Offshore (book design complete!)

With days to the OUT | TUO show opening at Catalyst Arts I can happily say that I have finished the design process of the Offshore photobook.  Naturally this will not printed or shipped in time for the opening, but they will arrive before the exhibition closes and before February's Late Night Art.

Now, back to waiting on my prints and then the install.

-PM

November, at a furious pace (kind of).

November has started and I am back making new project work.  The additional driving force for this is that I am participating in a group show with Catalyst Arts in January.  This upcoming show will open a busier year for me, in terms of photography, as I have not been able to devote time this year to exhibiting new work.  On the plus side 2011 has allowed me to complete other projects, such as 100 Portraits in 100 Days, which is finally for sale.  So, I aim to hit the ground running in 2013.

[Hard cover edition of 100 Portraits in 100 Days]

After the hectic pace of the first half of the year I am taking the opportunity to reduce the tempo and refocus, whilst creating new work.  I have been watching more films by Ozu Yasujiro and it they have only helped confirm the need for mono no aware within contemporary art, and modern living.  His films amble along and include mundane social events, eating and drinking taking the centre stage.  After my involvement in the extravagance of fictional filmmaking earlier this year, this 'return to normal' will be a welcome change.

[Tokyo Story, Ozu Yasujiro, 1953]

The Japanese aesthetic of mono no aware (simply put, "the pathos of things" where life's transience is celebrated) has fascinated me for some time, and it has been influencing my photography and writing for some time, for example my photobook FLUX is essentially an urban haiku.  This will be an aesthetic I will continue exploring and writing on throughout the next few months, in relation to my project work, so expect plenty of posts detailing photography, filmmaking, anime, poetry, and creative writing.

(For more information on Ozu and his films please read this insightful article by Ian Buruma, writing for The Guardian.)

On a side note I have recently enjoyed photographing my family.  Helen van Meene's adolescent portrait photography, when I first saw it, made a huge impact on me.  Aside from the beautiful images she was creating, van Meene was documenting people and bodies undergoing metamorphosis, changing physically from children into adults and emotionally into fully fledged personalities.  On a recent trip up home I was able to spend time with a pair of my cousins who are currently enjoying their teenage years, I am now convinced it may be one of the best time to photograph anyone.

[Meghan in White on Purple; October 2012]

[Ronan in Purple on White; October 2012]

-PM

https://twitter.com/#!/PeterMarley_

Moriyama: Chasing the Dog

Daido Moriyama (born 1938) is one of many photographers that I continue to be impressed and influenced by, but it is his distinct framing method and visual style that confirms that it is possible to make a life from following expressionistic photography.  This is a style that I have been pouring over more and more in the past few years; a style where 'shooting from the hip' is endorsed and accepted, and where conventional rules of framing or processing can be broken.

I travelled to the newly opened Klein + Moriyama show at the TATE Modern Gallery, in London.  Although it was the closing weekend of the Edvard Munch show I had no interest of seeing anything other than photography; also, I hadn't realised that I was so wrapped up in planning my photography trip that I forgot that the London Film Festival was on.  It was not until I was outside the BFI that it became obvious, and unimportant.  I was there for photography.

The Klein + Moriyama show at the TATE was nothing short of brilliant programming.  For more information on the show I would advise visiting the TATE website.  The exhibit led viewers through the works of William Klein, a primary influence on Moriyama and a fantastically modern photographer in his own right.  Their similarities are many: stark monochromatic prints (most of the time); freer framing methods (at odds with traditionalists or documentarians); they created bodies of work on cities and specific areas - including portraits, landscapes and abstracts (favouring urban detritus, advertising, reflections).  Much of what was on show can be found echoing in the work of contemporary American greats such as Garry Winogrand, Lee Freidlander, and Diane Arbus; as well as the more contemporary work of Jacob Aue Sobol.

At the end of the exhibition, in the Moriyama half of the floor, that I became really excited by two bodies of work I have never had a chance to see before (the preceding projects can be purchased as photobooks or in a larger photobook entitled Daido Moriyama: The World Through My Eyes).  These final works were Tales of Tono (1976), which was displayed as a series of prints and as slideshow, and Polaroid/Polaroid 1997 in which Moriyama recreated his entire studio using Polaroids.  Tono was captivating: it was the first time I had seen the entire project projected or printed and it was the first time I had seen Moriyama work in a rural setting.  This is a body of work I will have to come back to shortly - in relation to my own work, which will also be based in a more pastoral locale.

The highlight of the weekend was a printing show with Moriyama himself, where attendants were able to make a custom photobook of twenty prints from an available sixty with a signed silkscreen cover (yes, there was even a choice of cover).  This allowed me to edit together my own book of Moriyama's work, including a selection of rare colour prints.  Forget that old saying about not meeting your idols - this was an experience of a lifetime!

[Print Workshop with Daido Moriyama, TATE Modern, London, October 2012]

[Print Workshop with Daido Moriyama (pictured), TATE Modern, London, October 2012]

-PM

Seasonal News: Endings and Beginnings

I have neglected this space.  It was mostly because I had little to add, in terms of photographic material or thoughts on photography, film or the visual arts; actually, I had little to report in general as I was working away in props.  So, even though I have been photographing (as part of my job as Standby Props) there would have been no way to release the images due to the contractual constraints set by HBO for 'Game of Thrones'.  In short: I have been working and photographing but I cannot do anything with the images; thus, I am looking forward to diving into personal projects in the next few months when we wrap on season three.

One of the few photographic ventures I have been able to undertake was finishing the design and printing of my most recent monograph, '100 Portraits in 100 Days'.  This is now availble to view and purchase via Blurb.com. http://www.blurb.co.uk/bookstore/detail/3505038

      (10 October 2012 - 20 January 2013, Tate Modern)

Aside from restarting my project work I am looking forward to consuming more photography - it seems October is the finest month for photography in London (well, for me anyway).  The Tate Modern are hosting a joint exhibition of William Klein and Daido Moriyama, which I cannot wait for as I have been a longterm fan of both photographers.  Moriyama is also showing work at the Michael Hoppen Contemporary in London, until October 20 - the exhibtion is Moriyama's 'Tights and Lips' series. Add in that Hiroshi Sugimoto is being shown in the Pace Gallery (alongside Mark Rothko paintings) and I could not be a happier planner or visual-geek.

So, expect many more posts over the next few weeks as I continue to get my photo-groove back on.

-PM