Real Estate — Lee Friedlander. Published by Eakins Press Foundation.
My first two favorite photobooks for 2023 are by Lee Friedlander — Framed (Fraenkel Gallery) and Real Estate (Eakins Press). The books share the same designer and the same printer in Verona, but their dimensions vary by a tiny bit; the paper stock used in Real Estate is somewhat glossier than in Framed. The filmmaker Joel Cohen made the selections for Framed and I presume Peter Kayafas at Eakins Press edited Real Estate. Both books are generously sized, and the pictures are big, which is a treat. A few of the images in Framed are spread across two pages. Friedlander’s approach is deadpan (no fog or blurs here) yet also playful, energetic, and full of wit. In these new books Friedlander crisscrosses the continental United States and time travels up to six decades. It’s a delightful trip.
Mark Steinmetz lives in Athens, Georgia with his wife Irina Rozovsky. They have a book together that was published this fall — Insieme(Chose Commune) — photographs made in Italy. Due out in January is Steinmetz’s France 1987 (Nazraeli Press).
www.marksteinmetz.net