- Final Major Project – Grades – Where To, Now? January 15, 2020
Well, it’s all over!
My overall grade for the Final major Project module was 72.9% – my best yet. Encouragingly, the results against the Learning Objectives ...
Read more... - Visitor’s Comments December 20, 2019
The show is over.
Perhaps my abiding memory will be the way that visitors interacted with the work. And they left gratifying responses in the Visitors ...
Read more... - Top Fifty Posts December 18, 2019
Quick links to some of the most ‘influential’ of my posts of the two years of the MA program, in terms of either moving my ...
Read more... - A Photographer, by Photographers December 18, 2019
One of the most humbling things that has happened during the BRLSI show has been the reception that my work has got from other photographers.
Perhaps ...
Read more... - Week Twenty Four Reflections December 13, 2019
The opening paragraphs of my Critical Review of Practice noted:
In most of my photographic career, I have recorded what was in front of me, usually ...
Read more... - Critical Review of Practice December 12, 2019
Here is a link to my FMP Critical Review of Practice.
FMP Critical Review of Practice Final Compressed
The concluding statement is perhaps worth noting here.
‘The MA ...
Read more... - FMP Submission December 12, 2019
Here is a link to my FMP submission, meeting Falmouth University file size guidelines. This includes all of the images, video and samples of the ...
Read more... - Book Listing December 12, 2019
I am pleased to have ‘Unfinished Stories: From Genocide to Hope’ listed at Topping & Company, one of the UK’s leading independent bookstores. The book ...
Read more... - Reflections on Paradox – Curation December 11, 2019
‘Beautiful, simply powerful, thought-provoking, the words and pictures go together so well, courageous‘.
These are some of the words written in the visitor’s book after the ...
Read more... - Installation Photos December 9, 2019
I have taken a series of installation shots, which I hope to use in future ‘marketing’ to see if I can get further shows in ...
Read more... - Opening Night December 9, 2019
The main ‘private viewing’ was Friday, 6th December, from 6pm until 8:30 pm. I was very pleased to have between 70-75 guests, and in particular ...
Read more... - Setting Up December 6, 2019
Sarath arrived safely from Phnom Penh very early on December 2nd. It is lovely to be able to share this week with him directly. We ...
Read more... - Exhibition Walk Through November 25, 2019
Whilst the centrepiece of the upcoming exhibition is my FMP series, the event includes both a brief history of Cambodia to set context, and a ...
Read more... - Well, thought this was all too smooth … November 20, 2019
I got a Facebook message from Bandol, today, IPML printers in Phnom Penh.
She sent a picture of the books packed up and ready to ship, ...
Read more... - Print Delivery November 19, 2019
The main images have just been delivered from Loxley, and I am very pleased. The quality is spot on – so, if there is a ...
Read more... - Memory (again) November 17, 2019
Jesse organised a really interesting ‘face to face’ yesterday, to see the work of Tony Ray-Jones and Jack Latham at the RPS, Paintworks, Bristol.
There was ...
Read more... - Week Eighteen Reflections November 11, 2019
Most of the planning for the upcoming exhibition is done. And, as the book is now being printed for real, nothing I can do there. ...
Read more... - Leica SL – Technology and Flexibility November 10, 2019
We all to one degree or another suffer from GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). It goes with the photographic territory that we want to use the ...
Read more... - Reviews and Feedback November 9, 2019
I have asked several people for feedback and / or reviews of my work.
I know some but not all of these people personally, and it ...
Read more... - Unfinished Stories November 6, 2019
Had another good webinar with Wendy, where we focused on how best to describe the core of my FMP work – Unfinished Stories. The challenge ...
Read more... - Private Viewing November 4, 2019
Just getting things organised for the private viewing, Friday December 6th.
I must say that Eventbrite is so easy to use. Now, just need to see ...
Read more... - Week Seventeen Reflections – Cromarty November 3, 2019
My main reflection this week is the importance of my cohort, Cromarty. Some of us have become very good friends, always supportive yet also quick ...
Read more... - Photography and War – Pippa Oldfield October 31, 2019
Reaktion books have an excellent series on photographic issues and theme, Exposures. A recent edition is by Pippa Oldfield, on Photography and War.
The book is ...
Read more... - Book – Digital Print October 30, 2019
Another piece of good news this week – the digital print of the book arrived from Phnom Penh. I am very pleased with the quality ...
Read more... - Sarath’s visa October 28, 2019
A small piece of very good news – Sarath has got a UK visa. This means a great deal to all of us, as it ...
Read more... - Week Sixteen Reflections October 27, 2019
Today is Deepavali / Diwali, the traditional festival of light, when there is victory over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance, and a most ...
Read more... - At the University of Leeds October 25, 2019
I was in Leeds this week, giving my first lecture to the MA Media and Communications students. I had been invited by Dr. Jim Brogden, Programme Leader ...
Read more... - Week Fifteen Reflections October 21, 2019
It has been a pretty heavy week, planning the BRLSI show, starting to write about my practice (and how I got to the FMP work). ...
Read more... - Installation – Layout and Display Boards October 20, 2019
Having pretty much settled the main wall hanging and sequence, I needed to turn my attention to the information boards. Whilst the show is focused ...
Read more... - War Primer – 1 & 2 October 19, 2019
The work of Broomberg & Chanarin has often featured in my critical reviews, alongside that of Sophie Ristelhueber, in the context of using traces to ...
Read more... - A Constructed Image October 16, 2019
As I am closing in on the final choices and hanging plan – and nearing the time that I need to write a Critical Review ...
Read more... - BRLSI Publicity October 16, 2019
BRLSI do a good job of publicising events – online (web and social media) via their mailing list and with posters / leaflets available during ...
Read more... - Week Fourteen Reflections – video and subtitles October 14, 2019
In the short video of Sarath narrating his story about going to meet his Mother, I use what is called the ‘UN Style’ of voiceover ...
Read more... - Quotes and Photographs October 13, 2019
On Friday, I gave a talk to the Frome Wessex Camera Club, entitled ‘Unfinished Stories – From Genocide to Hope’. I was gratified that it ...
Read more... - Sarath’s Video – English voiceover October 9, 2019
Sarath has just completed a voiceover for his story ‘I Missed my Mother’. I have experimented previously with other ways of overdubbing the original Khmer ...
Read more... - Webinar with Wendy – Installation Planning October 9, 2019
Had a very good session today on how best to develop and show alternative hanging plans.
First, the focus will be on the black and white ...
Read more... - Week Thirteen Reflections – a photograph is ‘and’ not ‘or’ October 9, 2019
I want to pull a particular point out of some of my research on ‘atrocity’ images. That is, that a photograph always have a multiplicity ...
Read more... - Installation planning October 7, 2019
Spent some time creating layouts at BRLSI, based on photographs of the space. Feeling quite pleased with how it is shaping up.
The idea is that ...
Read more... - Interactive Presentation October 7, 2019
I have to give another presentation of my work at the end of this week, to the Frome Wessex Club. I’ll be sharing the Unfinished ...
Read more... - Postcartes de Cambodge October 4, 2019
I am looking at different ways to include ‘artefacts’ in the BRLSI show. There are several display possibilities, as the venue sometime functions as a ...
Read more... - The People’s Vote October 2, 2019
Data is an interesting thing, and not something one normally associates with artistic endeavours. Yet, just as we get feedback on our work from tutors, ...
Read more... - PhotoBath ‘Witness’ Exhibition October 2, 2019
It was opening night of the Witness show last evening. I have previously noted how this as curated.
I think it was the most professional show ...
Read more... - A research-led practice September 26, 2019
The MA is now in its 21st month. In that time I have flown almost exactly 50,000 miles to and from Cambodia. Looking at my ...
Read more... - Webinar with Wendy – Sept 25th September 25, 2019
Had a good webinar with Wendy today. I started by saying that I was quite pleased with how things had developed, and could now see ...
Read more... - Marketing September 24, 2019
So far, the Royal Photographic Society Contemporary group, in their magazine, and PhotoBath, both in the latest Showcase 4 book and the Witness exhibition are ...
Read more... - PhotoBath – Showcase 4 September 24, 2019
The PhotoBath collective had a book launch for Showcase 4 last evening.
This is the group’s fourth book of member’s photography, and it’s most ambitious yet. ...
Read more... - Book files sent to Printers September 23, 2019
Well. it is done. The Indesign and PDF ‘ready to print’ files have all been sent to pour printers in Phnom Penh. We are missing ...
Read more... - Newspaper Club September 23, 2019
For the BRLSI installation, I am exploring ways to involve the audience in the personal stories – zines to take away, QR code links to ...
Read more... - Auschwitz & Memory September 23, 2019
Over the past 18 months, I have spent a good deal of time researching atrocity and the ethics of images of such. In this I ...
Read more... - Finalising the images September 23, 2019
As previously noted, thanks to input from both Gem and Richard Young (a fellow member of the PhotoBath collective), I think I had a bit ...
Read more... - Changing the Story September 20, 2019
Frank Finlay, Dean of Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures at the University of Leeds put me in touch with Paul Cooke. Paul is Professor ...
Read more... - TV & Newspaper Coverage – Archives, March 2000 September 19, 2019
As part of the FMP, I am exploring my archives – not just my own images, going back to 1994 – but also contemporary press ...
Read more... - Book Foreword September 18, 2019
At the eleven and a half hour, I just received the signed book foreword from the Cambodian Minister of Education, Youth and Sport, HE Dr. ...
Read more... - PhotoBath ‘Witness’ Exhibition September 14, 2019
The PhotoBath Witness exhibition is on from October 1st until the 6th. As previously noted, one of my images was selected by the curators (Benedict ...
Read more... - Khmer Quotes September 11, 2019
Thanks to input from both Gem and Richard Young (a fellow member of the PhotoBath collective), I think I had a bit of a breakthrough ...
Read more... - What Price Megapixels? September 9, 2019
One of the benefits of doing this MA has been to encourage me to question all aspects of my practice. As a lifelong photographer, and ...
Read more... - Week Twelve Reflections … ish September 2, 2019
The wedding went well. it was a lovely, relaxed affair at a very pretty church – the oldest in Bath by all accounts. Simon and ...
Read more... - Wedding Photography August 30, 2019
I am photographing a wedding today. I have done this before, although it is not my normal activity (nor, necessarily, my favourite thing to do). ...
Read more... - BRLSI – Venue August 26, 2019
I have booked the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution (BRLSI) for two weeks, from Wednesday, December 4th. Installation day will be on the 4th ...
Read more... - Socially Engaged Photography August 24, 2019
In 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt created the Farm Security Administration (FSA) to aid American farmworkers during the Great Depression. Its photographers aimed to document what ...
Read more... - Tutorial with Krishna August 21, 2019
Very good conversation last evening with Krishna and Ash.
Both were encouraging about the status of my FMP. We discussed the use of quotes as an ...
Read more... - Book material samples August 20, 2019
I have just got the samples from Phnom Penh. Whilst I had seen paper samples and such when there, I had not seen a completed ...
Read more... - Multi-media August 20, 2019
I finally got around to working through some ‘road trip’ photography from my last Cambodia visit. When Simeth and I were driving north, I decided ...
Read more... - Portfolios of Stories August 19, 2019
I have started thinking about Wendy’s challenge – to create mini-portfolios of the Unfinished Stories – to help the creative juices flow, look at ways ...
Read more... - Week Eleven Reflections August 19, 2019
I spent a great deal of time working through the book this past week, and in particular making sure the Cambodian History was accurate and ...
Read more... - Place and Placelessness August 18, 2019
As I have been finalising the book edit, I have increasingly been drawn to maps to help tell the story – both the Khmer Rouge ...
Read more... - National Library of Cambodia August 15, 2019
Header image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Library_of_Cambodia#/media/File:National_Library_-_panoramio_(1).jpg .. Creative Commons License
Read more... - Printing, and Webinar with Wendy August 15, 2019
As I discussed with Wendy, I made an (expensive) error in printing, with a border that just did not quite work.
Not enough space at the ...
Read more... - Photographs with Text August 14, 2019
In my teens, I started painting and writing. Pop Art, Op Art, and the beginnings of Conceptual Art were everywhere. Psychedelia either added or confused ...
Read more... - Bending the Frame – Fred Ritchen August 14, 2019
Notes from Ritchin’s 2013 book:
Chapter 1: The Useful Photograph
Sets stage for profusion of images, loss of professional monopoly, power of tech and the web.
Citizen journalists ...
Read more... - Week Ten Reflections August 13, 2019
It is the ‘final’ push on the Book at the moment – Vicky is hoping to get the file updated this weekend.
I am still awaiting ...
Read more... - Let Us Now Praise Words August 13, 2019
During the Depression, Fortune sent writer James Agee and photographer Walker Evans document the lives of cotton sharecroppers in Alabama. It was meant to be ...
Read more... - A Matter of Tape August 10, 2019
It’s a small thing, but so useful.
There is an abundance of ‘nano-tape’ on the market right now. It is two sided, reusable, washable, and leaves ...
Read more... - Exhibition Print August 10, 2019
I ordered an A1 sized print from Loxley, using their premium metallic/perspex finish. It was completed and delivered within 4 working days. As noted before, ...
Read more... - Stereotypes and Navajo August 9, 2019
Photography’s Other Histories, edited by Christopher Pinney and Nicolas Peterson, is a well-researched work covering a lot of ground on two broad issues – the ...
Read more... - Ethics of Photography – Participation August 8, 2019
Ethics has two broad modes of definition – personal and organisational.
In everyday use, the word ‘ethics’ gets used in many different ways. For example, sometimes ...
Read more... - Ethics of Photography – Nature August 7, 2019
Whilst it is a little bit more in the background right now, I am continuing to work on the Ethics project. As a reminder, I ...
Read more... - Arles Inspiration August 6, 2019
I finally got around to creating gallery of images from Arles. So many points of inspiration, particularly for installations. I noted a couple that really ...
Read more... - Archives August 6, 2019
For both the book and the exhibition, I want to illustrate some of the history of Cambodia, and especially the Khmer Rouge years.. My own ...
Read more... - Reportage August 6, 2019
It has been little while, but I was asked to shoot last evening’s Bath for Europe event, featuring Lord Andrew Adonis (ex labour Minister, Vice-Chair of ...
Read more... - Week Nine Reflections – Frome Festival August 5, 2019
Small wins – but I noted before how much I enjoyed shooting the Frome Festival events. It is a little late, but I wanted to ...
Read more... - At the mercy of HM Government … August 4, 2019
Read more... - PhotoBath Showcase 4 August 4, 2019
The curation team have chosen four of my images for the upcoming Showcase book, with a different selection to the RPS Contemporary Group. I need ...
Read more... - Without Honor – Arnold J Isaacs August 2, 2019
The U.S. intervention was a military, political strategic, and moral catastrophe for which only Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, not the acts of ...
Read more... - RPS Contemporary Group August 2, 2019
I had noted in May that the RPS Contemporary Group planned to publish some of my work. Well, on returning from Rencontres d’Arles and vacation, ...
Read more... - Week Eight Reflections July 28, 2019
This was our first visit to Rencontres d’Arles, and it will not be the last. A terrific experience. The venues and presentation puts Paris Photo, ...
Read more... - Week Seven Reflections July 23, 2019
Belated reflection, as we are enjoying a family holiday then a trip to Rencontres d’Arles to meet the Falmouth group.
For many reasons, the Netherlands has ...
Read more... - Angkor Chum July 18, 2019
One story that will not feature in the book is one that concerns our family. It also is an exercise in rephotography, in the sense ...
Read more... - FMP Proposal feedback from Wendy July 17, 2019
Had a good conversation with Wendy of my proposal for FMP. Feedback was good, and I think the proposal (and project) was well received. Wendy ...
Read more... - First Book Spreads July 16, 2019
The content of the book is coming along, and Vicky has been doing some design layouts, which look great.
This evening, she created a series of ...
Read more... - Lukas Birk Webinar July 16, 2019
Terrific webinar today with Lukas Birk, hosted by Gary. Lukas was really helpful to me last year as I was starting to think my way ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections July 14, 2019
It has been a busy week.
First, I have made some progress on the book editing, with a final story from Sarath. Vicky has also made ...
Read more... - A Sense of Place July 13, 2019
I have been reading James Tyner’s book, The Killing of Cambodia: Geography, Genocide and the Unmasking of Space.
It is well established that in defining Year Zero, ...
Read more... - James Tyner – The Killing of Cambodia – Notes July 12, 2019
Book Notes
Chapter 1: Imaging Genocide
Can we define Genocide?
Mick Q: Am I structuralist or post-structuralist?
Mick Q: Role of power/knowledge nexus in ethical framework
‘Given that knowledge is ...
Read more... - Deleuze, Time and Archives July 12, 2019
Gilles Deleuze is both an influential, original philosopher – and a hard one to totally ‘get’. Frankly, before the MA I had paid only passing ...
Read more... - What I Love To Do … Part 2 July 10, 2019
Music gigs. As I noted in the weekend reflections, I am doing some work right now, reporting on the Frome Festival.
The Coral are still quite ...
Read more... - Week Five Reflections – What I Love to Do July 7, 2019
Events, getting mixed in with people, getting close, trying to capture the atmosphere. That is my reflection this week.
The local camera group have been asked ...
Read more... - PhotoBath – ‘Witness’ Exhibition July 6, 2019
For this year’s PhotoBath group exhibition, Witness, they have used an outside judging panel. From the Unfinished Stories work that I offered, the curators accepted ...
Read more... - Jeff Hays – A ‘New’ Source of Information July 4, 2019
It is terrific when one find new sources of information on Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge, even though I am reasonably well acquainted with a ...
Read more... - Sarath – Earliest Photographs July 3, 2019
Sarath and his family destroyed any photographs they had during the Khmer Rouge years, for fear of being interrogated about their past. He has been ...
Read more...
- Informing Contexts – Grades – Where To, Now? May 31, 2019
I have just received the grades for Informing Contexts – 69% overall, pretty much in line with Sustainable Prospects, Surfaces & Strategies and Positions and ...
Read more... - Week Twelve Reflections – Gilbert Ryle April 29, 2019
My practice has changed, and my understanding of photography has deepened. So, a good end to Informing Contexts. As this is also the end of ...
Read more... - Old Dog, New Tricks April 28, 2019
I learnt photography shooting film, and quite often still use it today. I find it a restful, more mindful way of taking photographs.
Years ago I ...
Read more... - Todd Heisler – Final Salute April 25, 2019
I was reading Hariman and Lucaites The Public Image, and came across a picture by Todd Heisler, in the header.
Heisler won the 2006 Pulitzer Prizes ...
Read more... - Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay April 25, 2019
This brilliant and insightful movie has just been made available on YouTube.
For anyone that hasn’t seen it.
From the United Nations of Photography announcement about making ...
Read more... - Informing Contexts – Assignments April 24, 2019
All submitted, this morning.
Mick Yates. 2018. Choeung Ek (The Killing Fields).
The opening statement from my Critical Review:
I am documenting the personal stories of people that ...
Read more... - Allan Sekula – Fish Story, and Critical Realism April 22, 2019
Allan Sekula was one of the most influential documentarians working in the late 20th Century. An incisive critic, he also was part of the re-imagining ...
Read more... - Realism and Imagination April 20, 2019
This week has been focused on completing the Critical Review. The recent Oral Presentation was well received, although I knew that for the CR, I ...
Read more... - Jungle Guard April 19, 2019
Jungle Guard, directed by Makara Ouch, in his work with the Cambodian Sleuk Rith Institute (founded by Youk Chhang, of DC-Cam), will be released in ...
Read more... - Afterwards April 16, 2019
I thought that I had posted about Afterwards before, but somehow it got missed. It was one of the first books that I bought, early ...
Read more... - Notre Dame Fire April 16, 2019
Most of us will have got the news about the terrible fire via video. On Twitter, my usual source for breaking news, citizen journalist pictures ...
Read more... - Infrared in Colour April 15, 2019
I am finally getting around to looking at the colour versions of the images I took on my the last Cambodia trip.
In an earlier post, ...
Read more... - Week Eleven Reflections – Pictures at an Exhibition April 14, 2019
The past couple of weeks have been full of gallery visits – Don McCullin, Vincent Van Gogh and Diane Arbus. Dave Heath was at the ...
Read more... - Webinar – Michelle, Andrew and colours April 11, 2019
Quick but very productive webinar today.
I noted the feedback on my Oral Presentation, suggesting less on the background and more on the critical thinking behind ...
Read more... - Coleridge, Imagination and Fancy April 11, 2019
In thinking through the upcoming critical review, I realise that I have been working in two parallel directions.
First, my photography has become increasingly abstract, traces of what ...
Read more... - Susan Sontag – Quotes from ‘On Photography’ April 10, 2019
Quite frankly, I am not a fan of Susan Sontag. I find her work lacking in academic rigour, and very prone to deeply personal judgment ...
Read more... - John Berger – Notes April 10, 2019
Chapter 1 .. seeing
‘Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognises before it can speak’. (pg. 7).
‘The way we see things is affected by ...
Read more... - Towards a Critical Review April 9, 2019
I am collecting some of the most inspirational and appropriate quotes from my research, as used in various CRJ posts over the past 15 months, with the references or ...
Read more... - Sharpness is a Bourgeois Concept April 9, 2019
‘Helmut Newton finally saw Cartier-Bresson again last year, when Vanity Fair asked Cartier-Bresson to shoot a portrait of Newton for a portfolio by photographers older ...
Read more... - Informing Contexts – Oral Presentation – Feedback April 9, 2019
From Pierre:
Well done video Mick.
Good to see your journey from where it began to where it is now. The painterly influence never goes away, it ...
Read more... - Marx and Aesthetics April 8, 2019
Karl Marx (1818-1883) has continued to be influential in many schools of philosophy, including aesthetics – even though he did not publish a specific treatise ...
Read more... - Week Ten Reflections April 7, 2019
Several days were taken up ‘looking’ at art and photography, this past week. I separately posted about the McCullin show – just brilliant. I won’t ...
Read more... - Setting Sun – Quotes – Part Two April 7, 2019
MEDIA
Introduction
‘In postwar Japan, the photograph in its truest form is widely understood to be a reproduction imprint. It might almost be said that the fine-art ...
Read more... - Setting Sun – Quotes – Part One April 7, 2019
Quotes and notes:
INTRODUCTION
Anne Wilkes Tucker
Daido Moriyama states that photography is ‘ .. not a social business, but personal work’. (pg 18)
Tucker comments:
‘There is no separation ...
Read more... - Informing Contexts – Oral Presentation April 7, 2019
Partly because of some misguided feedback at the Falmouth F2F, and partly because I felt a need to ‘go back the beginning’ to explain my ...
Read more... - Don McCullin April 5, 2019
Ingrid and I have seen a lot of exhibitions over the years, but the current Don McCullin show at Tate Britain really rates as one ...
Read more... - Week Nine Reflections – The Two Headed Monster March 31, 2019
There has always been at least two Micks.
There is the artist, the poet, the dreamer. And there is the logician, the business-person, the practical problem solver.
Where ...
Read more... - Interview with Mak Remissa March 31, 2019
Mak Remissa is arguably the most successful and important photographer working in Cambodia today. He is a working photojournalist, and is heavily involved in the ...
Read more... - My Artistic Practice vs. My Photographic Practice March 30, 2019
Right from the beginning of the MA, in fact even a bit before it started, I wrote about Landscape. Given the way that my Cambodian ...
Read more... - Baudrillard and Simulacrum March 29, 2019
Jean Baudrillard (1929-2007) wrote:
‘Simulation is no longer that of a territory, a referential being, or a substance. It is the generation by models of a real without origin ...
Read more... - Feeling a little frustrated March 28, 2019
There is some kind of irony in the fact that, just as I (and others) feel that I am making some real breakthroughs in the ...
Read more... - Charles Baudelaire March 27, 2019
Charles Pierre Baudelaire (1821 – 1867) was a French poet, essayist, art critic, and a translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His work reflected the changing ...
Read more... - Edward Kienholz – The Beanery March 26, 2019
Edward Kienholz (1927-1994) is one of my favourite artists, any media. The Beanery is a life size, walk-in assemblage, and it is often considered his ...
Read more... - Week Eight Reflections March 25, 2019
There is much to be said for clearing the cobwebs from the mind. There is even more to be said for getting away from the ...
Read more... - The University of Leeds March 21, 2019
I have been a Visiting Professor at Leeds, my Alma Mater, for the last 8 years, working with the Leeds University Business School (LUBS) and ...
Read more... - Pictures and Words March 17, 2019
Robert Frank said, ‘Above all, life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference, and it is important to see what is invisible to others’. (cited ...
Read more... - Book Design March 17, 2019
From the beginning of this project, I have been planned a book capturing the ‘Unfinished Stories’ of Sarath and family. Whether this is actually my ...
Read more... - Week Seven Reflections – Webinar with Michelle March 16, 2019
In the critical reviews at the F2F, Michelle made several comments on the work I presented.
On the colour work, she noticed some potential typologies – ...
Read more... - Responses & Responsibilities March 16, 2019
James Elkins, in What Photography Is (2011), analyses photographs from 1905 of Lingqi, the Chinese ‘death by a thousand cuts’. (chapter 6, pg 177-220). I ...
Read more... - And When I am Formulated, Sprawling on a Pin March 14, 2019
And I have known the eyes already, known them all,
The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,
And when I am formulated, sprawling on a ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections March 12, 2019
The Face-to-Face was, of course, both the highlight and the majority of the week.
I really enjoyed the event – ‘The Living Image‘ content, group critiques, ...
Read more... - Week Five Reflections March 3, 2019
I have two kinds of reflections this week. First, what happened on the last days of my Cambodian trip. And, second, where I stand with ...
Read more... - The Vernacular Landscape – and Intention March 2, 2019
I do not consider landscape central to my practice, though like many others who started in photography with a lot of travel images, the genre ...
Read more... - Colour, Black & White or Infrared March 1, 2019
On this last Cambodia trip, I was experimenting with infrared, being intrigued with its ‘ghost like’ properties. I shared a few quick images at the ...
Read more... - Ministry of Education February 27, 2019
Beng Simeth, who was at Save the Children in Phnom Penh when we first started the program, has been the education program leader for the ...
Read more... - Week Four Reflections February 27, 2019
This is a rather delayed post on last week’s reflections, as it has been a busy (thankfully, productive) trip, so these comments are in the ...
Read more... - Webinar February 22, 2019
It was an interesting webinar yesterday with Michelle. Clive, Vincent and Peng were in the group.
I shared two (early) sets of work from this trip. ...
Read more... - The Advertising Idea February 20, 2019
Katherine Frith likens reading adverts to peeling an onion. She pinpoints three stages in reading adverts:
The surface meaning
The advertiser’s intended meaning and
The cultural meaning.
She concludes ...
Read more... - Week Three Reflections February 17, 2019
As I write this, I am on Day 3 of a two week Cambodia trip, so most of my thought processes are focused on the ...
Read more... - Photographing the Holocaust – Janina Struk February 16, 2019
I have just finished Janina Struk’s Photographing The Holocaust. Michelle Caswell’s Archiving the Unspeakable was ‘book of the year’ for me last year, Struk’s might ...
Read more... - Traces, Spaces, Faces, Places February 16, 2019
With your peers, discuss whether you think the constructed photographs included in this session ‘lie’, the extent these photographs are fictional, and the methods you use to ‘interpret’ ...
Read more... - Facts and Ethics February 12, 2019
Was chatting yesterday about Wittgenstein with a friend of mine who is a Professor of Inter-Disciplinary Applied Ethics at Leeds.
Wittgenstein wrote, in the Tractatus, that ‘The ...
Read more... - Week Two Reflections February 10, 2019
Whilst I am enjoying the research and writing, I admit to an increasing unease with some of the academic theories of photography. Hence my posts ...
Read more... - Congruence February 9, 2019
In my post on Index and Icon, I noted the idea of congruence – defined when two things are in agreement, have harmony, conformity, or correspondence ...
Read more... - The Index and the Icon February 8, 2019
Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914) was an early semiotician. His work was based on the pursuit of scientific and logical truth, and he developed his semiotics ...
Read more... - Olympus Infrared Experiments February 7, 2019
I have just received the converted Olympus OM-D 10, converted to 720nm, as previously noted. Here is a reference set of images.
First, a straight colour ...
Read more... - A Question of Authenticity February 6, 2019
In Camera Lucida, Roland Barthes states that
‘From a phenomenological viewpoint, in the photograph, the power of authentication exceeds the power of representation‘. (Camera Lucida: pg 89)
In ...
Read more... - Las Meninas February 4, 2019
I am intrigued by the way that Velazquez’ Las Meninas has been used as inspiration through the years.
The painting itself seems to meet most of ...
Read more... - Walter Benjamin – The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction February 3, 2019
Walter Benjamin’s work is refreshing, in his attempt to deal with photography as a unique medium, rather than transpose the traditions of painting and sculpture ...
Read more... - Photography, Photographies February 3, 2019
This week’s task: Post a brief commentary below that identifies the inherent characteristics and contexts of the ‘photographic’ nature of your own practice.
Specifically refer to ...
Read more... - IC Week One Reflections February 2, 2019
It has been a good start to the new module, with a good range of intellectual content, and helpful first online discussions with Michelle and ...
Read more... - David Goldblatt February 2, 2019
‘I suppose at best, I had hoped we might see ourselves revealed, as it were, by a mirror held up to ourselves’
David Goldblatt, 2017.
I was ...
Read more... - Soviet Holocaust Photography January 29, 2019
I have just been reading a paper written by David Shneer, in the Humanity Journal, 2014, University of Pennsylvania. Shneer discusses the approach taken by ...
Read more... - Reflections on my Photographic Practice January 22, 2019
Robert Frank said, “Above all, life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference”.
I provided a reasonably thorough review of my photography in my ...
Read more... - Provoke January 22, 2019
The Japanese photo magazine ‘Provoke’ only published three issues, in 1968 and 1969. It was a rejection of many of the then-prevailing ‘global’ photographic norms. ...
Read more... - Nobuo Ina – Return to Photography January 21, 2019
I have just been reading Return to Photography, by Nobuo Ina (1898-1978). Ina was influenced by thinking on photography emanating from Germany (Bauhaus et al). ...
Read more... - A Book Brief January 18, 2019
In 2019, I plan to publish a book in Cambodia, about Sarath and family’s ‘Unfinished Stories’. Printing capability is competent but not sophisticated in the ...
Read more... - Infrared Photography January 17, 2019
As referenced in my last Oral Presentation, I want to develop my ‘negative traces’ work using different photographic techniques. For the Sustainable Prospects Work in ...
Read more... - The Photographic Message – Roland Barthes January 16, 2019
I wrote about Camera Lucida at the beginning of the MA. As I concluded then, I found it rather depressing.
The Photographic Message, an essay in Image ...
Read more... - Nine Inspirations January 13, 2019
One of the vacation exercises is to comment on nine inspirations. So, here goes.
1. Annemarie Prins. I have only recently discovered her work, through conversations ...
Read more... - Cultural Context January 13, 2019
Almost all of this MA program to date uses a European / American ‘gaze’, in its choice of reading and referenced photographers – even the ...
Read more... - Offering Critique January 13, 2019
Last autumn I decided to join the local Frome Wessex Camera Club, something I had not done before, as I am not a ‘competition’ person, ...
Read more... - What is Street Photography? January 2, 2019
I have an ongoing project to digitise my film archives, which has been a bit interrupted by the MA. So a 2019 resolution is to ...
Read more... - The Best of 2018 December 30, 2018
In the Sustainable Prospects module, we covered the power of social media, within which I assessed my current position and conducted some Instagram promotional experiments.
As I ...
Read more... - Artist’s Statements – Part Two December 30, 2018
I have written an earlier post on Artist’s Statements. I then posted links to this on Facebook, and asked for input, the ‘wisdom of the ...
Read more... - Ain’t no Shame in my Game December 29, 2018
I used to do a lot of street photography, although most recently I have been a little bored by it – in the sense that ...
Read more... - Artist’s Statements December 29, 2018
Arty Bollocks has an ‘Instant Artists Statement Generator‘ … and here is an example:
‘My work explores the relationship between postmodern discourse and vegetarian ethics. With ...
Read more... - Dorothea Lange December 19, 2018
A while back I was asked to make a short presentation to the PhotoBath group on an image that has always inspired me (September, 2016). It ...
Read more... - How John Berger changed our way of seeing art – Yasmin Gunaratnam & Vikki Bell December 16, 2018
Berger considered how through history and visual representation the male gaze has constrained women.
John Berger’s Ways of Seeing
Yasmin Gunaratnam, Goldsmiths, University of London and Vikki ...
Read more...
- Positions & Practice Reflections – Grades – Where To, Now? May 26, 2018
Well, the grades are in for the Project Proposal and the Work in Progress portfolio. I think it’s fair to say that I have mixed ...
Read more... - 26 Vinyl Records May 23, 2018
Ed Ruscha (1937 – ) created Twenty-Six Gasoline Stations in 1963, a small, self published book.
Ruscha set in motion a new way to think about photography ...
Read more... - Positions and Practice Work in Progress May 3, 2018
Just submitted …
Read more... - Week Eleven Reflections April 29, 2018
I think this week I had a creative breakthrough. As noted before, I am interested in ‘traces’, aftermath photography. Sophie Ristelhueber‘s work comes to mind.
And ...
Read more... - Week Ten Reflections April 22, 2018
Well, back at it with a vengeance. This week has mainly been about getting the P&P Proposal started, although more detail on how to do ...
Read more... - The Beetle in a Box – and Critical Theory April 19, 2018
Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889 – 1951) might just be the most influential philosopher of the 20th century. At Cambridge he was under Bertrand Russell‘s tutelage, essentially being ...
Read more... - Communicating my Photographic Practice April 16, 2018
My best pictures tell an unfinished story, with a sense of place or personality – evoking questions of who, what, where, when.
As Hiroji Kubota said, ...
Read more... - Theory in Practice – Wassily Kandinsky April 15, 2018
The first purely abstract painting is generally recognised as Wassily Kandinsky‘s ‘Untitled – First abstraction‘ of 1910. This is in the header above.
Kandinsky had been ...
Read more... - Week Nine Reflections April 13, 2018
Very interesting discussion on my self-critique and my recent work in today’s webinar. Thank you Gary, Danny, Ashley, Emma & Howard.
Not going to go into ...
Read more... - Giving constructive, critical feedback April 12, 2018
A couple of thoughts on the use of Critical Theory in photography.
Firstly, intrinsic to any process of critique is the practice of feedback. That may be ...
Read more... - My Practice – A Critical View April 10, 2018
As I noted in my Oral Presentation, I have worked with many different genres of photography – travel, street, events and documentary. If there is ...
Read more... - It versus About in Critical Theory April 10, 2018
So, what have we here? A nicely constructed, painterly, abstracted image, technically well executed. In certain contexts, it could be seen fine art photography, perhaps? In Barthian ...
Read more... - Positions and Practice Oral Presentation – Final April 1, 2018
YouTube Original
April 17th, 1975, after years of war, the Khmer Rouge entered Phnom Penh.
Within twenty-four hours they emptied the city of 2 million people, and ...
Read more... - Week Eight Reflections March 25, 2018
Now, where to start.
With the positives! I got some great ideas on presenting my work this week, mainly from Danny, who, with his own work, ...
Read more... - Exposure – Photo Stories March 23, 2018
Many thanks to Danny North for pointing out exposure.co.
Experimenting with how to better tell stories for the Cambodian project.
Created with Exposure
Read more... - Week Seven Reflections – Peer Challenge March 21, 2018
There were two main activities this week.
First, I was challenged by Danny North to talk to 4 strangers, get some of their ‘story’, and then ...
Read more... - Martha Rosler, Decoys and Disruptions March 20, 2018
Martha Rosler, Decoys and Disruptions (2004)
Lookers, Buyers, Dealers And Makers: Thoughts On Audience (1979)
‘More and more clearly the subject of art has become the self ...
Read more... - The Cruel Radiance – Susie Linfield March 18, 2018
I just read The Cruel Radiance: Photography and Political violence, by Susie Linfield (University of Chicago Press, 2010), and found it totally fascinating. Essentially, Linfield ...
Read more... - Peer Challenge March 15, 2018
Danny North challenged me to find a local cafe, sit down and make conversation with anyone who sits nearby. Talk to them for at least ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections – Draft Oral Presentation March 11, 2018
This week, some very simple reflections, as the focus was on getting a draft Oral Presentation done.
To say it was a scramble was an understatement. ...
Read more... - Faux Pas March 11, 2018
I was at the so-called Leica ‘mothership’ in Wetzlar, a few months back, and was wandering around the campus. I noticed some really interesting plants, ...
Read more... - Some notes on Ariella Azoulay’s writing March 10, 2018
These notes are not a full book review – more the key points that struck me, appropriate to my project work.
On ‘The Civil Contract of ...
Read more... - Oral Presentation – Draft March 8, 2018
April 17th, 1975, after years of war, the Khmer Rouge entered Phnom Penh.
Within twenty four hours they emptied the city of around 2 million people, ...
Read more... - Week Five Reflections – Phnom Penh March 6, 2018
This week most of the reflection must be about Cambodia, scoping for my project.
I arrived on Thursday 1st, and leaving today, the 6th. A truly ...
Read more... - Photographer’s Mission February 27, 2018
We been been asked to state our ‘photographic mission’. Here’s mine:
What are your responsibilities?
Firstly, in all of my work, I have a responsibility to adhere to ...
Read more... - Week Four Reflections – Collaboration February 24, 2018
It was huge fun to collaborate with Corin Rossouw, Howard Pratt and Rob Jones, on a short multimedia project, ‘The Journey‘.
The project forced me to ...
Read more... - Constructs and Seeing February 24, 2018
In talking with Steph Cosgrove about my documentary work at the recent Falmouth ‘Face 2 Face’, she was good enough to share some videos about the image ...
Read more... - Week Three Reflections February 21, 2018
What a great week, spilling over into week four, and dominated by the Falmouth Face to Face.
I’ll try to break my (over loaded) thoughts into ...
Read more... - The Camera as Judge and Executioner February 15, 2018
Archiving the Unspeakable, by Michelle Caswell, is a fascinating read. It deals with the role of photographic archives in the activities of the Khmer Rouge ...
Read more... - The Filters of Citizen Journalism February 13, 2018
It would seem to me that there are many themes flowing through this week’s work on Rethinking Photographers. I’ll pick four:
First, the impact of technology on ...
Read more... - Truth in Photographs February 13, 2018
There are many different philosophical theories of truth – pragmatism, coherence, realism, correspondence, language etc.
That said, it is indeed TRUE that there are many theories.
That is ...
Read more... - Non-Photographers and Professionals February 11, 2018
Whilst I would agree that in principle all photographers as just that – photographers, there are clearly subsets of photographers. Some earn a living by ...
Read more... - Week Two Reflections February 10, 2018
Four overall thoughts:
It’s all totally fascinating
I am reading and writing too much, and need to get out and shoot more
Really enjoying the interaction with my ...
Read more... - Roland Barthes – Camera Lucida – An ultimately depressing book February 10, 2018
Camera Lucida, by Roland Barthes, is an odd book. It has become a classic text on the subject – yet Barthes was not a photographer, ...
Read more... - Three Images – Contexts & Disciplines February 7, 2018
For this week’s webinar with Gary, we have been asked to consider the disciplines other than photography, and the critical contexts which are relevant to ...
Read more... - Joseph Wright of Derby February 7, 2018
Several of my fellow students have noted painters such as Caravaggio and Rembrandt as inspirations, with their mastery of both light and compositions, delivering works ...
Read more... - Qs week 2 – 3rd presentation – “Fields of Cultural Interest” February 6, 2018
Q: Which of the disciplines discussed here do you feel is most relevant to Sam Shere’s famous photograph?
In the ‘fields of cultural interest’ (Roland Barthes), ...
Read more... - Qs week 2 – 2nd presentation – “Photography and Art of Science” February 6, 2018
Q: How do you think that the relationship between photography, science and technology has affected how we attribute ideas around knowledge and truth to the ...
Read more... - Photography and … February 6, 2018
Coursework this week is to consider what discipline I feel photography of any kind has a particularly interesting or relevant relationship to.
I would like to look ...
Read more... - Qs week 2 – 1st presentation – “Multiple media and Interdisciplinary practices” February 5, 2018
Q: What does the moving image tell you about the still photographic image?
The presentation did a great job in illustrating the similarities and differences of ...
Read more... - The Caged Bird February 5, 2018
Was very taken by this from Joel Saarda, writing about his inspiration for photography as part of Week 2, Interdisciplinary.
Joel was referring to Maya Angelou’s “Caged Bird” ...
Read more... - Morning email February 5, 2018
Having my (essential) morning coffee, and opened my email.
In the old days, it was a rather painstaking process of having passports and documents checked on ...
Read more... - Other than … Year Zero February 4, 2018
In April 1994, Ingrid and I first visited Cambodia, with our three youngest children. Michala was 6, Victoria was 4, and Dan was just over ...
Read more... - A Poet not a Logician February 3, 2018
I am a rather ‘logical’ person. My BA is in Mathematics and Philosophy. I have an MSc in Consulting and Coaching for Change from HEC. ...
Read more... - Interdisciplinarity February 3, 2018
The theme of Week Two is close to my heart, as I am Visiting Professor at the Inter-Disciplinary Ethics Applied Centre of Excellence for Teaching and ...
Read more... - P&P Week One Reflections February 2, 2018
Exhilarated. Really excited to be part of an academically strong, creatively challenging program – great faculty, and very talented students.
One of my goals in joining ...
Read more... - Qs week 1 – 3rd presentation – “Global Image: Unity and Change” February 2, 2018
Q: Do you think the power and influence of the photograph is overstated?
‘Still’ photography is just one of many media that impact social discourse, especially in ...
Read more... - Qs week 1 – 2nd presentation – “Global Image: Windows on the World” February 1, 2018
Q: What do you make of the mirror and window analogy?
A very apt one. The camera functions both ways, inward and outward looking. The downside ...
Read more... - Three Images – My Practice January 31, 2018
I have chosen three images, reflecting different aspects of my ‘people’ photography. Events, Street and Documentary.
The first (and header image) is a recent Event that ...
Read more... - Qs week 1 – 1st Presentation – “Global image: Worldwide Medium” January 31, 2018
Q: Do you see any parallels between the historic spread of photography and the transmission of digital imagery today?
In both cases, a new technology spread ...
Read more... - A Global Image Re-Make January 30, 2018
I would like to offer a ‘reverse re-make’, with, I hope, good reason. Sebastião Salgado is rightly seen as one of today’s most influential photographers. As ...
Read more... - There’s always an image January 29, 2018
I am at the University of Leeds today, teaching, and I took this picture at Kings Cross – shot and edited on iPhone 7Plus.
Seems to me ...
Read more... - Globalisation – a Personal Tale January 26, 2018
Week One reading includes ‘Global Photography‘, by David Bate, in Photography: The Key Concepts (2016).
Bate starts his chapter with:
“Globalization” is a term now commonly used ...
Read more... - Landscape January 25, 2018
I have been studying the materials for Positions and Practices, and was quite taken with the chapter on Territorial Photography by Joel Snyder, in the ...
Read more... - Possible Cambodia documentary project January 24, 2018
We first visited Cambodia in 1994, with our three youngest children, Michala, Vicky & Dan. Dan was 18 months old at the time. And we ...
Read more...
- Surfaces & Strategies Reflections – Grades – Where To, Now? September 20, 2018
Just got the Surfaces & Strategies results – and although the overall result (70.6%) is remarkably consistent with Positions & Practice (70.8%), the internals are ...
Read more... - RPS Presentation August 31, 2018
I have been invited to give a talk to the Western Region of the Royal Photographic Society, next Sunday (September 9th).
They have advertised it to ...
Read more... - Week Eleven & Twelve Reflections August 20, 2018
Bill Jay, in Occam’s Razor, 1992, wrote:
‘… all good photographers have a deep commitment to, and involvement with, their subjects, and through photography they are ...
Read more... - Book Dummy August 20, 2018
Now that I have completed selection of images for the Work in Progress portfolio, and finished Landings, it seemed right to update the book dummy.
I ...
Read more... - Workshop in Bath August 19, 2018
It was a very successful workshop with the Frome Camera Club this afternoon, in Bath. 18 people attended, on ‘Street Candid Portraits‘, and the feedback ...
Read more... - Surfaces & Strategies Oral Presentation August 19, 2018
I am exploring the long-term impact of the Khmer Rouge Genocide, and especially its impact on education. This includes revisiting our family history with that ...
Read more... - Work in Progress – I missed my Mother August 18, 2018
I have completed the S&S WIP selection.
Posts have already been written which explain my rational on intimacy, landscape and negative traces.
Some of my fellow students ...
Read more... - Intimacy August 16, 2018
‘… all good photographers have a deep commitment to, and involvement with, their subjects, and through photography they are communicating their understanding and passion to ...
Read more... - Exhibition August 16, 2018
Two of my early ‘Traces’ images have been chosen to be part of PhotoBath‘s group show in September.
It will be shown at 44AD Gallery, in ...
Read more... - First They Killed My Father August 16, 2018
In 2017, the movie First They Killed My Father was released. It was directed by Angelina Jolie, and producers included the acclaimed Cambodian filmmaker, Rithy ...
Read more... - Workshop Preparations August 16, 2018
The details of the August 19th Workshop are completed. We will be meeting at the Green Park Station, in Bath, on Sunday afternoon, and a ...
Read more... - Landings 2018 August 12, 2018
Landings 2018 is a collection of current work by students and staff of Falmouth Flexible Online MA Photography, from August 17th.
There are three themes – Expressions ...
Read more... - Week Ten Reflections – Landscape, Context and WIP August 12, 2018
My reflections this week are about my photographic approach to ‘aftermath’.
Christian Schwager, a Swiss photographer, made a series My Lovely Bosnia (2003 – 2005), around the still-present ...
Read more... - Street Portrait Workshop – August 19th August 11, 2018
As I already noted, I am conducting a ‘Street Portrait’ workshop in Bath next weekend. So far 12 people have signed up.
Workshop background is here.
In ...
Read more... - WIP – Telling Sarath’s Story in the Jungle August 9, 2018
Part of this project is to tell the personal stories of the people who survived the Genocide. I am using video, and will include segments ...
Read more... - Time, Education & Rephotography August 6, 2018
I am examining the ‘time‘ aspect of my narrative, amongst other things.
In an earlier post, I noted that a young boy that started in a ...
Read more... - Negative Traces August 5, 2018
The impact of the Genocide of 1975-1979 is still, in many ways, hidden. It is visible only in traces, both physical and psychological.
My project is ...
Read more... - This week’s ‘to do’ August 5, 2018
Well, where to start ..
1. WIP: Go through the images from the past two weeks trip to Cambodia. Sort into themes, and start the process ...
Read more... - Workshop August 5, 2018
I will be doing a Workshop on ‘street portraits’ in Bath on Sunday, August 19th, for the Frome Wessex Camera Club. So far, 10 people ...
Read more... - Week Nine reflections – Cambodian Narrative August 4, 2018
It was a very busy but productive time in Cambodia.
My reflections this week (partly whilst sitting on the plane home) are about clarifying the narrative. ...
Read more... - Webinar with Gary, July 31st July 31, 2018
Notes from today’s webinar with Gary, not necessarily in order of importance, and referring my last weekly reflections – Week 7 and Week 8.
Noting that ...
Read more... - Week Eight Reflections – Cambodia – My Practice July 29, 2018
Another intense week.
I left London on Saturday morning, having completed a 4 day, full-on shoot with Andrew Mlangeni. I arrived in Phnom Penh on Sunday ...
Read more... - Week Seven Reflections – My Practice July 21, 2018
This week my reflections are about my practice, after a multi day event/documentary gig in London.
Whilst I have shot events before, this week’s project was ...
Read more... - Book Dummy July 15, 2018
I am having to jump ahead this week, as I am pretty much full tilt with work and travel from Tuesday.
I created a ‘book dummy’. ...
Read more... - Images So Far July 15, 2018
A selection of images for the project so far.
First, a small selection from my last visit to Cambodia.
Second, experimental work on developing ways to show ...
Read more... - My Friend’s Mother Passed Away – I Missed My Mother July 15, 2018
The first fully-translated ‘story’ from Sarath. Warning: gruesome reading in parts.
……………………………..
It was possibly in 1977, I do not know for sure, but it was a ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections July 15, 2018
A weeks of Brexit shenanigans (again), Trump and Football.
Most of my refections this week I have posted as I went along – probably the highlight ...
Read more... - Conversation with Lukas Birk July 13, 2018
Following an introduction from Cemre, had a terrific conversation today with Lukas Birk.
I explained a little of my background, motivations and the Cambodia project itself.
These ...
Read more... - The Public Image July 13, 2018
Notes on Robert Hariman & John Louis Lucaites, 2016, Chicago: Univ Chicago Press
‘Photography is a small language about vernacular life in a public world. Each ...
Read more... - Cambodian Photography – Part 2 July 12, 2018
As noted in the previous post, Cambodian photography is developing, though it’s clear that the hiatus of the Khmer Rouge years and subsequent Vietnamese administration ...
Read more... - PhotoBath Exhibition & Book July 12, 2018
PhotoBath, the local photography collective, are running their third annual show, in September, at the 44AD ArtSpace Gallery in Bath. They are also creating the ...
Read more... - Thinking About Spaces July 11, 2018
It has long been a fashion to use the sides of building in Shanghai as huge, live advertising, video and news screens
Murky Day in May, ...
Read more... - Installation July 11, 2018
Just trying to pull together some ideas on a possible installation – not for August, as part of Landings, but looking to the future.
I envisage ...
Read more... - Preciousness July 11, 2018
Two things happened in the last 24 hours, which I would like to connect.
First, I saw Sian Davey‘s guest lecture. Second, I had a conversation ...
Read more... - Street Portraiture July 10, 2018
For the first time I joined up with the Frome Wessex Camera Club, for a walk around town, guided by David Chedgy. I admit I ...
Read more... - Week Five Reflections July 8, 2018
A really simple reflection this week. Ingrid and I met up with Simon and Neang, who run a pop-up restaurant business called Khmer Kitchen. We ...
Read more... - Cambodian Photography – Part 1 July 5, 2018
Arguably, Dith Pran (1942 – 2008) is the most famous of Cambodian photographers. His story, working with foreign journalists, before the Khmer Rouge takeover, and subsequent ...
Read more... - Showing the Hidden July 4, 2018
The Landings Exhibition is in preparation, and there is a call for entries.
At the same time, I am continuing to explore the idea of ‘traces’ ...
Read more... - Ideas, Ideas, Ideas – Opening the Curtain July 3, 2018
An interesting conjunction of events.
First, it’s been made clear that we need to consider mounting an ‘Exhibition’ (‘Landings’, online or otherwise), giving a Workshop, and ...
Read more... - Cambodia – 2000 July 2, 2018
This week I am going through the archives, for rephotography purposes, as on my next trip I will be travelling up to Anlong Veng, and ...
Read more... - Windows on the Hidden June 30, 2018
I have found the last couple of weeks most enjoyable, exploring new kinds of imagery, both to learn new techniques and to consider ways of ...
Read more... - Documentary & Art June 29, 2018
Had a very good webinar today with Cemre and Yas. Just want to jot my thoughts down here, not in any particular order.
Cemre asked about ...
Read more... - Discussion with Stella on ‘Pixels’ June 29, 2018
Prompted by a conversation with Danny, I dug out a conversation I had with Stella on Pixels, Film and Phenomenology. Here it is:
………………….
Dear students,
We discussed ...
Read more... - Philosophy and Post-Industrial Opium Dens – Vilém Flusser June 28, 2018
I love this quote, for all sorts of reasons.
‘Amateur photographers’ clubs are places where one gets high on the structural complexities of cameras, where one ...
Read more... - Photographs Without (my usual) Cameras June 27, 2018
This week’s task is to consider how to create images without using our usual ‘apparatus’, whilst still being related to our project.
I considered using Google ...
Read more... - Glitches – Because You Can June 26, 2018
Been playing with Glitch Art. That’s when you take a digital image file, mess with the code, and get unexpected results.
The header is from a ...
Read more... - Street Portraits June 26, 2018
This past weekend there was a major protest march in London – The People’s Vote March. I was there, for myself and as photographer for ...
Read more... - Postcards June 25, 2018
In Week Three Reflections, I noted some thoughts about how I might bring alive an installation / exhibition of the Cambodia project.
That, pause being pushed ...
Read more... - Week Three Reflections June 25, 2018
For this week’s reflections, a little late, a few questions stood out.
How could your subjects be influencing you and your approach? Well, unfortunately that has been ...
Read more... - Artificial Intelligence & Photography June 23, 2018
It is hard to consider any photograph completely devoid of human intervention. Images taken on Mars are only possible because humans created the recording and ...
Read more... - Pop June 21, 2018
I have been experimenting with some of the ‘traces’ work, not least as a couple of the images have been chosen for the PhotoBath exhibition ...
Read more... - The Morris Minor June 20, 2018
Having re-visited the Day Before Christmas, I decided to look again at the Flickr archives.
Towards the end of 2005, a group entitled ‘Manipulate This!’ was ...
Read more... - Trailer June 19, 2018
One of the tasks for Week 2 was to create a 2 minute trailer for our projects.
A little late, but here it is.
Soundtrack: The Industrialism ...
Read more... - Making a Zine June 18, 2018
This week’s task, making a Zine (digital or paper) from personal networks and / or within the university.
Step One: Using the comments box below, organise yourselves ...
Read more... - Week Two Reflections June 18, 2018
Weekly reflections – somewhat overshadowed by a long weekend, with both a trip to see my mother in hospital, a Billy Joel gig in Manchester ...
Read more... - Rephotography June 13, 2018
In preparation for the next Cambodia trip, taking Cemre’s advice, I’ll be looking at the implications of this project for our family.
As noted elsewhere, our ...
Read more... - Here we go again … June 11, 2018
Slick system. Applied at 10:04 this morning.
Got confirmation at 10:08!
The planned trip is from July 22 for a couple of weeks, meeting old colleagues, friends ...
Read more... - Appropriation June 10, 2018
Top: Susan Meiselas (1979) The Molotov Man;
Bottom: Joy Garnett (2003) Molotov from the series Riot
The brief: Joy Garnett is known for her paintings inspired ...
Read more... - S&S Week One Reflections June 10, 2018
I consider my photography is about storytelling (when I get things right, that is). And I call this ‘Unfinished Stories‘, because the best that any ...
Read more... - Owen Smith June 10, 2018
I occasionally shoot events for local groups, often political. This weekend, Owen Smith, the Welsh MP, was talking to Bath for Europe on ‘Can We ...
Read more... - Ghosts, Traces & Stories June 9, 2018
I am looking for ways to tell today’s story whilst also bringing yesterday’s in front of the viewer.
Anyone who has visited a Genocide Museum, anywhere ...
Read more... - It’s Not All About Genocide June 8, 2018
It has always been my intent to go back and re-imagine the journey that we took with Sarath, though I have, to now, seen that ...
Read more... - Vinyl Records and Photography June 7, 2018
This book reads like a history of photography …
Robert Frank, Dorothea Lange, Saul Leiter, Andy Warhol, Berenice Abbott, Herb Ritts, Jeff Wall, William Eggleston, W. Eugene ...
Read more... - Where Are You At? June 6, 2018
This week’s webinar, with Cemre, is a conversation about ‘where are we at?” with our practice over the break.
Well, Ingrid and I moved home over ...
Read more... - The Work for Surfaces & Strategies June 5, 2018
Very helpful webinar with Gary today.
As background, one of my ‘issues’ is the limited time I can be in Cambodia, and how I will develop ...
Read more... - A Place Over Time June 4, 2018
In the first week of Surfaces & Strategies, we were asked to consider a ‘Place over Time’, with these steps:
Choose a previously made image that ...
Read more... - Redesigned my website June 4, 2018
I spent some time this past weekend reflecting back on the feedback from my WIP, and doing some research on web design.
I have historically used ...
Read more... - Curationism – David Balzer June 4, 2018
Notes from David Balzer’s How Curation took over the Art World and Everything Else.
He tracks the development of curation, both as an act and then as ...
Read more... - 26 Vinyl Records May 23, 2018
Ed Ruscha (1937 – ) created Twenty-Six Gasoline Stations in 1963, a small, self published book.
Ruscha set in motion a new way to think about photography ...
Read more...
- Sustainable Prospects – Grades – Where To, Now? January 14, 2019
I have just received the grades for Sustainable Prospects – 70% overall, Distinction level, I assume, which is pretty much in line with Surfaces & ...
Read more... - The Best of 2018 December 30, 2018
In the Sustainable Prospects module, we covered the power of social media, within which I assessed my current position and conducted some Instagram promotional experiments.
As I ...
Read more... - Whisky and Photography December 15, 2018
Had quite an interesting exchange on Facebook in the last couple of days, which started off with me posting a picture of one of my ...
Read more... - Reflections at Year End December 11, 2018
On Monday, 10th December, I did a presentation at the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, noted here.
It was entitled Cambodia – Unfinished Stories, A ...
Read more... - Infrared December 11, 2018
One of my action steps for 2019 is to explore other ways of rendering my traces / negatives, and that includes infrared. I am particularly ...
Read more... - Week Twelve Reflections – Street Photography, my evolution December 9, 2018
About 5 years ago, I decided to take street photography a bit more seriously. I got involved with various groups (such as the Leica Meet), ...
Read more... - BRLSI Presentation December 9, 2018
The presentation to the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Society is tomorrow evening, and I am putting the finishing touches to the materials.
I have created ...
Read more... - Documentary Photography – Quotes December 7, 2018
In preparation for my Oral Presentation, I posted some quotes that I have found inspiring over the years.
After writing about my practice, I thought I would ...
Read more... - Week Eleven Reflections – Professional Location of Practice December 6, 2018
For this week’s reflections, I want to discuss my Practice, and where it is going.
Following on from the ‘Let’s Talk Business‘ and ‘Back to the Beginning ...
Read more... - Sustainable Prospects – Work Complete December 5, 2018
The work for the module is complete, with the Work in Progress.
1. Work in Progress – A Prayer from Hell:https://www.mickyatesphotography.com/Showcase
I have also prepared a PDF ...
Read more... - A Conversation on ‘Reality’ December 5, 2018
I am going to start this (overly long) post with my conclusions:
Photography always has and always will depict a constructed reality.
Photography is, like all art ...
Read more... - Beyond the Shadows – Judy Glickman Lauder December 4, 2018
Judy Glickman Lauder married Leonard Lauder, the cosmetics magnate, in 2015. But that is not why I am writing this post.
Glickman Lauder is a photographer, ...
Read more... - Sustainable Prospects Oral Presentation December 4, 2018
Robert Frank said, “Above all, life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference”.
Whilst I expressed the same thoughts in my first Oral Presentation, ...
Read more... - A Prayer from Hell – BRLSI talk December 4, 2018
I am giving a presentation next week to the Bath Royal Literary & Scientific Institute, entitled ‘Unfinished Stories from Cambodia’.
The subtitle is ‘A Prayer from ...
Read more... - Week Ten Reflections December 2, 2018
With all the focus on the Oral Presentation and the Work in Progress, it would be easy to not step back and reflect. Also, there ...
Read more... - Experimentation December 2, 2018
I have been revisiting the work of Daido Moriyama and Antony Cairns. And Gary suggested I also look at Osamu James Nakagawa.
In my Work in ...
Read more... - Daido Moriyama – Record December 2, 2018
Daido Moriyama, when history is written, will be noted as one of the greatest photographers of his generation.
Japanese photography has always interested me, even before ...
Read more... - Working on Oral Presentation – Quotes November 24, 2018
I made a presentation last year to PhotoBath on Iconic Images, with Richard Young.
Some of the quotes seem even more appropriate now, as I consider where I want ...
Read more... - Week Nine Reflections – Reconciliation November 23, 2018
My main reflections at the moment are about reconciliation.
First, how to I reconcile my work in Cambodia as a photographer, with that of an educator? ...
Read more... - S-21 Data November 21, 2018
Youk Chhang, of DC-Cam (Documentation Center of Cambodia), provided me with data coming from research associated with the UN sponsored Tribunal.
In a 2017 email, he ...
Read more... - Website November 20, 2018
I have long treated my website more as a repository of my work than as a focused ‘shop window’.
Whilst I am happy with, and have ...
Read more... - Week Eight Reflections – Work in Progress Reviews November 17, 2018
This summarises feedback from Jesse, Wendy and Krishna on my WIP portfolio, and my project in general.
Paris (10th Nov)
As background, I introduced the project like ...
Read more... - Unfinished Stories from Cambodia – A Prayer from Hell November 16, 2018
I have been asked to do a talk at the Bath Royal Literary & Scientific Institute, on December 10th. I was approached to do this ...
Read more... - Khmer Rouge leaders found guilty of genocide in Cambodia’s ‘Nuremberg’ moment November 16, 2018
From the Guardian (November 16 2018):
Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea are the two most senior living leaders of regime that presided over deaths of at ...
Read more... - Tell a Story November 15, 2018
This week’s exercise is ‘tell a newspaper story in 5-7 images’.
As I have just come back from Cambodia, trying to do something very similar, here ...
Read more... - Week Seven Reflections – Paris Photo November 14, 2018
It was the week of a Falmouth Face to Face around Paris Photo, which we combined with family time in the city. Here’s my reflections ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections – Part Two November 5, 2018
I sometimes try to separate the photographic focus of the MA, and my personal role as a ‘Cambodian Educator’, of almost twenty years standing, as ...
Read more... - Week Six Reflections – Part One November 5, 2018
These are some thoughts on week two of my Cambodia trip.
As noted last week, the main purpose is to see how much progress I can make ...
Read more... - A Prayer from Hell November 5, 2018
In Phnom Penh last week, I met Youk Chhang for the first time. The visit including a lot of such networking activities, in order to ...
Read more... - Gatiloke, Genocide and the Narrative November 3, 2018
After an intense but (I believe) successful two weeks in Cambodia, there are many things I need to write about. There is however an overarching ...
Read more... - Week Five Reflections – Cambodia October 27, 2018
The focus of the week was Cambodia. I arrived on Wednesday, from London via Singapore. From our home to the hotel takes about 22 hours. ...
Read more... - Meet Someone New October 25, 2018
I am responding here to the ‘Meet Someone New” challenge.
This is alway a good idea, though I must admit I have preferred usually to do ...
Read more... - Hondros October 23, 2018
Following a recommendation from Krishna, I watched the documentary on conflict photojournalist Chris Hondros, who died in Libya.
It is a brilliant movie, and hugely thought ...
Read more... - Discordia – Moises Saman October 21, 2018
Moises Saman is an American / Spanish photojournalist, and a member of Magnum. I just got a copy of his 2016 book, Discordia. It is perhaps the ...
Read more... - For this week’s task, you will network October 20, 2018
Week 5 is all about networking. Of course this is hardly a new idea, nor unique to photography. Aeons ago I wrote several masters papers ...
Read more... - Week Four Reflections – and Photographic DNA October 20, 2018
I have done my best to fulfil the requests of the course this week, despite my misgivings. I will not dwell much on this, other ...
Read more... - Marketing Plan October 19, 2018
‘For this week’s activity, we will create a marketing plan for your practice which covers the next 10 weeks. Think about what you want to ...
Read more... - Punctum is a Duration – Jacques Derrida October 18, 2018
I have been wandering through the pages of Fifty Key Writers on Photography (edited by Mark Durden), and was stopped by Derrida.
He argues that Barthes‘ ...
Read more... - Instagram Part 3 October 17, 2018
Following the earlier post on a first experiment, I conducted a second experiment.
In the spirit of the week, I decided to promote TWO images on ...
Read more... - David Salle October 17, 2018
So why should I be fascinated with David Salle’s work?
On the one hand, his figurative, painterly (pictorial?) style was a welcome break from conceptual art ...
Read more... - Mango Flowers and Fruits – Sarath October 16, 2018
The second fully-translated ‘story’ from Sarath.
……………………………..
This is a story about the time just before being liberated from the Khmer Rouge (in 1979). The lives of ...
Read more... - Artist’s Statement October 15, 2018
Following on from the ‘Let’s Talk Business‘ and ‘Back to the Beginning‘ work, I am working through my Artist’s Statement. I see this as very much ...
Read more... - Digital … October 14, 2018
Just to get something off my chest.
I have been reading a few books on the ‘digital revolution’, and almost all manage to use the word ...
Read more... - Back to the Future October 14, 2018
Inspired by the ‘back to the beginning’ task, I just put down the princely sum of £12.50 on eBay to buy 6 vintage cameras, 3 ...
Read more... - Week Three Reflections October 13, 2018
Still frustrated.
On the plus side, had a really good conversation with Krishna and Isabella in the webinar this week. It was fascinating (and inspiring) to ...
Read more... - Begin at the Beginning – My Photographic DNA October 13, 2018
Review your earliest work and reflect: What do you see in it?
I have to really start at the beginning here. I was a painter (and ...
Read more... - The Photograph as Contemporary Art October 13, 2018
I have been looking again at The Photograph as Contemporary Art, by Charlotte Cotton, 2014 3rd edition, and decided this time to write a few ...
Read more... - Banksy and Tejaratchi on Advertising & Going Viral October 11, 2018
I was thinking about this weeks’ ‘viral’ exercise, alongside the latest Banksy escapade. By way of background, I have spent a large part of my ...
Read more... - Instagram Part 2 October 11, 2018
Following the earlier post, I conducted an experiment.
Brief recap on my Instagram: I joined pretty much at the beginning, and just use it as a ...
Read more... - Perception: the Analogue, the Digital and the Eye October 7, 2018
I am re-visiting a brief conversation that I had last module with Stella Baraklianou, driven by a certain deja-vu in a couple of books I ...
Read more... - Instagram Part 1 October 6, 2018
This week’s task:
‘I want you to try and create and implement an Instagram strategy that you feel will help you reach future, potential clients (whether ...
Read more... - Week Two Reflections October 6, 2018
So, week two.
I found working through the mission statement useful. Writing strategies is hardly something new, as I have been doing that literally for decades. ...
Read more... - Data Protection October 6, 2018
I think it might be useful to briefly look at European GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) implications as we are considering viral campaigns. Whilst this is largely aimed ...
Read more... - Dad October 4, 2018
I thought long and hard about posting this – and even asked peers if I should – Danny, especially.
Some of you know that my Dad ...
Read more... - Business Planning October 3, 2018
Having been in business for a while, I thought it might be helpful to share a couple of tools that I use, both when leading ...
Read more... - Let’s Talk Business October 3, 2018
We have been asked to write a business statement for our photography.
Mission
My work is ‘Unfinished Stories’. Life is always in motion, every moment creates a ...
Read more... - Image at Messums Wiltshire September 30, 2018
Was able to visit the ‘Image‘ exhibition at Messums Wiltshire, yesterday. Lovely show.
First of all, it is a beautiful space, with the Long Gallery, the ...
Read more... - SP Week One Reflections September 29, 2018
Sarah Leen, Director of Photography, National Geographic (from ‘Why We Do it‘), said:
‘I have spent my entire professional life creating, editing, critiquing or teaching photography ...
Read more... - Photographic Rules September 29, 2018
I attended the Frome Wessex Camera Club meeting last night. It is a very friendly, very active club where people of all levels of experience ...
Read more... - Parr’s Advice September 29, 2018
Quite enjoyed listening to Martin Parr’s advice to students.
Particularly liked his encouragement for everyone to go out and ‘take more crap’.
Read more... - Seven Day Challenge September 28, 2018
This week’s activity is from Michael Christopher Brown, an American photographer represented by Magnum Photos. He has gained an international reputation, especially for his documentation ...
Read more... - PhotoBath September 27, 2018
PhotoBath is a Bath-based collective, with interests in Documentary and Fine Art photography.
This week the third annual exhibition was staged, ‘Unfinished’. That idea was, I ...
Read more... - Looking Back September 23, 2018
I am exploring the long-term impact of the Khmer Rouge Genocide, and especially its impact on education. This includes revisiting our family history which goes ...
Read more... - David Hurn – A Life in Pictures September 23, 2018
Just finally catching up with the excellent documentary on David Hurn from the BBC. It only has a few hours left to be available – ...
Read more... - Dominic Grieve & Event Photography September 23, 2018
As mentioned elsewhere, I do quite a lot of event photography in the local area. It is essentially reportage work, for use in local news ...
Read more... - Frome Wessex Street Portrait Workshop September 15, 2018
Andrew Washington and John Bishop got the prizes for the ‘best’ street portraits from the recent workshop in Bath.
John Bishop
Neither had really shot either street or ...
Read more... - David Hume – Photography’s Patron Philosopher? September 12, 2018
David Hume has been a ‘philosophical hero’ since I was a teenager. Here’s a quote (in classical, sceptical, style) which illustrates partly why that is:
Hume ...
Read more... - Gina Miller September 8, 2018
I was asked to shoot Gina Miller’s book signing this past week. Gina is the legal activist that took the UK Government to court, to ...
Read more... - Bill Jay – ‘Occam’s Razor’ September 2, 2018
Bill Jay (1940-2009) is a favourite writer, partly because of his acute insight into photographers (as opposed to photography), but mainly because of his love ...
Read more... - RPS Presentation August 31, 2018
I have been invited to give a talk to the Western Region of the Royal Photographic Society, next Sunday (September 9th).
They have advertised it to ...
Read more...
