Renowned photographers from Douglas Kirkland to Magdalena Wosinska have donated their works for a new auction at the Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles. In collaboration with the Inglewood Photography Festival, Fahey/Klein has curated a contemporary art auction to support the festival's inaugural book award. Auction proceeds will go toward funding the publication of an emerging photographer’s first art book. In addition, the winner of the book award will receive mentorship to launch their fine art career.

The auction comprises 20 pieces, ranging from dignified portraits of world leaders like former President Barack Obama to sophisticated, black and white renderings of reality star and drag queen Ru Paul. Other works depict iconic Los Angeles figures and places. Janette Beckman’s portrait of Dr. Dre leaning against the entrance to a storage hanger is a vivid slice of 1990 Torrance, CA. A 1969 Sigourney Weaver holds a hot dog in one hand, a drink in the other while standing in front of Tail O’ the Pup for a photo. The bright colors of the Juvee Skateboard Shop are given new life by Paul Jasmin’s lens.

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Some pieces venture beyond, snapshots transporting viewers to places like Zimbabwe where a man sits primly on a ladder, his silhouette in startling proportion to the giraffe shrouded in mist behind him. English photographer Nick Brandt captured this otherworldly photo in 2020. Holistically, the auction items embody the diversity and dynamism of modern photography.

The Fahey/Klein Gallery: Inglewood Photography Festival Book Award Auction 2024 is ongoing until Sept. 24. The winner of the book award will be announced during the first annual Inglewood Photography Festival in May 2025.  

You can view the Fahey/Klein Gallery: Inglewood Photography Festival Book Award Auction 2024 here.