DESIGN THIS DESIGN THAT
THE MAGIC OF POLAROID
ISSUE 1 AUGUST 2008
WELCOME Photography has evolved in ways its inventor never imagined. Digital photography has opened the door to a different way to experience and document our lives. We can delete, edit, resize, share the photos we take of things, places, people, moments we like and love. With digital cameras, cell phones, PDA`S we can take any amount of photographs anytime, anyplace. Internet, magazines, newspapers, streets, buildings, bus stops, subways, supermarkets. Photographs are part of our lives, everywhere, everyday. They make us go through a roller coaster of emotions, sensations, feelings, thoughts, reflections. Some photos make us smile, some make us feel happy and thankful to be alive, some make us feel anger, frustration, some make us question ourselves What is wrong with this world?. They inspire us to make and be the change this world needs. Because of photography we get to see the world through someone else ́s perspective. We realize there is always someone we can feel related to even if we live in different places around the world. We can express ourselves, share our lives with others, they get to know us and see our unique perspective about life and feel related to us. No one sees and experiences the world the way each one of us do. We discover new and different things, go to places we ́ve never been before, meet people we might never see in person, daydream, decide what we are going to buy or where we are going next summer. All through photography. Let me show you with this first issue my perspective about this amazing way of communication. Please share yours with me.
ARIADNA R AMLEY
www.designthisdesignthat.com 2 WELCOME
info@designthisdesignthat.com
IN THIS ISSUE 4 SHOPPING One of the best photography shops online: LOMOGRAPHY SHOP 6 THE MAGIC OF POLAROID Dedicated to the magic little white square that frames our memories.
7 SAVING AND REMEMBERING POLAROID Websites trying to keep Polaroid alive. 8 FLICKR SERIES SAVE POLAROID People sharing their instant photos and stories about
the meaning Polaroid in their lives. 9 Ninenteenth 10 The_light_show 12 Jon Ferguson 14 Noobits 16 Chi_cowboy 18 Lauyanlau 19 Mary Wells 20 Skwish 22 Panoramico 24 ETSY TREASURES Featured artists from the biggest online indie marketplace. 24 Alicia Bock 30 Sarka-Trager 38 Anne Kristoff 44 Jennifer Squires 50 INTERVIEW WITH Photographer and graphic designer Laura Kicey. 64 POLAROID PROJECT A commemorative project by Amy Preston. 70 QUOTES What famous people have said about photography. 72 GIVEAWAY Discover how and what you can win in the ďŹ rst Design This Design That Ezine Giveaway. 73 YELLOW PAGES Contact info compilation of all the featured artists.
74 SUBMISSIONS AND LEGAL NOTICE
IN THIS ISSUE 3
SHOPPING LOMOGRAPHY SHOP has a wide selection of cameras, films and accessories. The options are almost endless. If you are familiar with this store, you might agree with me. It is heaven for the lovers of analogue photography. With the digital era traditional cameras and films are starting to lose the importance they once had. Not to us. Not at this shop where we can satisfy our “old school” photography needs. I’m sure you’ll want every single camera you see there. And who knows?, Maybe you’ll be in heaven too.
1. Diana Edelweiss 2. Kiev 19 M 3. Lomo Smena 4. Fisheye No. 2 5. Color Splash 6. Holga 120 Pinhole
Heaven... I’m in heaven, And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak. And I seem to find the happiness I seek, When we’re out together... taking photos everywhere! 4 SHOPPING
The Fuji “Cheki” cameras are widely known in Asia, and thanks to LOMOGRAPHY SHOP the instant photo lovers around the world have the opportunity to enjoy them. Take a credit size photo with the Fuji Instax Mini Cameras or if bigger photos are better for you try the Fuji Instax 200 Wide, with its 9.9 cm x 6.2 cm photos. Either way, these cameras are instant portable gratification. For more info about these and other products visit http://shop.lomography.com/shop/.
1. Fuji Instax 200 Wide 2. Fuji Instax Mini 25 3. YONE X CHEKI 4. Fuji Instax Mini 55I 5. Fuji Instax Mini7S White
SHOPPING 5
THE MAGIC OF POLAROID
Analogue photography is magical. We capture moments as they are. No resize, no edit. No second chances. It allows you to see how much your city, town, country has changed, how your parents looked when they were your age, understand why everyone says you are grandma ́s reflection, show your children how you looked at their age, remember you childhood or those summer days you shared with that girl or that boy you never saw again. Magic captured in a film. There is nothing more exciting than go to a dark room and witness the process of developing the film you took with your Holga and see how the memories of that especial moment begin to appear on a white paper sheet. But even more exciting is that magical process that can surprise you if you ́ve never witnessed it. After the photo has been taken, the moment you just captured starts to appear in an instant, in a soon to be extinguished square with a white frame that we will never forget and forever will miss. The magic is fading away. This year Polaroid announced that they will not longer produce their instant films. Another step has been taken. Another step towards the disappearance of the essence of photography. No matter how much technology advances, we can ́t afford to lose something that is still part of our present and must be part of our future. Let’s try to save the magic. Let’s try to save Polaroid.
6 THE MAGIC OF POLAROID
SAVING AND REMEMBERING POLAROID Since Polaroid announced last February the cease of production of instant films, people around the world came up with different ways to caught up the atenttion of Polaroid and manufactures like Fuji and Ilford Photo. Trying to make them see with art shows, online petitions, flickr groups, blogs, web sites that instant film should not disappear in such abrupt way. Here are some sites that are trying to keep Polaroid alive on line. Get ready for some Saving Polaroid action!. www.savepolaroid.com This site has great ideas about saving Polaroid, Download their Action Pack. Put up the lots of flyers everywhere, send postcards to manufacturers or use the stencil to make a permanent Save Polaroid statement. www.flickr.com/groups/savepolaroid/ Submit your photo and describe what Polaroid means to you. www.polanoid.net This site is all about instant film. The site has around 154, 000 uploaded public photos. You can search the site by film type, camera, location, date. Become a member, send your instant photos and help them reach their goal of “building the biggest and most amazing online picture community of the planet”. www.postcardpolaroid.com Take a photo send it as your own Polaroid postcard. solongpolaroid.blogspot.com This blog is part of featured artist Amy Preston ́s project to create a Polaroid commemorative publication. The submitted photos will appear in the blog and might be selected to be part of the publication. www.savethepolaroid.com Submit your scanned photo and send the original to Polaroid Corporation. giam.typepad.com/the_branding_of_polaroid_/ In this site Paul Giambarba, who was behind the development of Polaroid ́s product identity from 1958 to 1977, describes his experiences designing the famous colorful packaging that made Polaroid a famous and recognizable brand.
SAVING AND REMEMBERING POLAROID 7
FLICKR SERIES DTDT
When I thought about writing the ezine, I wanted a section to showcase people using one of the most beautiful ways of communication, photography. Flickr immediately came to mind. After all it has become the greatest online community to manage and share videos and photos. It is amazing the amount of inspiration and interaction you get from this website. Inspiration, when yours has taken a holiday, there is always a photo that will make it find its way back to you, people whose work will inspire you (two of my favorite artists Penelope Dullaghan1 and Julie West2 use Flickr). Interaction with your family, friends and other flickr members, that sometimes become friends too. You can find a flickr group about almost any subject you can think of. Groups made by people who have one or many more things in common with you. Flickr has so much to offer. The first theme of the flickr series is Save Polaroid. Polaroid is here to stay, at least in our hearts and memories. Thank you Chris, Clare, Jon, Denise, Leigh, Yen Chun, Mary, Andrew and Panoramico for being part of this first issue sharing your photos and stories.
1 2
Penelope Dullaghan http://penelopeillustration.com/blog/ Julie West http://www.juliewest.com/
8 FLICKR SERIES
SAVE POLAROID
http://www.ямВickr.com/photos/nineteenth/
FLICKR SERIES 9
http://www.ямВickr.com/photos/the_light_show/
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...something could appear from nothing “Throughout my life I have always had polaroids. My dad gave me a cheap point and shoot Polaroid for my 11th birthday and I used to spend all of my time trying to take artistic and novel photos of my hamster Chester. Needless to say these did not turn out all that fabulously but I never forgot that wonderful feeling of sitting with my nose pressed to the picture, watching it develop slowly, and feeling my growing amazement that something could appear from nothing. That same Polaroid camera finally broke in 2005, and I was without a Polaroid for a while. Then I found all of the amazing time zero/ sx-70 stuff on flickr. Got myself one earlier this year and my photo stream has been filled with sx-70 photos since! I am therefore relatively new to this form of Polaroid photography and feel I have so much more to learn! Save Polaroid!!!. Just because one medium becomes commercially more successful than another, it doesn’t mean that you have to view the other medium as stagnant and irrelevant. I use both film and digital, but would NEVER go fully digital as film/polaroid still surpasses digital in many, many ways. Just because we have computer software that can make art effectively, it doesn’t mean that we should discontinue the production of paints and canvas does it?.”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/the_light_show/
FLICKR SERIES 11
...unpredictable-instant-nostalgia “Because Polaroid is: unpredictable-instant-nostalgia-modern/classic-timeless-saturated-magical and because you can hold it in your hand. Tones and gloss and border-frame. Bring it back to us Mr. Fuji! Please.”
http://flickr.com/photos/jonferguson/
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http://ickr.com/photos/jonferguson/
FLICKR SERIES 13
http://www.ямВickr.com/photos/noobits/
14 FLICKR SERIES
...the waiting for the photo to develop
“My shot for Save Polaroid. Me at home with a surprise in the background that I did not know was there till the photo developed. I have a story to tell its not exciting or anything but it made me doubly sad about the demise of Polaroid. I had my younger students late in the day. One of the more inquisitive of the boys picked the SX70 up and asked, with a puzzled look, ‘What IS this?’ When I told them it was a camera at first they did not believe me. Then they demanded that I prove it by taking a photo of the class. The SX70 was empty so I used the 1000 (with 600 film) and I took two. They were SO excited and could not understand that the photo was going to appear in front of their very eyes. One of them actually wanted to place a bet with me that it wouldn’t appear (for a chocolate) He kept saying “No way, that cant work” When the photo developed they were impressed and very excited. The buzz in the room was fantastic. I had to show them the mirror inside and how it all worked. They all decided that the Polaroid was a very ‘cool’ item to own. And could not understand why the film would no longer be available. I could not resist sticking the photos ‘permanently’ on the whiteboard encased in the empty cartridge as a photo frame. I love Polaroid for its quirky instantness, its scope for creativity, the spontaneous fun, the colour, the looks I get when I pull my camera out of my bag, the waiting for the photo to develop, the sticking of the photos to the fridge, memorable stuff. I have old family memories of Polaroid and a few of the old photos are floating about in two websites. I remember my mum being really careful about what she took with her Colourpack II. I also remember that day when I was standing in the middle of the yard in a purple dress, loathing the moment, having my photo taken. My only regret about Polaroid is that I did not ‘discover’ it as an artist/hobbyist sooner. Now I’m stuck at the end scrambling to gather some crumbs.”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/noobits/
FLICKR SERIES 15
...Polaroids are people cameras “As a teenager, I yearned for a Polaroid SX-70, but possessing one seemed like a hopeless fantasy, since it cost $180 -- about $912 in today’s dollars. The few times I actually saw an SX-70 in operation, I was just a passive observer, watching an older, wealthier friend document family and friends. It wasn’t until the early 1980s that a good friend trusted me enough to let me actually hold his SX-70 and take photos with it. I’m a pretty skeptical, scientifically grounded person, but it’s really true that watching an integral Polaroid print develop is an almost-magical experience. I now own a couple of Polaroid cameras and enjoy sharing the experience with friends. By the very nature of their designs, Polaroids are people cameras. When you photograph folks with a Polaroid, suddenly they’re 8 years old again as they delight in how the print pops out (the camera always sounds as if it’s struggling to do this for you) and gradually develops. Sure, there are cheaper film cameras, and digital technology also allows us to see images instantly. But there’s something very special about a Polaroid print: It’s the only one. You take a Polaroid of someone and hand it to them and they know this. There’s just one print and this is it. Maybe people love Polaroids because they’re just like us: not perfect, occasionally flawed, but still one of a kind. I hope Ilford or Fuji sees it this way, and arranges to make integral film.”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chi_cowboy/
16 FLICKR SERIES
http://www.ямВickr.com/photos/chi_cowboy/
FLICKR SERIES 17
...watch the image slowly appeared “I love a priori moment when I press its red button, then watch the image slowly appeared inside of the frame that just spin from the magical box, I always know Polaroid excels at reinterpret of any real scenery with its special way, sometimes it makes a pic with nostalgia, I love its arranged for the colors and atmosphere every time. However they let Polaroid discontinued, next, hope somebody could bring it back to us.” http://www.flickr.com/photos/lauyanlau/
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...warmth and authenticity “My first camera was a polaroid. I got it when I was about seven from my uncle and even then I felt like I was holding something so special. You can not duplicate the warmth and authenticity a Polaroid gives through digital”.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/marywells/
FLICKR SERIES 19
...Polaroid helped me get the girl “One of the things I have always heard is that photographers use the camera to put a barrier between themselves and the rest of the world, To be an observer rather than participant. Now I don’t know if it is true or not but it seems like a reasonable assumption. I think I picked up a Polaroid with this assumption in my head. Not being comfortable with groups, a bit shy perhaps, I thought that a camera in hand would protect me from having to make small talk. I could just quietly take a few photos, smile now and then and be left alone. I sure picked the wrong camera. Everyone wanted their picture taken. Wanted to see how all the shots turn out. Wanted to try the camera. Wanted to talk about the camera. I was anything but left alone. I found that the shots I wanted to take were primarily close-ups. I would stand right up on top of folks smelling the remnants of their dinner, breathing in the sweat of their day, hold the camera six inches from their face and blind them with the flash. It would thrill them. It would thrill me. I met this woman. She was my neighbor. She noticed all the polaroids. She called me to ask a favor. She was moving and had built an elaborate series of shelves out of cinder blocks and planks of wood and was leary of her abilities to reconstruct it in her new home from memory. She asked if I could stop by and take a Polaroid of it. I was happy to oblige. That was five years ago. Polaroid helped me get the girl.”
www.skwish.com
20 FLICKR SERIES
www.skwish.com
FLICKR SERIES 21
http://www.ickr.com/photos/panaromico/
22 FLICKR SERIES
...the romantic side of photography
“Polaroid the romantic side of photography! Each Polaroid photo is unique.”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/panaromico/
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ALICIA BOCK Vintage, femenine, evocative Alicia Bock is a self taught photographer whose work has been featured on Sex and the City-The Movie Set, DominoMag on line, People Magazine and blogs like decor8 and Oh Joy!. Her vintage styled photos are like a journey to the past, taking you to Paris in the 40´s, a beach in the 50´s, a fair in the 60´s, a field in the 70´s. Each photograph with its vivid colors and feminine touch is an invitation to relax and explore with your imagination the story behind the captured moment. A story that changes everytime you see the photo again. Contact info Alicia Bock http://www.aliciabock.com http://www.bloom-grow-love.blogspot.com/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/bloomgrowlove/
24 ETSY TREASURES
Hello Ladies
ETSY TREASURES 25
Fence with Bike
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Old Fashioned
ETSY TREASURES 27
Dandelion Dream
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A ямБne way to spend the afternoon
ETSY TREASURES 29
SARKA-TRAGER Vibrant, captivating, delightful The photographic work of Šárka Holečková and Richard Trager is vibrant and full of textures. Morocco, Cuba, Spain, Vietnam, México, United States, Czech Republic, The Netherlands, Germany are some of the places they have traveled to, capturing the local uniqueness of landscapes, architecture, objects, people. The Sarka-Trager duo has an incredible aesthetic, whether it is a window in Vietnam, a tricycle in San Francisco, a door in Cuba, stairs in Czech Republic, a farmer in India, every single photograph is visual delight, capable of making the viewer to feel energy of the place, thing or person. Šárka-Trager Photography is captivating, once you have seen one photo you will want to see them all. Contact info Šárka Holečková and Richard Trager http://www.sarka-trager.com http://www.sarkatrager.etsy.com
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Red Turban ETSY TREASURES 31
Orange Tricycle
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Behind the curtain ETSY TREASURES 33
Mediterranean Steps 34 ETSY TREASURES
Bundi blues ETSY TREASURES 35
Red blue entrance 36 ETSY TREASURES
Curious Dog ETSY TREASURES 37
ANNE KRISTOFF Versatile, anecdotal, fresh Anne Kristoff has a versatile approach to photography with a very unique visual narrative skills. What she seeks while photographing is, like every photographer, to find the story behind the seized moment, but she does it in an anecdotal way. Anne´s photographs are the scenes of a journey which we are free to reconstruct in our own way. “I am a self-taught photographer based in NYC who is attracted to drive-by shooting, available light and serendipitous subject matter. I wonder about the story behind things left behind and attempt to find the stimulus in the mundane. In addition to taking photos I also do some travel writing, and I make mixed media collages. I am also a publicist in the music business. Photography is a way to capture a moment, the essence of a place or object, to let things be what they are and allow the viewer to put his or her own interpretation into what they are looking at. Photography is a way to speak without having to open your mouth. I am inspired by nostalgia, “America,”Americana, isolation, desolation, decay- dying and becoming, the duality of existence”. Contact info www.poofny.etsy.com www.trunkt.org/poofny www.flickr.com/photos/poofny/ poofny.tumblr.com
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Carried Away
ETSY TREASURES 39
Chinatown Lanterns
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Easy Like Sunday Morning
ETSY TREASURES 41
Blue Bike- NYC Street Series
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Jane Street
ETSY TREASURES 43
JENNIFER SQUIRES Everyday objects, extraordinary details
Jennifer Squires professional background in photograpy is evident when you see her work. Delicate compositions with soft or vibrant colors, everyday objects become a source of inspiration. Her photographs are warm and cozy, they bring home to mind, making you want indulge yourself with beautiful flowers, a delicious dinner accompanied with a glass of exquisite wine. “Jennifer Squires has been photographing professionally since 1996, but she’s been taking pictures her whole life. She holds a Diploma in Photography, and a Diploma in Advanced Photography from Fanshawe College, London, Ontario (where she was later asked back to teach in the Advanced Photography Program). After college Jennifer began work as a Producer and First Assistant at a corporate and advertising studio in Toronto, Ontario. In 2005 she moved back to London to pursue freelance work, and opened her online shop in February 2008. Jennifer’s work covers a broad range of categories, from shopping carts to gerbera daisies, but she always focuses on the details of life. She is constantly inspired by the world around her and uses photography to search for simplicity and meaning in the beauty of the everyday.” Contact info: Jennifer Squires www.jennifersquires.ca www.jennifersquires.etsy.com.
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Peonies
ETSY TREASURES 45
Timer
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Shopping Cart
ETSY TREASURES 47
Summer Breeze
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Garlic
ETSY TREASURES 49
INTERVIEW WITH
LAURA KICEY 50 INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY
When I asked Laura Kicey, graphic designer and photographer, if she would like to have her work featured in this ezine and later for an interview, she was excited. And so was I. Friendly and supportive of this project from the beginning, the opportunity to get to know more about her has been an amazing experience. I first came across Laura work a couple of months ago and I felt completely drawn to her style. Enigmatic, colorful. In the Mortal Remains Collection, she goes a little further than just photographing abandoned places, she captures colors and textures that are reminiscent of something so unfamiliar and mysterious yet so attractive. Non existant surreal places, portraits that capture the true essence of a person, playful self portraits the talent of Laura has no limit. Hi Laura, Please tell us a little about yourself and what you do besides photography. Professionally speaking, I have been a graphic designer, like yourself, for about eight years now... I can’t believe its been that long! I studied Communication Design at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania. I have always been interested in making art and the creative process since I was very young. I thought that design was the ultimate way to make a living as a creative, but since photography has become a part of my life, starting as a hobby, I question my design passion quite often. Beyond (or perhaps a part of) my love of photography, is my love of traveling to new places, even if they are just little day trip to towns I have never been to, in order to photograph them for fun. Experiencing a place is as important to me as being able to photograph it. This is why I also take pleasure in writing about my adventures on my blog. (http://lasuzai.blogspot.com). When did photography start to be a part of your life, personally and professionally? Growing up, our family never really took many photographs during my formative years, so I had very little exposure to cameras and pictures. Through grade school and high school I drew constantly. Once I got to college though, I saw that I would be forced to take a photography class to complete all courses for my major. I actually didn’t want to take it at all! It was a black and white film studio (this was waaaaaaay back before digital cameras were even a twinkle in anyone’s eye) and though my professor was crazy and I would likely cringe if I looked at the photos I took now, I really ended up becoming rather immersed in it. I ended up taking a b&w photography studio every semester for three years thereafter. Strangely I was also resistant to color photography at that time. Part of that I think was due to the deadly chemistry, the need to work in complete darkness which makes me feel panicky, and the fact that I hadn’t learned to use color to compose a photo yet. After college, I no longer had a dark room or a decent camera available to me. It wasn’t until three years later, I got a little 3mp point and shoot and I would occasionally take photos with it. A year after, a client of mine invited me to join flickr, which ended up becoming a complete and overwhelming addiction. I shot everything, constantly. A year and a half in, I bought my first DSLR, a Canon Rebel XT and was just unstoppable. I kept upgrading my equipment and constantly making art and accepting the professional work that came my way. Last November I bought a Canon 5D and have been working on getting editorial and corporate work more and more. So its taken over my life in a matter of 4 years, give or take. INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY 51
Are you a “photographolic” carrying your camera everywhere you go or do you have to plan when and where you ́ll be taking photos? There is nowhere my camera doesn’t go. To the supermarket. To the bathroom. I don’t like to be more than 30 feet away from it at any given time. You never know!. What do you enjoy the most while you are photographing? The sensual experience of being in a place and mapping out the best way to convey that experience to those who will look at the photographs afterwards is my favorite thing. No matter where I am. Taking in the sounds, smells, flavors, the sense of danger and uncertainty, peace, warmth, the connection with the people who join me; it all comes with me, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Do you think being a Graphic Designer has given you a different approach to the way you photograph? Absolutely. The basic design principles stick strongly with me, along with the joy I take in working with words and images. Just the act of titling photographs, the pairing of idea and visual is something that, to me, is design in its purest form. Color theory has always been a very powerful force in my design work and once I got away from shooting black and white film, I started applying those ideas to my photographs. Continues page 57
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Is there something you specifically look for to have in your photos? Like I mentioned, color is king. When I compose an image, I look to have one or two dominant colors in the frame that work together, complementary or homologous. To me, that sets the mood and brings the image together solidly. In the Mortal Remains Collection you show us abandoned places, what do these places have that it is so appealing to you? Since I was young, I have always been drawn to things that scare me just a little bit. I never could put my finger quite on it, but I think many people are fascinated with these places on that same level... wondering whatever could have happened here that brought us to this point. When people’s homes and places of work are just left as though one day they just never came back. Its unsettling and compelling as it is often rather sad. A history you may never know, secrets you will never be a party to, isn’t that intriguing? Not to mention, older buildings’ architecture and the possessions left behind from another era are exciting relics in and of themselves. We live in digital cameras era, with Photoshop photos can be manipulated in ways we would never expected before, is there something you miss from analogue photography?. Honestly I miss nothing. I have never been a so-called ‘purist’. No photograph contains a complete truth, so why not make something beautiful with that power? A documentarian I am not. Artist, perhaps. Continues page 60 INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY 57
58 INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY
INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY 59
Your work has been published in Lifestyle Magazine and American Institute of Architects Context magazine and shown in galleries, what would be your dreamed place, space to see your work showcased?. Well, if showed up in the Whitney, The Getty, MoMA or the Met I’d probably feel fairly accomplished. I’m working on it! The New Yorker Magazine would be pretty great as well. Hehe. What camera you would like to work with and haven ́t had the opportunity to do it just yet? I’ve had a chance to use the giant Canon Mark 1ds Mark IIIs and honestly, even though its a $8000 camera and creates files of amazing quality, I much prefer my 5D, mostly because it isn’t bigger than my face and doesn’t weigh a ton. I hate losing an awareness of what is going on around me as I shoot, and the Mark III is like wearing blinders. Which 4 places that you have never been before you would like to photograph? 1. The Salton Sea 2. North Dakota 3. Japan 4. Australia Last but not least, please tell us something we might be surprise to know about you, anything. My favorite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon is to get brunch with my boyfriend and then drive around the scariest ghettos of Philadelphia looking for things to photograph... from the safety of the car. He is the best getaway driver ever. I’ve been working on a series of what I call ‘constructs’ for the past year. I photograph architectural details and then recombine them digitally to create façades of buildings that do not exist. Some of most colorful and bizarre architecture lies in some of the scariest neighborhoods. You can take my work for it if you like. Thank you Laura for all the help you provided during the making of this interview. Contact info: Laura Kicey lk@laurakicey.com portfolio website: http://laurakicey.com flickr: http://flickr.com/photos/kicey blog: http://lasuzaki.blogspot.com etsy: http://helveticaneue.etsy.com 60 INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY
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Polaroid Project by AMY PRESTON “I started this project when I heard that the company Polaroid had ceased production of their instant film. As a Polaroid lover, I decided I wanted to commemorate this iconic art-form in some way. Apart from the obvious instantaneous nature of the photograph developing before your eyes, I particularly like the distinct white frame around Polaroid photographs. I created a giant white plastic frame and took digital photographs through it, like a viewfinder. This resulted in carefully composed photographs that framed whatever had captured my eye. In the same way a person would be careful about what they photographed with Polaroid film due to its price (£1 a photo)- I was much more particular and considered with what I photographed with my digital camera.”
Amy Preston is a 2008 graduate of BA(Hons) Graphic Design at the University of Brighton. To see the entire Polaroid Project visit her website http://www.amypreston.co.uk/ Contact info: Amy Preston http://www.amypreston.co.uk/ prestonamy@yahoo.co.uk
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QUOTES Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still. The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera. Dorthea Lange There is only you and your camera. The limitations in your photography are in yourself, for what we see is what we are. A picture is the expression of an impression. If the beautiful were not in us, how would we ever recognize it? Ernst Haas Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation and execution. A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed. Ansel Adams “A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.” Diane Arbus My own eyes are no more than scouts on a preliminary search, for the camera’s eye may entirely change my idea. Edward Weston You don’t take a photograph. You ask, quietly, to borrow it. Author Unknown You learn to see by practice. It’s just like playing tennis, you get better the more you play. The more you look around at things, the more you see. The more you photograph, the more you realize what can be photographed and what can’t be photographed. You just have to keep doing it. Eliot Porter You’ve got to push yourself harder. You’ve got to start looking for pictures nobody else could take. You’ve got to take the tools you have and probe deeper. William Albert Allard A room hung with pictures is a room hung with thoughts. Sir Joshua Reynolds The two most engaging powers of [a photographer] are to make new things familiar and familiar things new. W. Thackeray A good picture is equivalent to a good deed. Vincent Van Gogh
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GIVEAWAY DTDT
To celebrate the first issue I’m having a EZINE GIVEAWAY. A little homage to our beloved Polaroid Film designed and screen printed by me, using recycled paper in 7 different colors. 3 lucky winners will win a set of 2 Polaroid Prints, in the colors of their choice. To be a lucky winner all you have to do is send an e-mail to info@designthisdesignthat.com telling me what you think about this ezine. The subject of the e-mail must be GIVEAWAY. The winners will be picked randomly using www.random.org. If you don’t win and would like to have one of these prints, they will be available in limited editions of 30 in each color at the
DTDT shop www.designthisdesignthat.etsy.com.
Thank you for participating!.
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YELLOW PAGES SHOPPING http://shop.lomography.com/shop/ SAVING AND REMEMBERING POLAROID www.savepolaroid.com www.flickr.com/groups/savepolaroid/ www.polanoid.net www.postcardpolaroid.com solongpolaroid.blogspot.com www.savethepolaroid.com giam.typepad.com/the_branding_of_polaroid_/ FLICKR SERIES SAVE POLAROID http://www.flickr.com/photos/nineteenth/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/the_light_show/ http://flickr.com/photos/jonferguson/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/noobits/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/chi_cowboy/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/lauyanlau/ www.skwish.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/panaromico/ ETSY SERIES Alicia Bock http://www.aliciabock.com http://www.bloom-grow-love.blogspot.com/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/bloomgrowlove/ Šárka Holečková and Richard Trager http://www.sarka-trager.com http://www.sarkatrager.etsy.com Anne Kristoff www.poofny.etsy.com www.trunkt.org/poofny www.flickr.com/photos/poofny/ poofny.tumblr.com
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Jennifer Squires www.jennifersquires.ca www.jennifersquires.etsy.com INTERVIEW WITH LAURA KICEY Laura Kicey lk@laurakicey.com portfolio website: http://laurakicey.com flickr: http://flickr.com/photos/kicey blog: http://lasuzaki.blogspot.com etsy: http://helveticaneue.etsy.com POLAROID PROJECT Amy Preston http://www.amypreston.co.uk/ prestonamy@yahoo.co.uk GIVEAWAY Design This Design That Blog www.designthisdesignthat.com www.designthisdesignthat.etsy.com
SUBMISSIONS The ezine´s theme will be different every month, focused in a variety of subjects related to design and architecture. If you are an artist, designer manufacturer and would like to have your work, website, blog, product or service featured in subsequent e-magazines, send and e-mail to info@designthisdesignthat.com. The e-mail subject must be SUBMISSION. Please include all your info with a brief description of what your work, product, service is. Photos are more than welcome. I will get back to you asap. This is not an offer for paid editorial covering.
LEGAL NOTICE This Ezine is COPYRIGHT© 2008 of ARIADNA RAMLEY DESIGN THIS DESIGN THAT ™. You can download it for personal use, but you can’t redistribute, edit, alter it without my written permission. Do not copy or redistribute any of the articles written in this ezine without my consent. Please respect my work as I respect the work of others. The DESIGN THIS DESIGN THAT logotype and logo are trademarks, do not alter them or use them under any circumstance without my written permission. The front and back covers are COPYRIGHT© 2008 of ARIADNA RAMLEY DESIGN THIS DESIGN THAT ™. Do no duplicate them or redistribute them without my written consent. The Giveaway design is COPYRIGHT© 2008 of ARIADNA RAMLEY DESIGN THIS DESIGN THAT ™. Do no duplicate it or redistribute it without my written consent. All the photographs in this ezine are COPYRIGHT by their owners and were used with their acknowledgement and permission.
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THE MAGIC OF POLAROID