Editor’s Comments

NICKI GWYNN-JONES FRPS

Welcome to another edition of Visual Art. If you are wondering why the overall theme of the magazine has a distinctly arctic flavor I can explain; when Andreas reminded me that the responsibility for the summer issue would be mine I realized that for a six week chunk of prime preparation time I would be abroad visiting family. Knowing that certain things cannot be rushed I felt it prudent to have a draft copy with the long-suffering and ever so patient Paul Mitchell before we left for Australia at the end of February, and so my thoughts were still very much in winter mode!

I have been a huge fan of Polina Plotnikova’s artistry for some years now. I first came across her still life work when she came to talk to the Arena Group - I think it is fair to say that we were all stunned by her uncommon eye for detail and her ability to reference the past in a way that seems fresh and contemporary. She is, of course, well known for her LensBaby images.

Two of our contributors have visited a wilderness that I would dearly love to experience - Greenland. Marianthi Lainas organized her own trip and her otherworldly images of ice and water conjure up the mythical Qalupalik creatures, whose exploits are told by Inuit parents in order to stop their children from straying too near to the dangerous coastlines. Carol Emmas, too, has an unusually sophisticated eye for detail. Her take on paredolia makes for a fascinating read, although I must confess that I was not familiar with the term. She would like to feel that her work straddles both art and photography; I certainly have an affinity with this idea, as I am sure do many who categorise themselves as visual art photographers.

I am always keen to get inside the head of other artists and I felt that asking a small selection of photographers to write about just one image of my choosing would be a great way to do this. And so the idea for the Editor’s Choice feature was born. I am indebted to Tim Rudman, Mark Reeves

We feel that there is no need to rush into this. Time gives us a chance to rethink the entire exhibition programme, the timing, the logistics, the choice of more locations, the display of your pictures to a wider public.

Bear with us. It will be worth waiting for.

Andreas

and Richard Burdon for humouring me, and as you will see, one of the three was not so thrilled with the image that caught my eye!

I am sure you will all be delighted with the usual high standard of accepted work for the annual exhibition - congratulations to all, but especially to the winners. It remains for me to thank everyone involved in the running of the Visual Art group - I cannot imagine a more committed band of volunteers - but special thanks go to Paul Mitchell who does such an incredible job of putting together this magazine for our enjoyment.

Nicki