205dpi Issue Nov’13
Sarah Hassall
Artist www.sarahhassall.wordpress.com
This issue
Nov’13
Who are we? We are photographers. Journalistic ones. We document, record and capture anything we find interesting, beautiful or captivating. Sometimes our stories may seem strange or unusual, but we are the eye behind it all; and that’s what this magazine is all about. From cakes to paralympics, graffiti to kickboxing, our editorial documentary style takes us around Cornwall, the UK and the rest of world. Follow us and our collective of photographers as we capture our adventures, our remarkable stories and our everyday lives.
What’ve we been doing? This issue has been all about broadening our horizons. We’ve opened the doors to new photographers and artists, allowing a wider selection of work to be displayed in our future pages. We’ve also got a few bigger things in the pipeline (moving image - watch this space). The future is bright!
p.s. keep updated: 4.
6 Feature Story - Si Barber Punchy documentary photographer Simon talks to us about his real-life project ‘The Big Society’.
14 1. Amy
2. Gaia
Talks us through Hugh and Jean’s lifestyle, coping with their many disabilities in the faimly home.
Went to Brazil and discovered how hard it is growing up as a youth in a struggling Favela.
30
34
Romer
26 3. Francis
Hawkins
Met Tim Woolgar who runs a chess-boxing class - a strange mixture of hobbies, which somehow works!
18
4. Tom
Sandberg
Followed and captured Anonymous’ Million Mask March in London on the 5th of November.
Dominici
5. John Liot
Tells us his experiences with martial arts and working along side the Gracie Barra MMA Academy.
5.
Real Talk with Simon Barber
“It’s much more challenging to photograph your own country and make it interesting.” This issue, we have a very insightful interview with Simon Barber. We discuss his project ‘The Big Society’, named after David Cameron’s 2010 speech in which he promised England to be a land “free from constraints” - this meaning that readers online, as well as viewing Cameron’s speech, can also compare Simon’s photography with it side by side. Simon’s words and pictures provide you with a refreshing look at England and it’s societies, and other ways of looking at what is right in front of you.
8.
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
Hi Si! When looking through your work, I find there’s a really strong personal style behind it all. It’s bigger than capturing the story in front of you, but it is also about showing the story in the way that you actually see it – especially in your project ‘The Big Society’. I find this really refreshing! Were there any personal motives to create this work? The Big Society is my document of the UK in recession - a visual riposte to David Cameron’s imagined nation and a critique of the voodoo economics, which has taken the UK to the edge of moral and financial calamity. The project started after the near collapse of the banking system in 2008 that signaled the end of twenty years of unparalleled material prosperity in the UK. Subsequently, I have been documenting the social consequences of the recession from the perspective of those surviving the will of the powerful; the shop workers made to dance for their employers each morning, the prostitutes stumbling around the darkened streets looking for punters and the teenage Army recruits blown to bits in pursuit of an imperial fantasy. I’m not intending to seek out sensation or drama, but I instead wish to convey the day-to-day experience of ordinary people going about their lives in what I suspect subsequent historians will regard as extraordinary times. As the aim of the project is to provide an alternative view of the country to that which is presented in much of the media I wanted it to be seen by as many people as possible - not just gallery visitors, picture editors or photography enthusiasts. Consequently I developed an SEO strategy that would ensure that when someone typed the phrase
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
9.
In pictures: Simon Barber’s “The Big Society”. 10.
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
‘The Big Society’ into an Internet search engine they would not only get the official speech from Cameron and No10, but also my view. My ambition is to get my work next to Mr. Cameron’s words on the main search engines, so the viewer can compare them. You travelled a fair bit of the country in this project. Was there a certain part of the country that really captured your attention and focus and really inspired you? One of the first things I learned was that most of the interesting things for me are happening outside of London, beyond the eye of the mainstream media. The places for me are those where the veneer that society offers is being stretched a little. The post industrial areas of The North and The Midlands always seem to yield interesting work, although fascinating subjects can be found almost anywhere. I live in East Anglia, which has seen a lot of migration from Eastern Europe in the last ten years which continues to yield up good work. During this project you have photographed, what some may consider, dangerous parts of society such as the EDL and Sex workers. How did you manage to convince them to be part of your project? I tend to take some of my work around me to show subjects what I am doing and trying to achieve. In my experience, if you treat people decently and with respect it gets reciprocated. When I photographed the EDL they were trying to improve their public image and seemed to be more receptive to approaches by people like me. Personally, I never found them particularly aggressive or threatening. The prostitutes I paid to take their picture. I know some people would disagree with that, especially as they were likely to spend
it on Class A drugs, but as I was getting something out of it, it seemed reasonable they should too. The main issue for me was the police who stopped me on a couple of occasions when they suspected I was kerb crawling. Did you get any trouble in trying to photograph these people? And do you have any advice to those who wish to photograph others of a similar potentially dangerous nature? Experience will tend to be your best guide as to when and perhaps when not to take a picture. Your wits are your best antenna. It’s also a good move to join the National Union of Journalists. The membership card that they give seems to have some magic attached to it and has got me out of a few scrapes with unpleasant people and the police.
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
11.
By any chance, was the work of Martin Parr, Chris Killip and Chris Steele- Perkins an inspiration for this project? Who else has had an influence on your work? Yes, all of the above! In the 90s Martin Parr’s work looked very cool and ironic, and I was influenced by his ability to evoke significance from the banality of the everyday. However as time has gone on I think it seems to have gathered a certain cynicism to it and I began to look at other photographers who seemed to have a more empathetic approach to their subjects. What inspires you to get up in the morning and go out and photograph? The alternative view. My motivation is to provide a document that describes how my small part of the world was when I was in it. I’m interested in the minutiae, and the minor rather than the big picture. Photography gathers significance over time. If you look at pictures of people from previous generations you will often see details that the history books miss. What did that tattoo mean? Why did they dress like that? etc. I think the medium is ideally placed to act as a tool that can militate against the establishment narrative. You have been published in many different publications, what was your proudest image you have seen in print and why? The Daily Mail recently ran a selection of my images from The Big Society, which
“Experience will be your guide as to when you should and shouldn’t take a picture” 12.
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
naturally many of their readers hated. I was quite proud of that! Many photographers go to extreme lengths and distances to get dramatically interesting stories - but you didn’t leave the country for this project. Do you think that there are many great stories in the UK? Yes, I think it is often the easy answer to go somewhere exotic and shoot the unusual. It’s much more challenging to shoot your own country and make it interesting. Don McCullin said recently that photographers
should concentrate on the ‘social wars’ in their own countries rather than jumping on a plane to cover foreign issues. With all the upheaval going on in the UK at the moment there are plenty of stories to be uncovered. Thanks a lot Si, all the best.
Words: Lois Golding
Feature - Real Talk with Simon Barber
13.
Mortlake Road, Kew
Hugh Romer, 91 has lived at Mortlake Road in Kew for most of his lifetime. He and his wife Jean will be the last of the Romers to occupy the family house. During countless visits over years past, it was always clear to me that Hugh was the dominant spouse. This was partly because of Jean’s mental disability, which resulted in electroshock treatment during her forties, to which Hugh is confident that the hospital most certainly “overdid it”.
Hugh would not only take charge of the house but being a former engineer for the BBC, he would gladly attend to any necessary maintenance, whether it meant repairing years of damage caused from stick bombs during the war or channeling rain water from the roof to flow collectively into the garden pond. He would lead my father and me with Jean by his side around the grand Victorian house, telling us tales about my father’s great-great relatives through photographs
16. Amy Romer
and paintings that still hang in the hallway. He would then take us into the garden and unveil evidence of my Grandfather’s zoological fascination as a boy, which eventually lead to his dedicated career. In 2009, Hugh suffered from kidney failure and was unwilling to make repeated trips to hospital for dialysis. He has since been diagnosed with dementia, which is now in its advanced stages. Today, they are both bedroom bound.
Jean will answer the door to regular day carer visits who takes notes on the their condition. Their bedroom is filled with memories, of which neither recall, and flowers which wilt unnoticed. The house remains unchanged since 2009 but it is cold and dark now. Their electric blankets and small fan heater keep them warm. The light beyond the window keeps them awake, until it fades and then they sleep.
Amy Romer
17.
The Forgotten Children Gaia visited the poorest part of Brazil and faced the harsh truth of what life is like growing up as a kid.
“We need help. We need the world to know about all these forgotten children”
Brazil has become the sixth biggest economy in the world; Saõ Paulo is the world’s seventh largest city by population and is expected to have the second highest economic growth by 2025. Also, Rio de Janeiro will host both the final match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. I travelled to the poorest area of Brazil on the northeast coast, to document the life of all those people forgotten by the Brazilian government; and hidden by their own society. I was based in João Pessoa, a small town where corruption, mafia and sex tourism have been increasing dramatically over the past five years. The uncontrolled immigration is
20. Gaia Dominici
leading this part of the country into chaos. Girls, between 8 and 15, are sold by their own families as prostitutes, whilst boys become dangerous thieves or end up in drug trafficking. Most of them die before they’re 18. After finding a local guide, I was finally able to visit a Favela (a Brazilian shanty town). I still remember the smell of it. Girls prostituting, children playing with car tyres, and old men drinking and smoking in tiny dirty bars.
from the rest of the world? He told me “We need help. We need the world to know about all these forgotten children�. On the 1st of June a series of protests were organized against the government. In July 2013, seven out of the fourteen major demands were processed, and will hopefully be approved soon.
My guide was a very old man from Favela. I could feel his pain, his shame for such a hypocritical government. How was it possible? Is it real? Were the politics hiding this truth
Gaia Dominici
21.
“Photography is a great way of seeing your culture”
- Joel Meyerowitz
Chess Boxing
“Chess and boxing have a lot more in common than you think: you have to predict what your opponent will do before they do it.�
Punch or pawn? A question you would never think would go hand in hand, but on a rainy Saturday morning in Islington - the question is answered at a chess boxing class. Chess boxing does pretty much what it says on the tin, you do a round of boxing then you play chess and repeat, till someone is knocked out or you get check mate. Whether you are taking part or spectating, chess-boxing is a highly enjoyable and rewarding experience. Chess-boxing training provides a unique opportunity to develop mental and physical strengths. When first entering the slightly stuffy boxing club I felt almost dizzy from the amount of action going on. At first it was hard to make sense of the melee of different activities happening. Some of the members of the class were sparring in the ring, others were stood or kneeling at tables playing chess at lightning speed, some using skipping ropes, others running up and down the club and others using punch bags; it was disconcerting. As soon as I got my head around everything, everyone left their little stations and ran to form a long line at the back of the boxing club. Tim Woolgar, who runs the class, stood in front of the group and gave a partly instructive, partly motivational talk. As abruptly as it started, the talk ended and everyone ran back to their different areas.
blood from his mouth and told me “when you first start chess boxing you’re better at chess, then after 3 years of being repeatedly punched in the head you find you’re better at boxing and not so good at chess”. He laughed and ran off to massacre a punch bag. My whole experience of a rainy Saturday in Islington is that chess boxing definitely attracts unique characters, which I have always classed as a good thing. It is highly rated as a great spectators sport and everyone I talked to was thoroughly enjoying themselves. Big thanks to every one at London chess boxing for letting me come along. Check out www.londonchessboxing.com
I pulled Tim over when he had a minute and he explained to me that “chess and boxing have a lot more in common then you think, the key to boxing is to have a strategy, you have to predict what your opponent will do before they do it”. The famous Mike Tyson quote popped in to my head: “everybody has a plan until they get hit”. But I didn’t say anything, mainly because I didn’t really fancy offending the big guy that runs a boxing class. I approached one of the more experienced members of the group who had just stepped out of the ring. He wiped the small bit of
Francis Hawkins 29.
Anonymous;
Million Mask March Tom took a trip to London for the 5th November, to document the protest from well known activist group ‘Anonymous’.
Vendetta’ in which many thousands of people in Guy Fawkes masks marched in complete silence from Trafalgar Square down Whitehall to the Houses of Parliament to watch the demolition of the Parliament. Anonymous (whose members wear Guy Fawkes masks in a form of tribute) used social media to gather their supporters to Trafalgar Square and recreate this silent march on Parliament Square for full intimidation and effect.
On the evening of November 5th, 400 marches took place across the world in 150 different countries. Find out why... Members across the world of activist group ‘Anonymous’ gathered on the 5th November 2013 to take part in a series of marches in protest against the many austerity cuts that have been implemented by governments across the world. The march in London was designed to replicate the ending of the film ‘V for
32. Tom Sandberg
As usually the case with these types of events, there are some groups of people whose aims are slightly different from the official line of demonstration. The Student Protests of 2010 and the summer riots of 2011 featured the same - where some groups of people just want to cause trouble. One such group led a splinter march away from the main protest in Parliament Square and around St James Park to the gates of Buckingham Palace. A group of around 500 protesters gathered on Victoria Memorial to continue their protest. It was here that there were a few disturbances with fireworks fired towards the palace and bottles thrown at the line of police. As the police began to move the protesters back down the Mall back towards Trafalgar Square a few cardboard boxes were set alight on the steps of the memorial. Anonymous realize that they will not start a revolution overnight, however it proved to the members that they are not a minority on the internet - the response to the march was huge with over 400 marches taking place in 150 countries. This has given Anonymous a platform which they are keen to build on and it’s proved to them and possibly the watching world that there is a large group of people unhappy with the way governments are treating the masses, and that change may be needed.
GBCI 2013
I’ve always been interested in martial arts ever since I was exposed to the quality programing that was ‘The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers’ when I was an infant; but it wasn’t until 2010 that I started training martial arts. Since then my life has changed significantly. The people I’ve met, the confidence I feel within my own skin and the perspectives on life that I’ve picked up are priceless - and luckily for me all of these aspects are translatable to my photography. Through my continued training within the walls of the Gracie Barra Channel Islands MMA Academy in Jersey, I’ve managed to gain an unofficial title as ‘club photographer’. This means I’m able to shoot everything from product shoots for the club’s own clothing brand Tako Apparel, to shooting
fighter portraits for upcoming event posters, all the way to being asked to be the photographer for one member’s wedding. For me, where my work has not been concerned with money or exposure, I have been fortunately drenched in experience and opportunity. As someone who lives their life for the ability to tell stories to others, the reward of experience is more intriguing than financial gain. My most recent shoot for the club came at the end of Summer 2013. GBCI has a long-standing relationship with world Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu superstar Braulio Estim. Annually, Estima comes to the island to teach seminars - attracting athletes and jiu-jitsu practitioners from all over Europe to come and learn from one of the best in the world.
36. John Liot
I was asked to document the event, for little more in return than a free t-shirt, but I was happy to oblige because I knew the photographic potential was there. After the first day, I came to understand what shooting a jiu-jitsu seminar for several hours reveals, and sadly it’s not too much. An incredibly technical sport, where an inch can mean a mile; it’s not the most photogenic of subjects so finding those aesthetic images was often difficult. But what’s worth achieving without challenge? Shooting in a dimly lit sports hall, with camera noise and focusing issues in abundance, I really needed to shift my style of shooting to what I wasn’t comfortable with. Where as I usually seek out clarity and detail, in this instance I needed to look for
John Liot
37.
motion and drama. I felt I needed to reach inside into my inner artist and look for moments and scenes that were almost abstract in their design. I shot hundreds of images each day, but for my own personal use I decided just to search for a single image to feature each day. This would be my image, the one I would proudly put my name on. So, although I was shooting non-stop for the purpose of documentary for the club, I was also hunting for that one frame to encapsulate the day for myself. I was shooting to prove to myself that what I had, more than anyone else in the room, was a working mind to see beauty and art within any given situation, coupled with the technical ability and skill to preserve it within some pixels. So much of what it means to me to succeed as a photographer, is being able to have a distinguishable look that people can recognize instantly. Surely that’s what it means to be ‘original’ within our industry. For me, this series was an opportunity to really examine and explore what my own style is. To completely strip yourself of everything else you know in photography and purely focus on framing and composition, to see what it is that your mind searches for and designates ‘beautiful’; it’s a fantastic exploration of who you are.
“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” - Edgar Degas
This issue’s stars 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 40.
Amy Romer
‘Mortlake Road, Kew’ 07527 275124 www.amyromer.com www.amyromer.wordpress.com
Gaia Dominici
‘Forgotten Children’ dominicigaia@gmail.com www.gaiadominici.photoshelter.com
Francis Hawkins
‘Chess Boxing’ 07972 041010 francishawkins@live.co.uk www.francisrhawkinsphotographer.tumblr.com
Tom Sandberg
‘Million Mask March’ 07835 689177 tz.sandberg@hotmail.co.uk www.tomsandbergphotography.wordpress.com
John Liot
‘GBCI 2013’ www.facebook.com/john.liot.photography www.flickr.com/photos/leofacephotography
With thanks to.. Lois Golding
Editor-in-chief www.somethingobnoxious.carbonmade.com
Production team Tristan Potter
Manager www.trisyp.tumblr.com
Tom Sandberg
Manager www.tomsandbergphotography.wordpress.com
Dave Blanks
Assistant djblank@live.co.uk
Matt Cox
Logo designer & sign writing god Instagram - mattcox904
Simon Barber
Special feature interview & photographer http://www.sibarber.co.uk
Heather Golding Falmouth University Toby Ellis
Support, advice & content assistance.
41.
Sarah Hassall
Artist www.sarahhassall.wordpress.com
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