What exactly is a photobook? This episode is with longtime artist, bookmaker, photographer, writer, translator, and editor Hans Hickerson. For the past five years or so, Immaterial Voices host Brian O’Neill has been working as a critic, or at least, writing about photobooks, as Contributing Editor at The Photobook Journal. Hans is the Managing Editor of that publication and agreed to come on the show to share his experience.

In this conversation, Hans and Brian delineate the characteristics of the photobook, and in so doing, discuss numerous famous and lesser-known examples. They discuss how they evaluate books and some that have surprised them. They especially home in on questions that concern image-text photobooks and connections to literature, such as how photobooks represent places, historical epochs, and cultures. For example, how can text be used to complement, rather than dominate imagery? In approaching these topics, Hans also explains how he got into photobooks decades ago, what it meant then versus today, and how the field has changed. He also relates some fascinating stories and insights from his encounters with the likes of Lewis Baltz, Robert Adams, Jim Goldberg, and more. During the conversation, they also talk about the challenges of distribution, art book fairs, and gallery curation.

Notes:

Fishpond Press - https://hanshickerson.com/books

Kevin Cooley’s Wizard of Awe - https://www.eriskayconnection.com/the-wizard-of-awe/

John Volynchook’s Faultlines - https://gostbooks.com/en-us/products/faultlines

Jordan Baumgarten’s Family Tree Removal - https://smog-press.xyz/collections/frontpage/products/family-tree-removal

Kult Books - https://kultbooks.com

Sleeper Studio - https://sleeper.studio/INFO

Michel Tournier - https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9780803244306/the-mirror-of-ideas/

The Yearbook Committee - https://www.theyearbookcommittee.com

Jordan Gale’s Long Distance Drunk - https://photobookjournal.com/2025/10/03/jordan-gale-long-distance-drunk/

Gary Alan Fine’s Talking Art - https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/T/bo28263673.html

Brian O’Neill - https://www.brianfoneill.net

Immaterial Books - https://www.immaterialbooks.com

Wyoming Toad - https://wyomingtoad.bandcamp.com/album/light-rail