With its first international juried exhibition, The Detroit Center for Contemporary Photography gives Detroiters an unprecedented view of the enigmatic world of modern photography. Guest Juror Nancy Barr commented, “In viewing such an amazing range of work, submitted without any prescribed theme or definable territory, I found that subjects, styles and interpretations relevant to contemporary photographic practice are, perhaps, deliberately indefinable, without categorization and absolutely limitless.” Barr, who is also the associate curator for the Department of Prints, Drawings and Photographs at the Detroit Institute of Arts, added she felt “the most compelling submissions were those not bound to photographic traditions of the past, specifically those traditions informed by narrative structure or the medium of black-and-white photography.” As a result, many of the images seem to be the artists confrontation of our sometimes-mundane daily lives. From boxes that sit precariously stacked in shopping carts, costumed figures jumping across an open field or the symmetry of a ferry interrupted by passengers, the clean, mostly color digital images in this show clearly convey the motive of the photographer. Despite recent trends in photography (mostly found on blogs influenced by Ryan McGinley and Terry Richardson) for apathy, candid, and poorly exposed images, and even though Barr explains that she was particularly drawn to prints lacking narrative, the works in this show have been technically perfected and thoughtfully conceived. This show looks past the surface of contemporary photography and exposes images that shed new light on the practice.

The Detroit Center for Creative Photography (DCCP) was founded in 2010 by its Director and Chief Curator Kyohei Abe. Originally located in Pontiac, the gallery opened at the Russell Industrial Center this summer and still stands as the only venue in the Metro-Detroit area specifically focusing on contemporary photo- and lens-based work. According to Abe, “The goal is for us to cultivate the photography art community in Detroit.” Events like this exhibition are bringing international artists to Detroit while exposing local talent to the rest of the world. Abe added, “This exhibit was put together very quickly, only one month for people to submit, and we had over 100 submissions in that short time. After the artists were picked, they only had a little over two weeks to send everything in. That’s how much people really want to have their work shown in Detroit.” The 38 artists in the show came from as far as Europe, Germany, New York, Texas and Kentucky. The Detroit Center for Creative Photography is trying to think locally while acting globally. It is a hybrid gallery showing work online and using social media to promote fine art photography and has already accumulated more than 3,000 likes on its Facebook page.

In regards to exporting Detroit photography, Abe added, “If we are trying to do just a local thing, we can’t break the barrier, the big shell that we have in the art community here. My philosophy is to do it a little differently, most people try to break the shell from the inside, like tapping all the time, but why not utilize the help from outside, so we can break the shells and become international? We are trying to involve the community but also branch it out to others, and that’s a great and healthy exchange.” The Detroit Center for Creative Photography is certainly an inspiring place to visit and a much-needed advocate for the Detroit Arts Community. This first show brought together an impressive collection of images that set a high standard of quality for the Center’s future shows and happenings. I look forward to what the next steps will be, including Open Show Detroit, a platform for photographers to present and receive feedback on their work. The next one is scheduled for Oct. 28.

The Detroit Center For Contemporary Photography is open Tuesday from 2 to 5 p.m., Wednesday from 2 to 5 p.m., Thursday from 2 to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. It is located  in the Russell Industrial Center, Building 2, 1st floor at 1600 Clay St., Detroit, Mich. 48211. The “1st Annual Juried Exhibition” runs until Oct. 15.