Perspectives. ITV Documentary..

Being home from Uni for easter means a serious catch up on all those hours of missed television.  As I was laying on the sofa yesterday, on came an ad for a program later that night, 'Perspectives'.

DAVID SUCHET: PEOPLE I HAVE SHOT:
''..actor David Suchet, a keen amateur photographer, follows in the footsteps of his grandfather, Fleet Street photographer Jimmy Jarche.'' The rest of the press release can be seen on the ITV website here.

This hour long episode recorded David Suchet as he followed in his grandfathers footsteps.
James (Jimmy) Jarche, a renounced fleet street photographer, was born in 1890 and created some very famous and well known pieces of work throughout his career.

David and John Suchet surrounded with
photography at such an early age.

David as a child with his grandfather. 

Over the course of the documentary it showed Suchet travelling around the country, revisiting some exact locations that Jarche captured all those years ago.
What was amazing to see is that David Suchet re-photographed very similar shots by using one of his grandfathers old Lecia Cameras, something he handed down to him around 50 years ago before he passed away.

Suchet said “Jimmy was able to get along with anyone - it was a quality that stood him in good stead as a photographer. I find that many of his portraits really look beneath the skin to capture the sitter’s character. I’d like to try my hand at doing what he did.”

This quote really stood out for me and made me think about my representation project and how I need to ensure that I capture that element of personality and individuality of my own subjects.  He looked at people in their everyday situations, through hobbies or occupations.

Screenshot taken from the documentary 

Screenshot taken from the documentary #2

''Jimmy’s old Leica is really momentous for me. I can hear him on my shoulder – ‘In there boy, keep it steady. Keep it sharp. Get the shot’.”

Jimmy often photographed behind the scenes in showbiz, including musical and dance productions.  This is a screenshot of Jimmy's photograph taken many years ago in the female dressing rooms.  David, who wanted to produce something similar went to the Westend where he also captured what does on backstage at the theatre.
This (on the left) is Suchet's replication of his grandfathers work, showing the cast of Wicked the Musical.

When reading the interview on the itv website a paragraph which really stood out for me was this quote of Suchet's:

''He used to say to me when you look through the camera 'it's not what you see, it's the way that you see it.'  The greatest part of your whole equipment has nothing to do with your camera - it's to do with your own eyes.  That advice was ringing in my ears from beginning to end.''
Being a practising photographer myself I also strongly believe this is, I feel in order to create an 'aesthetically' pleasing image you need to have a creative concept behind it in which you have imaginatively set up though the use of your eyes.
My father, another keen photographer, has often said to me when capturing a similar shot..'how does yours look so different to mine?'..'you see things in such a different light to how I do.'  This intrigues me and makes me wonder how peoples visions can vary so much??

David Spero Visit

Being at Southampton Solent University I am quite lucky as we commonly have visiting lecturers, this week welcomed David Spero.

He spoke about 3 of his projects, titled 'Churches', 'Settlements' and 'Ball Photographs'.

I found all of his work very interesting but the series which most attracted me were his photographs of churches.  A collection of images taken from 2002 to 2006, where he captured a number of churches but in buildings which were originally intended for a different purpose.  He said he has always had an interest in religion and faith so explored it further, resulting in this work.
He spoke about how he found these places of worship, simply 'google-mapping' churches and looked out for ones which didn't have the official orientation marking, he then knew that it was a religious institution but probably in a converted space/building.

Holy Pentecostal Church (Aladura) 'With God Everything is Possible',
Peckham 2004.

Celestial Church of Christ and Prevailing Word Ministries,
Dalston 2002.

Kingsway International Christian Centre 'Raising Champtions',
Hackney Wick 2002.

The Redeemed Christian Church of God, Overcomers Assembly
'A House of Prayer  for all People', Deptfort 2005

''Amazing juxtapositions with these buildings'' stated Spero in the talk he gave us.
What is so fascinating about this work is that it is very contradictory of what you expect to see, no traditional and symbolic architecture, instead only religious structures now in very different environments, located in industrial estates, backstreets, houses, cinemas, between betting shops and even pubs.  This shows that the power and need of faith and worship overrides the importance of space and material objects.
More work can be seen on his website, www.davidspero.co.uk

Rasmus Vasli..

Marcio Mascarenhas and Rasmus Vasli welcomed by Solent.
Continuing on from my previous post, the second of our guest speakers was Rasmus Vasli, someone who I had previously discovered when setting up this account a couple of months ago.  He is the creator of the blog 'Cup of Pea'.
He first went to study film in Australia for 3 years which is where he initially experimented with photography within the genre of fashion.  When speaking to Rasmus he mentioned that he 'regrets that he hadn't explored photography earlier..'
The first collection of work which he showed us was taken from his MA, titled 'Related'.
He said that he had 'an obsession about how in-laws can start to look like each other even when they have no physical relation to each other..'  This interest is how his project of his came about.
He noticed that there is a likeness between people and a connection between family members so he photographed each subject using the same set up in relation to camera angle, studio surrounding and even facial expression in order to display that element of similarity.

Lars and Tim

Brit and Kjersti

Harald and Odd

                  Solveig and Inger

''What can a photograph tell us about the people that are gathered in it? How are they related? How do they get along?
Can a simple hand gesture, face expression or body posture give us the answer? Or do we have to look deeper into the details of the photograph in order to make a decision?''

Quote taken from his website www.vasli.no

CUP OF PEA
After previously analysing the work of his blog it was really interesting to hear him discussing his ideas behind the website and what it means personally for him.
He said that he simply 'wanted to go out and shoot whatever he wants, not being forced to stick to a strict specification as he had before..'

His style is simple, straight on portraiture with no angles.  He said that through doing film many years before it taught him how to set up a shot photographically.

The Escaping Head

The Passport Man

Artist - Julie Verhoeven

What he says he likes about these photographs is that you can't tell a date or time.. what he chooses to title them also doesn't add any extra information about where or when it was taken.

How he finds his subjects?
Vasli said that they have to have 'a quality he finds interesting and something he likes'.
In the question and answer session after the presentation someone asked him whether he every gets turned away?  He said yes, he has been as some people aren't happy to have their photograph taken.  He continued with ''you shouldn't be scared of them saying 'no'.  They will only turn away, so you don't lose anything through asking.''  This has inspired me to be more confident in approaching the public and asking to take their portrait.

Marcio Mascarenhas..

Marcio Mascarenhas and Rasmus Vasli welcomed by Solent.
20/03/12 - today in our representation lecture, two guest speakers came to speak to us about their studies, early career and interest in photography.

Both with a very different approach to portraiture, Brazilian artist, Marcio Mascarenhas firstly spoke to us about his background of working in communication and development formed by his strong interest in fine art and cultural studies.
His main practice being photography, he also experiments with installations and through these explores subjects to do with gender, race and identity.
''In fact his pictures (or installations) are not obvious at all, instead they try to deconstruct the obviousness to let the viewer experience a wold completely disengaged from the values we are used to.''
Quote taken from his website. www.marciomascarenhas.com

Marcio showed us three series of his work, 'I as an Other', 'The Bodies I Live In' and 'Some Unholy War.'  

My favourite photographs were from his I as an Other.

This collection primarily focuses on the ideas of identity and and the self as always being part of someone else.  He spoke about photography as being a form of communication and this specific project ''raises questions about the moment when we feel the other as part of the self, how the I and the Other are part of the process of being.'' (Quote from Marcio)

His love for aesthetically pleasing images really came across when speaking to us, he said that he has a 'fetishism for beauty that photography brings' and he created this work for his own ego - to show that he 'can shoot a beautiful picture'.

The high contrast, studio shot, black and white images could be considered as quite post-modern as the whole idea of his project was to break the conventional rules and create something a bit out of the ordinary.  

Has digital photography devalued the photograph?

After contributing to a forum on mycourse I started to think more about the discussion and my actual opinion on the subject.

FORUM
The below quote comes from an interview with the photographer Ricky Adam about his forth coming book Destroying Everything. The Analogue V Digital argument is an ongoing one that may never be resolved satisfactorily.   

"What role does post production play?  Is there a difference between working with chemicals and working in a ‘Digital’ darkroom as far as the ‘Legitimacy’ of the final image?
So long as the image hasn't been manipulated in any way a good photo is a good photo, regardless of what sort of camera was used to take it.  You have to be a lot more resourceful when shooting film.  For one you shoot fewer photos, but in doing so I think you learn a lot more about composition, lighting, etc.  I often wonder how many more photos I would have it I could have shot digital when I first started out?  Would I even have pursued photography? Possibly not...''
The rest of the interview continues and can be seen here.

I read the interview by Ricky Adam and the other comments submitted by members of my class.  I found out I completely agreed with what most of them were saying about the same topic.
''So long as the image hasn't been manipulated in any way a good photo is a good photo, regardless of what sort of camera was used to take it.''  In my opinion, this is so true.
Some of the other girls said they would rather see an image in exhibition on a gallery wall which had been created on a cheap film camera rather than a post digital SLR which would have cost the photographer a bomb to purchase.  I could relate to this as I thought exactly the same!

I don't know, maybe I only have this view on the subject as I was introduced to photography as Sixth Form through the use of black and white film.  But I can still remember that initial proud feeling of holding my first print - physically taken, processed and developed through the darkroom chemicals.  I guess I was very lucky, some people didn't have access to these facilities before University and started off with digital - In this case, they would probably have an oppositional view to me.

People say analogue photography is now dead and digital has taken over completely but I don't think this is correct at all.  Yes, of course the practice is becoming less common, especially due to the expense of resources nowadays.. but I would still much rather produce film work over any digital piece.  It forces me to think more about what shots I am taking, with a limited amount of negative you have to get the framing, lighting and composition etc. perfect before you take the photograph.
Whereas, when I shoot on digital I seem to just press the shutter, not really thinking hard about what I am capturing - knowing I can view it straight away (altering whatever is wrong).

Talking about the 'legitimacy' of the final photograph.  When U view an image I am much more likely to feel that a film shot has better representation of 'truth' over digital, simply because I know how much post-production manipulation can alter the appearance these days.

Continuing with this idea of manipulation..
Yes ok, I will admit that when working with digital I use Photoshop more often than not to edit my photographs afterwards.  It is such an easy access post-production program which allows photographers to enhance, change and distort their images completely.  I don't tend to dramatically transform my photographs, but I have seen work which has been manipulated beyond original recognition.
In my eyes I don't see a photography like this as 'legitimate' at all - and to all artists who produce this work, can you still be called a 'photographer' or simply a computer genius'?

BATH + BRISTOL = 2x new exhibitions.

THE HOLBURNE MUSEUM
Art of Arrangement: Photography and the Still Life Tradition.

Taken from the National Media Museum Photography Collection, The Holburne Museum is currently showing the still life work of many famous photographers including Ansel Adams, Edward Steichen and William Henry Fox Talbot as well as more recent practitioners such as Don McCullin and Chris Kemp.

'Still life', something which spans from the beginning of painting history when objects were represented through work on canvas, to current day photography. This exhibition is an investigation into the artistic genre, managing to explore how still life has now moved on to become very popular in photography.
Even in modern day still life photographs we can recognise elements that were incorporated by painters in their work, and visa versa.  For example, in this painting below (on display at the museum), includes fruit and veg - items which are a sign of wealth, often ones which are dying and rotting away are a metaphor for life.  Another element which is less obvious but still very meaningful is the pocket watch.  The aspect of time is something which is very common to spot in photographic still life work nowadays.

Still Life with Shellfish and Fruit, 1960.

We were shown around by the Director of the Museum, Alexander Sturgis and he spoke about what was on display, saying:

''The exhibition is about the relationship between photography and still life.. it is about a dialogue.''
''Relationship with photography and time is different to that with painting.''

''Showing that photography can do what painters do.''

Roger Fenton - Still Life with Ivory Tankard and Fruit, 1860

Welcomed by Roger Fenton's photograph from 1860 we can straight away see the progression from painting to photography at this early time.

He was clearly interested in the relationship between light and shadow as well as the arrangement of objects, again surrounding the idea of decay.

This photograph could be seen under the title 'Light and Dark'.. as well as this, the exhibition was split into many more sections, such as 'Order and Disorder', 'Still Life with Figures' and 'Movement and Stillness.'

The most important thing I realised from this visit is that 'a still life' photograph doesn't have to be what I first stereotypically imagine.  In this exhibition I viewed work which I wouldn't usually class has a still life, only because it breaks conventional ideas and aesthetics.
But when I saw the photographs under 'Movement and Stillness', it became clear to me that I just needed to think of the words 'still life' more literally.  These basically show situations but in a frozen photographic shot.. life which is still, or 'still life'.

These photographs really caught my attention and I started 
to think about time with still life in a whole new way.

Arthur Clive Banfield
The life history of a splash 1905

Harold Edgerton
Bullet through Jack

Another section which made me think was with the 'figure', the traditional still life image doesn't include people whereas they are shown here.  Even though they aren't the main focus, they are still present and very important for the image as a whole.  

Frederick William Bond
Contents of an Ostrich's Stomach, 1930

My favourite photograph from the whole show is this, 'Contents of an ostrich's stomach' by Frederick William Bond in 1930.  This unconventional piece was taken after he retrieved all of these items out of a dead ostrich's stomach at London Zoo where he worked as assistant treasurer and photographer.
I think this image shocked me more than anything, especially as I didn't expect to see it as a still life.
I learnt a lot from this visit and would definitely recommend seeing it!

ARNOLFINI
Sophy Rickett: To The River.

After visiting Bath we drove to Bristol to see two other artist creations held at the Arnolfini Gallery.
Firstly we viewed 'To The River' created by Sophy Rickett.  This work was in the form of a video instillation and was very different to what I was expecting.
It was created in 2011 but the filming was taken in 2010 during the spring equinox, at night time along the bank of the River Severn.

We entered a large dark room where there were 3 projection screens, each showing a different piece of footage.  Lit by specially installed lights, it depicted crowds all waiting for the Severn Bore to pass.
Recordings are played around the gallery space as if we are among the group waiting, sometimes making it feel quite uncomfortable and claustrophobic.  As we stood there I was quite unsure about what was going to happen, but then the longer the gatherings wait, the more inpatient they become and I even heard one of the men say ''How long do we have to wait?''
As a viewer you need to engross yourself into these conversations going on around you in order to get a true understanding.  As time goes on, narratives emerge through people talking and you start to gain a feeling of everyday life and the 'natural world' - something that Rickett is very interested in and continues to explore.  If you listen carefully you can pick up discussions about a dead fox on the shore, people and their dogs, even an old man who says he hopes to have ''a little more time left.''

This work is about spectator reactions and as she tries to create an exciting sense of anxiety and anticipation throughout as they wait for this event to happen.