Michael Kirchoff - An Enduring Grace

On March 18th opens Michael Kirchoff's next big solo show at Wildfire Gallery in Los Angeles.

The show is called An Enduring Grace (exploring the cultural landscape of Russia) and shows work from his series with the same title.

Michael traveled several times over a few years to Russia and explored the cultural landscape of this vast and for many of us still mysterious country. We all have very strong images in our minds of the former soviet union as a giant world power, dangerous and scary. The iron curtain was not far from us here in Germany and going to Russia was not even possible. But this is over for many years now and this enormous country has such a strong and powerful history you can find there in every stone.

You can see Michael's passion and devotion for this country in his stunning and breathtaking photographs.

His work brings us Russia a bit closer. It shows the beauty, the dramatic and monumental architecture and the vast squares and landscape we would love to explore ourselves.

An Enduring Grace at Wildfire Gallery, 640 S. San Vincente Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048

March 18th - April 30th, 2011

More of Michael Kirchoff's work can be found on his website.

All images below are from his series An Enduring Grace

© copyright all images Michael Kirchoff

Michael Kirchoff

Michael Kirchoff is a Los Angeles based photographer. He photographs with many types of cameras and film, from a toy camera to a digital model. He uses each as a tool to get exactly the results he wants to achieve. Michael's photography has been exhibited and published widely and garnered recognition from the International Photography Awards, the Prix de la Photographie in Paris and since 2006 he is an Active Board Member of the Advertising Photographers of America.

One of Michael's most recent series is An Enduring Grace

All the images below are from this beautiful, captivating and stunning series.

Here is what Michael writes about this project:

An Enduring Grace is an ongoing project based on the fascination I had with the landscape and architecture of Russia, as well as its surrounding countries and former territories that have seen much influence during it's long history. It all started out as a fulfillment of distant childhood curiosities of Russia, then the Soviet Union as a place where very few people seemed to know much about. I remember watching black and white television in my room and seeing news reporters broadcasting from the center of Red Square in Moscow. That image of St. Basil's Cathedral behind the reporter reminded me more of Disneyland rather than the evil empire of which he spoke Really, how could such a terrible place and its people be so bad when they are constructing buildings that look like that? As an adult I took it upon myself to head for Russia to see for myself, and was quickly caught up in its beauty and scope of this amazing land. I was rewarded with a culture that preserves its heritage by maintaining and even rebuilding at times, a landscape that is held so clearly by its people. No fragment of history is ever lost here.

I choose to inject my belief that these images require drama from the elements of light and shadow to give them their power, and my artistic process to give them the gritty texture and depth they so deserve. With this process I also strive to strip away the realism and highlight the dreamlike qualities of the fractured memories of my early days. Memories that are not always so clear and contain a perspective slightly askew of monuments on a grander scale. "An Enduring Grace" was born from a place where the strength and character of its people are also reflected in the landscape, cathedrals, and memories to its fallen soldiers.

Make sure to visit Michael's website. Here you can see more images from An Enduring Grace together with other wonderful projects to enjoy.

Road to Red Square, Moscow, Russia


Church of The Saviour on the Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg, Russia

Naval Cathedral, Kotlin Island, Kronstadt, Russia

Giant Lenin Head, Ulan Ude, Siberia

St. Andrei's Church, Kiev, Ukraine

Wooden Fort, Irkutsk, Siberia

Resurrection Gate, Moscow, Russia

Peter and Paul Cathedral, St. Petersburg, Russia

Maarjamäe War Memorial, Tallinn, Estonia

Kazan Cathedral, St. Petersburg, Russia

© copyright all images Michael Kirchoff

Kevin McCollister

Kevin McCollister is a Los Angeles based photographer. He just published his first book with the title East of West L.A.

His subject is the city of Los Angeles. He writes: My subject matter, muse and model is the city of Los Angeles. However, I'm very careful to only present shots of a city that I hope will overturn many of the preconceived ideas about this city as being rich and glamorous. In my experience, it is not.

You can order the book at: IF PUBLICATIONS, c/o Brooks Roddan, 1020 Palos Verdes Drive, West Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274

For more information about the book visit Kevin's blog here

For Kevin's website follow the link here

All images below are from Kevin's project East of West LA

© all images Kevin McCollister

Night of the Witches

Yesterday I got a message from Ian and Star from Shotgun Space that I am included in their Halloween Group Show "Night of the Witches"
I was really happy and excited about it. Some cool photographers and blog friends are also in it, like Liz Kuball, Shawn Gust and Greg Wasserstrom

I found out about it through Liz and would like to thank her for passing by the information.

So, if you are in Los Angeles and want to see great photographs and enjoy a fantastic Halloween party, Try to go and have fun.

Night of the Witches
Wednesday, October 31, 8–11 p.m.
Shotgun Space
2121 San Fernando Rd., Los Angeles