Jeunes Talents 2010, French Impressions: New Photographic Perspectives

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- A group show featuring more than 50 new photographs of contemporary French life by eight American art school graduates premieres at Louis Stern Fine Arts, 9002 Melrose in West Hollywood April 7 to 21, before moving to galleries in New Orleans and New York later this year. 

NOTE: A special preview for media, including a tour of the show with curator Tim B. Wride and the students, is set for Wednesday, April 7 at 5:00 P.M.  A Provençal buffet will be provided by the Marseille-Provence Chamber of Commerce and Provence-Alpes-Côtes d'Azur Regional Tourism Board.  Media only, please R.S.V.P. to marketing.la@franceguide.com

Called Jeunes Talents 2010, French Impressions: New Photographic Perspectives, the exhibition is conceived in the spirit of photographer Robert Frank.  Eight American students from prestigious art schools in Los Angeles, New York and New Orleans were sent to France to capture the essence of French life and culture with fresh sensibilities, unsullied eyes and new perspectives.  Curated by Tim B. Wride, former curator of photographs at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Jeunes Talents 2010 is a joint cultural tourism project of Atout France, the Cultural Services Department of the Consulate General of France in Los Angeles and France Los Angeles Exchange (FLAX).

The 2010 Jeunes Talents photographers are Andrea Bakacs and Kristina Williamson from Parsons The New School For Design (New York), Tom Macom from Loyola University (New Orleans), Kenneth Cowan and Whitney Stolich from Otis College of Art and Design, David Holden Smith from Art Center College of Design and Karolina Karlic and Maria Schriber from California Institute of the Arts (all in Los Angeles).

The cities of Aix-en-Provence, Arles, Marseille and Toulon each hosted one of the photographers for ten days, with all expenses paid, while the city ofLille and the islands of Tahiti in the South Pacific—a French overseas region—each hosted two photographers.

To deepen their artistic experience and to help them navigate a new culture, curator Tim Wride supervised and mentored the young photographers, coaching them in their various host cities as well as selecting works for the current exhibition. 

Wride spent 14 years at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as a Curator in the Department of Photographs.  During his tenure, he curated over twenty-five permanent collections as well as many large exhibitions.  Currently an independent curator, Wride is founder of The Curatorial Eye, which offers lectures, seminars, workshops and mentoring to photographers, collectors and not-for-profit institutions.

Jeunes Talents is a joint project of Atout France (The France Tourism Development Agency), the Cultural Services Department of the Consulate General of France in Los Angeles, and FLAX France Los Angeles Exchange, a Los Angeles foundation dedicated to fostering a better understanding ofFrance through public and cultural art events. Other partners include Air Tahiti Nui, Rail Europe and the Tourist Office of Lille, the Regional Tourism Board of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, the Tourism Offices of Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, Arles and Toulon, Provence-Alpes Tourism International (PATI), and the Regional Tourism Board of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA).