Ongoing

Back to the Winter Gallery

2010-05-16T22:51:00.005+01:00

Ahem. Side tracked.
So the opening day came round and with clean white walls (thanks Kat and Danielle!) We were ready to hang our collective works...

Time rolled on very quickly and with the opening looming, measurements, hammering, drilling and finishing sped up. It was nice to work collectively having made our work separately in order to finish the project as a whole.

The Lightbox attached smoothly with the frankly professional muscular help of Dan and Rory. Having measured the baseline for the box, the boys held it straight and I pencilled out the holes in each of the four shelf brackets(below) and the two mirror plate fixings (above). We put the box down, I pre-drilled the holes, the boys held the box up again and I screwed it into the wall. All previous worries of it's weight and size etc dropped away as i proudly welded it up and there it sat glowing away...

One item absolutely necessary to the entire act of hanging an exhibition? Spirit Level.

With the work hung and straightened I rushed home to change (HA!) and returned to the space. The private view was very enjoyable. Friends, friends of friends and vigilant members of the art community turned out to enjoy a relaxed and very straightforward opening night.

A lovely touch to the gallery is it's drive space in front, perfect for outside enjoyment of the gallery. With the big double doors wide open and inviting it was nice to enjoy the evening sunshine and look in on a group of people enjoying our hard work...and our beer!

An after hours celebratory drink for Kat and myself. Hurrah!

"Hi, I like your art"
"Why thank you. Here, take a card"

maybe one day?

Me and my niece

2010-05-16T22:13:00.000+01:00

A truly memorable image for both uncle and niece to enjoy for years to come! Cheers Bruv!

Iron like a lion in Zion!

2010-05-16T21:47:00.002+01:00

With uni slowly edging out the window, I have fun time...
Ink on growing paper...

Just a quick scan as It's too large for my scanner bed. Nice dark lines...

Distracting photoshop fun...

I have plans to produce several colourful versions, with block colours and smooth dark edges.

Morning

2010-05-07T12:15:00.007+01:00

Bright an early both, lights fixed down and ready for a test before sealing up.

And with light forced through,
the images,
usually dull and flat when lamp lit,
explode from their windows.

Inversion and collusion of prescense,
like closed circuit television,
a watchful gaze on
the static impression of moving time.

Life in Colour.
Bound and defined
By the darkness surrounding;
this is the mind.

Let there be light(s)!

2010-05-06T15:48:00.004+01:00

The fluorescent tubes I used were 2ft long. Each one lies diagonally behind a set of four images. This gives an even coverage without too much contrast in light fallout between the centre and edge. Through the translucent opal acrylic there is a warm even glow with a slight orange hue.

To attach the lights neatly, I took the top off the housing and found a hole which I could drill through from the back into a piece of wood.
The short piece of pine(bottom) sits in the housing on top of the pencil line. The two dark vertical lines show where the holes will be.

From underneath, i drilled through the back of the MDF, through the holes in the light housing and into the wood. This held the light tightly inside and the screw head ensure the back would still fit flush to the wall.
I repeated this for the other light, realised it was 11.15pm, drilled a single hole for the power cable and stopped using power tools.

To get power to both lamps, I bought a two way adapter and three metres of cabling to run from the lights box to a mains plug. I wired the plug and attached the lights.

The last photograph before sleep
Making this lightbox within my room was difficult; it was the best space to do it in but left me with kilos of sawdust and a workshop for a bedroom.
I can't lie it's been great fun.

Spray and image mounting

2010-05-06T14:35:00.005+01:00

After drilling, cutting out and sanding the MDF I was ready to paint the top.
I used spray paint, Easy and Cheap. 3 coats was enough to covers the top

Following this, I secured the images into their windows. I tested several combinations and felt that this order gave harmony to the left group of four and the right group of four whilst also creating four columns of two stacked images; each duo working together to either hint at narrative, light conditions or concept.

I secured the images with glue then glued the acrylic sheet on top, securing it around he edge of the images. I then clamped them to ensure a strong bond.

Here, the board is placed on my window sill, lit by cloudy day light.
I began to see the lightbox take a tangible step forward

Sane Man Lightbox

2010-05-06T14:32:00.003+01:00

"Show me a sane man and I will cure him for you" Carl Jung

Mid lightbox building snap...
More building process to come shortly.

Building time!

2010-04-29T14:46:00.004+01:00

I'm building a lightbox for an exhibition in the Winter Gallery, Mumbles, Swansea (opening tomorrow!) Here are some images from the process.

The mitre box was the eaiest way to cut the lengths of 3inch straightwood to make the box sturdy.

The holy trinity. Power drill. Power saw. Power sander. They have not only been making the job easier and quicker, some parts wouldhave been impossible.

The top piece needs eight equal rectangular holes to set the images in. I'll upload scans of my notebook for measurements and explanation....

Here's a closeup of two fully cut rectangles and two half cut. Each corner had to be drilled to insert the saw blade.

The drill bit was quite cheap and fairly difficult to position; it kept skidding across the MDF. However the saw blade (after some hesitation on my part!) was fantastic and gave me a neat edge.

Crack out the sander...

Lazy boy

2010-04-04T14:52:00.002+01:00

I haven't been using this enough.
I've been making lots but not uploading, so here are a set of images entitled "4 nights at my sister's place"
They'll make it into the book in a section on morning views and personal spaces with big window shaped holes to the outside world.

They will sit in a chapter with a joiner I'm making from around 40 photographs from my bedroom window in swansea, taken on many recent sunny mornings.

Peace.

For Tom, Nadja and Maya.

2010-03-06T08:49:00.004Z

Headed up north to Sheffield on Feb tenth. Dead excited on the train. The visit was for a new little person. a beautiful girl named Maya by my brother and sister in law.

The first newborn i've held. And the first i've photographed.
For Tom, Nadja and Maya.

book page- Hostel Utopia. Amsterdam

2010-02-05T11:38:00.004Z

Shithole. €10. can't complain. (Digital draft copy. time for the darkroom)

forgot to mention...

2010-02-02T22:15:00.003Z

I was going away for a week. That's right, lucky old me got to disappear to Europe with some friends. Like a Ferrel dog I'm back. And even more like a Ferrel dog I smell and I got stuff caught in my hair.

Such as this little bit of the past...

I picked up these mementos at a flea market on the south west side of Brussels. I was looking for peoples old letters and photographs. The drizzle made the bitter cold twice as worse and over several hours soaked everything: Photographs, letters, telegrams, original artwork. everything got damp. I got despondent but carried on with the great rummage. It reminded me of playing with Lego when I was a kid. For a brief time you get furious, "the Holy Grail is there somewhere" your brain promises you unknowingly... and then there it is: A rug full of dated darkroom equipment. An enlarger, 4 trays, ancient crusted chemical bottles, paper, a ropey looking 2 pin red light bulb.Amongst the rubble lay an 'orderbook' (barely used) documenting almost a year long hobby for taking, processing and printing photographs(in Flemish) some ancient Agfa paper(yet to be tested for light leaks) and some negatives.

Exciting eh? More soon.
Goodbye. Or- Tot ziens as they might say in Belgium

My Summer Exhibition

2010-01-21T11:54:00.013Z

Europe: 04 August-27 August, 2009.

Myself and Andy my housemate spent three and a half weeks travelling from Swansea to mainland Europe via ferry. On arrival in Northern France, we began a loop of Europe that would see us travel several thousands of miles by train through 8 countries, sleeping on countless sofas and train station floors and meeting kind and generous people all along the way, learning first hand about countries previously unknown.

Each day I took a single photograph. The temptation to photograph whilst travelling is great: so many different things to remember, so many awe inspiring sights, landscapes and social experiences. house parties, mountains, pubs, clubs, parks, architecture...

To limit like this reminded me to consider, making each photograph a memory of its own. Instead of putting a camera between myself and everything I wanted to remember, I stopped. I centred myself in the moment, took a deep breath and soaked up all tangible aspects of my situation. I didn't lose a minute of my travels with my camera, I didn't tame any landscapes or distance myself from any situation- however tempting it was at times. I was there. And I photographed.

The following images are several from the trip (the rest will follow) which I edited down for an exhibition in Dynevor campus, Swansea held in mid October. The brief was to choose up to three images taken during and representing "My Summer".

Many of the images are taken in the rooms we stayed in after meeting through couchsurfing.org: a website which links travellers with hosts in cities and towns around the world, facilitating the movement of people and growth in respect and knowledge of countries, cultures and peoples around the world. We stayed for very short periods of time with our hosts (sometimes just a single night!) and I’d now like to categorically thank each of these friends of ours!

Mark and Bibi
Rebecca
Tom
Frank
Sebastian
Johanna and Dennis
Tunde
Romaric

These people were the basis for my exhibition submission. "Points of view" was the working title I gave it, the frames inside frames were my visual representation of the differing viewpoints I experienced through these people in such a short time. Learning about their cities, lives, cultural history, languages and experiences gave this trip a real sense of journey. this wasn't just a checkpoint mission to loop Europe, it was a chance to experience, learn and grow.

The final image chosen lies at the bottom in the format it was printed after being chosen. Personally- and no comment on the curator's- it isn't my favourite of the three entered, however it is a good representation of the overall concept of my selection process.

I will upload the entire set from the trip soon...

A morning in Maastricht.

Sebastian gave up his time and his bed in berlin.

The Tacheles, Berlin. To squat and make art. A taste of the dream.

The morning after at Dennis and Johanna's in East Berlin.

A fire, a guitar and us. Thanks Hungary.

From Budapest to Italy. New and fleeting travellers.

Upside down in the Italian mountains.

The morning calm after the most grand thunderstorm of my life.

the body, representation and image

2010-01-19T12:06:00.003Z

Roland Barthes
"If only photography could give me a neutral, anatomical body, a body which signifies nothing! Alas, I am doomed... I am at the same time: the one I think I am, the one I want others to think I am, the one the photographer thinks I am, and the one he makes use of to exhibit his art."

And so it begins.

New scraps

2010-01-18T18:55:00.003Z

What will it all become i wonder?
got new scraps today, see? Bits of bad photocopying, some interesting words, some of those tiny people pictures, and somebody who has had enough with their Christmas cards-(i found three to 'anna').

Good evening. I'm off to make it into stuff, I have a visual diary to fill...

explanations

2010-01-17T17:41:00.004Z

Thought I should explain the pinhole images below with some technical bobbins.

The first is with a brownie. Lens smashed out. Orangeboom lager emptied in the traditional way. Metal cut to fit. Pinhole popped through. Paper loaded in darkroom. 15 second exposure of my pretty self squatting. Back to the dark room. Paper dev'd, stopped, fixed and washed- standard procedure. Then when dry, I scanned the image.
In photoshop, use the "rotate canvas" sub menu to flip horizontally and then add a new adjustment layer- "invert".
Effectively, this treats the paper image as a negative, using photoshop to create a positive.

The second is an image called A Sweet Fuck You. Taken during a bad printing session, I took 30 seconds out of my day to swear at my pinhole during the exposure.

More to follow...

2010-01-17T13:24:00.001Z

Pinhole camera testing...

And again...

The only thing you need to make a pinhole lens is a small hole that is the only entrance for light into a given space. The size of the hole compared to the distance to the light sensitive material inside the light safe box determines the aperture. Compared to the glass lens, where light is magnified and strengthened using glass, the pinhole has a much larger f/ value. This requires the long exposure in order to project enough light onto the light sensitive medium.

It is this requirement of time spent in front of the camera by a human presence in order to leave a photographic trace that is my interest with pinhole photography. Alongside the aesthetic qualities where the uneven pinhole and low-fi technology bend traditional rules of photography, the pinhole long exposure holds a quality not dissimilar to the funerary pose or "postmortem portrait" of the mid to late 1800s and early 1900s. The following are examples and text taken from Irrational Geographic on Wordpress.com.

"these photographs were meant to serve as memorials of the individual’s lives, the subjects were often formally dressed, fully made-up, and strapped upright in chairs to give them a semblance of vitality."

These photographs turned the children into still lives for the camera's view. The camera would take up to several minutes to record the image, and in this the "memory" for the parents is created. There presence is solidified in the image before burial and removal from the physical world. It is easy to see that the camera has developed alongside societies wants to remember, record and capture. Eye contact with the subject (or arguably the object) within these images, becomes haunting, a physical action undertaken here by the dead, engaging with us in the present.

Something to chew on...

2010-01-17T13:04:00.001Z

Last September, I wrote a work brief. This was an aim to focus my ideas into a coherent project that i could undertake throughout this academic year. Over the last few months, it's been edited and re-edited. Therefore, I feel it is the perfect start to a new book collecting this scrap work, being ordered and punctuated by the images made in the Camera Obscura.

Comments or questions? Feel free.

2010-01-15T14:54:00.001Z

In an ongoing chapter of the book based around rodin's thinker, Im working on this scrap:

Consider memory and time. I'm looking at this chapter finishing soon, with final camera Obscura images to follow shortly...

2010-01-07T09:24:00.000Z

Whilst I'm writing an overview of my current personal work, I'd like to introduce you to a relevant body of work: Natural Magic. This, a scrap book made almost a year ago, documenting three days spent in the almost complete darkness that was my Bedroom Camera Obscura shows how I like to engage with my photographic work.

More picture things later. Working on some new scrap book mess.