print it!

print your photos, don't just keep them in a computer or mobile phone, put them on a book, an album, a wall and look at them. Create a story and read it together your loved ones, can't beat sitting next to each other while going through those prints and the rollercoaster of memories or talking about ideas and projects. And yes, you can find the time to do it if you want to.

Dig out those old negatives buried in those old shoe boxes in the cupboard. Make some prints, enlargements.
Think about beautiful printed images on quality paper, beautiful darkroom handmade black and white, understated and sophisticated at them same time, moody, evocative or just graphic or that tell a story. Think about displaying them, for you and for the others and the great contribution they give as an element of interior decor for our houses, making them more our living homes.

Handmade

I am a great supporter of handmade products and considering that in my own work and activity I adopt those handmade approaches often referred to as traditional, how could I not be?
I am a great fan especially of those that provide a much more interesting and challenging alternative to mass produced items sold in the high street and by the big distribution giants. 
I personally see several reasons for it and of course they are all personal points of view, some are:

• I support local/small entrepeneurs hence helping in supporting local economies (i appreciate how naive this may sound to some people...), "local" in a broader sense
• I give my money to people that use their personal talent and creativity to give us something different, that breaks this mould of cliche and sameness imposed on us nearly everywhere (is not depressing to travel all over the world and see the same chain shop everywhere selling exactly the same item?)
• The individuality even though part of the same community
• It support ideas, thinking, culture, skills development and exchanges, creativity, communication within the community
• It gives us a choice: it is not "you can have any colour you want as long as it is black" and we can choose whom we want to buy from.

Of course as with everything it also a matter of finding the right balance as one side of this story must not or cannot exclude the other and there is a place and a role for both aspects of the economy. But we could carry on forever talking about this.

As you probably know in the past few months I have worked quite regularly with local art organisation Jelly and I was very pleased when I was asked about using some of my photos to illustrate an interview with its founder and director Suzanne Stallard. I can only recommend reading this inspirational interview and the rest of the magazine and the back issues, a great display of handmade talent and creativity. This and past issues of the magazines are here.

Finally I would like to invite you to join their campaign to buy Handmade, I did join.

3rd Thursday - February 2011

In February I had again the pleasure of photographing this popular monthly appointment with representatives of the local art and creative areas. The focus was this time on the group of artists known as Caversham Artists, who gave visitors to the event a preview of the work on display at their forthcoming studio trail and demonstrations of how they work.

The show made again good use of some of the empty shops in town centre exploiting potential that otherwise would remain unused. As always the event was excellently organised and run by the people at Jelly.

3rd Thursday - January 2011

Continuing my co-operation with Jelly and participation to the 3rd Thursday series of events this time viewing and recording some of the instants of this appointment with painter Paul Kessling.

These events are proving very popular and a very interesting and attractive alternative for people that want to enjoy diverse aspect of Reading cultural life.

They perfectly suit and conform to the Jelly objective to "promote the development of the arts and in particular the visual arts for the benefit of the local community by providing studio space and facilities for public exhibitions and by organising events which improve public access to the arts"

My images of the Art and Lunch event can be viewed on the Jelly's page

The Third Thursdays

For the past couple of months I had the honour and pleasure to be invited to participate to a new art programme in Reading, the town where I live: The Third Thursdays, another brainchild of the art organisation Jelly. 

The Third Thursday is a monthly event showcasing the creative talent of Reading and includes visual, literary, music and performing arts in non-traditional arts venues. This is another of a series of programmes and events that contribute to the enhancement of the local cultural life.

The launch event included an art auction where attendees had the opportunity to buy original works raising monies for charity.

Below is the image of my piece that was sold at the auction. Part of a Venice inspired lith prints series

the second and latest event took place last week and it was a great evening of photography, stories and poetry from Reading. I was invited to present and talk about my latest project and exhibition and I was glad it had such a positive response. People showed interest in the exhibition and asked questions about the stories behind it and the people that participated and about my photography and approach.
Particularly rewarding and chuffing was listening to the poet Anna-May Laugher from the Brickwork Poets group read 2 poems inspired by my exhibition.
You can read here a review of the event and I suggest you take a look at the Jelly website to find out more about them and the great things they do.

40 people: 40 little stories

“40 people in Reading: 40 stories of passion”
it is a photo portrait project and exhibition to explore, talk to, acknowledge and celebrate people within the community in Reading that dedicate themselves in activities motivated by a passion, a personal drive (could be volunteers, artists, activists, entrepreneurs). It is a local project, as it focuses on people that work within and with the local community and look more into what possibly is an aspect of Reading that many people do not look at or are not aware of. As we know normally Reading gets a pretty bad press (see the recent “clone Towns” survey or the notorious binge drinking culture) for me this is also a way of telling a different story and putting some faces in this story of people that break a mould. All these people have some form of connection with Reading, either through live, work, education or taking part.

The images are now an exhibition part of the Open for Art programme by Jelly, in 173 Friar Street, Reading town centre

I would like to thank the individuals and the following organisations for participating in this project:

• Reading International Solidarity Centre (RISC)
• Reading Refugee Support Group (RRSG)
• Rising Sun Arts Centre
• True Food Co-op
• Jelly
• Amnesty International, Reading group
• Age UK
• Age Concern Berkshire
• Progress Theatre

nuit blanche 2010, part deux: what did we do?

we were at The Artpad - aka Jelly's home in Market Place in Reading.  We set up a special photo studio (more a corner with a very basic lighting setting) from 6 – 8.30pm. The aim was to photograph 100 visitors to the Nuit Blanche event using a medium format camera and roll film (i.e. my normal 6x6 kit and medium). We wanted to take just a quick spontaneous record of the visitors, showing them how they are and how they wanted to be as in a sort of photobooth. People were great in participating, getting into the spirit and having their photos taken.  We did not quite make the 100 but quite a few though. You can see the effort here and the related post on the Jelly's page.