DEPARTURE DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY AND PHOTOJOURNALISM MA GRADUATION SHOW 2014
Photograph: Eugenio Grosso
DEPARTURE DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY AND PHOTOJOURNALISM MA GRADUATION SHOW 2014
PREFACE ‘DEPARTURE’ Consider impermanence and the notion of change. Ponder on the vast migrations and departures that are currently taking place through war and disasters, whether natural or economic. All around us, our worlds, whether ‘macro’ or ‘micro’ are constantly moving. Consequently, it is hardly surprising that this year’s MA students are presenting their work under the banner of ‘Departure’ a title they themselves have chosen for their graduation show. This year’s cohort are no different from the previous years. All have had to depart their countries, friends, families, and jobs to attend this MA; a departure into the unknown has begun. This requires tremendous courage and resolve. Without a doubt, all the students and their practice will have gone through a metamorphosis and their outlook on life will have migrated onwards. The work represented here is a departure from former ways of seeing signifying investigations and experiments to decode the complexities of photography, and communicate the human condition. Through this process, it is possible to understand the exodus that precedes an arrival that connects to another ‘Departure’. Ben Edwards Course Leader Documentary Photography and Photojournalism MA
INTRODUCTION ‘There are those who are devoted to history for history’s sake. To them the rightness of the record is the thing most to be desired. There are others who are interested in history because they find the men and women of the past and the conditions under which they lived quaint and strange, while many of the incidents of an older time seem as interesting as fiction. And there are those of a third class who look to history mainly for help in understanding present problems and for guidance in facing the future.’ Frank Luther Mott, Dean of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, wrote this preface to his 1941 History of American Journalism three years after Walker Evans published American Photographs and five years after Henry Luce launched Life magazine. The subsequent slow demise, death, rebirth and death of photojournalism, and the assimilation of documentary photography into the
wider art world has been discussed at length by many. Crucially there are still people who are committed to photographing the world around them, choosing subjects relevant in some way to their lives as they live them. It is these people who future generations of the diligent, the curious, and those belonging to that third class mentioned by Mott, will rely upon when they want to know what the world looked like at a given moment in time. Distribution and employment models have changed beyond recognition since the time when the popular printed press was an integrated part of the daily lives of millions. But the urge to explore and document our surroundings is too powerful not to survive. Extraordinary photographs that disturb, provoke, and inform us will continue to be made, though the exact circumstances in which we encounter them, and how that work is best funded, are matters that are yet to be determined. Oliver Wood Oliver Wood is a specialist dealer in rare books, photographs, and archival material from the 20th and 21st centuries. oliverwoodbooks.com
DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY AND PHOTOJOURNALISM MA GRADUATION SHOW 2014 NEIL BAIRD CLARE BENNETT FILIPPO CARBONARI JONATHAN CLIFFORD LISA DAL LAGO NOAH DARNELL TANIA DIEZ DENISE FELKIN SCOTT GALLAGHER EUGENIO GROSSO ANDRADA MIHAILESCU MIRJANA NEDEVA EMELIE SAHL THIBAULT SALLÉ VINCENZO SASSU GIORGIA TOBIOLO HEIDI WOODMAN SYLVAIN YVER
NEIL BAIRD neil@neilbaird.photography neilbaird.photography The Forgotten People The 100 mile wide stretch of country along the Scottish border is a place of contrasts, populated by indigenous families, in-comers from England and, increasingly, by migrants from Europe. It is an area where economic prospects are limited, unemployment is high, and there is little in the way of manufacturing or commerce. Tourism is the largest industry, but local railways were closed in the 1960s and most travelers to Scotland pass through the area briefly on their way north. In addition, many locals feel that they have been forgotten by Edinburgh and Westminster alike. This project explores the social and political attitudes of those that live in the border regions. As Scotland prepares to choose between independence or remaining within the United Kingdom, the project investigates how the mixed sense of cultural identity found in this area might influence the local attitudes toward independence.
CLARE BENNETT hello@clarebennett.com clarebennett.com Virtually Unrecognisable ‘Virtually Unrecognisable’ is a project that looks at people’s online version of themselves and how society has become so obsessed with recording every detail of our lives or at least the edited down, best bits that convey perfectly our online personality and life. It’s more about your online self than it is about your physical being. You can be anyone you want to be, if you don’t like how you look in a picture, you can just delete it and replace with a more flattering, comical, interesting version of yourself. Reality can be replaced with fantasy and extremes can be pushed to their limits, with the support of a computer screen to hide behind.
FILIPPO CARBONARI filcarbonari@gmail.com filcarbonari.com Ugly: In the Eye of the Beholder A small community of like-minded individuals living in central Italy have rejected the trend of glorifying the importance of perceived beauty. The town of Piobbico has less than 2,000 inhabitants and is known by the nickname ‘the City of Ugly People’. In 1879 the ‘Club dei Brutti’ (Club of the Uglies) was founded there with the aim of helping single men find wives. Today the club boasts 30,660 members from around Italy and has become a reference point for those trying to fight the social pressures to be beautiful. The members live their lives accepting how they were born, without artificially improving their outward appearance, and they champion the cause on behalf of all those who are considered ‘different’.
JONATHAN CLIFFORD info@jonathanclifford.com jonathanclifford.com The True Eccentrics The late British photographer Tony Ray-Jones suggested that ‘a genuine eccentric is one who pursues his own version of the truth and value of things untainted by outside pressures or conventions’. Eccentricity is a curious notion. The word itself conjures up thoughts of Phileas Fogg, ready to set off in search of adventure. But it is not simply a matter of the clothes one wears or the pastimes one enjoys. The Eccentric Club in London, founded in 1781, now has approximately two hundred members and serves as a regular meeting place for Earls and Lords, artists and scientists. It is a veritable melting pot of sharp minds and brilliant wit. These portraits introduce some of the club’s current members and reveal what they believe makes for a true eccentric.
LISA DAL LAGO elledallago@gmail.com Low Depression is an illness that affects the body and the mind and it expresses itself in many forms. This kind of suffering can hardly be described with words, as the feelings are inevitably lost in translation. Depression holds a person’s essence, whose soul is caught in an endless, primal battle. Unexpectedly, one day I found myself right in the midst of it. Slowly, my will was being eaten away by an invisible force I could barely keep at bay, insomnia started disturbing my nights and I was no longer able to perceive the world around me like I used to. I didn’t start taking pictures because I thought I could cure myself by doing so. Nonetheless, I was visually attracted by certain situations, certain lights and shadows. I captured those phantasms because it was all I could do: my emotions were leaking into the physical world.
NOAH DARNELL noah.darnell@gmail.com noahdarnellphoto.com The Mountains of Tusheti: A Desert Meditation The surreal events of yesterday remain: on the roof of the kitchen, fragments in the yard, dark stains on the legs of Georji’s pants. And, as more casualties mount up today, the shepherds continue their daily work and break bread and drink vodka, held here in exile in the Samoukhi Valley by their needy captors, not human or by any fault of their own, but by the innocent sheep. Few days remain before their yearly probation in paradise, and there is so much left to do. Gurami told me as we sat at the table: ‘When you go back home, you must tell people how we truly are – no more, no less,’ he gestured around himself with a glance around the room: ‘This is who we are.’ There is something in that statement that drives this project. There’s something in that self-awareness and honesty that I want to honour somehow. He did not say: ‘Make us look good!’ He said: ‘Tell it like it is’. Literally: ‘…no more, no less.’ ~ Journal fragments written on the arid plain of Samoukhi
TANIA DIEZ info@taniadiez.co.uk taniadiez.co.uk Badland Dungeness is a place of extremes, from the ravaged beauty of its shingle nature reserve to the ominous presence of the nuclear power station. On the shore, the wooden shells of fishermen’s boats and huts lie exposed to the elements, like skeletons of long dead creatures, marking the passing of time. This remarkable landscape, classified as desert, is unique to Britain. Here plants grow sporadically; sea cabbages and flowers breaking through the fragile shingle habitat. In the sea, water flushing from the cooling pipes of the two nuclear reactors creates a warm swell, attracting fish and the birds that feed on them. Only a handful of indigenous people remain, fishing families struggling to survive. As rising sea levels raise nuclear safety concerns, and plans for a new airport loom on the horizon, the future of Dungeness remains uncertain. ‘Badland’ examines the relationship between the power station and nature, and the people that choose to live here.
DENISE FELKIN denisefelkin@hotmail.com denisedenise.co.uk I’m not voting because… ‘More and more people are concluding that the ballot box is no longer an instrument that will secure political solutions.’ Tony Benn When I make a portrait of a non-voter, my soul collaborates with their psyche to make a bold statement. Through photography I symbolise a voting system that does not represent its people. My purpose is to give these strong dissident types the voice and dignity they deserve. Stereotypes are disrupted, to vent a point of view, from a new wave of people. The ideas evolve naturally via the characters on their territory. I give no authority of the clothes they wear, only of what colour. My passion shapes how to control the light, posture and gaze. In that moment the essence is reversed to enable the visual context to be read from within the negative space of the image. Embedded in this layer, portals are used as a metaphor to reveal the flip-side of democracy.
SCOTT GALLAGHER scottjgallagher@gmail.com sjgallagher.com Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty ‘I have seen landscapes, notably in the Mourne Mountains and southwards which under a particular light made me feel that at any moment a giant might raise his head over the next ridge.’ C.S. Lewis, On Stories Northern Ireland has a history with fantasy. C.S. Lewis made no secret of the fact he used its roaming landscapes as inspiration for the fictional realm of Narnia. Sixty years after Lewis’ first children’s novel was published, Northern Ireland continues to be a prime location for the make-believe. The television series ‘Game of Thrones’ uses designated spaces known as ‘Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ for filming locations. This project aims to discover why Northern Ireland continues to be chosen as a fictional environment, and what separates these ‘Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ from others.
EUGENIO GROSSO info@eugeniogrosso.com eugeniogrosso.com Across the Sea Since ancient times, the populations living on the shores of the Mediterranean basin traded with others by sea. Approximately three thousand years ago, Phoenician merchants founded the city of Palermo, Italy. Their aim was to establish a port on the other side of the Mediterranean for trading. Since the economic crisis hit Europe, Tunisians who lost their jobs converge each Saturday at the port of Palermo to board the ferry to trade in Tunis. These exchanges bring together people and cultures. As huge container ships move products from one corner of the world to another, this group of people is keeping alive the old routes. Bicycles, scooters, mattresses, pieces of furniture and stoves are piled on the roofs of old cars and transported across the sea. Along with their products those people are carrying traditions and knowledge that contribute to the ongoing creation of the Mediterranean culture.
ANDRADA MIHAILESCU mihailescu_andrada@yahoo.com andramihailescu.com Place of Birth: Salinae, Romania Ocna Mures is a post-industrial town situated next to a large salt deposit, whose economy was affected by a declining manufacturing sector that had thrived during the reign of communist leader Nicolae Ceausescu. The changes have come as a result of a reduction and removal of local industry. The aim of this photographic project is to observe the way in which the town and its community is coping with the loss of its central activity, which is slowly but surely fading away. The focus is the grim contrast created by the past and the present state of the area. The future remains uncertain.
MIRJANA NEDEVA mirjananedeva@gmail.com Skopje 2014: The Remaking of a City ‘Skopje 2014’ is one of the most expensive and controversial projects in recent Macedonian history. For a country with a population of two million, poverty rates of 27.1% for 2011 and an unemployment rate at 28.4% (State Statistical Office, 2014), spending hundreds of millions of euros is a massive expenditure that seeks to reshape and rebuild the central area of the country’s capital. How does this change the identity of the city? This photography project looks at the image of the city centre, with its main statues in set within the newly erected buildings in baroque and neoclassical style. Emphasis is placed on their juxtaposition in the public space, which highlights the dream-like aspect of the statues and monuments. It is that place, between the real and surreal, where the new identity of the city is born.
EMELIE SAHL esahl.photography@gmail.com Never Forgotten Observed during the 2014 Memorial Day weekend, these photographs seek to depict the bravery and loyalty displayed by America’s Armed Forces. The observances range from a solemn, closed ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns in the presence of the US President, to colourful parades at the National Mall with the Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Rally of more than 900,000 bikers. Whether we agree or disagree with the reasons for wars, remembering the men and women who serve their country is an act of gratitude from its citizens. As quoted by President John F. Kennedy: ‘And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country’.
THIBAULT SALLÉ thibault.salle@gmail.com A Rosy Life ‘Edda does a lot of things. They might look like little things, still she has many desires. She lives in a little world, but it is hers.’ (Sigríði Gunnarsdóttur, Edda’s mother) In this project, pink takes diverse tones from the darkest to lightest, as from black to white there is an infinite number of shades. It’s a rosy life, not because it is easy, but because it’s the colour she likes the most, and it is enough to make her smile. It is a ‘rose’ for fairytales and canopied beds, but behind this Barbie colour, is the red of a battle that has been carried on for 39 years. Edda and the people living around her make themselves visible to the public in order to break boundaries, and give others the opportunity to understand a life with mental disability.
VINCENZO SASSU vincenzo.sassu@gmail.com No matter the floor, my aim is the sky ‘I’ve never seen a body so disconnected from its limbs,’ said Richard Rogers, a British architect talking about Paris and its suburbs. This project is an exploration of the hearts and minds of Tony, Anis, Flex, Salif, JB, Layla, Kiffay, and other young inhabitants of La Courneuve, a banlieue défavorisée of 38,000 people located in the north-eastern suburb of Paris in the 93rd Arrondissement. It is considered one of the most difficult localities in the country. Youths of this banlieue défavorisée use every means to escape from being stereotyped by their origins. They strive to gain their place in French society as befits their education while attempting to keep the culture of their parents. They are determined to pursue their dreams of freedom, to express their creative talent, and to be appreciated in their own right.
GIORGIA TOBIOLO info@giorgiatobiolo.com giorgiatobiolo.com Out of the Lion’s Den For Terry, football is everything. He is a football coach whose love of the sport began when his grandfather took him to watch matches at Millwall, also known as the Lion’s Den. As a boy, Terry searched for a sense of belonging due to his family situation but found acceptance with the Millwall Bushwackers, one of the most notorious hooligan firms in England. This led him towards a life of anger and violence. After losing his job as a printer during the economic recession of the early 1990’s, he turned to drug dealing. He decided to change after his family witnessed the police raid his flat and arrest him on twelve charges. While on probation in 2007, Terry discovered a course run by Street League which helps unemployed young people find work through coaching football and classroom lessons. There he learned an NLP (NeuroLinguistic Programming) technique called ‘internal television’ that helped him change his life. Terry now works for Street League to help other young people through coaching and football, making his story one of hope and transformation.
HEIDI WOODMAN heidi.j.woodman@gmail.com Gold Fever There are few other substances on earth, if any, that have evoked the same timeless passion as gold. Coveted, revered and obsessed over from time immemorial, it has also proved something of a poisoned chalice. Ghana has a rich history with gold. Formerly called the Gold Coast under British colonial rule, gold has formed the backbone of the economy for the better part of a century. However, the price of gold has become increasingly disconnected from the precious metal itself driven more by financial speculators than by actual demand and with little or no regard for the far-reaching effects on the countries where it is mined. ‘Gold Fever’ is a journey through some of the main gold producing regions of Ghana, exploring the environmental, cultural and socio-economic impact of the changes in the price of this enigmatic metal that begs the question: What is the real price of gold?
SYLVAIN YVER sylvain.yver@gmail.com Riders of Stockwell Founded in the late ‘70s, Stockwell Skatepark is one of the best known skateparks in London. It has witnessed generations of riders who grew up on its shaped concrete surfaces. Some have been riding there over 20 years. There is no discrimination based on age, race, or social background: everyone is accepted. Located in southeast London, the neighbourhood used to be quite rough until the 1990s. Mugging and drug dealing was not uncommon and many people were scared of the area. Now much safer, the park brings the different communities together to make one community of riders. However, riders are rather pessimistic regarding its future. The increasingly high real estate value, less than a mile away from Brixton, may put too much pressure on Lambeth council, who some fear could decide to destroy the park for property development.
COURSE INFORMATION DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY AND PHOTOJOURNALISM MA Course Leader Ben Edwards E: edwardb@westminster.ac.uk Senior Lecturer Harry Hardie Reader David Campany INTRODUCTION This is an inspirational Master of Arts programme with emphasis on documentary photography, storytelling, visual anthropology, photojournalism, and text. Whether you see your practice in image making for the book, gallery, or the published page, this MA is structured towards the development of an understanding and an ability to communicate through the complex language of photography. Your studies will culminate in the ‘major project.’ On the journey to this MA, whether full or part time, our faculty will guide you through critical understanding of the coding and usage of images, which will serve to enable your practice with a maturity and an informed understanding in your future career as leaders in the field of documentary photography and photojournalism.
COURSE CONTENT The course is designed so that you progress quickly and fluently from one semester to the next, building skills and experience to achieve the best possible photographic portfolio, which will become your ‘passport’ to a successful career. Taught modules run on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in term time. CAREERS Documentary Photography and Photojournalism MA alumni have broadly achieved international success as art photographers and documentary photojournalists. Our alumini have established careers with; Associated Press, The Financial Times, NGOs such as Oxfam, as commissioning editors, independent designers, art buyers, AMV BBDO and major art festival organisers, in UK and USA. SEE OUR WEBSITES westminsterphotography.co.uk westminster.ac.uk/madshows14 FOR ADMISSIONS T: +44 (0)20 3506 7998 E: gandhin@westminster.ac.uk
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