contact blog

NEW WEBSITE

2011-09-19T15:15:00.006+01:00

We're launching a new website for Contact Editions! We'll be integrating the blog into the website, as well adding new features such as extended articles, interviews and a bundle of new editions! Please be patient with us over the next couple of days whilst we transfer sites. Please redirect to www.contacteditions.co.uk to continue following.

Chris Engman

2011-08-11T14:36:00.000+01:00

Chris Engman's images are the result of meticulous interventions in the landscape, manipulating shapes and scenes with sculpture and shadow:

"My photographs are documentations of sculptures and installations but they are also records of actions and elaborate processes. Days are spent, sometimes with a crew but more often in solitude, silently driving, carrying supplies, erecting structures and sets, and studying the slow progress of the sun overhead and its all-powerful, comfort-giving and –taking effects. Created in close collaboration with the movements of the sun, precisely observed, I see my photographs as acts of reverence and participation in a deep, reassuring natural order outside of and much larger than myself."

Melanie Stidolph

2011-08-10T15:02:00.000+01:00

Melanie Stidolph is part of the Tri-pod group (whose first collective show opens at Hotshoe Gallery tomorrow), and took part in the question and answer sessions that Miranda Gavin ran at our last VS slideshow event. Her current work in progress plays with the assumed human action and attachment to photography, by placing cameras outside and relinquishing control, allowing animal movement to set off the trigger.

Kristine Potter

2011-08-10T14:26:00.000+01:00

Kristine Potter's project “The Gray Line,” (2005 – 2010) explores her feelings about the military and examines the associated ideas of heroism and masculinity. Found via.

Seba Kurtis: Drowned

2011-08-08T16:03:00.003+01:00

Get yourself to Cafe Oto in Dalston this evening for the launch of Seba Kurtis' first book, Drowned, published by HERE. We're huge fans of Seba's work, which so very often documents personal stories of migration, the images wearing the marks and scars of the journey. The launch will be soundtracked by Brian Shimkovitz of Awesome Tapes from Africa.

We have a print from Seba Kurtis' project A few days more available on Contact Editions here.

UPDATE: Due to the riots in Hackney Seba's book launch unfortunately had to be postponed. Keep an eye on the HERE site for updates.

Kate Peters

2011-08-08T12:54:00.003+01:00

Beautiful images by Kate Peters from her project Stranger than Fiction.

Margate Photo Festival

2011-08-08T12:26:00.002+01:00

Image by Wandering Bears

Head down to the coast for Margate Photo Festival next weekend, as the festival opens its second edition. Showcasing a range of both emerging and established photographers, including a large group show curated by the young collective Wandering Bears, a photo book exhibition curated by Various Points and an installation based on @earth, a book by Peter Kennard, it promises to be an interesting weekend by the sea.

Mathieu Bernard-Raymond

2011-08-02T23:18:00.007+01:00

Mathieu Bernard-Raymond from the series TV

We had the pleasure of meeting Mathieu in Arles this year. Mathieu's work is a smart combination of digital and analogue imagery, both 'real' and 'fictional'. I particularly like his series TV, in which his own sparse urban photographs become populated with unsteady cut outs of vaguely familiar figures, the point not being whether we find familiarity in their faces, the archetypes they represent or simply the analogue lines dissecting the figures.

"When I take photographs I try to expose the paradox of the image in its resemblance to the paradox of our existence now: a perpetual back and forth between the imaginary and the real, a vital yet doomed-in-advance striving to know where we are."

Lucas Blalock

2011-07-25T18:17:00.005+01:00

Antenne Books feature some great zines and independent photography books, I particularly have my eye on Towards a Warm Math by Lucas Blalock. The accompanying blurb for the book, leads nicely into the images, explaining little but leading your imagination around the images:

"An orange extension cord on a similarly orange background. She puzzled over this adjacency in the corner of the supply room. She worked as a costume maker for the opera of a small liberal arts college. She drove the requisite station wagon of Swedish origin and owned a home with real wood trim, deep wood trim, that was older than her and had been refinished many times. She took the extension cord back to her machine and attempted to plug it in. The outlet was upside down in the wall and she fumbled with the cord a bit. Her coworker asked if she could turn the radio on. She agreed as the plug made solid contact with the wall and the sewing machine made a low humming sound." John Houck

You can read an interview with Lucas on toomuchchocolate here.

Lucas Blalock, untitled (deck prism?), 2009

Lucas Blalock, shramps and peanuts, 2010

Les Rencontres d'Arles

2011-07-18T16:52:00.025+01:00

Thomas Mailaender's pottery in From Here On

On return from our wonderful trip to Les Rencontres d'Arles 2011, it's taken us a little while to digest the sheer volume of work we consumed, in amongst meeting a host of inspiring individuals, attending talks, events and of course soaking up a bit of the beautiful town that is Arles.

This year's edition of Arles saw a focus on the itchy feet of the photographic industry, exploring the new directions and movements of image making. The rather hyperbolic key show 'From Here On', which showcased artists who work primarily with the proliferation of images available online, fast became the talking point of the festival. From Here On, curated by Clement Cheroux, Erik Kessels, Joan Fontcuberta, Joachim Schmid and Martin Parr, was an extremely interesting show, the artists shown acting as editors attempting to make sense (and take advantage) of the sheer mass of vernacular imagery that is captured, catalogued and kept through digital technologies. The work in this show in a sense democratises image making, discarding the tradition of the photographer as auteur, the need for expensive photographic equipment, and removing the hierarchy between the 'professional' and the 'amateur'.

The show was somewhat overwhelming, much of the work playful in nature (to the point that some pieces became unnecessarily crude, sensationalist or throwaway). Cameras appeared on cats, images were taken from web-cams across the world (in various forms: used as a method of self portraiture, examining elements crossing the lens), popular tourist images were re-appropriated, images taken from online sites of men comparing their penises to objects (incl. a piano, microphone, trainer, various drinks containers etc) were collected and plastered across a large wall, screen-grabs of Google searches were used to examine interpretations of colour and Google street view became a rich source of visuals.

Dutch Landscapes by Mishka Henner

Penelope Umbrico

The work in this show that I found memorable was the work that attempted to analyse or interpret this collected material (as a pose to simply showing quirky finds). Penelope Umbrico 'recycles' images, under the ethos that we need no more imagery and can simply reuse what already exists. Her work involves collating typologies (of sunsets, household interiors, blank television screens amongst others) and reinventing the images, giving them a graphic or decorative function, alongside emphasising how many copies of a similar generic image can be found. Mishka Henner's Dutch Landscapes showed Google Earth images of “sensitive” sites in the Netherlands which have been blanked out by the Dutch government. An elaborate filter has been used to hide these sites; turning these sensitive sites into cubist style abstractions, creating curious kaleidoscopic patterns that sit amongst uniform rural and urban aerial landscapes, highlighting the imagined threats that showing these sites would pose. Thomas Mailaender's Chicken Museum was perhaps the most bizarre work on show, taking a splurge of ridiculous Vice style imagery (farcical sexual imagery, toilet humour etc) to a more ridiculous note by presenting a gallery of these images to a group of chickens, who bemusedly pecked around the walls. It seemed a fitting commentary.

Thomas Mailaender's Chicken Museum in From Here On

Alongside this show, Foam were exhibiting their 'search into the future of photography' What's Next, featuring key quotes from photography professionals on where they thought the medium was heading. Veteran film-maker Chris Marker (Sans Soleil, La Jetee) showcased his wonderful experimental films alongside strange delvings into the technological world with an attempt at creating a Second Life world and a series of badly photo-shopped images of women on trains taken with wrist watch cameras and other such devices.

Outside of these looking forward debates, the programme put a spotlight on Mexican photography. The wonderful Graciela Iturbide retrospective stood out as a favourite of mine. Documenting the daily life of Mexico's indigenous cultures, Iturbide's early work of simple black and white observations and striking portraits developed to create a strong visual language of her own. Turning to photography after the death of her daughter, she studied under Manuel Álvarez Bravo, who soon became her mentor. Her images are entwined in Mexican culture, folklore and ritual, the real and the psychological, the individual and the landscape. Foreboding flocks of birds swarm over inky landscapes, simple objects take on a symbolic resonance; iconography, textures and small details react with one another; her images skillfully composed and visually stunning.

Mexico, 1972 by Graciela Iturbide

Another highlight was the Gabriel Figueroa show, a Mexican cinematographer who worked with both Mexican cinema and Hollywood. Figueroa worked with directors such as Luis Buñuel and John Huston, creating a strong visual style of stark contrasts. Held in a vast church housing around 8 screens (with individual headsets) and two larger projections, each screen showing a series of cleverly edited together clips taken from his films over different periods of his career; the overall effect of this show mesmerising.

Still from Gabriel Figueroa exhibit

Outside of the Mexican focus, the 2010 portfolio winner Augustin Rebetez created a mixed media installation show; consisting of large posters plastered on walls with colour washes, smaller framed prints and stop frame animation. The result was a strange (and refreshing) cocktail of bizarre short stories, fantastical gothic tales, woven through snapshots of Rebetez and friends; late at night post-party, dressing up/down, creating mythical creatures and characters; seemingly exploring dreams, fears, excesses and nightmares.

Augustin Rebetez

Installation shot of Augustin Rebetez show

Other shows such as the Mexican Suitcase (rediscovered Spanish Civil War negatives by Robert Capa, Gerda Taro and David Seymour (known as Chim)), the New York Times Magazine (a rare look behind the scenes at the processes and discussions involved in commissioning work for the NYT magazine) warrant a write up to themselves. In addition to all of this there were of course the evening screenings, talks program and the Voies Off fringe festival. There was plenty more to be discovered through the Voies off festival, though I may have to save that for another post!

2011-07-03T10:18:00.006+01:00

Thanks to all who came along to the Contact VS Tri-pod slideslam, BBQ and talks yesterday! studioSTRIKE were wonderful hosts and presented a packed day - we had much fun celebrating their first birthday with them.

A special shout out goes to Miranda Gavin, who kindly joined us to present the slideshows and ran engaging question and answer sessions with four participating artists; David Axelbank, Natasha Caruna, Mona Simon and Melanie Stidolph. We hope to be putting soundbites of these sessions online soon.

Hope to see you at the next event!!

Summer photo party!

2011-07-01T17:40:00.003+01:00

Sorry for the lack of updates recently; we've been manic with future plans, events and preparing for Arles!

Tomorrow we're hosting an all day event in South London at the Bread and Roses in Clapham. The sun has promised to shine and alongside print sales, projections and talks, they'll be a BBQ and bands. We've teamed up with photographic collective Tri-pod and the creative hub studioSTRIKE to bring you a whole day of photos, films and good times!

We're also very happy to announce that Miranda Gavin, Deputy and Online Editor of the bimonthly contemporary photography magazine HotShoe, will be running question and answer sessions with four of the artists featured in the slideshows.

The line-up for the day is as follows:

CONTACT vs TRI-POD present a feast of photography: print sales, projections, artist Q+As, accompanied by a BBQ and live bands!

3pm onwards: Open studios, affordable photography print sales with Contact Editions and Tri-pod

5pm: Curated film screening by The Kitchen Sink Collective
...
6pm: BBQ in the Garden

7pm: Curated projections by Contact and Tri-pod, showing contemporary photography projects. Artist question and answer session led by Miranda Gavin, Deputy and Online Editor of the bimonthly contemporary photography magazine HotShoe.

10pm: Live bands

--------------------------------------------------------

The curated projections by Contact and Tri-pod, will show contemporary photography projects featuring the work of:

Contact Editions
Antonia Zennaro
Ben Roberts
Chloe Dewe Mathews
Mona Simon
David Axelbank
Seba Kurtis
Hin Chua
Tereza Zelenkova

Tri-pod
Natasha Caruana
Zoe Childerly
Ellie Davies
Karen Grainger
Dean Hollowood
Judith Lyons
Wendy Pye
Melanie Stidolph

Location: The Bread and Roses, 68 Clapham Manor Street, SW4 6DX, London, United Kingdom.

Hope to see you there!!

Early Bison trade

2011-06-13T13:29:00.003+01:00

Amazing images here of the huge trade which decimated the Bison population in 19th century America.

New graduates: Jamie Stoker

2011-06-02T17:45:00.004+01:00

Charming project Loch Ness from Jamie Stoker (another soon to be Brighton graduate), documenting his quest to act as a cryptozoologist, embarking on an evocative study of the Loch Ness Monster:

"First allow me to give a definition of cryptozoology for those that are unfamiliar with the term. The Oxford English dictionary defines Cryptozoology as the search for and study of animals whose existence or survival is disputed or unsubstantiated, such as the Loch Ness Monster.

In the modern world that we live in with mass media and advanced technology chances are if these animals existed they would have already been discovered, yet there still exists an interest and fascination with the unknown that attracts both the scientists and tourists alike and is something that appeals to me as much now as it did when I was a small boy."

New graduates 2011: David James Clark

2011-06-02T15:47:00.005+01:00

Thoughful and delicate images from soon to be Brighton graduate David James Clark's project 'The Fragility of Being'.

"I am concerned with the fragility of life and being that surrounds our own existence. By reflecting on our tenuous existence, I hope to provide a therapeutic and metaphorical space to consider the impermanence of life and the fragility of being that exists in the cyclical nature of life."

The work is on show at The Lighthouse Gallery in Brighton from today, and will be exhibited at Apricot Gallery in London from 7th July.

Jason Eskenazi

2011-06-02T14:00:00.003+01:00

Jason Eskenazi is working on a follow up to his stunning work Wonderland, and is currently looking for funding via Kickstarter. You can watch a video of him talking about his new project, The Black Garden, and support the project here.

"My project The Black Garden is a photographic investigation of the East/West divide. Basing myself in Istanbul for one year, I will photograph the texture of life throughout the Middle East and beyond as the Muslim world continues to confront the tide of western-style ideals for better or for worse."

Anna Wickham

2011-05-31T23:25:00.003+01:00

Anna Wickham from the project Rooster Tail

"Rooster Tail is a visual inquiry into how viewers experience the 'real' world as represented in televisual imagery. It focuses in particular on how the American docudrama COPS has come to signify an American 'reality'. The imagery in Rooster Tail is derived from COPS' representation of a dystopian Americana since first being commissioned in 1989 (the show is still in production)."

View and read more here.

Lorca and Castro Prieto

2011-05-23T12:34:00.005+01:00

Was excited to see this from La Fabrica, a new publication of Fredrico Garcia Lorca's 'Blood Wedding' with images from Juan Manuel Castro Prieto. Having a bit of a soft spot for the play after embarassing teenage stumblings into amateur dramatics I think it's an inspired choice to pair with such good quality photography. Though we may be wandering into the realms of the coffee travel/cookbook, if the quality stays this high I would love to see more of these kind of books.

John Cyr

2011-05-23T12:27:00.002+01:00

Some nice analogue nostalgia here, with John Cyr's pics of disused developer trays.

Events! Thanks and upcoming...

2011-05-23T12:11:00.005+01:00

Thanks! to everyone who came along to Photofusion last week, was a great turnout and a really fun evening. (Thanks Ollie for the pics!)

Just a quick reminder we have a smaller more intimate slam at Roof Unit (Bethnal Green) tmrw night, do come along but please RSVP to Roof Unit, and a heads up that on the 2nd July we will be doing a whole day event at Studio Strike, Clapham; free entry, live bands, bbq.....more to follow.

CONTACT VS PHOTOFUSION

2011-05-18T20:41:00.007+01:00

Tomorrow! Curated simultaneous projections selected by Contact and Photofusion, showing new contemporary photography projects, alongside print sales, music and cheap drinks in an informal environment. The Contact team will be available to discuss projects and prints. Free entry.

Presentations and introductions to the work start at 7pm, hope to see you there!

CONTACT:

Antonia Zennaro: Down There
Ben Roberts: The Seventh Zone
Chris Dorley Brown: The Corners
Chloe Dewe Mathews: Caspian
Hin Chua: After The Fall
David Axelbank: The Lozenge Series
Seba Kurtis: Kif
Tereza Zelenkova: Supreme Vice
Ivor Prickett: Days of Anger

Photofusion:

Andrew Youngson: The Devil's Garden
Bashka Wisniewska- Tchaban
David Hoffman
David O’Mara
Dean Hollowood: River Lea
Jason Larkin: Cairo Divided: A Megacity Reborn
Krystina Stimakovits: Thresholds
Liz Orton: Splitters and Lumpers
Robert Hackman
Roger Hopgood

Further details on and images from the projects shown will be published on the blog after the event.

Multimedia workshop: 1 place left!

2011-05-16T17:05:00.006+01:00

Poster from here

For anyone wanting a course which will leave you ready to make your own multimedia, you could not do better than spending some time with the boys from duckrabbit. Ben and David are superb tutors; enthusiastic, concise and clear. And they happen to have one place left on their 'Hinterlands' residential workshop, set in a yurt field in Devon it starts this Friday!

Andrew Querner

2011-05-16T16:45:00.004+01:00

Andrew Querner's 'The Bread with Honey' is an ongoing project looking at the aging Stan Terg metal mines in Kosovo. He says;

Power struggles in the 1990s which resulted in the break-up of Yugoslavia and culminated in Kosovo's civil war of 1999, crippled the mining operation. Since the end of the war Stan Terg has little more than survived, the victim of fallout from tensions between Kosovo's Serbian and Albanian population, political tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, and post-independence growing pains.
Through the lens of the miners, their children, and the tired town at the mine's threshold, these pictures are my attempt to better understand the complexities of the Kosovar experience shaped, in large measure, by the challenge of new independence.

Slideluck potshow

2011-05-16T14:36:00.004+01:00

Pic from Show n Tell blog

Delighted to say Slideluck Potshow are returning to London on June 18th for another evening of fabulous photos and food. Deadline for submissions is midnight next Monday (May 23rd), there is a £5 entry fee and theme MULTICULTURALISM WORKS! They say "We want it to be a happy, deep and thought-provoking response to Cameron's recent speech . . . "

Apply here!

Landmasses and Railways

2011-05-09T21:57:00.004+01:00

From Bertrand Fleuret's Landmasses and Railways

I love Bertrand Fleuret's hypnotic and chaotic book Landmasses and Railways, which I've recently come across through Jason Fulford's J&L books.

From Bertrand Fleuret's Landmasses and Railways

Slideshows!

2011-05-09T09:31:00.008+01:00

We have two upcoming slideshows events:

Contact vs Photofusion: 19th May
Photofusion Studio, 12 Market Row, Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LD

Contact vs Roof Unit: 24th May
119 Roman Road, E2 0QN

The nights will feature curated projections selected by each organisation showing contemporary photographic projects, alongside print sales, music and cheap drinks in an informal setting. Come along!

2011-05-06T16:37:00.003+01:00

Happy Friday! This has been my favourite image this week....from Tereza Zelenkova's project Hommage á Bataille.

Vincent Delbrouck

2011-05-04T22:27:00.003+01:00

From the project Some Windy Trees by Vincent Delbrouck

Chiara Tocci

2011-05-04T20:35:00.005+01:00

From the project LIFE AFTER ZOG and other stories by Chiara Tocci

I recently came across Chiara Tocci's beautiful project Life After Zog and other stories which documents remote areas in High Albania. The project was drawn from a curiosity created after witnessing streams of Albanians migrating to her hometown in Southern Italy in the early 90s, after the fall of an oppressive communist regime. From Chiara's statement:

"LIFE AFTER ZOG and other stories is an exploration of an enchanted place inhabited by people who share the land with their ancestors’ ghosts. A place with no time. It’s like as time and history have abruptly stopped, without however burying inherited blood feuds and forgetting to spread melancholic disillusions."

From the project LIFE AFTER ZOG and other stories by Chiara Tocci

Happy Royal Wedding!

2011-04-28T17:47:00.004+01:00

Natasha Caruna from the project Fairytale for Sale

This new series by Natasha Caruna Fairytale for Sale was made in commemoration of the big day that we're all currently so excited about. The project examines wedding customs in the UK, 'revealing the fantasy, performance and trophy moments of the traditional big day'. It also examines the somewhat farcical nature of wedding photography, so if you're feeling a bit cycnical about the ol' RW, take a look and have a giggle...

Get your portfolio out - Wednesday!

2011-04-11T22:29:00.004+01:00

The blog will resume usual regular updates soon (we promise!), but for now do come along to our free informal portfolio reviews this Wednesday. Bring along your portfolio (project work as a pose to commercial work please) to the upstairs room at the Three Kings pub in Clerkenwell, the session kicks off at 7pm.

Fiona Rogers and Chloe Dewe Mathews will be there to informally review portfolios and a few members of the Contact team will be in attendance. If you’re in town bring along your portfolio, or love of photography, and join us.

E-mail us on info@contacteditions.co.uk if you’d like to attend.

Fiona Rogers: Cultural & Education Coordinator, Magnum Photos, and founder of Fire Cracker

Fiona Rogers’ career began in 2004 at a populist photography gallery in central London. She moved to Magnum Photos in 2005 and in 2006 developed Magnum’s Educational activities, including the management of university partnerships and managing an international program of workshops, portfolio reviews and masterclasses. In addition, Fiona also works alongside Magnum’s Cultural Director, co-ordinating and originating touring exhibitions and representing Magnum’s photographers in commercial print sales.
Fiona has recently founded Fire Cracker, an online platform to showcase and promote the work of European women photographers.

Chloe Dewe Mathews: Photographer

Chloe Dewe Mathews is a freelance photographer based in London, specialising in documentary, reportage and portraiture.

She has been published in the Times, the Independent and Dazed and Confused magazine, and exhibited in London, Birmingham, Buenos Aires and Berlin. You can read more about Chloe’s work (or buy a print) from her page on Contact Editions.

Thanks for coming!

2011-04-04T12:40:00.002+01:00

Thanks to everyone that came along on Friday; we had a fantastic evening with over 250 people in attendance throughout the night! I will be posting up some of the great work that we showed at the event over the next few days.

We have a couple more slideshows events in the pipeline:

Contact vs. Photofusion: 19th May at Photofusion

Contact vs. Roof Unit: 24th May at Roof Unit

More information to follow shortly!

We're also holding an informal crit on 13th April at the Three Kings pub in Clerkenwell. Fiona Rogers (Cultural & Education co-ordinator at Magnum Photos & Founder of Firecracker) and Chloe Dewe Mathews (photographer) will be in attendance for informal reviews. Further information can be found here, please let us know if you'd like to attend on info@contacteditions.co.uk.

Stephan Tillmans

2011-03-28T13:41:00.004+01:00

Stephan Tillmans' Luminant Point Arrays show tube televisions in the moment they are switched off.

He says 'The television picture breaks down and creates a structure of light. The pictures refuse external reference and broach the issue of the difference between abstraction and concretion in photography. The breakdown of the television picture discribes the breakdown of the reference. The product is self-referential photography.'

I like the way that small differences in the technology of the different TVs produce different results, a visual representation of their particular setup and wear.

Via but does it float

CONTACT VS ASA

2011-03-22T17:51:00.002Z

We're holding a Slideshows evening on 1st April, in conjunction with ASA collective, at 4th Floor West on Commercial Road, London. We'll be showing rolling slideshows over two projectors; one projection curated by Contact, the other curated by ASA. The projections will be playing simultaneously throughout the evening, creating various pairings and relationships between the images.

They'll be the chance to view our prints, as well as DJs and cheap drinks.

To see the full line-up of work on show visit our event page here. RSVP to info@contacteditions.co.uk.

Hope to see you there!

Susanna Majuri

2011-03-14T13:07:00.006Z

Lampi, 2010 by Susanna Majuri

Kultakolikot (Treasure), 2009 by Susanna Majuri

Susanna Majuri is a Helsinki School photographer. She creates beautiful, dreamlike invocations; evocative worlds where collaged or painted surfaces blur with figures, water, movement. She says of her work:

I follow the logic of colours, when I combine places, people and objects. To me the most important quality of photography is it´s capability to convey emotions.

The above image really reminds me of the mesmeric underwater scene in Charles Laughton's haunting film The Night of the Hunter, which is certainly no bad thing!

Still from The Night of the Hunter

Lucas Foglia

2011-03-13T16:12:00.006Z

Lucas Foglia's project Rewilding was completed over four years. Travelling through the southern United States he met various people who for different reasons and in different ways have chosen to live off the grid.

He says 'All the people in my photographs are working to maintain a self-sufficient lifestyle, but no one I found lives in complete isolation from the mainstream. Many of my subjects have websites that they update using laptop computers, and cell phones that they charge on car batteries or solar panels. They do not wholly reject the modern world. Instead, they step away from it and choose the parts that they want to bring with them.'
I love the thread of darkness that runs through the work. While the project does romanticise some aspects of these peoples lives, it also shows, through content and composition, glimpses of the hard work that comes with this sort of lifestyle, which projects about a 'return to nature' often don't.

Via 'This is a What'

Favourites from Format Festival: Zhao Liang

2011-03-09T22:30:00.000Z

Zhao Liang filmed his wanderings of the city of Beijing, capturing absurd but poetic scenes of China's street life. At points uncomfortable, at other points witty and perfectly observed, this is worth going to the festival to see (especially since I can't find anything online)!

Clarita Lulic

2011-03-07T18:12:00.003Z

Clarita Lulic spent seven months on board a cruise ship working as the ship's photographer, documenting herself during this experience. This resulted in her project Seven Short One Long, in which we see Clarita against a variety of backdrops, the imaging both transient & exotic, familiar & banal, whilst the journey itself becomes both a personal and physical one. She considers with this work, the notion of the 'aimless voyaging of the seas' as a metaphor for the human condition, 'where all aboard are representative of humanity, that we are all foolishly seeking pleasure, drifting aimlessly and never reaching harbour.'

Favourites from Format Festival: Raoul Gatepin

2011-03-07T17:59:00.002Z

The work of Raoul Gatepin, from his recent series Piramid, was featured in the main exhibit at Quad. His website includes the following quote with the work:

"As for the pyramids, there is nothing to wonder at in them so much as the fact that so many men could be found degraded enough to spend their lives constructing a tomb for some ambitious booby, whom it would have been wiser and manlier to have drowned in the Nile,
and then given his body to the dogs."
- Henry David Thoreau : Walden

For sale!

2011-03-07T17:46:00.005Z

Some of the items to bid on in the Blackpool student's e-bay shop

Blackpool & Fylde College students of photography are holding a Print and Book auction (via ebay) to raise some funds for their graduate show. They have had goodies donated to them by the likes of Seba Kurtis, Alec Soth, Stephen Gill all of which will be auctioned over the coming weeks - so it's worth keeping an eye on!

Favourites from Format Festival

2011-03-05T12:57:00.012Z

Photograph of the Derby Detective Agency installation by Graeme Vaughan (please excuse my terrible camera phone photos!)

I visited Derby for the Format festival launch on Thursday evening and got to meet some wonderful people and see some great work, although I was slightly gutted that I couldn't stay around for the conference and talks over the weekend, especially the Photography and Internet talk featuring Flak Photo's Andy Adams, Yumi Goto and Amy Stein. I've received a brief summary of the talk through Louise Clements tweets (succinct snippets taken from the discussion, such as: 'augmented reality offers experience not yet fully explored, connecting spaces on and offline') and am hoping the recording will appear online soon through Open-i, who broadcast most of the weekend's talks online as interactive webinars. You can read Andy Adam's essay about online photographic thinking here.

One of my highlights from the work on show at the festival was a commission by photographer Graeme Vaughan, who produced an installation piece The Derby Detective Agency, in which he traced the streets of Derby, following cold cases from the local news through investigative street photo documentation. Graeme tracks the city through small details, using local news as a framework to discover the city for himself, through the edges, the pavements, the surfaces. By allowing himself to 'play detective' his role as a street photographer no longer involves searching for the spectacle of the 'decisive moment', but searching for the surfaces and stages within the city upon which scenes may or may not have played out. The piece was wonderfully playful; drawing attention to the 'uses' of street photography, and the images themselves became both peripheral and integral to the work.

Photograph of the Derby Detective Agency installation by Graeme Vaughan (please excuse my terrible camera phone photos!)

Oblong Gallery

2011-02-28T20:50:00.003Z

Cape by Tereza Zelenkova, from the project Supreme Vice

Interesting looking show opening at Oblong Gallery in East London on Wednesday evening, featuring the work of J H Engstrom, Tereza Zelenkova, Michael Grieve and Laura Hynd. There's barely any information on their website but with a great bunch of photographers it should hopefully be a great show!

You can purchase a (wonderfully affordable) print from Tereza Zelenkova's project Supreme Vice from Contact Editions here or here.

Carrie Levy

2011-02-28T20:22:00.000Z

Carrie Levy's series You Before All is dark, disturbing, uncomfortable; playing out tensions and power relationships for the camera. Male figures before the lens appear burnt by shards of falling light, twisted into unnatural positions, tortured by a teasing female hand, mercilessly swaying between signs of pleasure and pain. The images are eerily beautiful, elegant and calm, exposing a mixture of both gentle and violent emotions.

Found via Flak Photo

Sightseeing

2011-02-24T18:00:00.000Z

This project Sightseeing by Cameron Wittig made me chuckle.

Broomberg & Chanarin

2011-02-24T17:45:00.005Z

Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin from the project People in Trouble Laughing Pushed to the Ground

A new Broomberg & Chanari n show People in Trouble Laughing Pushed to the Ground opens tonight at Paradise Row. The show has come out of a commission from Belfast Exposed, a photographic archive founded in 1983. Broomberg & Chanarin have worked with this archive, whose photographic content spans the political, the social and the private, the didactic and the playful, examining the way in which the archive (and the images), which is open and accessible to the public, has been used throughout it's history - by picture editors, researchers, archivists, political activists. Broomberg and Chanarin have done this by pulling out images from contact sheets that have marked by said users, scrutinising the marking techniques, from the precise to the violent. Stickers in the shape of circles which have sat in the corner of frames for years have been carefully removed, and just that small, uncovered section of the image is now presented as a whole new image. Other images, which have been carelessly marked, scrawled through, defaced, are reproduced as large prints, bearing these marks & scars.

By re-presenting these images in this way, B & C attempt to not only scrutinise the subjectivity of the editing process & the role of the archive, but offer a new way of viewing these images, offering up these damaged fractions up as a new reading of an archive that is 'an extraordinary social document of a critical moment in the history of Northern Ireland.'
Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin from the project People in Trouble Laughing Pushed to the Ground

Charles Negre

2011-02-22T22:21:00.000Z

I found it incredibly hard select a favourite from art director/designer/photographer Charles Negre's site. His website lacks information but his projects seem to combine his skills in a subtle way - the images both strange, intriguing and slightly disconcerting.

I wish I'd come across Je Suis Une Bande De Jeunes earlier, as they were selling (amongst many other wonderful looking books and zines) a lovely looking limited edition book of his.

Thom Yorke, Wayne McGregor, Garth Jennings

2011-02-22T15:11:00.006Z

Love these three and this great, great collaboration for Radiohead's new single Lotus flower.
Already being remixed to great results, I'm liking Bad Romance.

How to become...

2011-02-21T22:23:00.004Z

Last week Ben Roberts joined the Guardian 'Ask the Experts' panel discussion on 'How to become a professional photographer', alongside Diane Smyth from the BJP and other such professionals. There's some good advice to be found in the thread; a recommended read for those starting out. There are obviously many different strands within this discussion concentrating on different disciplines within photography, so be prepared to have a scan through to find the parts relevant to you!

You can also watch an interview with Ben talking about his work on Contact here.

Vivi Abelson

2011-02-21T11:54:00.004Z

I saw one of Vivi Abelson's portraits at the Taylor Wessing show, and found some more great work on her site. She also curated a huge group show in Buenos Aires last year, Las Palmas. Hopefully she will be curating one of our slideshows this summer - thanks Vivi!

Pentti Sammallahti

2011-02-18T13:50:00.003Z

Pentti Sammallahti does beautiful classic black and whites....with animals in them.

Erdal Inci

2011-02-18T13:43:00.003Z

Clever loop trickery from Erdal Inci. Love the sound which is just built up layers from the loop.

Grant Mudford

2011-02-17T16:01:00.003Z

Came across Grant Mudford's early black and white work on Junk for Code.

Alisa Resnik

2011-02-15T13:51:00.004Z

First saw Alisa Resnik's work on Vanessa Winship's blog. Really beautiful stuff, with a great mood created by the whole body of work. She's with prospekt, who have had some great features recently.

Sydney police mug shots

2011-02-10T08:45:00.005Z

This Essay, from Macquarie University, analyses the approach taken by police photographers in mugshots from New South Wales and mainly Sydney, between 1912 and 1960. The examples included in the essay are stunning. The pairing of close framed and full body portraits gives a feeling of passing time, a period of that persons experience in the cells. The labelling then frames them in this space. Would this style work with another subject? Also surprising is the variety of poses and expressions. Peter Doyle says...

'Although many of the mug shots are taken in what is recognisably the same general space at Central cells, no single compositional regime prevails. The framing is sometimes tight, but other times the subjects are accorded considerable space within the frame. Their stances also vary greatly. After looking at a few hundred of such portraits, I began to suspect that these people had been allowed or perhaps invited to assume whatever posture they might.'

Nine Eyes of Google Street View

2011-02-09T17:57:00.007Z

From The Nine Eyes of Google Street View by Jon Rafman

There are a lot of blogs and photography projects cropping up at the moment that are centred around a fascination with Google Streetview, but if this is a particularly great selection. Ranging from the banal everyday to the poetic, amusing and downright bizarre - some of these scenarios propose dioramas worthy of a Jeff Wall image. Other images show individuals, rather than hiding from the street view camera & the invasion of their privacy, acting out to the cameras in performative gestures. Jon Rafman, who has painstakingly collated this collection writes an interesting essay on Google's automated photography here.

Now surely this is a much more interesting way to talk about the changing uses & readings of photography in the 'digital age', the dematerialisation of photography if you will, than harking back to the old digital vs analogue debate that still seems to keep cropping up at talks on the subject...

From The Nine Eyes of Google Street View by Jon Rafman

From The Nine Eyes of Google Street View by Jon Rafman

Uta Kogelsberger

2011-02-07T11:40:00.003Z

Uta Kogelsberger, from the series Getting lost

In Uta Kogelsberger's series 'Getting lost' she set out to 'get lost in the wilderness', photographing archetypal epic landscapes which embody our Western ideal of escaping to the wilderness. She sets off flares in the landscapes, a way of marking human presence (as well as obviously referencing the act of getting lost) and intervening in the quiet visual experience of escapism that one might get from viewing the series. You can read about her best shot here.

Get your portfolio out!

2011-02-07T09:52:00.005Z

Come along to our next informal crit on Wednesday 16th Feb, from 7pm, upstairs at the Three Kings pub in Clerkenwell. It's a great way to meet other folk within photography, discuss your personal projects and have a bit of lively debate! There will be FREE informal reviews by Kiri Scully from Millennium Images and photographer Simon Terrill.

Let us know on info@contacteditions.co.uk if you'd like to attend.

Hope to see you there!

Christian Lutz at HOST

2011-01-31T11:40:00.004Z

Christian Lutz' bleak look at the Nigerian gas and oil industry, 'Tropical Gift' opens at HOST tomorrow night. His images of the wealth surrounding the industry are made to look very sinister in post production, which could be over the top but they hold onto a subtlety in composition which helps them to really resonate. Having just finished Michael Peel's book about the ongoing exploitation of the Delta, often by British industry, it doesn't seem so much of an overstatement.

Daktus: Land Art meets Stop Motion

2011-01-26T13:33:00.005Z

Oh this looks like so much fun to make! Great sound.

London Art Fair

2011-01-24T16:36:00.006Z

David Spero, Abbey Street II, Penzance 2003 from Ball Photographs

David Spero, Studio 3 from Constellations: Balls, Wood and Audiotape

My visit to the London Art Fair on Wednesday was rather brief, and focused on attending the talks. I went to a range of talks, the subjects of which ranging from The Ephemeral in Photography to Politics in Photography to (d)e-materialization: an investigation of the photographic record in the age of technological advance, with speakers including Charlotte Cotton, Jason Evans, Rut Blees Luxemburg & Gordon MacDonald. All sounded very promising, but I left each talk feeling disappointed and frustrated. This wasn't particularly down to individual speakers, or lack of discussion points, but more to lack of direction within the discussions and lack of a competent chair. When arranging panel discussions I think it is very often a factor not considered enough, and is especially important within shorter discussion (these talks were allocated an hour - hour & half). What you were left with, especially in the (d)e-materialization talk, is a floundering debate either romanticising the analogue & denouncing digital & vice versa; with one speaker talking about the vernacular, another art photography, another the editorial/commercial market and no-one in particular responding to each other; as a pose to getting to the interesting elements of this changing environment; the implications in terms of the archive, the value of images, the distribution of images, the shifting way in which we consume & read images, the changing ways in which we use images etc. The highlight of this talk was Jason Evans' occasional dry additions.

The image above is from David Spero's project Constellations; in which he places '‘three dimensional arrangements’ of coloured rubber balls, audiotape and strips of wood into existing and often transitory locations. These disrupt, transform and map new connections and patterns in the spaces represented in the resulting photographs.' (photoworks) This work was on show at the photoworks stand, possibly the most interesting work I saw there.

Bran Symondson: The Best View of Heaven is From Hell

2011-01-24T16:21:00.003Z

Bran Symondson from The Best View of Heaven is From Hell

From the Idea Generation press release:

The Best View of Heaven is from Hell by Bran Symondson is a new photo exhibition documenting the Afghan National Police (ANP). As a serving soldier in the British Army, Bran Symondson became fascinated by the Afghan National Police (ANP), their ethos and their daily existence in the war with the Taliban. When he was given the opportunity to return and document these characters as a civilian photographer in 2010, he was able to capture a unique perspective on the current conflict.

The show opens this Thursday at the Idea Generation Gallery and promises a rare and intimate array of images; I'll report back once I've seen the exhibit.

Jeff Millikan

2011-01-24T15:35:00.005Z

I can't find much online about Jeff Millikan's work, but am rather intrigued by his process. Millikan photographs & documents the anomalies of bee hives and culture, integrating objects into this process to create sculptural forms that are both the result of his & the bees work. He then photographs the objects to create a flattened visual record which is both aesthetically playful & compelling.

Pictures from the DM

2011-01-24T14:52:00.005Z

The great British newspaper The Daily Mail has been amusing me this morning through this site, which creates an excellent portrait of GB through the eyes of the Daily Mail by presenting a selection of images used in the paper.

Found via TriangleTriangle.

Opening at Hotshoe gallery tonight

2011-01-21T17:41:00.007Z

Red Island 1 by Mikael Gregorsky from the series Dust, 2008

On the ephemeral in photography is a rather vague concept for a photographic exhibit, but the show which opens tonight at Hotshoe Gallery, features some very interesting work by David Maisel, Lewis Ronald, Rut Blees Luxemburg, Mikael Gregorsky & Ori Gerscht to name a few. The show runs until 5 March.

Bandido on Vimeo

2011-01-21T11:16:00.003Z

This is a very clever sort of stop motion film. Brilliantly concieved. Stills and sounds collected in Mexico City.

Moa Karlberg

2011-01-19T18:33:00.005Z

Above: From Til Death Does Us Part Below: From Watching Me, Watching You and Siberia's Last Chance

Nice things on Moa Karlberg's site. Watching Me, Watching You; street portraits through a one way mirror. Til Death Does Us Part, a story about a couple separated by old age, when one has to go into a home. And Siberia's Last Chance, a journey by the photographer with her grandmother along the length of the transiberian railway.

Seamus Murphy: PJ Harvey

2011-01-18T11:19:00.005Z

Some great videos up here (and more to follow) by Seamus Murphy, who was commissioned to do a tour of the UK in order to collate material for 12 videos, one for each of the songs on the wonderful PJ Harvey's new album. What a nice job!

This one is my favourite...some of the editing is spot on, with the vocals and imagery combining very evocatively.

Rachel Cunningham

2011-01-17T12:16:00.003Z

Also from the Re:Control show, Rachel Cunningham's 'Quiet Transfer' project. Studio images of the remains of demolished houses in East Jerusalem, consequences of the Israeli policy of house demolition, referred to by some as the 'Quiet Transfer' of the title, a deliberate policy to force Palestinians out of Jerusalem altogether.

Ignasi Cunill

2011-01-17T12:09:00.005Z

This one sure knows how to use light! I saw this work at the brilliant Re:control show at the Obliette recently, where it noted that he's also a professional retoucher...I think you can tell!

On Haiti

2011-01-13T17:06:00.004Z

Image copyright Christian Aid/Wolfgang Tillmans

Interesting choice of commission from Christian Aid, as Wolfgang Tillmans shoots the in Haiti for them, as they struggle to rebuild and reconstruct. Whilst (in my opinion) the images suffer from looking a little too digital, Tillmans has taken a definite step away from traditions of aid images (though still conveying the scale of the situation) and employed a subtlety of Tillmans-esque composition; the story as a whole feels quite empowering.
See the rest of the images here.

Happy 2011!

2011-01-04T17:36:00.010Z

X, Y, Z by Sally Verrall

Happy New Year all! We've rested up, rolled around in the snow and are (almost) ready to go again...

In the spirit of jumping right back into things there are a couple of openings already in the January diary:

Tomorrow night on Shaftsbury Ave there's an interesting group show of emerging artists working with photography, video and installation featuring Tereza Zelenkova, Tomas Hein, Tess Hurrell, organised by these folks.

Laura Pannack has her first solo show (& has recently won third prize in the Terry O'Neill award), at Third Floor Gallery in Cardiff. The show opens on Friday 14th January; I highly recommended that you check it out!

Contact Editions is featured in this month's issue of the BJP, in an article about online edition print sales, I can't find an online link but check out the print version - there are plenty of other gems in there, including a feature on this book that I would love to get my hands on!

And finally, I can't remember when or where I came across the above work but today I have been enjoying the self referential mathematical nature of this piece by Sally Verrall.

Happy Christmas!

2010-12-20T17:37:00.003Z

Happy Christmas from Contact, we hope you all have a wonderful break! We'll be back in the New Year new content, editions & events, as well as a host of exciting new developments!

Slideshows

2010-12-06T16:32:00.003Z

Thanks to all who braved the snow and came along to our Slideshows evening last Thursday, we had a great night! We'll try and get some of the slideshows online at some point soon. The next event will be early March, hope to see you all again then!

Slideshows tonight!

2010-12-02T11:12:00.004Z

Brave the snow and join us for our Slideshows & Christmas Party this evening! We'll be showcasing a selection of the best projects we've come across over the last six months, as well as providing cheap drinks, music & mince pies!

You'll also be able to buy gorgeous editioned photography from £30. Prints will be on display for you to admire, fondle and stick in your stocking.

Featuring:
Ivor Prickett - Gali
Laura Pannack - Young British Naturists
Tereza Zelenkova - Supreme Vice
Antonia Zennaro - Down There
Freya Najade - If you're lucky you get old
Ben Roberts - The Seventh Zone
Andrew Bruce - Tender
David Axelbank - Lozenges
Robert Hackman - Bunker Albania
Leslie Hakim-Dowek - Watching

Showcase selected by Rhubarb Rhubarb

Showcase selected by Yasmina Reggard of Photo-festivals

At the slightly secretive Unit 101, 54- 58 Kingsland Road, London. Come along from 7pm!

E-mail us on info@contacteditions.co.uk with any enquiries.

Andrea Gjestvang

2010-11-24T17:30:00.004Z

Just saw that Andrea Gjestvang was one of those selected for this year's Joop masterclass, alongside the brilliant Maisie Crow; more on nyt here. It's the first time I've properly looked at her work and I love these intimate interiors from her Greenland project.
Check out her other projects too, especially 'Inside Out'.

I was also excited to see she is one of 3 norweigan photographers who run 'heartbeat', a really inspiring blog with excellent photography by female photographers.
Go get yourself a warming cuppa and have a look!

Christopher Churchill

2010-11-22T20:36:00.001Z

Potato processing plant, WA 2007 by Christopher Churchill

Some stunning images in Christopher Churchill's project America Faith.

Freya Najade

2010-11-22T14:15:00.004Z

Freya Najade, from the series If you're lucky you get old.

Thanks to all that attended our crit last week, we had a great evening looking at everyone's projects & received very positive feedback from our reviewers (Emma Boyd from Autograph ABP and photographer Colin O'Brien) about the quality of the work they saw.

Possibly my favourite pieces from the night were Freya Najade's beautiful books from her project 'If you're lucky you get old'. The project's gentle optimism and humour is really quite charming, avoiding the clichéd nostalgic imagery or patronising tone that is usually associated with representations of the elderly. It also struck me how suited this project is to the book format, allowing for an intimate viewing experience and for the carefully paired images (especially in her Encounters book where portraits are combined with landscapes) to have the maximum impact on each other's reading.

We will be showing her work at our Xmas Slideshows event on 2nd Dec. RSVP here.

Events & editions

2010-11-16T17:59:00.002Z

Lillith by Tereza Zelenkova

Apologies for the few posts of late, Anna and I have been extremely busy! We do have a few things coming up though - if you're around tomorrow night, pop along to our informal crit at Three Kings pub in Clerkenwell. Emma Boyd from Autograph ABP & photographer Colin O'Brien will be in attendance giving informal reviews. Read more here.

It's also almost time for our Photosocial Slideshows event - so far, we have new projects lined up to show from Ivor Prickett, Tereza Zelenkova, Laura Pannack & Antonia Zennaro, as well as a feature from Rhubarb Rhubarb. The event will be at Unit 101, 54- 58 Kingsland Road, London on 2 December. Rsvp by e-mailing info@contacteditions.co.uk or on our facebook group .

Lastly, we have a great new edition up on the site, from Tereza Zelenkova. Well, actually it's two editions. Have a look here and here.

I'm now off to see the Francesca Woodman show at Victoria Miro gallery; am looking forward to seeing it!

Simon Burch

2010-11-03T14:39:00.002Z

Lovely light in these images by Simon Burch, more on his site; portraits and landscapes in Ireland.

Hijacked 3: Australia & UK

2010-11-02T15:04:00.002Z

Photographers based in either Australia or UK are now invited to submit 12-18 digital images from a series/body of work for consideration for publication in Hijacked 3: Australia & UK. Hijacked aims to showcase the diverse talents and perspectives of contemporary photographers from around the world, pairing up countries to stimulate conversation between images, themes and styles emerging from the paired nations. To find out more visit the website.

Halloween Special!

2010-10-29T12:29:00.004+01:00

Having had my love of old horror films revived by the wonderful Mark Gatiss and his History of Horror, I've been having a good google of horror posters and was delighted to come across this site, full of high res stills and posters from various films.

The emphasis is on the sick, silly and sordid, but there are some printable gems; including these stills of Karloff, Lugosi and Lee from The House of Frankenstein, Dracula and um Dracula respectively....though for me it's actually the posters which are the real delight.

Eric Rondepierre

2010-10-28T16:24:00.005+01:00

Eric Rondepierre has selected old film frames where the disintegration of the physical object has added to the image's atmosphere. Check out the stories 'Moires' and 'Précis de décomposition'. I'd love to see this working for the moving image, but I guess it's quite unlikely that a strip would degrade in a way that wasn't just chaotic to view. Via haunted weather.

Nelli Palomäki

2010-10-28T15:55:00.002+01:00

Some beautiful portraits by Nelli Palomäki, of the Helsinki School.

Elin Berge

2010-10-28T15:02:00.003+01:00

Quite the contrary to the coalition's plans for housing benefit, Elin Berge's story looks at the wealthy, arty middle classes who move out of the cities to rural idyl in northwestern Sweden. It's a super sweetly done but a great idea for a story. Via Vu (who rep Elin's agency Moment).

Kiri Scully

2010-10-27T18:54:00.006+01:00

Yuri Pirondi from Tarot

Went to a great exhibition and event last night at the squatted artists space on Sidworth Rd, London Fields. Set up and run by the very amazingly energetic Kiri Scully, 'Beneath the Shadow' features work in which objectivity is thrown aside and the photographers influence is key; work of a constructed or very personal nature. Highlights for me were Yuri Pirondi's Tarot portraits (sadly not all available yet on his website) and Linus Richard's 'Momentum' installation, which fitted its space perfectly. Check it out, up until Friday only!

Robin Friend

2010-10-19T14:57:00.002+01:00

Robin Friend's landscapes are rather stunning in their capture of colour and texture.

Events & Updates

2010-10-18T11:36:00.004+01:00

We have a few events on the horizon, which we hope you can attend!

Our next informal crit will be Wednesday 17 November at the Three Kings pub in Clerkenwell. As always, we have invited a professional (to be announced soon) to informally review portfolios and a few members of the Contact team will be in attendance. Let us know if you'd like attend on info@contacteditions.co.uk.

Mark the 2 December in your diaries - we'll be holding our next PhotoSocial: Slideshows & Xmas party! To submit work for show please email us on info@contacteditions.co.uk.

Finally, thanks to all that came by and said hello last weekend at the Photomonth Photofair in Spitalfields Market. It was wonderful to meet & chat to so many photography lovers, even though our toes were rather cold by the end of the day! Thanks to Maggie, who did a great job in organising the event.

Stéphane Couturier

2010-10-13T16:32:00.003+01:00

Melting Power Alstom-Belfort # 6, Stéphane Couturier

Stéphane Couturier's images of factories and assembly plants from his project Melting Point are really quite stunning, he clearly has a strong eye for graphic form, colour and composition. On first glance the images appear like wonderfully colourful mazes, rather than sites of industrial construction. They also provide an interesting comparision point to Maurice Broomfield's industrial photographs from the 1950s and 60s.

The Penny Arcade

2010-10-13T14:47:00.003+01:00

Barry, from the project Greenlands by Jonathan Cherry

Jonathan Cherry, a photographer who also runs the interview site MULL IT OVER, e-mailed us to let us know about his current exhibition with illustrator Zoe Barker, at Westbourne Grove Church Artspace:

The Penny Arcade

This project is a collaborative exploration into how we engage with our environments and find a sense of community. Its aim is to look at the bigger picture by focusing in on an area/place where we have once experienced a sensation of ‘home’, and how it feels to return. We are interested in how technological and cultural advances are affecting the rural areas of England, and what it is that unites people in smaller towns and villages when the idea of the ‘local’ is fading.

The show closes next week, 18th October, so if you want to take a look get down there quick!

James Barnor and films at Rivington Place

2010-10-12T19:02:00.005+01:00

Just a quickie to say go go and see James Barnor's amazing exhibition at Autograph before it closes on the 27th November. Barnor set up a studio in Accra in 1950, then worked for African magazine Drum and as a rep for AGFA. The work is a combination of images shot in London and Ghana; mostly portraiture, some street, some studio. There's a nice article about him here.

Autograph also has a series of films on this month and next. I think I'll go to one on November 26th about the assasination of Patrice Lamumba (the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Congo), with Q&A afterwards.

Try the Autograph website for more info but it's hugely annoying so I recommend emailing here instead.

Łukasz Biederman

2010-10-12T14:28:00.014+01:00

Łukasz Biederman from the project 'The city sleeps..'

I noticed Łukasz Biederman's stunning images of the outskirts of a Polish city at night on Flickr and asked him a few questions about the work:

Can you tell me about how you began the project 'The city sleeps...'?

Actually the idea came from my everyday photographic interests. In general, I appreciate photographs presenting strange, mysterious and solitary places as a reflection of a human phobias, fears and anxieties. Recently I have been mainly focusing my attention on this kind of documentary photography. I mean that the places in pictures are all real, but they often give the impression that next to the reality, there is something surreal in them. Such photographs give the pleasant sense of a daydream, the feeling that what you see in the picture is a frame of a film or a theatre scenery. I think the pictures from the project ‘The city sleeps’ represent such kind of photography.

Is the specific location in which the work was shot important to the work?

All the pictures were taken in Lower Silesia, the south-western part of Poland. I shoot mostly in the suburbs of Wrocław and in some nearby small towns. This region is known for its very complex history. The land was the object of several international conflicts throughout the history. As a result one can find many historical remains here, specially including the architecture, like the ruins of castles, old residences and palaces. Nowadays all that is mixed together with post-communist buildings and with hypermodern architecture. The old is fixed to the new and the beautiful to the ill-looking. A total absurdity on the one hand, but a very specific cityscape on the other. All that creates a very special mood, which I try to reflect in my photographs. I think this oddity is specific to the Eastern Europe in general. I really appreciate this quality of the Polish city and it still becomes a great inspiration for me.

Łukasz Biederman from the project 'The city sleeps..'

What interests you about night spaces?

Towns at night have a very unique atmosphere. The peculiar lighting, the empty pavements, the penetrating silence – I perceive it as a relaxing oasis of calm with a touch of unease in the background. And it really stimulates my imagination. Additionally I do like the process of taking pictures at night. Driving a car through the sleepy towns, then walking the empty streets, discovering a scenery and several-minute exposures – all that lets me gain a very special frame of mind, with a bit of relaxation and contemplation in it.

Łukasz Biederman from the project 'The city sleeps..'

What are you working on at the moment?

I take a lot of pictures every day and I do not always focus on the precise topic. My attention is usually captivated by the strange and mysterious places. I have a vision of the new series, but they will show up within next few months, I hope. As the winter is approaching I am going to continue the series of the snowy, lazy and solitary cityscapes, too.

Brighton Photo Biennial

2010-10-05T16:50:00.012+01:00

Stephan Gill, from the commission Outside In

This weekend we visited the opening of the Martin Parr curated Brighton Photo Biennial, titled New Documents. Parr states that his vision for this biennial was to reverse the curating process; working without a theme, his primary interest to present fresh, new work that has not previously been exhibited - and let the theme weave itself around that. I have to admit that the Martin Parr 'brand' did not at first enthuse me, but the selection of work on show really is of a high standard and Parr, with his constant traveling and obsessive nature, was really the perfect candidate to put together such a series of shows.

'Menthe' by Viviane Sassen

As a previous resident of Brighton, it was nice to see the old Co-operative department store being used for a collection of shows, both from the Biennial and the Fringe. The New Ways of Looking show presented a pleasingly eclectic selection, ranging from Viviane Sassen's strikingly graphic portraits, using shadows in her aesthetics as a pose to light as a device to challenge representations of the 'other' to Oscar Fernando Gomez's typologies- images taken through a car window whilst he was working as a taxi driver in Mexico, charming slices of everyday urban life in which unexpected elements appear to wander into his frame; street animals, collapsed road structures, a funereal procession, children playing.

Oscar Fernando Gomez

Suzanne Opton's Soldier Billboard Project explores America’s reaction to the soldiers returning from war in Iraq or Afghanistan. Soldier's were photographed with their heads lying flat on the floor, the images sharply cut off at the neck, a blueish hue flushing over skin tones. There is no doubt that these confrontational images are imbued with associations of death; the soldiers eyes almost devoid of expression and on occasion closed. Another highlight were the raucous and lively nightclub images taken by bouncer Billy Monk in Cape Town.

Suzanne Opton Soldier Billboard Project

One of our favourite pieces in the Biennial was Stephan Gill's commision Outside In as part of the Strange and Familiar show, which presented three commissioned responses to Brighton from Alec (and Carmen) Soth, Stephan Gill and Rinko Kawauchi. His analogue collages created a visual map of the seaside city - the physicality of surfaces imprinting themselves on observed scenes. Toying with the photographic medium and it's possibilities, Gill combined photography, montage and serendipity by placing found objects directly into his camera's film back, causing ephemera and film stock to collide, corrupt and compliment each other. The prints were accompanied by a display case of all the objects that Gill hoovered up - an astonishing display of trinkets, trash, natural waste.

Rinko Kawauchi's commision piece Murmuration was a rather dull study of flocking starlings around the Pier; lacking in the careful and poetic observation that normally inhabits her work. Alec Soth's Brighton Picture Hunt collaboration with his seven year old daughter Carmen has already provoked much discussion, and was a sweet solution (if not a little disappointing) to his lack of working visa, which prevented him from shooting the commission himself.

Aeroplane Interiors showing the luxury of African dictators’ private jets, 1960s and 1970s. This selection includes a series of images taken by Nick Gleis. Archive of Modern Conflict.

Best show of the Biennial was possibly the House of Vernacular, purely for the fun of experiencing it. A 'rabbit warren' like structure was constructed within Fabrica, featuring installation rooms that immediately brought the featured archives to life - terrifically awful commercial baby photographs shown in a bright room, lavish interiors of African dictators' private jets from the 1960s and 1970s shown in a mock aeroplane interior, photo paintings from North East Brazil (printed with frames around the image to fit in with the Biennial's no-frame concept). The show highlighted the versatility and diversity of the photographic medium, from the commercial to the domestic to the political. This was a show which revelled in banality and eccentricity; unmistakably a show curated by Parr.

Unfortunately we ran out of time and didn't get to see too much of the Fringe, so perhaps another visit will be in order. We attended two talks from the Biennial's programme, which promised interesting discussion and debate, yet unfortunately left us disappointed (which perhaps we will write more on in a later post).

Tamara Dean

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Some very lovely colour post production by Tamara Dean in her latest story, 'This too shall pass, Australia'. Also many striking images, though I prefer the ones like these that feel less staged. More via Vu.

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Rhubarb event in London

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From University of Washington

Rhubarb Rhubarb are having a day event on the 23rd Oct looking at new funding and distribution models (crowdsourcing, alternative galleries, multimedia etc). Their last London event was excellent so hope this will be similar. More info here.

Maurice Broomfield

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Maurice Broomfield by Miriam Nabarro

I am deeply saddened to find out that Maurice Broomfield passed away yesterday. I have worked with Maurice on his archive for the last year and a half, and not only has it been a great joy to spend so much time with Maurice's archive, but a great joy to spend time with and get to know Maurice himself.

Forever full of energy and enthusiasm, ideas and anecdotes, Maurice has been a complete inspiration, and a dear friend.

Assembling a former for a stator, English Electric, 1960 by Maurice Broomfield

To view Maurice's work please go here.

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Some great street photography for a Friday!

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Promo of the exhibition of the book showing in Cardiff.

Nicolas Dhervillers

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I love these composits by Nicholas Dhervillers of the interesting picturetank agency. The series is called 'Tourists' and tries to represent someone alien in their surrounding, what I love is the process, using found and authored images. He says "The initial idea behind this new series was to radically change night photos that I had already taken and that had a pictorialist tendency, in order to create a new non-place. [I then] relit certain parts of the photo and carried out a universal ‘casting’ session, spending hours googling portraits of anonymous people, looking for the most banal image possible."

Photomontage in film: Dalibor Baric

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Was chuffed to see cut out photomontage being used here with vintage film, rather than images. It's not totally cohesive as a piece but some great moments. Dalibor's other videos are worth checking out as well.