Maybe it's a symptom of living in a city in which the so-called 'great' are also grand self-promoters, but it surprises me to see that The Photographers' Gallery have been relatively quiet about their public programme since their reopening in a new building.  Of course they opened with a bang - a superstar show of large-scale work by Edward Burtynsky that would not have looked out of place at a much larger public museum - but returning to the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize this year, it's a much more gentle affair and shows a very different side to the gallery.

The four nominated artists, each vying for their name to be the one written across a cheque worth £30,000, are Pieter Hugo, Rinko Kawauchi, John Stezaker and Christopher Williams.  There are a few notable things about each of these artists.  The first thing to notice is John Stezaker, and the huge retrospective of his work at Whitechapel Gallery last year (for which he has been nominated for this award) and the large amount of positive press it received.  Clearly, he's a contender here.  The other thing to notice about Stezaker is that he is not a photographer, rather he works with existing photographs.  It's an interesting story in which to read this year's selection.

Hugo is a young South African, nominated for his publication Permanent Error, a review of a dump for technological waste on the outskirts of Accra, Ghana.  Rinko Kawauchi is nominated for her publication Illuminance.  Her photography, in this reviewer's humble opinion, is truly beautiful (her's is the leader photo for this post).  The final nominee si Christopher Williams, an LA-based conceptual photographer, nominated for his exhibition Kapitalischer Realismum in Budweis, Czech Republic.  It is quite a straightforward list, ultimately.  It's the notable differences that make Stezaker stand out, though Hugo is a talented picture maker, and one whose talent is growing incrementally.  We applaud them, and look forward to repeat visits to The Photographers' Gallery, because shows like this are temptingly well-hung.

The Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2012 is at The Photographers' Gallery until 09 September.

Luke Fowler won the inaugural Jarman Award in 2008, at thirty years old, and he had a solo show at Serpentine Gallery the following year.  The Guardian raved about his work at the time, calling these works "two of the most fascinating films of recent years."  He is currently the ICA's resident artist, and tomorrow night they screen Fowler's works A Grammar for Listening (Parts 1, 2 and 3).

These films were made in collaboration with artists Lee Paterson, Eric La Casa and Toshiya Tsunoda.  They take as their starting point the historical attempt to locate and classify noise, music and commonplace sounds.  What is the relationship between sound and vision?

In a throwback to sixties' conceptualism, Fowler purges the allusive or manipulative context of sound in relation to the filmed moving image.  With these works, Fowler is commenting as much on the unique grammar of imagery as much as he is the space which sound inhabits.  These are real foundational, vital ideas about how sound functions and how we react to and navigate through it.  These are all quite conceptual terms but, trust me, these are very engaging films and a great way to start a Saturday night in the West End.

Artists' Film Club: A Grammar for Listening (Parts 1, 2 and 3) by Luke Fowler is at the ICA tomorrow, 21 July.

There's a surprising amount of photography created by female artists in the 1980s and early 1990s that is sad, tender, and that paints a metaphorical portrait of loneliness in women in the latter part of the twentieth century.  Jo Spence died of breast cancer in 1992.  Many of her works were self portraits that depicted her struggle with the illness.  Following Part I, Studio Voltaire present Jo Spence: Work II, and a reengagement with her pictures.

It is often said of Jo Spence that her work is not technically finessed.  It is a bit rough around the edges, and a light version of the role playing work of artists like Cindy Sherman.  Similar to Sherman and the great photographers of the period, Spence's work crosses a number of boundaries.  She was an activist first and foremost.  Her pictures represent the struggle to project her own voice.  Creating the pictures themselves was the struggle to find her own voice.  This is a body of work that asks whether it is right or wrong to allow a woman to speak for herself, without mediation - be it the NHS, be it social convention.  The answer to this question is straightforward; the act is far more intricate than you may have ever realised.

Jo Spence: Work (Part II) is at Studio Voltaire until 11 August.