Chapter One: Manchester
Great cinematography + a great script x by one’s love for a city = Woody Allen’s Manhattan.
Dunnico’s Reality TV
If we all had David Dunnico’s commitment to turning the cameras on the cameras, we’d surely short-circuit the CCTV culture to oblivion. The surveyor of surveillance has an exhibition opening at the Royal Exchange Theatre from 24 February to 27 March 2010. Opening night is on the 26th February at 5.30pm til 6.30pm and BlackLab aims to be there to give him our full support.
Dunnico will be showing ‘Reality TV’ alongside a new theatre production of George Orwell’s 1984 at the Mezzanine Gallery. Visit www.ddcc.tv for more information.
Traces of Love: Fabien Breuvart
Fabien Breuvart’s action outside the gates of Paris Photo 2009 captured on video here.
(Source)
For those not versed in the French language, here is a makeshift translation of Fabien’s comments throughout the clip:
“We’ll make a pyramid of photographs … We need to stay together, everything will need to happen in just a few minutes. When you [...]
Mit Senoj – Skins
This Friday sees the opening of the first solo show by Jerwood Drawing Prize 2009 winner Mit Senoj at Bureau Gallery, Manchester
“Our predilection is to augment our bodies with all means of social and historical increments. We are garbed in cultural definition, exposing self-regard and possession of projected lifestyle. Whilst naked we are still unable [...]
Artspeak #2
Not had one of these for a while, not because they’re not out there but because they’re painful to contemplate. However, we couldn’t let this one go (thanks to Jon Canter at the Guardian for pointing it out to us). This week, a review of Esther Shalev-Gerz’s show at the Jeu de Paume meets the wonderful world of Ken’s Dog Portraits.
Fresh Snow
Having been submerged in the ‘Visual Wreckage’ for the last month meant we didn’t get out to enjoy the intemperate weather as much as most.
Belatedly though, we’ve dug up some nice snow photography courtesy of the Dartmouth Electron Microscopy Facility, New Hampshire, USA.
Inaugural BlackLab Event: Friday 29 January 2010
Trawling the Visual Wreckage: A night of screenings, socializing, conversations and chats about issues relating to photography, imagery and film in Manchester’s Northern Quarter. Meet the city’s thriving community of bloggers and image-makers (if they show up) and participate in a thrilling raffle for a prize that’s out of this world.
Quotes – Walter Benjamin
The camera… on the one hand extends our comprehension of the necessities that rule our lives; on the other, it manages to assure us of an immense and unexpected field of action - Walter Benjamin, 1930
Holiday Communiqué
From our snow-covered Manchester bunker, we wish all our readers a very Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year.
Quotes – Jean Baudrillard
“Art does not die because there is no more art, it dies because there is too much.”
The Forgotten 100,000
In contrast to the sanitized conflict represented on our TVs and in our newspapers, the internet allows us to witness the catastrophic consequences of our politicians’ actions marked on the bodies and lives of innocent men, women and children.
Remix: Rob Rusling’s Faith
The subject of Jackie Nickerson’s “Faith” is nuns and monks in Ireland who have devoted their life to their faith. The work explores the everyday lives of these people and an often homemade feel which characterizes their personal takes on their religion. The work questions what it takes to devote oneself to a life of solitude and routine on the basis of faith. The aesthetic style of her images seems to mimic the lives of her subjects; simple, soft, calm and silent – a considered approach to a considered lifestyle.
Simon Roberts ‘v’ Peter Bialobrzeski
Peter Bialobrzeski, Heimat 6, Nordsee 2003
Simon Roberts, West Wittering Beach Chichester, West Sussex 3rd May 2008
Peter Bialobrzeski, Heimat 20
Simon Roberts, Malvern Hills Worcestershire 17th May 2008
Peter Bialobrzeski, Heimat 21
Simon Roberts, Malvern Hills, Worcestershire, 17th May 2008
Peter Bialobrzeski, Heimat 31, Schwatzwald, 2004
Simon Roberts, Tandridge Golf Course Oxted, Surrey 2nd April 2008
William Klein
William Klein, ‘About twenty photographs, a hundred non-photographs, a few contact sheets, a few seconds’. And all you really need to know…
Remix: Adam Wilson’s Uncommon Places
A couple of months ago, BlackLab were invited to run a series of workshops with Blackpool’s final year BA Photography students. Our focus was on understanding what goes into producing a themed body of work and the aesthetic, technical, and design considerations one has to take into account. Students were asked to choose a photo book, deconstruct each and every single element of it, present their findings and produce an image that could fit seamlessly into their chosen body of work.
Broomberg and Chanarin ‘v’ The Atlas Group
The Atlas Group / Walid Raad, Notebook Volume 38; Already Been in a Lake of Fire, 1975-2002
Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin, Afterlife, 2009.
Oh God, he said Aita al-Sha`b, Walid Raad, 2006
Paris Photo 2009: Special Report
Late last week, we sent our Cultural Attaché to the world’s largest photography fair. His report contains some strong language.
Christopher Doyle
2046-005
Though born in Australia, Christopher Doyle has made his mark by photographing Asian films, especially the work of Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai. His work, particularly the films Chungking Express, In the Mood for Love and 2046, is lauded for it’s vivid use of highly saturated colour. Doyle is considered one of the most important architects of Asian New Wave cinema.
In the late 1970s, he went to Taiwan from Hong Kong and then settled in Taipei. He worked as an oil driller in India, a cow herder in Israel, and a doctor of Chinese medicine in Thailand. In 1978, he worked as a photographer for the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre and Zuni Icosahedron. In 1981, he was cinematographer for That Day, On the Beach directed by Edward Yang. For that film, Doyle won the Best Cinematography Award in the 1983 Asia-Pacific Film Festival. He now lives in Hong Kong.
Today’s film clips are from two of the most famous Wong Kar-Wai films Doyle has worked on, firstly In the Mood for Love and, since that won’t be enough for your jaded eyeballs, 2046. Enjoy.
Road Map to the End
Found over at Strange Maps:
“This extraordinary map, dating from 1675, details The Road From LONDON to the LANDS END Comencing at the Standard in Cornhill and Extending to Senan in Cornwall. It was made by IOHN OGILBY Esq[ui]r[e] his Ma[jes]ties Cosmographer and covers 308 miles and 3 furlongs (almost 500 km).
The atlas set the standard [...]
Edward Burtynsky
This week, academics having to point out to the International Energy Agency that they keep lying about there being plenty of oil left reminded me of Edward Burtynsky’s Oil project. You can see a short presentation of this work courtesy of TED, here.
In 2005 Burtynsky won the TED prize. His acceptance speech, here, puts his wrok into context andshows more stunning images.
Snappers – The Explorer
As the cold weather front begins its ominous descent towards our islands, bear a thought for Herbert Ponting, the quintessential photographer as explorer and official photographer on Scott’s ill-fated Antarctica Expedition of 1912.
Death and Plastic
Albatross”Toothbrushes, bottle tops and cigarette lighters – all every day objects we take for granted. But as this startling picture taken of the contents of a young albatross shows, some of the 260m tonnes of plastic used annually ends up in the most unlikely places. Sometimes with tragic consequences.”
