The Institute

A few weeks back I had to show my first year photography students how to construct a simple slideshow of their B&W folio images. For the demonstration I decided to use images that I took in the classrooms and corridors around the college... subject matter that they walk past every day. My intention was to show how the choice of images combined with carefully selected audio can manipulate the audience response and create mood. 

'Erotica' A must see exhibition - Two days only!

Paul Ciccetti was one of my students this past year and his work was innovative, interesting and exceptionally well produced. I always looked forward to seeing what he was producing in the darkroom and it isn't often that student images generate discussion amongst the staff as to whether they should be presented to the class. He definitely pushed a few buttons with some of his pix, but the strength of his work could not be denied and Paul was awarded the 'Cert IV Photoimaging Student of the Year' by Central Institute of Technology for 2011...and deservedly so. 

Paul is just about to have his first solo exhibition which opens this Friday, 20 January 2012 at 6pm at 464 Smart Space on William Street in Northbridge, Perth. 

 

Erotica: B&W Portraits is definitely a show that you should check out. Unfortunately he will only be exhibiting this work for two days before he relocates to Melbourne. So, take this small window of opportunity to see some excellent work from a really talented emerging photographer. 

Erotica: B&W Portraits by Paul Ciccetti

Opens: Friday 20 January 2012 at 6pm

Closes: Sunday 22 January 2012

464 Smart Space Gallery

464a William Street (the lime green building on the bend)

Northbridge WA

Burma Daze

In between work and all the detritus of life I'm slowly getting through the pics that I took in Burma in July. One of the outcomes will be a series in a similar vein to the one I did in Cuba where I used Graham Greene's novel, Our Man in Havana, as inspiration. This time round it will show how I imagine Burma was during the era of Kipling and George Orwell's book Burmese Days. Not too difficult as, much like Cuba, modern day Myanmar looks very much like it's caught in a time warp and it's easy to find subject matter reminiscent of life in the early twentieth century.

Rangoon - Magic Lantern slide, Photographer unknown.

I've also started to accumulate a small collection of old postcards, magic lantern slides such as the image of Rangoon, above, to serve as a reference point and be included in the final book of the project. 

To give the 'feel' of the time I've been producing digital negatives from my photos and sandwiching these with various 'texture' negatives to give an aged, distressed look to the final darkroom/analog prints. Some of the early test prints can be seen on my flickr page, but here's a scan of one of the prints as it starts to near the final product. It's printed on my dwindling stock of Agfa Multicontrast Classic Fine Grained Matt, fibre-based paper, sepia toned then hand colored using the Marshall  photo retouching oil paints. 

Shan women at the morning market, Nyaungswhe, Burma. - Hand colored silver gelatin print

 It's a slow process, tweaking digital files to get a decent analog negative, selecting the 'right' texture/distressed layer to give the look, printing, toning and hand coloring, but I'm slowly getting there. Stay tuned....

The Secret Room (VIII)

The Secret Room (VIII) - Cyanotype Print

Kinda got caught up with lesson prep for the start of semester, so whilst there's lots to rant about no time atm. Next week...

Bui Vien before breakfast

(Click on the images to see a larger view.)

Bui Vien, 0645 am - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

Bui Vien, 0700 am - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

 Bui Vien, 0715 am - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

 Bui Vien, Cyclo mistah? - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

 Bui Vien, Cyclos - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

 Bui Vien, Cylco driver - Silver Gelatin print, edition of 10

Got up early(ish) one morning whilst staying at Madam Cuc 64 guesthouse on Bui Vien in Ho Chi Minh City to take some snaps with the xpan before breakfast. 

The street (Bui Vien) is in the heart of the 'backpacker' precinct of Pham Ngu Lao, but apart from the travellers preparing to head off to their next location, most of the tourists seemed to be still sleeping off the party from the night before. But the roads were hardly deserted as breakfasts were being prepared, whilst the ubiquitous Xe Om (motorbike taxis) and cyclos started to ferry their human cargo around District 1.

Amerikan visions part I

"Pro-Life" rally - Washington DC

Silver Gelatin print 

Pic of the week

Mother & Child from the 'Long neck' Burmese Karen/Paduang ethnic minority group

Hand coloured B&W, silver gelatin print

Pic of the week

           

                                Big Buddha - Little Buddha

Not been near my computer much this past week and so haven't had time to prepare anything for the blog. So here is my pic of the week, taken on Koh Samui, Thailand with my Hasselblad Xpan panorama camera and shot on Fuji Neopan 400 film. It's part of an ongoing series that I am doing on Buddhist art and architecture.