Source Graduate

Source Magazine Source is a quarterly photography magazine, available in print and as a digital edition  it offers photography graduates an opportunity to submit a selection of images which will maintain a permanent online presence.

Submission Requirements

• Eight images and a brief text introduction.
• Your contact details and a link to your own website.
• A listing with details of your Graduate exhibition venue, date and times.
• The work is arranged by course group and remains on the Source site permanently – so it’s accessible long after you graduate.
• Searchable by genre to enable audiences to locate work.

The following are the images which I have submitted

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I used the statement which I had written for my interim exhibition as a starting point for the text which was submitted, this had to be shortened considerably as it was restricted to 120 words.

My work is a personal narrative of childhood hopes and dreams, my daughter has become a representation of a younger self. Becoming a parent is a stark reminder of the passage of time, with the realisation that life is short, giving thought of lost dreams and forgotten pleasures.

The use of the lensless cameras is important, as it is reminiscent of a nostalgic past. The soft focus gives a dreamlike quality which adds to the atmosphere and the light leaks and flare implies to me hope of regaining those innocent childhood aspirations. The slow shutter speeds which allows for the blurring of moving figures produces ghostlike apparitions creating an ethereal mood which gives a surreal mix of fact and fantasy.

Marketing

Source promotes Graduate Photography Online across different platforms and media:

• Press Release sent to our database of Picture Editors and Gallery Curators.
• Prominent link on the Source website home page.
• Posting in the Source Photo Blog.
• Via Source’s Twitter (@sourcephoto), which has over 25,000 followers.
• Via the Source Facebook Page.
• A full-page Graduate Photography Online ad in Source Magazine.

There is a cost of £28 to submit your work, that also includes a year subscription to the magazine. I felt this was worth paying in order to promote my work across such a wide spectrum of social media and sources.

The site is now live with Graduate 2016 submissions, so I’ve included the Link to my page

 

Future First Workshop

I volunteered to hep with the workshops which were held during the Easter break as I’d enjoyed the previous workshop that I’d helped with. I hadn’t heard about Future First, so this is the information that we were give about the project

Future First is part of a wider project working with children who have spent some time in local authority care, have caring responsibilities, are from a black, Asian, minority ethnic background, or would be the first generation in their family to attend university. The aim of the project is to raise the aspirations and confidence of these children.

The children were all in Year 10 and came from a number of different schools, from North Wales to the North West. There were 3 workshops, printing, drawing and photography, I was allocated to help with printmaking. I was a bit apprehensive about this as I haven’t done any printmaking for a long time.

 

Applying the first colour…

The workshop was in screen printing, the screens had been prepared ready so that each child would have the opportunity to print a 2 colour image. The technician spoke to each group about screen printing, giving them a basic overview and demonstration of the process, then let them try their hands at printing their own copies.

 

Applying the 2nd colour…

On the whole, most of the children seemed to enjoy the workshop, they seemed to like the fact that they were printing a character who they were all familiar with. There were a couple who didn’t really seem to be interested at all, which I felt was a shame as it was a really good opportunity for them to have a taster session in a new process.

 

The finished print.

Overall, I felt the workshops were really positive, I thought it was a shame that the last workshop of the day was shorter than the first two. This was a knock on effect of the schools arriving later than anticipated, so was beyond the control of the workshop leaders, it just meant that the last group didn’t get as much of a chance to experience the process.

On a personal note, I enjoyed refreshing my memory with the screen printing process, I also had the chance to have a go myself in the first workshop. The children who attended were all pleasant and well behaved, and it has made me think more about working with this age group in the future.

What do Artists Do All Day

BBC4 showed this programme on March 13th 2016, this episode featured photographer Dennis Morris

Executive Producer: Richard Bright
Producer: Marisa Privitera Murdoch

The programme follows the Jamaican born photographer as he undertakes his latest commission of photographing a new all female punk band, whilst he also reminisced about some of the highlights of his career which included documenting what life was like for bands such as Bob Marley and  The Sex Pistols whilst on tour.

On tour with Bob Marley in 1974

The Sex Pistols

He spoke about how he was seduced by the darkroom at a very young age, creating his own darkroom in his bedroom, taking bookings for photo shoots using the phone box outside his home which he used as his contact number. He also had a yearning to become involved in the music business which lead him to spend a lot of his youth at local gigs and record shops.

His first big break came before he was 17 when after approaching Bob Marley to ask if he could take a photo, he was invited to join the band on tour. He was to immerse himself into the world of the bands, doing studies of what life on the road was really like, from the monotony of the tour bus to the wrecked hotel bedrooms!

I enjoy this programme, and have seen a number of episodes with different artists, what I particularly like about Dennis Morris’s episode was that he took the film crew to places which he felt were significant to his early career. The programme was scheduled to coincide with the opening of his new exhibition at The Institute of Contemporary Art, in London, which will feature some previously unseen work. I think that the programme at 30 minutes, was a little short,  I would have like to have seen more of him during his working day, and it would be interesting to see some of his personal work. It has however, introduced me to a successful contemporary photographer, whose work I have looked at more closely since watching the episode.

 

Curating an exhibition

When curating an exhibition,  it’s important to consider the whole aspect of the exhibition prior to arriving at the venue to put the work up

Considerations

• The appearance, theme and aesthetic of the exhibition
• The minimum size of the wall/floor area you need for the exhibition
• How the exhibit will be mounted. What are the materials being used, and are there any health and safety factors to be considered?

Installing the artwork

• You will need to install or oversee the installation
• The arrangement of a show is vital to its success
• Aim to lead the viewer in a natural order around the pieces
• Create unusual juxtapositions in the arrangement
• Seek a second opinion
• Allow yourself plenty of time to install work correctly
• Be prepared

For further information regarding putting on and curating an exhibition

EmptyEasel.com

About Careers – How to curate

 

 

 

 

 

Degree Show Research

I have put my name down for the Curatorial group for the final degree show, as there won’t be much happening until closer to the time of the show, I have done some research into putting on an exhibition.

Having an exhibition of your work is an opportunity to not only show your work but to also get the chance to speak to people who have come to see it. There is a lot of information available on the internet to guide you through putting on an exhibition, I have listed some important factors to bear in mind.

• Theme –  what is the exhibition about?
• Plan of action –  think about what you want to accomplish and how you are going to do it.
• Venue &  date
• Time Frame – what activities need doing and by when
• Marketing – get peoples attention, press release, social media, create flyers, posters, email, printed invitations, local radio
• Curation –  positioning of work requires careful consideration, plan what goes where
• Opening night / private viewing – as well as friends and family it’s important to invite people who could be important to your future, curators, journalists and gallery owners
• Maintain Interest – Keep promoting, organise events at your exhibitions, gallery tours, discussions.

Once the exhibition is over it is important to evaluate  – Look at what went well and what didn’t, look at areas for improvement.