Life in Plain Sight: The First 25 Years of Hamburger Eyes
Various Photographers | November 16, 2026 – January 16, 2027
About the Hamburger Eyes
Hamburger Eyes is a black and white photography magazine. Publishing since 2001, Hamburger Eyes has developed it’s own signature brand of photography and provided an outlet for both upcoming and established photographers worldwide.
Hamburger Eyes has produced over 200 titles of zines, magazines, and books alongside countless exhibitions, commissions, and collaborations of all shapes and sizes.
Hamburger Eyes is based in California and is looking forward to working with you.
Life in Plain Sight
The Gallery at Leica Store San Francisco is pleased to present Life in Plain Sigh: The First 25 Years of Hamburger Eyes, an exhibition in collaboration with Hamburger Eyes, celebrating a quarter century of independent photography and its enduring contribution to the Bay Area’s photographic community.
Founded in 2001 by Ray Potes, alongside David Potes and Stefan Simikich, Hamburger Eyes began as an independent photo zine and has grown into an influential platform for documentary and street photography. Through by Potes’ vision and dedication, the publication has cultivated a distinctive photographic voice, championing photographers who capture the world with curiosity, honesty, and unfiltered eyes
Life unfolds in the spaces between the extraordinary and the ordinary. A fleeting gesture, a passing stranger, a quiet corner, or a moment of unexpected beauty can reveal something profound about the world we inhabit. These fragments of everyday existence often go unnoticed, yet they hold the stories, contradictions, and poetry of being alive. To photograph life in plain sight is to pay attention, to recognize meaning in the seemingly insignificant, and to discover the extraordinary within the familiar.
Bringing together the spirit of Hamburger Eyes and the photographers who have shaped its journey, this exhibition reflects 25 years of looking closely at the world. It is a tribute to Ray Potes’ vision, the independent voices behind the images, and the creative community that has grown alongside the publication. At its heart is a simple powerful idea: photography invites us to pause, look again, and find new meaning in the world right before our eyes.
Featured artists:
Olivier Bekaert • Bill Daniel • Brandon Getty • Dave Glass • Matt Gomes • Ben Gore
Sal Hernandez • Alex Herzog • Troy Holden • Michael Jang • Kappy • Austin Leong
Chris Leskovsek • Alex Martinez • Sean Maung • Dennis McGrath • Oscar Mendoza
Mark Murrmann • David Nelsonhospers • Arthur Pollock • David Potes • Ray Potes
Ted Pushinsky • Reuben Radding • Jason Roberts Dobrin • David Root • Zach Rubin
Dan Ryan • Maximilian Schneller • Jai Tanju • Elmo Tide • Dave Uzzardi • Kanoa Zimmerman
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