BLUR magazine | ISSUE 32 | August | 2013
For best experience, view in full screen We recommend reading BLUR in full-screen mode, especially when viewed on a PC. This removes the PDF reader controls and sets the background canvas to black. However, if you use a very high resolution monitor, you might experience a slight reduction of quality of the displayed images when viewing in full screen.
Interactive elements in BLUR issues Tablet and smartphone devices offer various ways of previewing PDF documents, but not all support the full feature set of interactive elements used by BLUR. For best viewing pleasure on the iPad and similar devices, please install the free Adobe Acrobat Reader app from your App Store. Starting with issue 29, BLUR’s interactivity features and hyperlink support have been optimized for viewing on tablets and smartphones as well as the PC. Some of these optimizations include: • The Contents page features large buttons for elegant navigation to a certain page, while the Home hyperlink is the simplest way to get back to Contents. • Gallery 36 contains interactive thumbnails that open the image in full size, while the full size images hyperlink back to the gallery. • Every section of the magazine that features an author now has a dedicated hyperlink button to navigate the reader directly to the promoted author’s webpage. • The upper third of every page in BLUR is a hyperlink leading back to the Contents, while tapping the left and right edges of the screen enables you to browse through the magazine.
CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS OF BLUR MAGAZINE
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BLUR magazine is published by Photography Association CREATUS (F.U.C.*), a nonprofit association founded in August 2009 with the aim of contributing to the development of the photography scene in Croatia, while promoting and connecting Croatian photographers with their international colleagues.
ISSN: 1847-7410 Publisher: F.U.C.* Address: street Ljubičica 19, 10 360 Sesvete, Croatia Contact: info@blur-magazine.com Bank account: Privredna banka Zagreb 2340009 – 1110540685 MB: 2580837 OIB: 39145219372
Parental advisory Artistic and educational photographic discoveries in BLUR Magazine often feature artistic imagery that might not be suited to underage children. Although none of the content featured in BLUR could possibly be regarded offensive, it does contain artistic nude photography which is an integral part of photography since its beginnings. We recommend that minors explore the content under adult guidance.
Publishing and distribution of ‘’Blur magazine’’ is supported by Zagreb City and City Office for Education, Culture and Sports
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A WORD FROM THE EDITOR
“Imagine there’s no countries … it isn’t hard to do” Finally, a long-awaited summer has arrived, a time to swim in the sea, lake or swimming pool, a time for vacations and for travelling. That is the way things are, at least in Croatia and in my hometown — Zagreb, in which Photography Association Creatus operates. Creatus is a non-governmental, not-for-profit organization and, above all else, publisher of BLUR magazine. What’s new with us? Well, since we are from Croatia, we must mention that our country recently became part of the European Union (which you may have heard of before you ever heard of Croatia), just a little information to help you locate where BLUR is created. Speaking of the countries and their borders, you have no doubt noticed that we insist on placing country names right next to photographers’ names in BLUR. Have you ever wondered why we do that? At first glance it seems like something that would divide us, but we actually want to show diversity found in our pages because BLUR is conceived as a magazine that connects. That’s why we publish photographers from around the world, because we are read across the world, and because we are an international editorial team. That sounds like utopia for some, and for others it may sound like John Lennon’s Imagine. But for me ... it’s everyday life for more than five years now. Enjoy the new issue. photo: Borut Peterlin
Robert Gojević, founder and editor in chief
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impressum Robert Gojević
founder | chief editor | design | art director | desktop publishing
Michael McAllister
proofreading
e-mail: robert.gojevic@blur-magazine.com
Ivan Pekarik
acting executive editor | PR
Dario Devčić
programmer | web developer
e-mail: ivan.pekarik@blur-magazine.com
Željka Hubak
marketing and PR
Želimir Koščević
expert associate
e-mail: zeljka.hubak@blur-magazine.com
Denis Pleić
columnist | translator
Igor Kalendaric
e-mail: igor.kalendaric@blur-magazine.com
e-mail: denis.pleic@blur-magazine.com
Maurício Sapata
editor of Pinhole & Playstick
motion graphics+composting
Zsolt Scheffer
Blur collaborator and Japanese translator
e-mail: mauricio.sapata@blur-magazine.com
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ALAN BOZINOFF AKA ‘HOGWOG’
PLAYSTICK
SARAH SEENÉ
INSTANTION
SONIA MACAK
WET PLATE
ERIN MULVEHILL
PROJECT
ALFRED WEIDINGER
CLOSE UP
EDVIN KALIĆ
GALLERY 36
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LEE CONNOR
PROEYECT
NICOLE RAVICCHIO
OPEN
MIKE STACEY
WIDE
JEFFREN MERCADER
TETRA
LAWRANCE BRENNON
PINHOLE
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February | April | June | August | October |
December | 2013
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COVER PAGE
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IMPRESSUM
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PROJECT ERIN MULVEHILL
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PINHOLE LAWRANCE BRENNON
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INTERACTIVE ELEMENTS
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CONTENTS
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WET PLATE SONIA MACAK
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TETRA JEFFREN MERCADER
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BLUR INFO
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GALLERY 36
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INSTANTION SARAH SEENÉ
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WIDE MIKE STACEY
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A WORD FROM THE EDITOR
CLOSE UP ALFRED WEIDINGER
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PLAYSTICK ALAN BOZINOFF
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OPEN NICOLE RAVICCHIO
CONTENTS
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PROEYECT LEE CONNOR
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What made you decide to do nude photography using the wet plate process? What was the most interesting aspect for you? It was never “a decision,” in a narrow sense. I’ve been shooting nudes for a long time and some years back wanted to try wet plate. When I did, I was hooked. I love the slow, deliberate nature of the process and, of course, the unique look of the plates. Is there anything in the whole process you would change if you could? Is there anything annoying in the process, or do you simply enjoy it exactly as it is? Wet plate photography is relatively difficult to do well consistently. And by “to do well” in this context, I mean to create plates with good contrast and artifact-free, or “clean.” The literature, historic and modern, is replete with “problem solving” recipes for one ailment or another. I have had my fair share of head-scratching problems. Those problems are a frustration when you are trying to work your way through to a resolution, especially when they are spoiling a shoot. But there is also satisfaction in that problem-solving process. No, I would not change a thing.
GALLERY 24 by Robert Gojević
I think the vast majority of current wet plate practitioners are hobbyists, and most of them are not doing nudes. Of the more limited group of practitioners that I might consider “committed” to the method, whether hobbyist or professional, I think “nudity” is pretty well represented. For example, two of your seven past wet plate contributors to this magazine focus on nudes. Once you throw me in, it’s up to three-eighths. And I think that’s great. But your greater point remains true – in the grand scheme of photography, there are relatively very few that do wet plate nudes. Do I strive to be in that niche? No. I’m driven by a passion to shoot what I love using a method I love.
What kind of future do you foresee for the process, given the current state of affairs in the world of photography? I foresee a continued increase in popularity, but I think it will always remain at the margins given the practical difficulties associated with the process.
Despite the recent popularity of wet plate, there are still not many photographers using the process, and only very few do nudes. I’d say we could count them on one hand. How do you feel about that, and is it, perhaps, also one of the reasons why you do what you do?
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Judith Edvin Kalić Bosnia & Herzegovina
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Batman Natalia Shaidenko http://www.yamuga-photo.com Canada
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One Myles Katherine http://myleskatherine.com/ USA
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Stilleven, Plate # 14 Angela Walker http://www.angelawalkerphotographs.com Canada
Close-up | brings readers closer to a photographer by providing extensive insight into his work. The photographer is presented through a wide selection of photographs, a detailed interview, and by highlighting important biographical information. Imagine talking with a photographer whom you admire over a cup of coffee. This is exactly what BLUR’s editor-in-chief does in this section—virtually, of course.
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by Robert Gojević
ALFRED WEIDINGER sense creator
http://www.alfredweidinger.com Austria
The project began a bit more than two years ago, and I plan to finish it at the end of next year. I am not claiming to make a portrait of every single king, but in any case, to travel through every African country that has kings and princes. I travel to Africa at least 10 times a year.
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Project | is a section that presents a photographer through a series of photos united by a particular theme that works as a cohesive whole and is elaborated on by an artist statement.
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by Robert Gojević
ERIN MULVEHILL Underwater
http://icanfreezetime.com/ USA
“Underwater took place in 2009 in New York. The idea came to me in a dream, and I shot all the images in a studio. Effects that you see in the photographs were all done in the camera; no heavy retouching or effects were applied in post-production. I am a follower of Buddhist beliefs, and to me, these images really capture a transient moment in time and the idea of rebirth—everything is ever-changing and we are all ephemeral beings. Images from this series have been shown internationally in places such as the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East.”
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Erin Mulvehill Born in 1988. Lives in New York City. Holds a B.S. honors degree in photography from Syracuse University.
My work aims to explore the human connections and subtle nuances that whisper into the ear of our every day. Much of my work is rooted in the ideas of mind, body, seamlessness, and time. This is largely because my deepest beliefs lie in the principles of Buddhism, the integration of art and life, and the preservation of beautiful moments. I am nomadic by nature and inspired each day by the nothingness that resides in all things.
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PLA
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WET PLATE is a section dedicated to an antique photographic process discovered in the mid 19th century, which was also a primary photographic method used until the 1880s. It refers to a process of pouring a solution collodion onto a plate of thin iron or glass, then placing the plate into a camera and exposing it to the light and, at the end, developing that plate while it is still wet, which is the reason of naming the process (and our section) “wet plate�. The images resulting from this process can be ambrotypes, glass negatives or tintypes. Although quite a demanding, expensive and lengthy process, wet plate collodion technique is gaining back its popularity among many contemporary photographers.
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SONIA MACAK Notes from the Earth
http://www.bohemiansecret.net.au/ Czechoslovakia / Australia
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Biography Born in 1979 in Czechoslovakia, Sonia grew up in Northern Bohemia during the last decade of communism and the first decade of post communism. She moved to Australia with her then one-year-old son and husband in 2002. Sonia learned photography with a Nikon digital SLR, which she received as a gift from her husband in 2006. With no formal training, Sonia has started creating from her heart, photographing her three boys with a great influence of love from a collection of family images she was given by her grandmother. Her deep love for what has been long lost in time led her to explore and learn traditional darkroom techniques, starting with 35mm black and white film through much adored medium format black and white film to large format photography with an especially strong connection to the collodion process and salt printing. Sonia works from a traditional darkroom and alternative photography studio located not far from Buninyong Mountain in country Victoria. For her work, she uses a Rollei SL66, Anthony Bellows 8x10 wet plate dedicated camera, Whole Plate Chamonix view camera, and a Nikon D700.
PLA
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WET PLATE by Robert Gojević Copy editor: Michael McAllister
PLA
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INSTANTION is a section dedicated to instant analog photography. The name of this section combines the words instant and station, or as we call it, a place for instant photography. Instant photography refers to any photographic process that allows photo development without the darkroom. Instant photography was developed in the 1930s by Edwin Land, founder of the Polaroid Corporation. Because of its popularity, most of the photographers in this section use Polaroid film, but artists using Impossible or Fuji instant film are certainly welcome.
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by Robert Gojević
SARAH SEENÉ My world
http://sarahseene.tumblr.com/ France My world is a strange mix of poetry and anxiety. I color my Polaroids with childhood, dreams, and fear, with the idea of suspended time in worlds that I created by modifying reality. I do a lot of preparation for my Polaroids. For one or two hours, I set up costumes, sets, and makeup, which give sense to the central characters. It is the contrast between the direction and the speed of the development that interests me and, of course, the magic grain of the Polaroid. My models, women most of the time, are my loved ones, my mom and friends. I like inventing stories, universes, and characters that inspire me. When the Polaroid is finished, I like stressing its surrealist dimension by working again it with a doubleexposure manipulation or by adding some nail polish on top, which gives it a plastic art effect.
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I’m Sarah Seené, a 25-year-old from France who is fascinated by the power of the image. I’ve studied literature and cinema. I made a memory work on the Lars von Trier movies. For a few years now, I’ve also directed fiction and experimental short films, and I’m a Polaroid addict. In September 2012, two of my Polaroids were selected for The Impossible Project contest “Impossible x Holden” and they were shown in The Impossible stores in New York, London, and Vienna. In April 2013, two other Polaroids won another Impossible project contest, and they were shown in Milan and a few exhibitions in Paris.
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PLAYSTICK is a section dedicated to “toy camera� photography. The name Playstick comes from a well known simplified male figure illustration called Play Stick. The name also contains the word plastic as an association to plastic (or toy) cameras like Diana, Holga, Lomo LC-A, Lubitel, and others.
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by Maurício Sapata
ALAN BOZINOFF AKA ‘HOGWOG’ The cloudy memory
http://hogwong.tumblr.com/ New Zealand
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John, a photographer based in Wellington, New Zealand, and I primarily use medium format film cameras such as the Holga 120N, Lubitel 166 Universal, and Bronica SQ-AI. I’m drawn to toy camera photography because the images that these cameras produce feel more like a distant memory than a record of reality. The Holga has the ability to capture the world the way it is felt by the heart rather than how it is seen with the eyes. For me, this idea brings a romance back into photography that I can’t experience with digital cameras.
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PINHOLE | is a section, as its name says, dedicated to pinhole photography. This type of photography is created with a pinhole camera, a camera that uses a small aperture, usually the size of a pinhole, instead of a lens. Basically, the smaller the hole, the sharper the resulting image. Because of their simplicity, pinhole cameras are often handmade. The concept behind the pinhole camera—the camera obscura—dates back to the time of the ancient Greeks and Chinese. It was even mentioned by great thinkers like Aristotle, Euclid, and Mo Jing. However, the first photograph created with a pinhole camera was by a Scottish scientist, Sir David Brewster in the 1850s.
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by Maurício Sapata
LAWRANCE BRENNON Disintegration
http://www.underbergstudio.co.za/ South Africa
“I have always been passionate about analog photography, particularly monochrome, and spent the best part of 2010 accumulating a body of pinhole images. I found the medium to be a welcome creative challenge because, by its very nature, pinhole photography encourages a slow, deliberate, and contemplative approach to image making. I have attempted to exploit the pinhole in order to observe and record the destructive effects of time on man-made and organic objects. In addition to a wide range of subject matter, one of my ongoing projects, Disintegration, focuses on abandoned and derelict buildings and structures. “
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Lawrance Brennon is a landscape photographer based in the Southern Drakensberg town of Underberg in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Living in a piece of paradise, he and his ceramic artist wife, Catherine Brennon, manage their own photographic and ceramic gallery – The Underberg Studio. An active photographer since the age of 16, Lawrance’s commercial work features the African panoramic landscape. After working for many years in the 6x17 format, he recently made the somewhat traumatic and reluctant transition to digital capture. Like many other professional photographers, though, he is fortunate in still being able to regard photography as his hobby (or rather passion) as well! “I have always been passionate about analog photography, particularly monochrome, and spent the best part of 2010 accumulating a body of pinhole images. I found the medium to be a welcome creative challenge because, by its very nature, pinhole photography encourages a slow, deliberate, and contemplative approach to image making. I have attempted to exploit the pinhole in order to observe and record the destructive effects of time on man-made and organic objects. In addition to a wide range of subject matter, one of my ongoing projects, Disintegration, focuses on abandoned and derelict buildings and structures. The recent publication of my book f180 AND BE THERE features a selection of 35 images captured over a period of 12 months.” The book is available through blurb.com.
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PINHOLE by MaurĂcio Sapata Copy editor: Michael McAllister
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TETRA | is a section dedicated to a specific type of photography: black and white, square-format images that are recognizable for their minimalism and high aesthetic value, often making use of long exposures. The section name comes from the Greek word for the number four, which symbolizes the four equal sides of the format.
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by Robert Gojević
JEFFREN MERCADER power of images
http://22882.portfolio.artlimited.net/ USA
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Jeffren Mercader is a Los Angeles, California, photographer. Photography is one of his callings, specializing in long exposure black & white format. As a simple and self-taught photographer, he has been fascinated by the power of images. His images present an elusive and poetic visualization of a place, character, mood and emotion. Jeff was born in the Philippines before moving to California. He likes to travel, discover and explore places. He actually became interested in photography when he took a trip to Mazatlan, Mexico, a hobby that transformed into a passion—a passion that challenges his creativity in conveying and delivering an image that communicates to his viewers. Jeff believes that photography is a lifetime commitment, and his desire for knowledge inspires him to perfect his skills in the future.
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WIDE | section devoted to promoting landscape photography. This section strives to expand our presentation of these kind of photos, which have been somewhat underrepresented in BLUR magazine in their classical form. Sometimes it seems that landscape photography isn’t very creative because it relies mostly on Nature’s beauty and is, therefore, more technical than artistic. In this section we want to prove that human creativity, indeed, plays a major role in capturing the beauty of Nature in its full glory. Since “landscape photography” is a rather general term, we will try to present various approaches to this genre in this section, regardless of techniques used.
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by Robert Gojević
MIKE STACEY Horizon
http://www.mikestacey.com/ USA
One of the prime motivators for this series lies in the depiction and interpretation of vast, seemingly boundless, space. When space becomes the motivating concept, the image moves through a distillation process where only the most primitive elements remain: earth, sea, sky. The delineation of these elements by that universal separator—the horizon, creates a graphic strong point that also interests me.
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Background
ETHER Statement
Mike has been photographing the landscape for more than three decades. He's spent considerable time in places that are remote—places that are windswept, bleak, beautiful, desolate, unblemished, and at times, uncomfortable and challenging. Depicting the essence of such environments through photographs has been a life-long project that continues. His photographs of the last five years have become more refined, more abstract, bigger, and more about the indispensable properties that exist out there. Mike uses film cameras exclusively to record the landscape and create works that meet his criteria for representing the concepts that underpin the work. Pete Sieger, architectural photographer from Minneapolis, describes Mike as follows: “Mike is a master of landscape photography. His command of the large format, his eye for the subject matter, his sense of the light, and his understanding of the performance characteristics of film, set him apart from all the others.” On the aesthetics and compositional qualities of Mike's work, American landscape photographer Scott Reither says, “... his photographs whisper quietly to the eyes but speak loudly to the heart. He makes subtle compositions that are alive and dynamic in nature. I continually come back to these works and realize their timelessness as well. I, for one, could definitely see these on the walls of my home.” Mike's background is in Science and Engineering. Having obtained a Doctorate in Computer Science and Mathematics in 2009, he sees the blend and crossover between the heavily weighted left brain functions, and the largely unchartered territory and ‘nether world’ of the right brain, as a constantly challenging and enriching opportunity.
One of the prime motivators for this series lies in the depiction and interpretation of vast, seemingly boundless, space. When space becomes the motivating concept, the image moves through a distillation process where only the most primitive elements remain: earth, sea, sky. The delineation of these elements by that universal separator—the horizon, creates a graphic strong point that also interests me. Long exposures allow the viewer to appreciate the trajectories of the most elemental entities, such as clouds, waves, and stars. Many of these images include a single sharply defined detail, the horizon, which is offered as a boundary between the limits of physical vision and cognitive vision. All of the images in this set were shot on either 4x5” or 8x10” colour negative, transparency and B&W films. Limited editions: 24 x 30: 50; 32 x 40: 25; 40 x 50: 10; 48 x 60: 7.
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OPEN | section in which we try to widen our horizons by crossing the boundaries of themes we’ve emphasized in BLUR during the past few years. This section will host street, documentary, concert, experimental, and other types of photography, and even photo manipulation. The creative approach is still the most important aspect in choosing photographers, but we will show preference for those who could be described as “different.”
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by Robert Gojević
NICOLE RAVICCHIO Dependency
http://photosbynicoler.4ormat.com/ USA “Dependency” is a visual study on how women can become too dependent on the men in their lives. Sometimes when a woman is too much in love, she can become completely blind to her partner’s disinterest. He becomes her rock, her everything, and she’s in too deep to let go or let herself see he’s over her. That type of devotion can consume you. This series focuses on those negative aspects. I’ve learned from observation, as well as personal experience, that we must always be in tune with reality, to not be blinded by overwhelming emotion and hold on to something that’s already been lost. We must learn to let go, but that is easier said than done.
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Project description: “Dependency” is a visual study on how women can become too dependent on the men in their lives. Sometimes when a woman is too much in love, she can become completely blind to her partner’s disinterest. He becomes her rock, her everything, and she’s in too deep to let go or let herself see he’s over her. That type of devotion can consume you. This series focuses on those negative aspects. I’ve learned from observation, as well as personal experience, that we must always be in tune with reality, to not be blinded by overwhelming emotion and hold on to something that’s already been lost. We must learn to let go, but that is easier said than done.
About an artist/biography: I’m Nicole Ravicchio, a 20-year-old student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Growing up, I always loved all things creative, and I fell madly in love with photography when I got my first camera at the age of 13. I have never dreamed of doing anything else since. I shoot digital, a Canon 5D MarkII to be exact, with my heavenly 50mm. I go nowhere without my camera. I’m extremely passionate about fine art nudes, self-portraiture, and conceptual work. These are the areas I love, and it’s all a form of expression for me. I’ve been through many rough patches in life, and photography has always been my way of getting through it; with my work I am able to let things out and evoke what I am feeling. I see the world in photos, and it’s my goal to capture them for the world to see.
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PROEYECT | is a little brother to the PROJECT section. Its purpose is to present mini projects, i.e. sets of photos, which are too few to included under PROJECT, but by their quality, unified theme, and story, deserve collective publication. Photographers often tell a kind of story through several photos, and this is the place for such stories. The number of photos is not a primary concern, so in this section, we may publish several unrelated stories.
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by Robert Gojević
LEE CONNOR Artists
http://www.leedavidsonconnor.com/ Scotland
LEE CONNOR I recently graduated from the University of the West of Scotland with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Photography, providing me with a technical ability, which has been carefully crafted. I am very passionate about photography. My portfolio illustrates the drive and commitment I have for my discipline. Editorial and portrait photography is what I most enjoy working on. I look to produce real honest photography. I love finding and capturing the essence of a person in their space. I believe we surround ourselves with valuables and people that we feel most comfortable and relaxed in.
My aim for this project was to produce 20 images that document five up-andcoming artists in Scotland. This idea evolved from a previous project I conducted in my first year of study at HNC level. I planned to use artists from all over Scotland for my project by getting in touch with certain people, which led me to finding the individuals who wished to be involved. The Artists’ project allowed me to explore many different subjects, such as portraiture, still life, location, and reportage photography. I specifically chose a brief to challenge myself, aiming to produce images from a range of photographic areas. The project has provided me with photographs that are engaging and interesting to look at. Each artist allowed me to control the outcome of the photographs and to portray the way in which I saw their individual personality and painting style. I enjoy getting to know like-minded people and discussing art as a strong form of visual communication.
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www.blur-magazine.com
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