As I sit here today looking out on the terrace garden at Eastman House, I am completely full with anticipation and excitement for the next chapter. Just yesterday we announced our new director, Dr. Bruce Barnes.

An overarching message of change was the focus of the press conference and Bruce Barnes’ conversation with his new team. We are all looking forward to fresh ideas and energy for the museum, and to continuing the global education of preservation, history, and the future of photography and motion pictures.

Dr. Bruce Barnes, the new Ron and Donna Fielding Director

September 27, 2012

After the Olympics wind down, and some much deserved rest is had, Abby Wambach will return to her hometown, Rochester N.Y. to participate in the project, The Hands That Make Rochester. The photography project will capture 25 images of the hands of people shaping today’s Rochester.

It was George Eastman’s dream to make the city a “better place to live and work.” He made his vision a reality by giving back in the fields that help enrich the community, including arts, culture, health, corporate and civic life, and education.

In that same spirit, the museum along with world-renowned photographer, Gary Schneider will highlight the people who are working to make the city a better and stronger community for all.

“I consider handprint portraits to be as expressive as any of a face, more private, and possibly more revealing. They do not reveal race and, often, neither gender nor age,” said Schneider, who borrows his unique technique from the ancient caves of Lascaux, the Shroud of Turin, and 19th-century spirit photography.

So here’s to Abby and the rest of the Hands That Make Rochester. We are so very proud of you.

May/June 2012

Last year, when the Museum’s two bi-monthly publications were merged into one the need to save funds and the wish to make varieties of content available to our many audiences necessitated quick action. Unfortunately there wasn’t a great deal of time to plan. The intent was to make changes as issues progressed and many who receive the publication were quite patient as Films & Events evolved.

For about the last six months, staff from the Communications and Visitor Engagement, Motion Picture, and Development departments have been meeting regularly in a conference room on the 2nd floor of the house to discuss a much-desired overhaul of Films & Events. Discussions centered around what to include (and exclude), the best format for delivery of the most interesting content, and how the publication could best serve our current and potential members as well as the Museum’s mission. All of the discussion was fed by the enormous amount of feedback we’ve received about our publications from members and readers in the extended Eastman House family.

That joint team is pleased to be launching the new version of Films & Events with the May/June 2012 issue. You’ll find that the new publication’s tighter language and more-fluid magazine layout allows for expanded content in the form of features, profiles, behind-the-scenes info, and highlights of recent online posting. The goal of this F&E (as we call it in-house) is to engage our audiences in more creative and interesting ways and increase flexibility of content — all while not significantly increasing the associated costs or adding to staff time.

You can still get Films & Events mailed to your home, a benefit of Museum membership and a subscription to the bi-monthly publication is now included with each purchase of a Dryden Theatre Take-10 pass. Additionally you’ll be able to read e-versions of each issue on the publications page that can be found under “The Museum” in the top navigation bar at www.eastmanhouse.org.

In the mean time, here is a link to the first issue. We welcome your feedback at info@geh.org. And on behalf of the staff thank you, as always, for your interest and support.

Amy Schelemanow is the Publications Manager/Creative Director and is managing editor of Eastman House’s publications Films & Events and Image magazine. Her work for George Eastman House has won numerous regional and national awards. Additionally, Schelemanow has been an adjunct instructor at Rochester Institute of Technology and designs exposure the journal of the Society for Photographic Education.