Ideas for new work

I finished my semester at SVA a few weeks ago, so I've had some time to think about new ideas, and how I want to execute them. I'll be taking film, video, and drawing classes this summer, so I'l have a chance to work them out in those forms. Most of my new ideas rely on co-operation with other artists. I will need people to submit me negatives, forms, prints, etc. I'm hoping that I can use this blog as a place to meet people who want to collaborate and submit for my projects. I know there is a huge artistic community using the internet and blogs, I'm just looking for the most tactful and effective way to utilize these connections. Soon I will post more specifically about what it is I am looking for, for right now I'm just figuring out the kinks of how to logistically use this process. Any pointers or ideas? I'd love to hear them. Thanks - Eric

Spring Break!

My break is almost over and I'm 25 today. Over the week I went to a great lecture by Vik Muniz at the 92nd street Y. He spoke and gave a slideshow of his work for about an hour and a half. Vik's ideas are so smart and simple and he backs them up with great speaking and writing.
Also, I got to see the Achive Fever show at the ICP which is really great but daunting. I think I'll be going back to see it again as I couldn't really absorb everything in one visit.
I haven't gone to see the Whitney Biennial or Color Chart yet, but I'm looking forward to seeing them soon. Has anyone else seen them? What are your thoughts? I'm still re-drafting my proposal statement for this blog, and I will have the revised one up soon. Thanks for the feedback on the original. - Eric

Introduction

I'm starting this blog to open up the discussion on success in contemporary art photography.

Success has become very formulaic for all but a few contemporary photographers. Unfortunately the "booming" art market of today has set up a hierarchy of money over ideas. Today's collectors and critics seem more interested in the monetary value of pieces than their originality. Most of what is written about photography today is journalistic and speaks of insignificant details of the artist's process, but doesn't tackle the important themes of the artists' ideas.

Photographers tend to overlook the history of their medium and repeat the patterns of work from previous generations without expanding or evolving the ideas into something new. Today young artists (and this is in all mediums) are exhibited right out of school. Many artists are unable to live up to this initial success and expand their ideas past the current fads. They endlessly repeat themselves and their peers. Many artists today are making work for the gallery market and not for themselves. Are young artists not thinking about these problems? What can be done about them? Can we change photography? How can we make ideas more important than money and notoriety?

I'm starting a project to document the paths and ingredients for a successful career in photography. I'm studying and analyzing the ways in which photographers find success in today's art world, and I would love to hear other people's opinions and experiences about success and contemporary photography.