Interview with Jennifer Murray, executive director of Filter Photo

Filter Photo Festival is a multi-day celebration of photography that takes place every autumn in Chicago. Festival programming includes workshops, lectures, artist talks, exhibitions, and more.  We concurrently run workshops during the four days of the Festival.

Filter Photo is a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, Illinois.

Filter Photo’s mission is two-fold: first, to serve and support the photographic communities of Chicago and the Midwest; and second, to highlight Chicago as a vital center of the national photographic community. Since 2009 Filter Photo has organized the annual Filter Photo Festival, a multi-day celebration of photography that includes workshops, lectures, exhibition receptions, artist talks, and other diverse programming. A primary component of the Festival is the portfolio reviews, through which photographers are able to connect with national and international curators, gallery directors, editors, and other elite professionals.

In 2015 Filter Photo opened Filter Space, a permanent gallery and project space located in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood at 1821 West Hubbard Street, Suite 207. Filter Space hosts regular social, educational, and professional development activities, including exhibitions, workshops, and lectures. [Filter Photo Festival]

Can you please introduce yourself for those who don’t know?

I’m Jennifer Murray, the executive director of Filter Photo.

Could you tell me a little bit about Filter Photo Festival and the team that stands behind it?

Filter Photo Festival is a multi-day celebration of photography that takes place every autumn in Chicago. Festival programming includes workshops, lectures, artist talks, exhibitions, and more.  We concurrently run workshops during the four days of the Festival. While workshops and portfolio reviews are paid events, we also have an equal number of free events that are open to the public.

There are artist talks during a two-hour lunch break when reviews aren’t taking place. We also have a lot of evening programming including exhibition receptions and an evening speaker.  Rodrigo Valenzeula is our speaker this year. 

The portfolio walk offers an opportunity for everyone, all the VIPs and all of the attendees and people that are coming in from the Chicago community to see a lot of photography. For me, it’s the best night because I haven’t actually seen anybody’s work for several days! I see what’s happening in the review room, and I see what’s happening in workshops, but I don’t actually get to see anyone’s work until the night of the portfolio walk. I’m always so impressed with the diversity of work that is being presented, and the quality of work is really high.

Filter Photo is run by a small team of part-time staff including me, Erin Hoyt, and Caitlin Peterson.  This year will be Erin’s 9th Festival and we couldn’t do it without her knowledge and organizational skills.  We also have a very supportive Board of Directors that help out during the Festival in very tangible ways – from hosting parties to loading cars with supplies.  Additionally, we hire a support team of production assistants to help with the day-to-day Festival tasks.

What motivated you to start a festival of photography?

Sarah Hadley founded Filter in 2008, and she quickly began working with James Pepper Kelly. The two of them together really built this organization with Erin Hoyt. They started with a small handful of portfolio reviews in a half a day, and since then, Filter has grown and grown. It was initially just the Festival, and in 2015 they added a permanent location and gallery space.  I came on as the executive director in 2016.

In general, what is the goal of Filter Photo Festival?

We hope that people find a great networking event that inspires their photography practice.  It’s an opportunity to meet with peers and share ideas as well as connect with professionals who can provide feedback and career advice.  

What is the secret of making a festival of photography successful?

Organization!  There are so many moving parts and we hope that everything goes smoothly, and people can focus on their practice and have a great festival experience.  We intentionally keep Filter Photo Festival a smaller festival so it is a more intimate experience than what one may find at a larger event.

Can you tell us a bit about the process behind program and exhibition curation?

For the solo exhbitions we host an annual call for proposals that are reviewed by a committee comprised of photography professionals.  We change the committee annually, so artists can be exposed to a different group of professionals each year.  The diversity of voices on the committee keeps our exhibition program fresh and innovative year after year.

Group exhibitions and other programs are curated from among staff and the board of directors. For example, we may invite a juror for a group exhibition based on our previous experience with that person and programs like our Photography Book Club are initiated by board members or other members of the community.

Looking towards the future, how do you see fairs or festivals of photography in general, and Filter Photo Festival specifically, evolving if at all –in terms of function and meaning?

I see a lot of the portfolio review experience moving to an online review platform.  But, I don’t think that is the best way to go.  Fairs and festivals tend to divide people as reviewer or attendee due to the nature of the ways portfolio reviews are conducted – both in person and online.  As much as we, and other festivals, try to create opportunities for everyone to mix and mingle it is still about which side of the table you are on.  I’d like to see a more holistic experience of looking and talking about photographs akin to what happens in a group critique situation.  We have developed a program at Filter Photo Festival called Roaming Reviews – which are free and open to the public each day.  There is one reviewer and often a group of artists that want to share work.  While it is still a review experience, it is more group oriented where everyone can participate in the conversation and join the critique.  For me, this is the true meaning of a festival – like-minded people coming together to share and learn about contemporary photography.

What advice would you like to offer other artists that might help them learn to better promote their work?

Research is such an overlooked component.  Not only digging deep into your own work but researching other artists – contemporary and historical that have an influence on you.  What work inspires you, whose career are you following, how are those artists promoting their work, how can you learn from who came before you?

How would you sum up contemporary photography?

I think it’s constantly shifting, but today contemporary work has a social and conceptual component.  Strong photographic work that may originate from a very personal place transcends the personal and is relatable on a societal and often global scale.  Photographers that are exclusively focused on form and aesthetics will have difficulty finding a place for their work in the current contemporary photography world.

Are there any future projects you are excited about and would like to share with us?

We’ll be launching a new website later this year.  It’s a major overhaul that not only will be more interesting to look at and navigate but will allow us to integrate more content beyond just the informational.  More images of course, but also Interviews with artists and exhibition -based essays will be available on the site.  We are excited about the opportunity to work with writers in our community in the development of this new content area.

In closing, is there anything you would like to say about Filter Photo Festival or team?

Come see us in Chicago!  We are always looking to broaden our community and share our passion for contemporary photography.

More Stories

Maren Klemp ; The darker sides of the human mind

Maren Klemp ; The darker sides of the human mind

My current interests in photography encompasses self portraiture, black and white photography in general and the use of vintage photographic equipment that infuses my images with a timeless dimension.
Block Factory by Hamed AlGhanboosi

Block Factory by Hamed AlGhanboosi

Brick-Klin means a Kiln in which blocks of clay are baked into bricks. The women workers in the brick industry are subjected to extreme working conditions and poor remuneration.
New Orleans to Nashville by Benjamin Angel

New Orleans to Nashville by Benjamin Angel

A large part of modern music is born in the cities located between New Orleans and Nashville. New Orleans (Louisiana) is the birth place of jazz music. It is still packed with jazz clubs around the Faubourg Marigny and on the (in)famous Bourbon street.
https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/bannerpr.jpg

We invite you to participate in the first edition of the Portrait Photography Awards. Our call is open to any artistic interpretation of portrait photography.

https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/BAnImage.jpg

ImageRights provides intelligent image search and copyright enforcement services to photo agencies and professional photographers worldwide.

https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/mono2022.jpg

The best 100 images along with the winning images published in the yearly book “Monochromatic – Best Photographers of 2022”

https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/banner24.jpg

Call For Entries #24 | After 23 editions and more than 100 published photographers, our print edition has proven to be a simply effective promotional channel.

Lanzarote by Alfons Olle Coderch

Lanzarote by Alfons Olle Coderch

It was’nt the first time that the island was faced with strong changes in its morphology, although unlike the one that nature itself in the garden of Yaiza led to bury it under the black mantle of lava, entered the night of that September 1, 1730 when the earth opened up
Inside the camera bag of Efrat Sela

Inside the camera bag of Efrat Sela

In addition to what I regularly take – the Lowepro bag, Newswear bag, which I finds very comfortable and appropriate for some days, My Canon camera , all variety of lenses- Canon 24 F2.8, Canon 16-35 f 2.8, Canon 24-105 F4, and Canon 50 f1.8.
Japanese Vending Machines by Douglas Edward Caplan

Japanese Vending Machines by Douglas Edward Caplan

This project explores the colorful world of Japanese vending machines. Japan has 5.52 million vending machines spread across the country.
The Great Red Paranoia by Revaz Kacharava

The Great Red Paranoia by Revaz Kacharava

I have always wondered whether such historical figures as Stalin experienced any remorse. How did those cruel decisions made by them influence their psyche?
Lightpainting by Christopher Noelle

Lightpainting by Christopher Noelle

Since 2003 Chris has a deep focus on the theme of lightpainting-photography and lightart-animation. By his permanent experimental research and development he´s today one of the pioneers in the international lightpainting-scene.
Southern Province by Vassilis Konstantinou

Southern Province by Vassilis Konstantinou

In the context of this wandering, the photographer direct his gaze and lens to things simultaneously familiar and unfamiliar, focusing on the intermediate zones between the past and the present
Loneliness(es) by Antoine Buttafoghi

Loneliness(es) by Antoine Buttafoghi

By necessity, choice or bad luck ... loneliness can take many forms. Whether it comes from punishment or, on the contrary, from a reward, it can go along with freedom, but does not hate disarray!
The Darkness of Los Angeles by Christina Czybik

The Darkness of Los Angeles by Christina Czybik

Dark and almost pessimistic with low key lights, strange to social problems situations and elements of Hollywood in the bigger picture.
Yamal by Marco Marcone

Yamal by Marco Marcone

Yamal, in the language of the indigenous Nenets who inhabit this land, means "the end of the world"; It is a remote, windswept place, characterized by permafrost, by lakes and rivers and is the land of reindeer breeders for over a thousand years.
Marta Pareja; Le musée vivant

Marta Pareja; Le musée vivant

When I began to explore the small communites from La Sarthe (a french region), of no more than 3,000 inhabitants each, I took on the attude of a stroller: someone who wanders aimlessly, letng herself be carried away by intuiton.
The Photography of Elena Oganesyan

The Photography of Elena Oganesyan

People tend to hide their innermost feelings. We don’t like to discuss them or express them in daily life. Through photography I connect with my own hidden fears and desires – I can fix my inner chaos.
Chatting with Adrien Tache

Chatting with Adrien Tache

When I was much younger, I came across the famous picture of Nick Ut, a Vietnamese war photographer, which left a mark on me.
Unusual Family Peculiarities by Josip Miskovic

Unusual Family Peculiarities by Josip Miskovic

This project narrate my search for belonging and describe my evolution as a photographer, conducted over the last three years, in which I lived as a stranger or “migrant” in a foreign land
In the heart of the Omo valley tribes by Benjamin Angel

In the heart of the Omo valley tribes by Benjamin Angel

The Omo Valley, located in the south west of Ethiopia, is home to a number of fascinating tribes, which have kept their traditions and a spectacular appearance. This photographic project  is built around two tribes, the Mursi and the Karo.  All photos have been taken in natural conditions, with the consent of the villagers.
The Secret Question by Nicoletta Cerasomma

The Secret Question by Nicoletta Cerasomma

A public address. The backroom of a grocery store, the locker room of a barber. A secret bar. Another story: hidden, intimate, romantic, alcoholic, illegal, forbidden.
Pulikali – a folk art of Kerala by Rishi Devarajan

Pulikali – a folk art of Kerala by Rishi Devarajan

It is also called 'Kaduvakali', the folk art form of Kerala which is performed by a trained artist. The origin of pulikali dates back to over 200 years

Featured Stories

Nice Nosing You by Elke Vogelsang

Nice Nosing You by Elke Vogelsang

Born in 1972 Elke Vogelsang turned her professional life upside down later in life to leave a smoothly running and profitable but dull job as a translator to pursue what she loves - photography.
Gabriel Isak ; Experiences of the soul

Gabriel Isak ; Experiences of the soul

His imagery entails surreal and melancholic scenes inspired by the inner world of dreams and psychology, where he invites the viewer to interact with the internal world of solitary figures
Conceptual photography; In Pain by Ramak Bamzar

Conceptual photography; In Pain by Ramak Bamzar

‘In Pain’ a series, exploring the subject of suffering. Pain is a universal human experience. Defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage."
Golden Gate; The Bridge, Reconstructed by Michael Yuan

Golden Gate; The Bridge, Reconstructed by Michael Yuan

I wanted to challenge the perceptions of the Golden Gate Bridge. In solid red-orange and spanning 1.7 miles long, the Golden Gate Bridge is an icon of San Francisco.
Bin Uthup ; City-Monochrome

Bin Uthup ; City-Monochrome

Binoy Uthup is a City, Architecture, Interior, Landscape and Wildlife photographer who uses techniques such as Digital Blending, HDR, multiple exposures, vertical panorama, etc., to create unique looking images.
Irish Travellers by Bob Newman

Irish Travellers by Bob Newman

Irish Travellers refer to themselves as Pavees or Minkiers, having lived on the margins of society for many hundreds of years. They number about 40,000 in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Covid; Portrait series by Alkan Emin

Covid; Portrait series by Alkan Emin

Covid had struck planet earth and I was literally lost in all of my thoughts. I had these visions of the world ending and I felt like I was in a prison in my mind with all of this. 
Urban kaleidoscope by Shoji Fujita

Urban kaleidoscope by Shoji Fujita

Every time I look into my camera, it is as if I am looking through a wonderful world of kaleidoscope. As I spend time observing and capturing the sun's creations.
The Mara by Anup Shah

The Mara by Anup Shah

I live in the wild for long stretches of time. Inevitably, I fall under the spell of wild animals. It dawns on me that these are intelligent, emotional, social and personable beings. I connect with their sentience.
Creating stories; Sweet dreams of Simon McCheung

Creating stories; Sweet dreams of Simon McCheung

I used to draw my inspirations for concepts from my own recent and childhood dreams. Most of which I don’t actually remember the context, sometimes I remember objects, people or locations, however the one thing that always gives me the lasting impression was the last feeling you get during and after the dream.
Andrea Rossato ; Joy for all ages …

Andrea Rossato ; Joy for all ages …

Summer holidays at sea is a time of joy and fun for all ages. Sometimes the seniors become kids again, other times parents play jokes on children. The social rules are, thus, often broken, creating in this way brand new relationships.
Roadside motel by Fang Tong

Roadside motel by Fang Tong

The “ Roadside motel” series is a continuation of last year's project “ On the Road”. Life is a journey. People always look around while they are on the road.
Reflecting on Nature by Loreal Prystaj

Reflecting on Nature by Loreal Prystaj

There is no such thing as compromising with nature; we simply abide by how it lives and exist as a part of it. Nature is very relevant to each individual’s well-being, but more so than it is part of us, we are part of it.
Tokyo by Manol Valtchanov

Tokyo by Manol Valtchanov

Tokyo had always been a special place to me from my first visit. Since then, each of my travels there has meant a sort of break dedicated to an emotional research and sometimes even more to an inspirational flat-out.
Calcio Storico Fiorentino by Marco Ponzianelli

Calcio Storico Fiorentino by Marco Ponzianelli

The Historical Football was born in Florence in the 16th century and it is a combination of soccer, rugby and wrestling world that nowadays is played in historical costumes.
Life and culture in Ethiopia by Trevor Cole

Life and culture in Ethiopia by Trevor Cole

These images are a cross section of the diversity of life and culture in Ethiopia. The tribes of the Omo valley, the Afar of the Danakil desert and the Orthodox christians of the highlands.

Trending Stories

Sleep paralysis by Nicolas Bruno

Sleep paralysis by Nicolas Bruno

Sleep paralysis is an experience in which the individual becomes conscious and is left immobile in a state between being awake and asleep.
Julio Castro : Landscape Photography

Julio Castro : Landscape Photography

The project Landscapes of the world is a small sample of some of the places and locations that I have liked and impacted the most during my travels around the world. With them I have tried to reflect and give my vision of how beautiful is the nature and the world in which we live
Faces and situations; Street photography by Thomas Leuthard

Faces and situations; Street photography by Thomas Leuthard

Some people my think that this is not nice, rude or against the law. But since I cannot ask people I shoot upfront, I have to point my camera towards them and press the "trigger".
Childhood Lost by Justyna Neryng

Childhood Lost by Justyna Neryng

Childhood Lost is an ongoing autobiographycal project (self portrait in a different body) exploring the nature of portraiture and memory.
Tubetopia by Romeo

Tubetopia by Romeo

On the underground people are forced to stay in a tight space next to each other, and, even though it's only for a short time, they share unique experiences that will vanish forever once they leave.
Emma Sywyj ; Photography

Emma Sywyj ; Photography

Emma Sywyj has been an artist for 14 years, 4 of those years she was based in London whilst studying photography at the Camberwell College of Arts at the UAL.
Thomas Alleman : The Gilded Giant – Photographs of New York City

Thomas Alleman : The Gilded Giant – Photographs of New York City

Thomas Alleman was born and raised in Detroit, where his father was a traveling salesman and his mother was a ceramic artist. He graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in English Literature.
Fiori Morti: The Beauty of Death by Rob Linsalata

Fiori Morti: The Beauty of Death by Rob Linsalata

There is beauty in death. Nature teaches us this. Just as Butterflies live for one dance before they part ways with one another and life, flowers grow more beautiful as they die.
Interview with Scott Bourne

Interview with Scott Bourne

Scott's been involved with photography for more than four decades and is an internationally-recognized thought leader and artist. His work has appeared in more than 200 publications and he’s received hundreds of industry awards for his photography.
Arhaic by Stefan Neagu

Arhaic by Stefan Neagu

"Arhaic" project is made using archaic traditional romanian projections and solarisation, a representation of an original spirit that lives in us.
The Midway by Diana Bloomfield

The Midway by Diana Bloomfield

The Midway is an ongoing series which I began in 1998. These images of the North Carolina State Fair were made with a 4x5 pinhole camera and large format b&w film.
Arriving somewhere by Rajarshi Chakraborty

Arriving somewhere by Rajarshi Chakraborty

LIFE, entire life is a journey. The journey that brings us happiness and also gives us pain. Leads us to various adventures and limitless possibilities. It enhances us with lots of experiences and provides us the energy to continue further.

Other Stories

stay in touch
Join our mailing list and we'll keep you up to date with all the latest stories, opportunities, calls and more.
We use Sendinblue as our marketing platform. By Clicking below to submit this form, you acknowledge that the information you provided will be transferred to Sendinblue for processing in accordance with their terms of use
We’d love to
Thank you for subscribing!
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted.
- Between 10/30 images of your best images, in case your project contains a greater number of images which are part of the same indivisible body of work will also be accepted. You must send the images in jpg format to 1200px and 72dpi and quality 9. (No borders or watermarks)
- A short biography along with your photograph. (It must be written in the third person)
- Title and full text of the project with a minimum length of 300 words. (Texts with lesser number of words will not be accepted)
This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Contact
How can we help? Got an idea or something you'd like share? Please use the adjacent form, or contact contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted. This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation.
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Get in Touch
How can we help? Got an idea or something you'd like share? Please use the adjacent form, or contact contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.