Book Review: Georgia O’Keefe (1887-1986) – Flowers of the Desert

Publisher: Taschen GmbH (25 Aug 2000);

This was a brilliantly informative book and just the right length and with the right amount of

detail for a novice art appreciator like me.  I thought the colour reproduction of the pictures were excellent.  I also liked the style in which it was written, which was neither condescending nor high-flown.  Others in my photographic circle were very impressed with the book and agreed with me that it was excellent value for money.

O'Keeffe’s interest in photography led her to use the 'close up' in a photographic way to spectacular and sometimes sublime effects.  Her sense of composition was never less than powerful and her everyday subject matter was presented in new and remarkable ways.

A book that opens up new ideas and provides new directions for reading is especially exciting. I strongly recommended it.

Lightroom 5 Demonstration

I recently attended a meeting of the RPS DiG Southern Region group when they were hosting a Lightroom 5 session with Adobe software engineer David Mellows.  It was a packed session with approximately 100 people attending to learn the latest techniques from this image database.  Fortunately, there was enough light to make notes by.  I had been to one of David’s demonstration sessions with the South Western DiG and the hall was almost completely dark, totally unsuitable for making notes.

David was very quick in his demonstrations on using the Library area to import images, make smart collections and filter out unusable images.  He went on to show how to add keywords and copyright to images, adjusting RAW and JPG images and saving them in various collections.  He went through the different headings including preparing slideshows and adding music and creating photo books which are fairly easy to create using this software.

David was asked to demonstrate things a bit more slowly as many of the audience had never attended a Lightroom demonstration before.  Fortunately I had and had also looked up some aspects on YouTube and Adobe TV which was where David learnt all the new tricks of the trade when a new version was released.

David is a also well-known photographer who attends high profile events including red carpet occasions and had quite a few tips to get the best exposed images ready for immediate use on TV and in the newspapers.

I do find his attitude towards women and less experienced photographers to be rather patronizing and don’t think I would like to work with him.  On the plus side his knowledge of Lightroom and Photoshop is phenomenal and I have to respect that.

Museum of International and Contemporary Art in Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife

An exhibition showcasing the work of the Canarian art critic Eduardo Westerdahl is on view at the Museum of International and Contemporary Art in Puerto de la Cruz in Tenerife.  As I was on holiday there last week (25th April – 2nd May) I called in to take a look.  

Museum of International and Contemporary Ar

Westerdahl was born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1902 and is best known for the creation of the self-named gallery in Puerto del la Cruz, which features the works of many famous names of the Spanish modern art world.  Something of a revivalist man, his work included the world of letters, as he became the editor of the admired Gaceta del Arte magazine during the 1930’s.  

The exhibition has four rooms of permanent displays and visitors can wander through an eclectric mix

Textura by Lindell

of mixed media images and sculptures. One of my favourite pictures was called Textura by a Spanish artist called Lindell, created in 1982, which reminded me most strongly of the hardened blue-black lava which is found all over the Canary Islands due to them being of being formed from volcanic eruptions.  It also reminded me of a painting I saw at the Tate Modern many years ago of textured white paper and textiles (on view when the West End show ART featured a similar theme of a white painting).  Some of the work seemed strangely naive but the majority was interesting, thought provoking work.  I’m glad I stopped by.

Lord Lichfield at the National Trust, Mottisfort

Yesterday I went to see the Lord Lichfield exhibition at Mottisfort Abbey National Trust place in Romsey.  Here's the link to their exhibition site:  http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/mottisfont/things-to-see-and-do/events/exhibitions/ .

Talk about being mugged before you even got into the event.  It cost £11.25 to enter the house and gardens if you weren't an NT member and if you felt like gift aiding your entrance fee you had to pay over £12.  That's the first time I've ever had to pay more to gift aid.  It warrants further investigation I think.

Lichfield's pictures were up to his usual stunning standard although I had seen many before.  The images mainly centred on his working life in the 1960s/70s and around 2000+.  Sadly he died in 2005 so we'll never know how he would have fully embraced what the 'naughties' digital age can now offer.

(c) Lord Lichfield Studios

I have often wondered how he would have fared without his royal connections.  Would his natural brilliance at relaxing the subject and getting that one extraordinary picture or would he have had to stay in the ranks of the also rans?  I really liked this image of Cecil Beaton and discussed the set up with my colleague as to who would have had the last word in arranging the scenario.







It was interesting to read that no photography was allowed due to infringement of copyright.  Earlier this month I went on a study day with the OCA to the Saatchi Gallery where there are 12 galleries open to the public.  Photography went on there with people not only snatching pictures of the images with their smart phones but students were also opening using cameras to record the images.  No one stopped them even with gallery staff in the same room.

It was an interesting collection of his most famous images, ones that I would expect him to be proud of but it would have been much better if there had been some of his lesser known and even unseen pictures included in the overcrowded rooms.

Visit to the RPS Travelling Print Exhibition, Taunton

RPS 165^th International Print Exhibition

 Friday March 7^th 2014

The RPS 165^th Print Exhibition came to the end of its stay in Taunton yesterday so I visited it before it closed.  There are 100 prints from over 20 countries; hence its content is truly ‘International’.  Evidently this exhibition is the first to allow images to be submitted in digital format and over 80% were submitted in this way.  I was lucky when I arrived at the museum to view the exhibition, as there was no one else in the room.  Eventually several more people came in and caused a disturbance as they worked their way round discussing the images as they went.

Whilst I didn’t necessarily understand what all the photographers were trying to say with their pictures, I did appreciate approximately three quarters of the images themselves.  What I found more intriguing was those pictures that had an explanation beside them (and not all did) some of the wording was incomprehensible.  Why do people do that?  Is it to big themselves up or do they really believe their ‘hyperbole’?

(c) John Eaton, Watching and Waiting

In my opinion the majority of the exhibition is one of excellence and something to strive for.  For example I enjoyed John Eaton’s ‘Watching and Waiting’ with its areas of symmetry and non symmetry with one person just visible in the bottom right hand corner; this made your eye move around the picture again.

(c) Jane Donnelly 'War Horse'

I also found Jane Donnelly’s ‘War Horse’ extremely imaginative showing how such a large domesticated animal with such immense strength can be so gentle and amenable.   

There were one or two images that had no impact on me at all, there were some that I felt were mere record shots and I wondered why the selection committee included them.  Surely, a picture should be one where the photographer has added something of him or herself to it and not just taken what was in front of them.  The picture by Vinci Weng titled ‘A Wonderful Time’ was intriguing where it was obviously comprised of many images but why had the photographer cut off the majority of people's and animals’ feet?

 

I enjoy pictures that show symmetry and there were several in this classification.  My favourite was the image byMike Mills entitled ‘The Go-Between’.  The shades of grey and black add to the symmetry to me and the punctum is the person captured walking between the two buildings that gives the eye a focal point.

(c) Mike Mills, The Go-Between

All in all, I found this exhibition visually stimulating and it has given me some interesting ideas to move my photography forward into different areas.

RPS 165th Print Exhibition

I'm off to Taunton today to see the RPS 165th  exhibition at the Museum of Somerset.  Should be interesting to see what caught the judges' eyes.  Luckily I live near enough to Exeter, Taunton and Bristol so I can get to see some top rated exhibitions.

Report to follow.

Link to RPS print exhibition website

Itay_Benit_Untitled  Wawona

Book: The Story of Design by Charlotte and Peter Fiell

I've just read a review of this book in The Mail on Sunday which claims that this brilliantly researched history of design classics is perfect for dipping into.  Not being near a decent library to borrow it, I've ordered a good used copy from an Amazon dealer and hope to dip in in the near future.

Saatchi Gallery Body Language Exhibition, Study Day

 20 February 2014
Well, I've bought my rail ticket which cost an arm and a leg to get up to Waterloo and on to Sloan Square for tomorrow's study day.  Today there are no diversions or substitutions on the railway so should get there in the 2 hours 56 minutes they claim.

18 February 2014
OCA is putting on a study session at the Saatchi Gallery Body Language Exhibition on Friday, 21st February.  I'm hoping to go but I'm hoping that there are no train delays or bad weather on the day.  I'm leaving my ticket to the last minute as I really do want to go but don't want to forfeit the cost as it runs to about £50+.

I've always been interested in the subject of body language and hope to gain some interesting insights with this exhibition.  I really enjoy the talk given by the gallery staff as it gives a great perception on the images that are featured.

Fingers crossed for good weather!

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Thoughts after the visit

The Saatchi Gallery has 12  galleries over 3 floors with a mixture of images and sculpture.  What I hadn't realised was that the majority of exhibits were paintings rather than photographs.  In all there was one gallery (gallery 5) of prints and one wall (gallery 1) with approximately a dozen prints mainly of transvestites.
Gallery 5 had a disturbing photographic exhibition, entitled the Essence Series, based on a cemetery in the town of Yekaterinburg in Russia, otherwise known as Ekaterinburg which is notorious for being where the Romanov royal family were murdered after the Bolshevik takeover in July 1918.

This exhibition comprised of larger than life photographs of intricately engraved tomb stones in the cemetery of various Russian gangland leaders who had been murdered during the 1990s.  Gang members were pictured beside their most prized possessions and the more items that were included indicated their social status in the gangs.  These images revealed an ideal remembrance in an attempt to control the memory of the future from the past.  Spooky!

We walked round separately and as a group discussing each person’s favourite item.  I found it difficult to relate to some of the images, as they seemed rather on the naïve side.  Some of a group of huge canvases by Helen Verhoeven seemed unfinished. Our tutor made the comment that the artist had done this deliberately as it made your eye complete the image.  Her larger than life canvases brought together seemingly random groups of people.

I’m always amazed how much of the intent of the artist I miss.  What seems to be a simple, painted picture has much significance in the various aspects of them but which are more often than not completely missed unless given an explanation.

OCASA Study Day - Fiona Yaron Field

OCASA - An Audience with Fiona Yaron Field

An Audience with photographer Fiona Yaron Field

Recently I went to Thatcham, Berks, on a study day set up by OCASA to listen and watch Fiona Yaron Field talk about her various portfolios of work which she had taken since starting photography in her late teens.  There were 11 of us of which three were women.  The link above leads to the notes I took during the day.

I found Fiona's work eclectic as it ranged from simple groups of work, ie, her work on women getting married, to her life story of her daughter Ophie, a Down's Syndrome baby, from birth to aged 12 years old.  This body of work, she felt, enabled her to see her daughter in a much clearer way rather than just looking at her.

I found her work entitled 'Beyond the Wall' very interesting and as she talked about setting up the subjects in both Israel and Palestine, how she was treated as a second class citizen.  She explained how she was unable to take any pictures unless she had a male minder in attendance as a woman on her own was not acceptable.

I found Fiona's work interesting and allowed me to think further along the work she had created; hopefully allowing me to produce new work covering similar subjects.

Whilst I don't feel that I need a minder to take my images, I do feel it takes a lot to get male models to relax with a woman photographer whilst having their picture taken by a man was present no problems.  This body of work ties in with my Progressing with Digital Photography module 4 as I am discussing the trials and tribulations of woman and women photographers in the 20th/21st Century.

RPS International Print Exhibition, Somerset

I've just seen the Facebook notification of the above exhibition on between Jan 11 - March 8th and think it would be great to make the effort to go as Taunton is only an hour away.

Link: http://www.rps.org/events/2014/january/visit-the-rps-international-print-exhibition-156---somerset for more information.  Definitely a YES for my February calendar.

Had to put it back until March due to other commitments, but determined to go.

OCASA Study Days

I've decided to pursue further learning by attending relevant study days put on by the OCA.  I intended to go to the Hayward Gallery in December last year but the state of the South West Railways put paid to that idea.

The new season's diary seems very interesting and I have put my name down for a day's session in Thatcham, Berks, where artist Fiona Yaron-Field has agreed to give a talk to OCA students on 8 February. Fiona is a practising artist who has been using photography for over 25 years; her practice centres around people, so this study visit will be particularly pertinent with those with an interest in portraiture. Fiona was selected for the 2013 Taylor Wessing exhibition and author of ‘Up Close, a Mother’s View‘ (Bunker Hill Publishing, 2008), in which she describes, through image and text, her relationship with her daughter Ophir who has Down’s Syndrome.

There is also a visit to the Saatchi Gallery in London on Friday,  21st February to the Body Language exhibition.  This study visit to London’s Saatchi Gallery exhibition Body Language surveys the figurative work of 20 contemporary artists. This engagement with the human form is ever present through the work of artists practising today through painting, photography and sculpture.
During the visit there will be a short talk by one of the gallery staff to gain a further insight into the work and motives of some of the artists.
Coinciding with Body Language is another Saatchi collection exhibition - New Order 2. This is the second instalment of this section of this collection of emerging and early career artists. The study visit will be led by Sarah West.

Both days sound very interesting and are achievable from Dorset so I'm looking forward to meeting up with fellow students and gaining more insight into other artists' work.

Historical photographs get a 'colorised' makeover - in pictures; Sarah Gilbert

The Guardian Newspaper November 18th 2013
I noticed this subject on one of the OCA subject forums recently and have been studying each of the images to see what I think of them being coloured as opposed to being black and white.  The website address is:
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2013/nov/18/historical-photographs-get-a-colorized-makeover-in-pictures

There are so many images to look through that I've just chosen two or three to comment on.  Also I deliberately didn't look at the comments below before I commented as I wanted to form my own impressions before being influenced by other people's comments.

Picture 1 - Civil Right march on Washington 1963 courtesy of the Library of Congress, by Jordan J Lloyd/Dynamichrome

I think this picture has been improved by colouring it.  The picture has more depth and give more of the impression of how many people actually took part in the march.  It can be better to look at a black and white image as you are not distracted by colour but colour definitely enhances this image.

Picture 2 - Three farmers swig bottles of Old Milwaukee lager, 1941 Photograph: Arthur Siegel/Library of Congress

The gentle colourisation of this image gives it much more depth.  The colours make the men seem  real as they drink from their bottles of beer.  This picture give a good impression of how working class men in lower class America looked and dressed .

 Picture 3 - Abraham Lincoln circa 1863, in colour. Colorized by: Sanna Dullaway

Whoever coloured this picture of Abraham Lincoln managed to enhance much more details than are visible in the initial black and white image.  The image of Lincoln give an impression of the real man, not just a cardboard cutout against a grey background, much better.

The overall thought that comes to mind is why colour something that is clearly so historical?  Someone must have too much time on their hands to be able to sit down and colour in all those people who attended that civil rights march in Washington. 

Interestingly, the comments fall about 50/50 for and against.  Some are vehemently against changing history and others feel it's not a bad thing and brings history to life.