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Tuesday, 21 September 2010
Saturday, 4 September 2010
JLS Work Experience
A few months ago I went along to a shoot by Dean Freeman that was to feature in JLS's new book "Just Between Us: Our Private Diary" (in fact the front cover is one of the images shot on that day). I ended up photographing "behind the scenes", to document what the boys got up to during these shoots. They liked them and now my photographs can be seen on the website... but first you got to buy the book to get the code to use on their wesbite to see my images... so BUY BUY BUY!!
Sunday, 4 July 2010
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Sunday, 27 June 2010
Tate Modern to the Tate Britain
A week or so again I took a trip up to London to the Tate Modern and then took a ride along the Thames to the Tate Britain.
First I shall talk about the Tate Modern exhibition "Exposed. Voyeurism, Surveillance and the Camera" which was all about looking at pictures made on the sly, without the permission of the "model". The pictures presented a shocking and witty perspective on iconic and taboo subjects to do with peoples rights within photography. Nowadays, in a world where you need to get permission from thousands of different avenues to be a photographer and photograph people it was a really fascinating concept.
There was one picture, shown below, by Harry Callahan that I loved,
However, generally I found the photography itself poor. Whilst I loved the concept of the exhibition and the whole idea of the "unseen photographer" after the first few rooms I became bored and felt some of the work just wasn't very good. It was intriguing to see the world like a "Peeping Tom", I felt rather invasive looking at all these photographs that had been taken without the subjects knowledge or permission. In a world where the public is obsessed with celebrities every move, causing them to be followed with a camera permanently stuck in their faces, whist the rest of us are watched 24/7 by surveillance cameras it was only time until someone made this form of photography into art and who better than the Tate Modern to display it. Photographs of celebrities fleeing the paparazzi, unknown civilians captured by hidden cameras and even private intimate moments caught on camera by spying neighbours, it really dealt with the idea of how watched we really are.
Thus, whilst I thought the majority of the images were poor, bar the first two rooms, it is definitely an exhibition worth seeing, if not for the images for the fantastic concept behind them.
Exhibition on until 3rd October '10
Next we have the Tate Britain which was holding an exhibition I was desperate to see on Henry Moore.
Moore was one of Britain's greatest artists and his sculptures have always been some of my favourite art with ideas from primitive art and surrealism always seen as key sources of inspiration for his work. The way he depicts the female form to show his new ideas of sexuality is something key in many of the sculptures. However, what I did not realise until this exhibition was his work on the war, with grim drawings of people sheltering underground and sculptures of fallen soldiers and war helmets. I did not realise quite how talented he was at drawing as well as his beautiful sculptures.
The exhibition was beautiful, showing how Moore's career began and developed. The range of materials and different scales he worked with was mind boggling. My favourite works by him was definitely the small bronze statue of figures on rocking chairs, with a wonderful texture and detail compared with the giant wooden sculptures, smooth and beautifully carved. Take an hour out of your day to go see Henry Moore's work. It is definitely worth it!
Exhibition ends 8th August '10
First I shall talk about the Tate Modern exhibition "Exposed. Voyeurism, Surveillance and the Camera" which was all about looking at pictures made on the sly, without the permission of the "model". The pictures presented a shocking and witty perspective on iconic and taboo subjects to do with peoples rights within photography. Nowadays, in a world where you need to get permission from thousands of different avenues to be a photographer and photograph people it was a really fascinating concept. There was one picture, shown below, by Harry Callahan that I loved,
However, generally I found the photography itself poor. Whilst I loved the concept of the exhibition and the whole idea of the "unseen photographer" after the first few rooms I became bored and felt some of the work just wasn't very good. It was intriguing to see the world like a "Peeping Tom", I felt rather invasive looking at all these photographs that had been taken without the subjects knowledge or permission. In a world where the public is obsessed with celebrities every move, causing them to be followed with a camera permanently stuck in their faces, whist the rest of us are watched 24/7 by surveillance cameras it was only time until someone made this form of photography into art and who better than the Tate Modern to display it. Photographs of celebrities fleeing the paparazzi, unknown civilians captured by hidden cameras and even private intimate moments caught on camera by spying neighbours, it really dealt with the idea of how watched we really are.Thus, whilst I thought the majority of the images were poor, bar the first two rooms, it is definitely an exhibition worth seeing, if not for the images for the fantastic concept behind them.
Exhibition on until 3rd October '10
Next we have the Tate Britain which was holding an exhibition I was desperate to see on Henry Moore.
Moore was one of Britain's greatest artists and his sculptures have always been some of my favourite art with ideas from primitive art and surrealism always seen as key sources of inspiration for his work. The way he depicts the female form to show his new ideas of sexuality is something key in many of the sculptures. However, what I did not realise until this exhibition was his work on the war, with grim drawings of people sheltering underground and sculptures of fallen soldiers and war helmets. I did not realise quite how talented he was at drawing as well as his beautiful sculptures.
The exhibition was beautiful, showing how Moore's career began and developed. The range of materials and different scales he worked with was mind boggling. My favourite works by him was definitely the small bronze statue of figures on rocking chairs, with a wonderful texture and detail compared with the giant wooden sculptures, smooth and beautifully carved. Take an hour out of your day to go see Henry Moore's work. It is definitely worth it!
Exhibition ends 8th August '10
Saturday, 19 June 2010
Topshop Bandstand Picnics for Teenage Cancer Trust
On June 12th 2010, my sister, myself and Diya all packed up a picnic and headed off for Regents Park. Why? Simple, for Topshop's Bandstand Picnics for Teenage Cancer Trust. We purchased a ticket for £10 and went to hear some of music's hottest new talent, have our faces painted, do some old school sports day events, to work off the mass food we bought (and yes I came 3rd in the Egg and Spoon Race!) and generally just have a good laugh.
All proceeds went to Teenage Cancer Trust and I couldn't think of a worthier cause to benefit from such a lovely day. The sun was shining (sort of) and the music was good, especially Chew Lips and Goldheart Assembly (both of whom I went on to buy their albums).
The result... a few of my favourtie photographs for you to enjoy, which I took on my Canon camera loaded with my favourite colour film, Kodak ColourPlus 200.
Click on image to enlarge
All proceeds went to Teenage Cancer Trust and I couldn't think of a worthier cause to benefit from such a lovely day. The sun was shining (sort of) and the music was good, especially Chew Lips and Goldheart Assembly (both of whom I went on to buy their albums).
The result... a few of my favourtie photographs for you to enjoy, which I took on my Canon camera loaded with my favourite colour film, Kodak ColourPlus 200.
Click on image to enlarge
Thursday, 17 June 2010
Cecil Court
"Thank God! Cecil Court remains Cecil Court..." - Graham Greene
Tucked away just outside of the hubbub and chaos of Leicester Square sits a picturesque late Victorian thoroughfare, seemingly immune from the bustle of the great city which surrounds it and perfect for book lovers everywhere. The shopfronts have not been altered in more than a century and the traditional hanging signs announce specialists in rare and antiquarian books, maps and prints and all manner of related printed material including stamps and banknotes.
I stumbled across this enchanted place and automatically fell in love. I have managed to purchase many old, written on postcards of London to add to my collection and felt that I had to try and capture Cecil Court's essence. So I loaded up my old school Olympus manual camera with some Ilford Black and White film and snapped away! Once I had developed all the prints I wanted to use, I then used Sepia tone to dye them, in order to capture an old, antique feeling. I made sure that any scratch marks or dust was left on, so that they had an authentic antique and precious feel to them, just like Cecil Court itself.
Click on image to enlarge
Tucked away just outside of the hubbub and chaos of Leicester Square sits a picturesque late Victorian thoroughfare, seemingly immune from the bustle of the great city which surrounds it and perfect for book lovers everywhere. The shopfronts have not been altered in more than a century and the traditional hanging signs announce specialists in rare and antiquarian books, maps and prints and all manner of related printed material including stamps and banknotes.
I stumbled across this enchanted place and automatically fell in love. I have managed to purchase many old, written on postcards of London to add to my collection and felt that I had to try and capture Cecil Court's essence. So I loaded up my old school Olympus manual camera with some Ilford Black and White film and snapped away! Once I had developed all the prints I wanted to use, I then used Sepia tone to dye them, in order to capture an old, antique feeling. I made sure that any scratch marks or dust was left on, so that they had an authentic antique and precious feel to them, just like Cecil Court itself.
Click on image to enlarge
Monday, 14 June 2010
Alice Neel comes to the Whitechapel Gallery
Alice Neel: Painted Truths is the first European retrospective dedicated to one of the most prominent American figurative painters of the 20th century.
Alice Neel (1900–1984) is best known for psychologically acute portraits that chronicle the social and economic diversity of the artist’s work. A self-proclaimed ‘collector of souls’, she often painted friends and family,as well as celebrated artists and writers of her day, such as Andy Warhol, Frank O’Hara and Meyer Shapiro, delving into their personalities and idiosyncrasies with rare frankness. Undeterred by her turbulent personal life that included a year of hospitalisation following a nervous breakdown, the destruction in 1934 of over two hundred and fifty paintings and drawings, and little attention to her work until the 1960s, Neel created uniquely compelling art. Bringing together over 60 of her most important paintings on loan from international museum and private collections, this exhibition spans nearly seven decades of her career.
I love Neel's work. The portraits are so beautifully painted and really capture the essence of each sitter. The exhibition starts on the 8th July through to 17th September and I for one will definitely see it!
Alice Neel (1900–1984) is best known for psychologically acute portraits that chronicle the social and economic diversity of the artist’s work. A self-proclaimed ‘collector of souls’, she often painted friends and family,as well as celebrated artists and writers of her day, such as Andy Warhol, Frank O’Hara and Meyer Shapiro, delving into their personalities and idiosyncrasies with rare frankness. Undeterred by her turbulent personal life that included a year of hospitalisation following a nervous breakdown, the destruction in 1934 of over two hundred and fifty paintings and drawings, and little attention to her work until the 1960s, Neel created uniquely compelling art. Bringing together over 60 of her most important paintings on loan from international museum and private collections, this exhibition spans nearly seven decades of her career.
I love Neel's work. The portraits are so beautifully painted and really capture the essence of each sitter. The exhibition starts on the 8th July through to 17th September and I for one will definitely see it!
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