small details captured by the long exposures combined with the quality of the diffuse reflected moon-lighting was just amazing... I can't wait to make some really large prints...  More images coming soon!

Good news! I have been invited to be the artist of the week in the "Brighton Arts Fair" and "Made UK" website. To read the interview and see images please follow the link:  http://madeuk.blogspot.com/2010/06/artist-of-week-andre-lichtenberg.html   Brighton Arts Fair 2010 will be held at the Corn Exchange building, in Brighton. From the 16th to the 19th Sep. Please pop in and see me at stand no 64.
 

Apologies for the lack of communication lately... but last month (May) has been ubber busy in the HQ. A new series was selected to the final stages of judging of the prestigious AOP Awards London, the final judging will take place shortly in July. The Vertigo series was curated for the HOUSE Open exhibition in the glorious Brunswick Town House... (the images on show were then shortlisted for the Visiting Brighton Awards (voted by the visitors) & the Spectrum Awards - unfortunately didn't win neither but hey...). Apart from that I was commissioned to shoot some new landscapes (full moon images) in Southern Ireland and to produce and photograph an advertising campaign for Gillete in Scandinavia, shooting either in Finland in Norway. Now I am back home in lovely Hove and hungry to create more personal fine art work. (Below an image from Helsinki with its stunning architecture)

Last week was the private view of the HOUSE Open Exhibition at the gorgeous Regency Town House, 13, Brunswick Square - Brighton. The show beautifully curated by Nicola Colbey, Simon Martin & Woodrow Kernohan will also hold a special Award evening (Tue - 18th of May), were several prizes will be awarded: "The Brighton Festival Prize", the "Spectrum Photographic Prize" and "The Visit Brighton Award". Two images from the Vertigo Series have been selected and part of the show. Below is an image from the private view.

Saturday 8th of May, 3rd day in Helsinki and not shooting today... also NOT rainning!!  So, great opportunity to explore the city and visit some galleries. There are some amazing shows in town: Susanna Majuri is showing her beautiful large scale, colorful water based fantasies (my own words) and we just found out that today is the private view of the new show of Anni Leppala at the Ama Gallery, which is conveniently very near our hotel. Yesterday had a long day shooting a very interesting commissioned project which I am not allowed to reveal yet. We are traveling to Oslo Norway tomorrow (then going North to Lillehammer) for another shooting day on the same project.

Just back from Southern Ireland. I had an amazing time with my art director friend Abbey Cummings creating new images around and about Fenit. We worked a lot at nights around the full moon, in fact the weather during the day was quite bad. This week I am very busy again... brilliant!! In one hour I'm off to Scandinavia to shoot two projects, one in Finland and another in Norway. New images will be here soon...

Interesting month for usage-rights (image representation) around the World (hmmm... maybe the economy is actually recovering?) MTV New York is using a portrait of my friend Evandro Cela that I took a few years ago in Brighton, OGILVYONE Worldwide (France) is using an image created in a swimming pool in Brazil and TBWA (Paris) is using a picture from a production in the South Downs in UK. Below is one of the images from Evandro's shoot.

I am delighted to let you know that my work has been selected to the prestigious HOUSE Open Exhibition in the stunning Regency Town House in Brunswick Square - Brighton/Hove. Just a visit to the building is already worthy the trip.  The curators chose two pieces from the Vertigo Series to be part of this year show, which theme was "Regeneration". This year the Show will offer three prizes for winning artists:  The Spectrum Photographic, VisitBrighton and the £600 Festival Prize, whose winning artist will be selected by Festival Director Andrew Comben and Brian Eno (This year's Festival Guest Artistic Director).

HOUSE Open Exhibition - The Regency Town House - Brunswick Sq - Hove - BN3 1EH
Private View date - TBC    Exhibition open - first four weekends of May - 11am to 5pm

Brighton Festival 2010 is approaching very quickly... and I still have sooo much to do!  And apart from several other deadlines I am also off to Southern Ireland the week before the Festival starts to shoot some new Full Moon images. So, before I forget... here are the list of shows and private views where you can see my work:

After the amazing success in New York , London, San Francisco, L.A. etc... The pop up concept finally comes to British Riviera. "Residence" will be the first Pop Up Restaurant in Brighton and will exist between the 1st and the 23rd of May (during the Brighton Festival 2010).  The organizers selected and invited several artists to collaborate with the project. Each artist will be been given a small gallery space to exhibit and create work during the festival. I'll be showing my work Friday 14 May (6pm to 10pm).  So, if you around sunny Brighton during that weekend, do pop in to see the work.

Residence Pop Up Restaurant.  Whitecross St - Brighton - BN1 4FA - (1st to 23rd of May)
For more info visit: www.residencepop-up.com

February 2010 was another fantastic month to add new images for my ongoing Full Moon project. The atmospheric conditions were almost as perfect as January (and almost as cold as... ). So I went in another adventure on the South Coast of England exploring the soft, mysterious and unusual light bounced by the Moon. For more images please visit the "latest portfolio" added recently to the site.

Last week I spent a day in East London with one Art Director from Shelter creating a new series of images for their publicity.  Our subject was youth... we worked with (employed for the day) a group of students from London East Education Youth Services (which run structured courses to help school drop out kids to get back into education, employment and housing). The plan was to capture the youngsters being just themselves (as natural as possible) and we used the surrounding streets as our backdrop. Everyone got really involved suggesting locations, situations, ideas, etc... It was a freezing cold day but everyone was excited and buzzing with energy towards the end.

Thursday 11th of March was the private view of "New Collectives" at the AOP Gallery in Old Street - London. "Two red buses" from the Vertigo series has been curated for the show which is launching a permanent photographic print collection by the AOP Gallery. It was a great night where I had the chance to catch up and have a few drinks with lots of old friends from the photographic world.

Image magazine (issue 406) is running an editorial (The White Stuff) in the recent snow falls. I am really happy to announce that they not only chose one of my images from the "Wish series" shot in Brighton, to illustrate the piece but also decided to run the story behind to open the magazine, in the humorous editorial note written by Helena Rhodes (the editor). This is the introduction of it: "It's rumoured that the BBC is putting its weather forecasting contract to tender. They should sign up Poppy Lichtenberg immediately.Poppy is the daughter of André Lichtenberg who tells us of the part she played in the recent snowfalls..."
 

Last Saturday night,  28/01/2001 I went out with artist Gavin Peacock:   www.themanfromicon.com  - to photograph and film the brightest full Moon of 2010. The Moon was at its closest perigee. In other words, the nearest it gets to Earth (app.356,593 kilometers) during its elliptical shaped orbit. Gavin and I were both working on separate projects, but it was great to have company while working for several hours at night in deserted locations. For our luck it turned out to be totally clear night and the conditions were just perfect. I have created a whole new series of images and a time lapse movie (using very long exposures) which will be in the site soon...  meanwhile you can see one image (attached below) created in the south coast of Sussex.

I have just been invited (and donated one limited edition print from the vertigo series) to the ForgetMeNot art auction. The project aims to give fans of art and collectors the opportunity to snap up some fantastic pieces by international contemporary artists while helping a good cause; "all profits from the sales will be donated to Age Concern charity in UK". The Live Auction will be conducted by auctioneer Edward Rising and advanced bids will be administered by a FMN representative. For more info, to see the other artists and the artworks donated so far, please visit: www.forgetmenot2010.org

I was invited to run a one day photography lecture/workshop at the WAES London, to a class of (very talented) mature students who will be graduating in the next few months. I decided to explore the theme: "Seeing the Invisible". Or, in other words: recording the ordinary with an extra ordinary awareness. The day was divided in two parts: in the morning I showed them several examples of photographic work (my own and other artists) and we discussed theory, philosophy, style, techniques... In the afternoon the students were challenged to produce a small body of work (to photograph, edit and retouch...)  which was finally concluded by a group discussion. The day was fun, fast, informative and hands on...  A few hours later I received a lovely email from one of the students. read below:

"Dear Andre,

We were so fortunate to have you today at WAES university. 
I have shown your pictures to my partner and they are fantastic. I really like your style.
Thank you for coming today, a great opportunity for all of us. 
As I said to you, I can assist you for shoot I will be honoured.
Thanx a lot and hopefully see you soon, 

Phil"

One evening a few weeks ago, just before bed time, my daughter (who was standing for a while by her bedroom window) told me she had just made a "proper" wish for it to snow... and a lot! That was very unusual... her expression was serious and she really meant it. The reason was: if it really did, there would be no school the next day. Well, half hour later... while she was already a sleep, a very strong snow storm started. I got the equipment out and started working, I shot an experimental time lapse clip (which will be in my site soon) and a few stills. The image below is the view from her window where the wish was made. The following morning (obviously) there was no school, and since then we have spent a lot of evenings by this window chatting and looking at the white street below. The temperature is so low at moment that the street is still white (well... now is ice). And we are in Brighton, one of the warmest part of UK where it rarely snows.

A few months ago I was commissioned to produce and shoot Shelter UK Xmas campaign. We had to capture a scene involving 21 people all in one shot: a mixture of models, actors & real people... (real mother with child, elderly and Shelter staff... yes, we had a very long casting). The main image was in a train platform in a quiet station outside North West London. It has been a real pleasure working in the project along with a great team and for such a good cause. Our main problem was in fact the weather, as it turned out to be one of the hottest day of the year, and we were shooting a winter scene (representing a cold December) with everyone wearing winter coats, scarfs & hats. Some of the images can be seen now... I have just been told that the posters are currently in Kings Cross Station in London.

Proximity Ad agency in London hosted their annual X'mas Photographic Competition in a rainny Dec night. The photographer who wins receives a commission for 2010 and the proceeds from the print sales go to RNLI charity in London. I contributed with one of my Snow Series images. The night was great fun with plenty of drinks flowing and chatting to friends from the industry. I had the most amazing time while on my way there: strangely, in a traffic jam...  observing & capturing the beautiful shapes & texture created by the city lights against the wet and steamy glass of the window screen. (see below).

Over the weekend of 5th & 6th of Dec, Lensmodern.com held an exhibition (print sales) at the beautiful Dairy Studio in South London. The weekend was a feast for photography lovers as there was an amazing collection of classic (Pink Floyd original covers, Rolling Stones early days images) and contemporary photography, all in one large room... and with plenty of wine and beer flowing during the whole event. I had the opportunity to show my work to a new audience plus meet and chat with great photographers who I knew and admire the work of, including: Max Forsythe, Ken Griffiths, Andreas Heumann, Barry Cawson & Chris Simpson to name a few...  

Last night was the private view of the Red Dot Exhibition at the beautiful AOP Gallery, The event was designed to raise money for the PhotoVoice charity. Images were selected from AOP members and auctioned during the evening. All proceeds from the sales were donated to PhotoVoice. I had two of my "Snow Series" selected and luckily they both got sold.

I had the honor and greatest pleasure of being commissioned by the Sunday Times magazine to take the portrait of Dame Vera Lynn. The photograph took place at her beautiful home in Sussex and I was lucky enough to meet most of the family for a lovely afternoon with tea and cakes while chatting & listening to amazing life stories. "We'll Met Again: Very Best Of Vera Lynn" released by Decca Records, has recently reached number one again, making Dame Vera Lynn (92) the oldest living artist to make into the number one spot. 

Studio 106 (a 300m2 artist studio in Hove) is opening for another Xmas show. This years exhibition involves a collaborative theme, based on the Samuel Coleridge's poem Kubla Khan. Artists include: André Lichtenberg, Maria Tribe, Henrik Simonsen and Dan Bennett to name a few.

Studio 106: 1st Floor - 106, Coleridge St - Hove - BN3 5AA

Private View: Thu 26th Nov (6 to 9)

Opening hours:
Sat 28th - Sun 29th Nov (11am to 5pm)
Sat 5th - Sun 6th Dec (11am to 5pm) 

Brighton Photo Fringe is delighted to announce that the OPEN 09 exhibition "From Here" has been extended until 29th November, due its huge popular and critical successes. The show, curated by John Gill (lead curator), is being held in a fabulous space in central Brighton and has images from artists from all corners of the globe. (some artists work are featured below).

From Here: 13, Black Lion St - Brighton
Opening times: Fridays to Sundays  (12 to 5pm)

The Sunday Times magazine commissioned me to take the portrait of Graham Short, a hand engraver who became famous by engraving the Lord's Prayer on the head of a pin (see image below), currently on display at The Art Lounge gallery in Birmingham. Graham uses an old school approach to his work (he uses a microscope, a lamp and a box os small tools... also Graham engraves mainly at night and between heart beats). He currently works from a small room in his mother's house (see below), Among Graham clients you'll find the Royal family and celebrities such as Richard Branson.

Two of my Snow series images have been selected for the RED Dot Exhibition 2009 at the AOP Gallery in London. The private view and auction evening will take place on Wed 2nd of Dec (6-9pm). All profits from print sales (opening bidding for all prints will be £ 40) will be donated to PhotoVoice charity.

Red Dot Exhibition will run from 2nd Dec 2009 to 14th Jan 2010.
Opening times: Monday - Friday from 10am - 6pm
AOP Gallery: 81, Leonard St - London EC2 

At Halloween weekend, the Guardian and the Observer published a 2 part stylish guide called "Guide to the night". They selected and invited two artists whose work explore "night", to feature in the central double page. The first part of the guide (Guardian 31st Oct) shows the work of the Gregory Crewdson, a well known and successful American artist, and part two (Observer 1st Nov) features "Night Travellers" from my Full Moon series. To see more of the series click: "portfolio" followed by "moon". Below are copies of the double pages...

Oct 31st 2009, Hallowen morning - A dressed up, colorful and happy crowd of a few thousands gathered in Brighton beach with the intention of breaking the Time Warp World record. The weather was not helping (cold, dark & wet) but the crowd didn't seem to mind, dancing and screaming along with Richard O'Brien & the Rock Horror crew. I happened to be passing by with my camera and a press pass, so I joined the backstage party and took a few pics to share with you.

I've just received an email letting me know that some of the Vertigo Series images have been selected for a show about the AOP Awards 2009 in the London Offices of Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO. The exhibition, showing only 32 images from the Awards, will remain at AMV until November 2009.

I've spend a few hours with the new up and coming band "the Perils", creating some new images for their press. We shot in three different locations but my favorite was definitely the roof top on the Brighton sea front (see images below) which looks just like a hotel roof top in Copacabana or Miami. 

"From Here", an exhibition curated by John Gill (Mentor curator, Brighton Biennial - together with three up and coming curators: Chloe Hoare, Max Houghton and Yasmina Reggad) is currently open in the old lanes in Brighton. The opening night was a big success with the gigantic floor space looking stunning & feeling actually crowded from time to time. From Here will be open until Sun 8th of November. Below are some pics from the Private View.

Opening hours: Friday to Sunday 12 - 6 pm
Moore House: 13 Black Lion St. - Hove - BN1 1ND 

This October, as a prequel to next year’s Biennial Festival of Photography, Brighton Photo Fringe is pleased to present From Here.
Three emerging curators, Chloe Hoare,Max Houghton and Yasmina Reggad, were chosen to work with mentor curator John Gill to select an exhibition from over 4000 images submitted from all corners of the globe.

The Brighton Arts Fair 2009 has just finished and I was exhibiting there for the first time.
I feel very positive about the experience and also totally exhausted... after three and a half days of giving my full attention to art & photography lovers and people from the art industry.
The "full moon", the "snow" and the "vertigo series" were received really well and the early numbers of the small limited editions quickly snapped away.  

Just received an envelope in the post which wasn't a bill (now, that's a change...)
Inside (for my pleasant surprise) was a professional looking A4 golden Award saying that I have won the title of Nominee in Architecture/Professional with my Vertigo "Neon Blue", Great!!!
Reading further I've learnt that the judges included: Christie's (New York), National Geographic Channel, Musee de la Photographie, National Museum of Singapore, Dazed & Confused (London), Fine Art Society (London), Musee de L'Elysee (Switzerland), etc...
I normally don't like the post but this one has made my day!!!

This is the book that I used to look for inspiration while at Uni, and dream of one day be able to be part of and have my images published in. Well, it took a while... several submissions in many Awards annual competitions, but it finally happened. Vertigo Series were selected for the Contemporary Landscape & Cityscape Series. 

Last night was the Gala presentation of the AOP Awards 2009. Below is a couple of images from the event. One showing the Vertigo Series that were selected for the Personal Contemporary Landscape & Cityscape Series, and another one from the event in the "Vertigo style", showing the beautiful architecture of the newly redesigned theatre.

Vertigo Series made to the Sunday Times magazine this weekend. The image was printed quite large in "Spectrum", a section of the magazine designed to show what's is happening in the World of photo art and photojournalism. 

The Sep. issue of the London, Sunday Times Travel magazine is printing a four pages interview with photographs about my work. I have been invited before by smaller publications but this is the first time I have four pages in a national glossy mag dedicated to my photography. Just had a look at the proof today and it is looking quite cool.

See a small copy of the article below:

This is the portrait of Antony Micallef at his studio in Hove, about a month before his 2007 "Impure Idols" L.A. show in Hollywood Blvd. I was lucky to have had this rare opportunity to capture Antony with some of his latest work before they all got snapped up by collectors. "Impure Idols" organized by Lazarides Gallery from London, was sold out by the end of its private view.

Pantanal with Full Moon was published as a double page in the London, Condé Nast Traveller.
The image was used to illustrate the "Where Are You" competition page. I have recently come back from Brazil were the project was photographed and it was wonderful to see it printed quite large in one of my favorites magazines. 

The new series I shot recently in Brazil, "Pantanal with Full Moon", has been selected to the final judging stages of the IPG/Terry O'neill Awards 2007. I received an email and phone call yesterday telling me the good news. Now the series needs to be printed as the final judging stages will take place at the IPG Gallery in two weeks. The selected images can be seen below:

I'm pleased to announce that my "Northeast Series" will be exhibited at the Focus On Imaging 2007, Birmingham NEC - from 25th to 28th of Feb. The images will be at TPOTY stand as part of the show announcing the winners of the Travel Photographer of the Year 2006. The just launched book, "Journey Two" (see image below) will also be available from TPOTY. Focus on Imaging is currently the largest annual imaging show in Europe attracting over 20.000 visitors.

I have just received a phone call that my B/W entry "Northeast series" are the Winner of the Travel Photographer of the Year 2006. YEESSSS!!!!! Apart from the honor of being chosen the winning one, among so many good international photographers, the prizes are also brilliant: an adventure trip to Brazil for two (sponsored by Land Rover), the new version of photoshop and my images in the book. CAN'T WAIT!!!

I have just received an email letting me know that my entry, (a high contrast Black & White series of four images from the Northeast Brazil), has been selected to the finals of the Travel Photographer of the Year. Now fingers crossed to see if they make to the book!!

Amazon Beach has been selected for Exhibition 99, by AOP Gallery manager Alex Steele-Mortimer. This is a fantastic achievement, (or luck), as this exhibition is curated by a selected panel of top photography industry professionals: art buyers, curators, gallery managers, art directors, picture editors... who have been asked to vote one image only each, by any photographer in Europe, that represents the best in photography in the last year. The show will be held at the new AOP Gallery in Old Street and will be opened to the public from the beginning of December 99 to end of Jan 2000. Other exhibitors include: David Bailey, Rankin, David Sims, to name a few. Below is Amazon beach, which was created last year while working on a book project in Brazil.  

I'm very happy to hear I have been offered a place in the MA Photography Studies at University of Westminster, starting next Sep. I was just interviewed two days ago by Olivier Richon and Mitra Tabrizian, the course leaders. I've shown them two hand made books from two personal projects: Praha (1993) and a Italy Road Trip (1994), which they both seemed very intrigued and curious by. The main reasons I'll be doing the MA (after having recently finished a Photographic Science degree) is that: I want to expand my theory knowledge fine art photography and I'll have the opportunity to create new work under the critical guidance of Olivier and Mitra, two conceptual artists that I really respect. Below is an image from the Praha Book.

My recent 4x5 B/W portrait of Hiroko has been shortlisted for the AFAEP (Association of Fashion & Advertising Photographers) Student Awards, and will be exhibited at the AFAEP Gallery in Clerkenwell, Domingo Street, London EC1. I have been working in this large format B/W series of portraits for the last few months, collaborating with up and coming make up artists and people who I find interesting while walking in the streets of Central London. The extra arm in the image, is from the Japanese make up artist who happened to be a friend of Hiroko.