HERE AND THERE
PHOTOJOURNALISM MA DEGREE SHOW 2012
Here and There If here is near and there is far, photography is often the mode of transport by which the journey from one to the other is made. Photojournalism in particular is freighted with ideas of quests, adventures and grand narratives; bringing important stories from the world out there for the consumption of an audience back here. While many fascinating stories can be found ‘out there’, the impetus to follow them often originates very close to home, rooted in the personal.
“ I f here is near and there is far, photography is often the mode of transport by which the journey from one to the other is made.”
Of this year’s Photojournalism MA cohort, three students chose to document family members who have played a significant part in their lives: a mother who became estranged from her family when her son was five, choosing to pursue another life a continent away; a cousin seeking inner peace through an intensely personal spiritual pilgrimage in the remote Welsh mountains; and an uncle, whose meagre and solitary existence in the lush coco forest of southern Trinidad invokes powerful childhood memories. A further seven students from our vibrant international group were compelled to return to their family homes, current or ancestral, to use their burgeoning photographic skills to tell stories from there. ‘There’ includes such diverse destinations as Saudi Arabia, Russia, Belarus, France, Cyprus, Poland and Brazil. During their time away, they have been able to look at these places with fresh and curious eyes, finding a way to capture the essence of their observations through the years. Max Houghton Course leader, Photojournalism MA
Many photographers are drawn to the industry because of their passion for travel. Others simply don’t see international borders as obstacles to telling the world’s stories. Imagine a history of photography without Cartier Bresson’s India, or Jones Griffith’s Vietnam. Possessed with a similar verve, students travelled to Armenia, Yemen, Greece, Niger and Brazil. Others became so absorbed in their subject that the ‘where’ of it became incidental; it is likely the viewer will encounter similar feelings as they become acquainted with the uncanny art of taxidermy, or utterly immersed in, even transformed by, the ethereal blue of aquariums. In every project (and there are many other works I have not alluded to here, including two very timely dissertations), the journey from here to there, or there to here, has been an unfolding, like the opening out of a huge map. Witnessing the moment when a student knows exactly where they are has been a privilege, as always. My continued interest in photography abides in its strangeness, its liminal quality, its status as threshold. Photography dwells between fact and fiction, text and image, between art and science, person and machine. Homeless, then, it traverses the many continents that constitute its territory, its ephemeral trails uniting on a single plain. The continual peregrinations between here and there invest the photograph with an unexpected depth, and give rise to new and potent forms of expression.
Here and There If here is near and there is far, photography is often the mode of transport by which the journey from one to the other is made. Photojournalism in particular is freighted with ideas of quests, adventures and grand narratives; bringing important stories from the world out there for the consumption of an audience back here. While many fascinating stories can be found ‘out there’, the impetus to follow them often originates very close to home, rooted in the personal.
“ I f here is near and there is far, photography is often the mode of transport by which the journey from one to the other is made.”
Of this year’s Photojournalism MA cohort, three students chose to document family members who have played a significant part in their lives: a mother who became estranged from her family when her son was five, choosing to pursue another life a continent away; a cousin seeking inner peace through an intensely personal spiritual pilgrimage in the remote Welsh mountains; and an uncle, whose meagre and solitary existence in the lush coco forest of southern Trinidad invokes powerful childhood memories. A further seven students from our vibrant international group were compelled to return to their family homes, current or ancestral, to use their burgeoning photographic skills to tell stories from there. ‘There’ includes such diverse destinations as Saudi Arabia, Russia, Belarus, France, Cyprus, Poland and Brazil. During their time away, they have been able to look at these places with fresh and curious eyes, finding a way to capture the essence of their observations through the years. Max Houghton Course leader, Photojournalism MA
Many photographers are drawn to the industry because of their passion for travel. Others simply don’t see international borders as obstacles to telling the world’s stories. Imagine a history of photography without Cartier Bresson’s India, or Jones Griffith’s Vietnam. Possessed with a similar verve, students travelled to Armenia, Yemen, Greece, Niger and Brazil. Others became so absorbed in their subject that the ‘where’ of it became incidental; it is likely the viewer will encounter similar feelings as they become acquainted with the uncanny art of taxidermy, or utterly immersed in, even transformed by, the ethereal blue of aquariums. In every project (and there are many other works I have not alluded to here, including two very timely dissertations), the journey from here to there, or there to here, has been an unfolding, like the opening out of a huge map. Witnessing the moment when a student knows exactly where they are has been a privilege, as always. My continued interest in photography abides in its strangeness, its liminal quality, its status as threshold. Photography dwells between fact and fiction, text and image, between art and science, person and machine. Homeless, then, it traverses the many continents that constitute its territory, its ephemeral trails uniting on a single plain. The continual peregrinations between here and there invest the photograph with an unexpected depth, and give rise to new and potent forms of expression.
PHOTOJOURNALISM MA DEGREE SHOW 2012
Anastasia Shpilko Andrea Lestrange Camilla Rosa Watkins cheng Zeng Chiara Tomasoni Fabio Pezzarini Faye De Gannes Kasia Ciechanowska Kevin Ricks Kristjan - Jaak Tammsaar Krisztina Kovacs Guerra Lívia Bonadio Marwah Almugait Matteo Di Giovanni Michael McGuinness Michele Zambon Olmo Rodríguez Roces Pio De Rose Rebekka Hodges Sukruti Staneley Tobin Jones Will Berridge Zlata Rodionova part-time students Daniel Norwood Elizabeth Waight Phil Clarke-Hill
SPONSORS:
PHOTOJOURNALISM MA DEGREE SHOW 2012
Anastasia Shpilko Andrea Lestrange Camilla Rosa Watkins cheng Zeng Chiara Tomasoni Fabio Pezzarini Faye De Gannes Kasia Ciechanowska Kevin Ricks Kristjan - Jaak Tammsaar Krisztina Kovacs Guerra Lívia Bonadio Marwah Almugait Matteo Di Giovanni Michael McGuinness Michele Zambon Olmo Rodríguez Roces Pio De Rose Rebekka Hodges Sukruti Staneley Tobin Jones Will Berridge Zlata Rodionova part-time students Daniel Norwood Elizabeth Waight Phil Clarke-Hill
SPONSORS:
Anastasia Shpilko asya.shpilko@gmail.com
Between black and white clouds As in the process of translation, the source text gradually loses its meaning. Words, which have been in use for centuries, begin to sound dubious. What images come to mind when you hear democracy, or tyranny? Would they not be polar opposites? And what does it take to leave the former and step onto the territory of the latter? Lithuania and Belarus are situated on opposing ends of the scale measuring the nature of political regimes in Europe. Still, their national histories have been crossing paths since the 13th century. The most recent and most evident is their common Soviet legacy, which reveals itself in traces not only of the infrastructure, but also of the mentality. I went to the towns lying close to the Belarusian-Lithuanian border to see what hides at the junction of the European Union and ‘the last dictatorship in Europe.’
Arina, a member of the Lithuanian national team in tumbling, rests during her training in the Visaginas Acrobatic sport school.
Anastasia Shpilko asya.shpilko@gmail.com
Between black and white clouds As in the process of translation, the source text gradually loses its meaning. Words, which have been in use for centuries, begin to sound dubious. What images come to mind when you hear democracy, or tyranny? Would they not be polar opposites? And what does it take to leave the former and step onto the territory of the latter? Lithuania and Belarus are situated on opposing ends of the scale measuring the nature of political regimes in Europe. Still, their national histories have been crossing paths since the 13th century. The most recent and most evident is their common Soviet legacy, which reveals itself in traces not only of the infrastructure, but also of the mentality. I went to the towns lying close to the Belarusian-Lithuanian border to see what hides at the junction of the European Union and ‘the last dictatorship in Europe.’
Arina, a member of the Lithuanian national team in tumbling, rests during her training in the Visaginas Acrobatic sport school.
Andrea Lestrange andrealestrange@aol.co.uk andrea-lestrange.com
We remain standing among ruins My project is a photographic study of my maternal homeland, Cyprus, almost four decades after the Turkish invasion of 1974. It is an exploration of the loss endured by the people following political upheaval; the suffering due to discord and divisions created by the minority in power. Leading up to and during the 38th anniversary of an event that embossed a deep scar on the island, I have studied the feelings that remain today. The echoes of conflict and traces of the past, which bore extensive physical devastation and bloodshed, are presented in my project. Thousands of Cypriots were made refugees in their own country, as Greek and Turkish Cypriots were forced out of their homes and communities to live on respective sides of a border extending the width of the island that still remains today. The pain of the people has become less visible, but is ever present under the surface.
Untitled.
Andrea Lestrange andrealestrange@aol.co.uk andrea-lestrange.com
We remain standing among ruins My project is a photographic study of my maternal homeland, Cyprus, almost four decades after the Turkish invasion of 1974. It is an exploration of the loss endured by the people following political upheaval; the suffering due to discord and divisions created by the minority in power. Leading up to and during the 38th anniversary of an event that embossed a deep scar on the island, I have studied the feelings that remain today. The echoes of conflict and traces of the past, which bore extensive physical devastation and bloodshed, are presented in my project. Thousands of Cypriots were made refugees in their own country, as Greek and Turkish Cypriots were forced out of their homes and communities to live on respective sides of a border extending the width of the island that still remains today. The pain of the people has become less visible, but is ever present under the surface.
Untitled.
Camilla Rosa Watkins camillawatkins@hotmail.co.uk camillarosa.co.uk
How the light gets in ‘How the light gets in’ is a portrait of a young man. Llew is a 27-year-old sufferer of Cyclothymic Bipolar Disorder. He does not take medication and has never received psychological help from any organisation. He is however a devotee to Tibetan Buddhism, and through this he aims to achieve a state of ‘ordinariness’, an element of normality as a means of existence. Over the course of late spring and summer 2012, Llew embarked on a lengthy solitary retreat high up within the lesser populated and spectacularly isolated Olchon Valley which sits on the border of England and Wales. Here, he lived for four months entirely alone whilst completing the Ngondro practice that belongs to the Kagyu School and follows the teachings of the late Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. These images offer a very personal portrait of Llew’s soul and set out to embody the residue of a condition as powerful as it is haunting; it is one man’s search for an ordinary existence through the trials of alternative spiritual self-medication.
Untitled.
Camilla Rosa Watkins camillawatkins@hotmail.co.uk camillarosa.co.uk
How the light gets in ‘How the light gets in’ is a portrait of a young man. Llew is a 27-year-old sufferer of Cyclothymic Bipolar Disorder. He does not take medication and has never received psychological help from any organisation. He is however a devotee to Tibetan Buddhism, and through this he aims to achieve a state of ‘ordinariness’, an element of normality as a means of existence. Over the course of late spring and summer 2012, Llew embarked on a lengthy solitary retreat high up within the lesser populated and spectacularly isolated Olchon Valley which sits on the border of England and Wales. Here, he lived for four months entirely alone whilst completing the Ngondro practice that belongs to the Kagyu School and follows the teachings of the late Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. These images offer a very personal portrait of Llew’s soul and set out to embody the residue of a condition as powerful as it is haunting; it is one man’s search for an ordinary existence through the trials of alternative spiritual self-medication.
Untitled.
cheng Zeng wilfredimage@hotmail.com wilfredimage.wordpress.com
A new East At the end of the 30th Olympic Games, Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, urges the Prime Minister to build upon its legacy. Located at the core of the Olympic Park, Tower Hamlets and Hackney are witnessing a major urban regeneration. In a brochure disseminated in Games Maker training camp, LOCOG describe this process as a “big work� which uplifts the area from its industrial and unpleasant past. However, there are more works to be finished except water cleaning and soil detoxification. For displaced residents, the construction of the Park is a sign of change and for some of them it is rather difficult to get through. Not all of them get a comfortable home. Not all of them get a sociable community. Not all of them get a sustainable living. With the land obtained from the Games, development of East London is going for gold. Standing on the Orbit Tower we can see the growth of skyscrapers and luxury flats. There is nothing wrong with appreciating the success of the Games and effort exerted by the government. However, the price paid for this thriving scene shall also be remembered. Untitled.
cheng Zeng wilfredimage@hotmail.com wilfredimage.wordpress.com
A new East At the end of the 30th Olympic Games, Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, urges the Prime Minister to build upon its legacy. Located at the core of the Olympic Park, Tower Hamlets and Hackney are witnessing a major urban regeneration. In a brochure disseminated in Games Maker training camp, LOCOG describe this process as a “big work� which uplifts the area from its industrial and unpleasant past. However, there are more works to be finished except water cleaning and soil detoxification. For displaced residents, the construction of the Park is a sign of change and for some of them it is rather difficult to get through. Not all of them get a comfortable home. Not all of them get a sociable community. Not all of them get a sustainable living. With the land obtained from the Games, development of East London is going for gold. Standing on the Orbit Tower we can see the growth of skyscrapers and luxury flats. There is nothing wrong with appreciating the success of the Games and effort exerted by the government. However, the price paid for this thriving scene shall also be remembered. Untitled.
Chiara Tomasoni ch.tomasoni@gmail.com chiaratomasoni.daportfolio.com
The ‘indie’ photobook as an evolution of the artist’s book Throughout the history of photography, photographic images and text have been bound together to create books. Today, more than ever, photography is associated with the book form.
“When I first became attracted to the idea of being an artist, painting was the last method; it was an obsolete, archaic form of communication… I felt newspapers, magazines, books, words to be more meaningful than what some damn oil painter was doing.”
Ed Ruscha
The photobook has developed its own aesthetic, moulding into an artist’s book. Among the most famous is Ruscha’s highly influential Twentysix Gasoline Stations. Not only is this work noted for becoming a major influence on the emerging artist’s book culture, especially in the United States, it also remains a very fine example of self-publishing photography. Self-published photobooks follow a wider trend for DIY production, in which artists take their fortunes into their own hands rather than conforming to existing hierarchies. Although not a new development in photography, the revived trend to make, edit, design and produce your own photobook has become a blossoming underground phenomenon. Through case studies, analysis and interviews this dissertation investigates the reasons behind the renewed interest in self-publishing.
Untitled.
Chiara Tomasoni ch.tomasoni@gmail.com chiaratomasoni.daportfolio.com
The ‘indie’ photobook as an evolution of the artist’s book Throughout the history of photography, photographic images and text have been bound together to create books. Today, more than ever, photography is associated with the book form.
“When I first became attracted to the idea of being an artist, painting was the last method; it was an obsolete, archaic form of communication… I felt newspapers, magazines, books, words to be more meaningful than what some damn oil painter was doing.”
Ed Ruscha
The photobook has developed its own aesthetic, moulding into an artist’s book. Among the most famous is Ruscha’s highly influential Twentysix Gasoline Stations. Not only is this work noted for becoming a major influence on the emerging artist’s book culture, especially in the United States, it also remains a very fine example of self-publishing photography. Self-published photobooks follow a wider trend for DIY production, in which artists take their fortunes into their own hands rather than conforming to existing hierarchies. Although not a new development in photography, the revived trend to make, edit, design and produce your own photobook has become a blossoming underground phenomenon. Through case studies, analysis and interviews this dissertation investigates the reasons behind the renewed interest in self-publishing.
Untitled.
Fabio Pezzarini pezzarinifabio@gmail.com
Ideals with no fixed abode On 15 October 2012 one full year will have passed since the Occupy London protesters set up their first tent city just outside St. Paul’s Cathedral. During their months of activity the movement – with its daily meetings, discussions and workshops – kindled a sense of hope that a change to the direction of the global economic system, with its inherent inequalities, might be possible. However, there has been little subsequent activity from the movement visible to the public eye since the second, and most recent, Occupy London encampment was evicted from Finsbury Square a few months ago. It was for this reason that I decided to set out to meet some of the protesters and to investigate how their lives may have changed through their involvement with Occupy; if their opinions have been galvanised or weakened, and, lastly, if there remains a future for the movement itself.
Finsbury Square, second Occupy London tent city.
Fabio Pezzarini pezzarinifabio@gmail.com
Ideals with no fixed abode On 15 October 2012 one full year will have passed since the Occupy London protesters set up their first tent city just outside St. Paul’s Cathedral. During their months of activity the movement – with its daily meetings, discussions and workshops – kindled a sense of hope that a change to the direction of the global economic system, with its inherent inequalities, might be possible. However, there has been little subsequent activity from the movement visible to the public eye since the second, and most recent, Occupy London encampment was evicted from Finsbury Square a few months ago. It was for this reason that I decided to set out to meet some of the protesters and to investigate how their lives may have changed through their involvement with Occupy; if their opinions have been galvanised or weakened, and, lastly, if there remains a future for the movement itself.
Finsbury Square, second Occupy London tent city.
Faye De Gannes fdphotography@hotmail.com fayedegannes.com
Inside the coco Fragments of my childhood As a child growing up in London, I was always curious about my mother’s cultural homeland and where she was raised as a child, in a Caribbean house deep within the coco bush land, which she described as home.
“Inside the coco” is a local expression, which describes being deep within the lush green coconut forests of southern Trinidad, West Indies.
‘Inside the coco’ focuses on conceptualising my childhood memories as a vivid sequence of photographic fragments. My photographs attempt to build on layers of memories from experiences and fears I lived through as a child during my family’s visits to the old rustic Carib house. Built in the 1930s, it now lies almost in ruins, untouched and neglected through the years. The house invokes feelings of loss, emptiness and unfathomable mystery, now devoid of all maternal presence. In fact all significant females of the past are now missing in the present. By photographing self-portraits, objects I have found, interior and exterior scenes and other traces that help recall my memories, I also use the ambiguous character of my uncle Kennett, who has been a catalyst for this fragmented series, and still lives at the old house.
Untitled.
Faye De Gannes fdphotography@hotmail.com fayedegannes.com
Inside the coco Fragments of my childhood As a child growing up in London, I was always curious about my mother’s cultural homeland and where she was raised as a child, in a Caribbean house deep within the coco bush land, which she described as home.
“Inside the coco” is a local expression, which describes being deep within the lush green coconut forests of southern Trinidad, West Indies.
‘Inside the coco’ focuses on conceptualising my childhood memories as a vivid sequence of photographic fragments. My photographs attempt to build on layers of memories from experiences and fears I lived through as a child during my family’s visits to the old rustic Carib house. Built in the 1930s, it now lies almost in ruins, untouched and neglected through the years. The house invokes feelings of loss, emptiness and unfathomable mystery, now devoid of all maternal presence. In fact all significant females of the past are now missing in the present. By photographing self-portraits, objects I have found, interior and exterior scenes and other traces that help recall my memories, I also use the ambiguous character of my uncle Kennett, who has been a catalyst for this fragmented series, and still lives at the old house.
Untitled.
Kasia Ciechanowska kajka.kokoszka@gmail.com
Augmented landscapes This is a story about space seen through the eyes of a ten-year-old kidgirl, growing up within a modern functional (post) soviet neighbourhood in Central Poland in the last decades of the twentieth century. This memory image is confronted with a picture of the memory location taken today, in July 2012. The resulting story is a psychogeographical journey into the logic of space created for liviing.
Untitled.
Kasia Ciechanowska kajka.kokoszka@gmail.com
Augmented landscapes This is a story about space seen through the eyes of a ten-year-old kidgirl, growing up within a modern functional (post) soviet neighbourhood in Central Poland in the last decades of the twentieth century. This memory image is confronted with a picture of the memory location taken today, in July 2012. The resulting story is a psychogeographical journey into the logic of space created for liviing.
Untitled.
Kevin Ricks kevinricks@gmail.com kevinricks.com
Stories my mother told Photography is often used as a tool to understand the past; ‘Stories my mother told’ addresses the issue of family estrangement and reconciliation. I met my mother, who I have barely seen in twenty years, in an attempt to understand her as a person, discuss our early relationship and how we became estranged. We used her family albums as a starting point for my book. Looking at these I asked about my mother’s early life, our collective past and her migration across three countries. This conversation and her photographs were used to identify key moments and places in her personal journey. This work tracks both the chasm in time that cannot be recovered and our ongoing efforts to build a new relationship.
Untitled.
Kevin Ricks kevinricks@gmail.com kevinricks.com
Stories my mother told Photography is often used as a tool to understand the past; ‘Stories my mother told’ addresses the issue of family estrangement and reconciliation. I met my mother, who I have barely seen in twenty years, in an attempt to understand her as a person, discuss our early relationship and how we became estranged. We used her family albums as a starting point for my book. Looking at these I asked about my mother’s early life, our collective past and her migration across three countries. This conversation and her photographs were used to identify key moments and places in her personal journey. This work tracks both the chasm in time that cannot be recovered and our ongoing efforts to build a new relationship.
Untitled.
Kristjan - Jaak Tammsaar whereintheworldiskj@gmail.com
Olympic epilogue This is not just a story about the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and its legacy; it’s as much about growing up and learning that fairy tales are not real. Visiting these ‘White Elephants’ that some have already called the modern ruins of Greece, I am seeking answers to when and how did the hailed Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (faster, higher, stronger) become a ‘sellout’. Has it really ever been about the unity of body and spirit, about competing for the sake of participation – or have all these inspiring words and phrases always been just void marketing messages founded on self-proclaimed myths? This is not an anti-sports story, if anything, it’s rather the opposite – a cry for the lost ideals, the last line of resistance to the relentless mentality that pursues the commodification of everything, every aspect of our lives.
Untitled.
Kristjan - Jaak Tammsaar whereintheworldiskj@gmail.com
Olympic epilogue This is not just a story about the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and its legacy; it’s as much about growing up and learning that fairy tales are not real. Visiting these ‘White Elephants’ that some have already called the modern ruins of Greece, I am seeking answers to when and how did the hailed Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (faster, higher, stronger) become a ‘sellout’. Has it really ever been about the unity of body and spirit, about competing for the sake of participation – or have all these inspiring words and phrases always been just void marketing messages founded on self-proclaimed myths? This is not an anti-sports story, if anything, it’s rather the opposite – a cry for the lost ideals, the last line of resistance to the relentless mentality that pursues the commodification of everything, every aspect of our lives.
Untitled.
KRISZTINA KOVACS GUERRA krisztiphoto@yahoo.com krisztinakovacs.com
Freeze The act and use of taxidermy evokes thoughts on how we create our human identities and how we reinforce our roots to wilderness. It is also the art of stillness, a tool for representation and classification, freezing its subject into a lifelike position for eternity. In these ways, it is very similar to the art of photography. Emphasizing these qualities in my imagery I also review photography’s role as a typifying documentary tool, its hyper-realistic illusion and its relation to mortality.
Untitled.
KRISZTINA KOVACS GUERRA krisztiphoto@yahoo.com krisztinakovacs.com
Freeze The act and use of taxidermy evokes thoughts on how we create our human identities and how we reinforce our roots to wilderness. It is also the art of stillness, a tool for representation and classification, freezing its subject into a lifelike position for eternity. In these ways, it is very similar to the art of photography. Emphasizing these qualities in my imagery I also review photography’s role as a typifying documentary tool, its hyper-realistic illusion and its relation to mortality.
Untitled.
Lívia Bonadio liviabonadio@gmail.com liviabonadio.blogspot.com
And babies Using photojournalism and mixed media, ‘And babies’ is a curatorial exercise with which I aim to convey a personal commentary on U.S. military misconduct, following the disclosure of classified and unclassified information. In selecting, among others, the infamous Abu Ghraib photographs and footage depicting indiscriminate killing of civilians in Baghdad, the selection reflects on the impact of military operations and “causalities” of the “war on terror”. It also looks at the significant role played by both social and mainstream media, when exposing or overlooking controversial subjects. Deriving from research conducted for my dissertation “Curating Photojournalism”, ‘And babies’ is a small introduction to a larger exhibition plan. The title refers to an anti Vietnam War poster. During an interview, veteran Mike Wallace described an episode involving the execution of civilians. After answering they had killed “men, women and children,” the reporter asked “And babies?” which Wallace replied: “And babies.”
From top left: Video “Collateral Murder;” U.S. military personnel kill civilians in Baghdad, Iraq, July 2007. First published by Wikleaks.org, 2010. U.S. military personnel abuse and torture detainees at Abu Ghraib Prison, Iraq, 2003. First published by The New Yorker, 2004 and Salon, 2006. Barack Obama follows murder of Osama Bin Laden, from the White House’s Situation Room. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza, May 2011.
Lívia Bonadio liviabonadio@gmail.com liviabonadio.blogspot.com
And babies Using photojournalism and mixed media, ‘And babies’ is a curatorial exercise with which I aim to convey a personal commentary on U.S. military misconduct, following the disclosure of classified and unclassified information. In selecting, among others, the infamous Abu Ghraib photographs and footage depicting indiscriminate killing of civilians in Baghdad, the selection reflects on the impact of military operations and “causalities” of the “war on terror”. It also looks at the significant role played by both social and mainstream media, when exposing or overlooking controversial subjects. Deriving from research conducted for my dissertation “Curating Photojournalism”, ‘And babies’ is a small introduction to a larger exhibition plan. The title refers to an anti Vietnam War poster. During an interview, veteran Mike Wallace described an episode involving the execution of civilians. After answering they had killed “men, women and children,” the reporter asked “And babies?” which Wallace replied: “And babies.”
From top left: Video “Collateral Murder;” U.S. military personnel kill civilians in Baghdad, Iraq, July 2007. First published by Wikleaks.org, 2010. U.S. military personnel abuse and torture detainees at Abu Ghraib Prison, Iraq, 2003. First published by The New Yorker, 2004 and Salon, 2006. Barack Obama follows murder of Osama Bin Laden, from the White House’s Situation Room. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza, May 2011.
Marwah Almugait marwah.almugait@gmail.com marwahalmugait.com
Mood diary Mona is a Saudi patient who has suffered from anxiety and OCD for 27 years. She was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Living in a society with a limited awareness about this illness, she has hardly managed to coexist with her own condition. Throughout a series of symbolic images, which represent how she perceives life during her mood swings, Mona took a step forward and allowed herself to reveal the other side of her life. This project intends to expose the depth of the struggle that many patients in Saudi are facing in terms of understanding mental illness.
“As a result I started writing down my thoughts and noting my mood. When do the episodes start and end? What are the exact symptoms? It was a ‘Self awareness’.”
Blurred Vision.
Marwah Almugait marwah.almugait@gmail.com marwahalmugait.com
Mood diary Mona is a Saudi patient who has suffered from anxiety and OCD for 27 years. She was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Living in a society with a limited awareness about this illness, she has hardly managed to coexist with her own condition. Throughout a series of symbolic images, which represent how she perceives life during her mood swings, Mona took a step forward and allowed herself to reveal the other side of her life. This project intends to expose the depth of the struggle that many patients in Saudi are facing in terms of understanding mental illness.
“As a result I started writing down my thoughts and noting my mood. When do the episodes start and end? What are the exact symptoms? It was a ‘Self awareness’.”
Blurred Vision.
Matteo Di Giovanni matteo.digiovanni@gmail.com matteodigiovanni.com
Being Bosnian Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the countries which emerged from the break-up of communist Yugoslavia. In Bosnia’s case, the birth pangs were exceptionally long and painful. An American-led intervention in late 1995 brought the fighting to a halt and cajoled the warring parties into signing a peace agreement in Dayton, Ohio, which remade Bosnia as a loosely articulate state. Under the Dayton agreement, policed by a large international peacekeeping force, nearly half of Bosnia’s territory was assigned to a “Serb Republic” and the remaining to a federation dominated by Muslims and Croats. The idea was that a temporary partition would gradually give way to a more unitary state, with Muslims, Serbs and Croats rediscovering a common identity as citizens of Bosnia. Although peace has been maintained, the dream of rebuilding a multi-ethnic Bosnia has not been fulfilled. On the contrary, ethnic and religious divisions have hardened. For example, the Catholic Croats living in the South and West of Bosnia and Herzegovina now dream of having a political entity of their own just as the Serbs have. Islam is playing a bigger role in the life and consciousness of Bosnia’s Muslim community. Investments from Muslim countries like Turkey, Iran and Malaysia reinforce the Islamic character of Muslim-dominated areas. At present Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only Muslim majority country in Europe. Soon Croatia and Serbia may join the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina could become a Muslim enclave in the heart of Europe. Meanwhile the Orthodox Christian Serbs dream of an ever-closer relation with their Serbian motherland. Against this background a new generation of Bosnians is struggling to come to terms with an ever-present past, a tough present and an uncertain future. To the great disappointment of those who hoped for the remaking of the cosmopolitan, liberal atmosphere of pre-war Sarajevo, the future promises to be ethnically divided.
Sarajevo. Summer 2011.
Matteo Di Giovanni matteo.digiovanni@gmail.com matteodigiovanni.com
Being Bosnian Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the countries which emerged from the break-up of communist Yugoslavia. In Bosnia’s case, the birth pangs were exceptionally long and painful. An American-led intervention in late 1995 brought the fighting to a halt and cajoled the warring parties into signing a peace agreement in Dayton, Ohio, which remade Bosnia as a loosely articulate state. Under the Dayton agreement, policed by a large international peacekeeping force, nearly half of Bosnia’s territory was assigned to a “Serb Republic” and the remaining to a federation dominated by Muslims and Croats. The idea was that a temporary partition would gradually give way to a more unitary state, with Muslims, Serbs and Croats rediscovering a common identity as citizens of Bosnia. Although peace has been maintained, the dream of rebuilding a multi-ethnic Bosnia has not been fulfilled. On the contrary, ethnic and religious divisions have hardened. For example, the Catholic Croats living in the South and West of Bosnia and Herzegovina now dream of having a political entity of their own just as the Serbs have. Islam is playing a bigger role in the life and consciousness of Bosnia’s Muslim community. Investments from Muslim countries like Turkey, Iran and Malaysia reinforce the Islamic character of Muslim-dominated areas. At present Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only Muslim majority country in Europe. Soon Croatia and Serbia may join the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina could become a Muslim enclave in the heart of Europe. Meanwhile the Orthodox Christian Serbs dream of an ever-closer relation with their Serbian motherland. Against this background a new generation of Bosnians is struggling to come to terms with an ever-present past, a tough present and an uncertain future. To the great disappointment of those who hoped for the remaking of the cosmopolitan, liberal atmosphere of pre-war Sarajevo, the future promises to be ethnically divided.
Sarajevo. Summer 2011.
Michael McGuinness michaelmcguinness@me.com michaelmcguinnessphotographer.wordpress.com
Monday comes very quickly Photographing the Unseeable This project of ‘photographing the unseeable‘ uses photography to demonstrate how people with mental health issues are being positively supported in their ‘wellness’ treatment plans, within the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust, enabling them to live and work as part of the community leading purposeful and fulfilling lives. I hope that these pictures, not usually seen, from within this health trust, will engage and positively affect the barriers of stigma associated with mental health in our society.
Untitled.
Michael McGuinness michaelmcguinness@me.com michaelmcguinnessphotographer.wordpress.com
Monday comes very quickly Photographing the Unseeable This project of ‘photographing the unseeable‘ uses photography to demonstrate how people with mental health issues are being positively supported in their ‘wellness’ treatment plans, within the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust, enabling them to live and work as part of the community leading purposeful and fulfilling lives. I hope that these pictures, not usually seen, from within this health trust, will engage and positively affect the barriers of stigma associated with mental health in our society.
Untitled.
Michele Zambon michelezambon@gmail.com michelezambon.com
Invisible horizon ‘Invisible horizon’ is a documentary photography project on the lives of 15 Brazilian boys and girls living, most of them since birth, in an orphanage for HIV positive children in Curitiba. For some of them, childhood has already gone; they are adolescents, becoming adults without ever having had the right to belong to a family. The primary reason they are still living at the orphanage is the status of their cases does not move through the Brazilian legal system and their names had never been included in the national registry of adoption. The situation highlights the precariousness of social policies and the failure of public and judicial powers in respect of the priority of the rights of the child. These children have a special condition, not the condition of seropositive, but of being invisible to society, so that in these photographs I cannot show their faces. Beyond them lies an invisible horizon that, obscured by the excuse of protection, segregates them and deprives them of their rights. Even with only lightless and faceless fragments of moments extracted from their daily lives, I intend to show the bigger picture behind these images: the face of prejudice and injustice. Untitled.
Michele Zambon michelezambon@gmail.com michelezambon.com
Invisible horizon ‘Invisible horizon’ is a documentary photography project on the lives of 15 Brazilian boys and girls living, most of them since birth, in an orphanage for HIV positive children in Curitiba. For some of them, childhood has already gone; they are adolescents, becoming adults without ever having had the right to belong to a family. The primary reason they are still living at the orphanage is the status of their cases does not move through the Brazilian legal system and their names had never been included in the national registry of adoption. The situation highlights the precariousness of social policies and the failure of public and judicial powers in respect of the priority of the rights of the child. These children have a special condition, not the condition of seropositive, but of being invisible to society, so that in these photographs I cannot show their faces. Beyond them lies an invisible horizon that, obscured by the excuse of protection, segregates them and deprives them of their rights. Even with only lightless and faceless fragments of moments extracted from their daily lives, I intend to show the bigger picture behind these images: the face of prejudice and injustice. Untitled.
Olmo Rodríguez Roces olmorodriguezroces@gmail.com
Malva Eight years have passed since the Organic Law 1/2004 was established in Spain. This law represents not just integral protection against gender-based violence, but also the beginning of a change in mentality. However, there is still a long way to go. Through photography and text, ‘Malva’ aims to be an informative project which explores the different social mechanisms that are activated once a woman is exposed to violence: from the first emergency call to 112, through conversations with women’s protection advisers, prosecution and State Security Forces, ending with the testimony of Ana Maria Perez del Campo, the President of The Federation of Separated and Divorced Women. From different points of view and always using a gender perspective, this project brings into the open some of the inadequacies of a system, which refuses to accept a feminist discourse that is threatening the established structures of power.
Untitled.
Olmo Rodríguez Roces olmorodriguezroces@gmail.com
Malva Eight years have passed since the Organic Law 1/2004 was established in Spain. This law represents not just integral protection against gender-based violence, but also the beginning of a change in mentality. However, there is still a long way to go. Through photography and text, ‘Malva’ aims to be an informative project which explores the different social mechanisms that are activated once a woman is exposed to violence: from the first emergency call to 112, through conversations with women’s protection advisers, prosecution and State Security Forces, ending with the testimony of Ana Maria Perez del Campo, the President of The Federation of Separated and Divorced Women. From different points of view and always using a gender perspective, this project brings into the open some of the inadequacies of a system, which refuses to accept a feminist discourse that is threatening the established structures of power.
Untitled.
Pio De Rose pio.derose@gmail.com pioderose.com
Aquaria The blue glass landscape The act of looking has always characterised the relationship between people and animals. However, recent studies have focused on the uniqueness of the environments where this mutual act of looking takes place and how they enhance evocative and emotional responses. Inspired by this new awareness, I visited some of the biggest aquariums in the world to photograph the traces of their surreal settings portraying not only visitors’ act of looking but also their observing while being absorbed by the oneiric and dreamy blue surroundings accommodating them. Aquaria, ‘The blue glass landscape’ takes you into this other and different world-within-the-world, into that blue reign that we access every time we visit its various entrances, always more or less consciously fascinated by that immersive and decontextualized experience that cannot be readily obtained elsewhere.
National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth, 2011.
Pio De Rose pio.derose@gmail.com pioderose.com
Aquaria The blue glass landscape The act of looking has always characterised the relationship between people and animals. However, recent studies have focused on the uniqueness of the environments where this mutual act of looking takes place and how they enhance evocative and emotional responses. Inspired by this new awareness, I visited some of the biggest aquariums in the world to photograph the traces of their surreal settings portraying not only visitors’ act of looking but also their observing while being absorbed by the oneiric and dreamy blue surroundings accommodating them. Aquaria, ‘The blue glass landscape’ takes you into this other and different world-within-the-world, into that blue reign that we access every time we visit its various entrances, always more or less consciously fascinated by that immersive and decontextualized experience that cannot be readily obtained elsewhere.
National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth, 2011.
Rebekka Hodges rebekka.hodges@gmail.com rebekkahodges.com
Without Words ‘Without Words’ is a documentary photography project that explores the importance of text in allowing an audience to have a more complete understanding of the meaning of images. Working in the Dordogne, France where the final battles in the Hundred Years War were played out, this project explores the importance of both text and photography in the world of photojournalism, by showing the juxtaposition between beautifully shot landscapes of the present day and the hidden historical reality revealed through text.
Beneath the mist lays the Seignal River, which flows through the valley to the south of Saint Croix. For many years it was the border between France and England.
Rebekka Hodges rebekka.hodges@gmail.com rebekkahodges.com
Without Words ‘Without Words’ is a documentary photography project that explores the importance of text in allowing an audience to have a more complete understanding of the meaning of images. Working in the Dordogne, France where the final battles in the Hundred Years War were played out, this project explores the importance of both text and photography in the world of photojournalism, by showing the juxtaposition between beautifully shot landscapes of the present day and the hidden historical reality revealed through text.
Beneath the mist lays the Seignal River, which flows through the valley to the south of Saint Croix. For many years it was the border between France and England.
Sukruti Staneley sukrutistaneley@gmail.com sukrutistaneley.com
Resemblance: photographing a relationship The need to recognize a resemblance between a stranger and myself was more than just a fascination. I soon began to form my own narratives of why some women I saw – briefly – on the train could be my mother and how, if she were, we may have resembled each other. Resemblance is a way into studying the human face and the relationships it forms through the existence or lack of physical ‘likeness’. By crossing the boundaries of a family through biological relations, I explore the parent-child relationship within the adoptive setting. This project begins to question the need to see resemblance even though it may not exist - is my mind playing tricks on me? Or do I begin to acknowledge what I want to see, or think I should see. To explore this idea, I met and photographed families who helped me to create a new visibility of resemblance.
Anna: “If you don’t clean your room tonight, you wont be having any dinner.”
Ryan: “That’s a great idea, I don’t know how I have survived your cooking this long!”
Anna Harland-Smith, 60 Home-maker London, England
Ryan Harland-Smith, 19 Student London, England
Sukruti Staneley sukrutistaneley@gmail.com sukrutistaneley.com
Resemblance: photographing a relationship The need to recognize a resemblance between a stranger and myself was more than just a fascination. I soon began to form my own narratives of why some women I saw – briefly – on the train could be my mother and how, if she were, we may have resembled each other. Resemblance is a way into studying the human face and the relationships it forms through the existence or lack of physical ‘likeness’. By crossing the boundaries of a family through biological relations, I explore the parent-child relationship within the adoptive setting. This project begins to question the need to see resemblance even though it may not exist - is my mind playing tricks on me? Or do I begin to acknowledge what I want to see, or think I should see. To explore this idea, I met and photographed families who helped me to create a new visibility of resemblance.
Anna: “If you don’t clean your room tonight, you wont be having any dinner.”
Ryan: “That’s a great idea, I don’t know how I have survived your cooking this long!”
Anna Harland-Smith, 60 Home-maker London, England
Ryan Harland-Smith, 19 Student London, England
Tobin Jones tobinbjones@gmail.com tobinjonesphotography.com
Al Muhamasheen The marginalized ones, or Al Muhamasheen, as they are known in Yemen, are the last remaining group in the country’s now largely defunct caste system. Consisting predominantly of Yemen’s indigenous blacks, the Muhamasheen are thought to have first come to Yemen in the 6th century as invaders from Ethiopia. Today they are still considered just that, invaders, and are forced to live on the fringes of society as a result. The poorest country in the Middle East, Yemen is a state beset with problems. Furthermore a recent revolution, combined with an ongoing secessionist movement in one part of the country and al-Qaeda dominant elsewhere, means that political will is currently at an all time low when it comes to dealing with the rights of minorities.
Untitled.
Tobin Jones tobinbjones@gmail.com tobinjonesphotography.com
Al Muhamasheen The marginalized ones, or Al Muhamasheen, as they are known in Yemen, are the last remaining group in the country’s now largely defunct caste system. Consisting predominantly of Yemen’s indigenous blacks, the Muhamasheen are thought to have first come to Yemen in the 6th century as invaders from Ethiopia. Today they are still considered just that, invaders, and are forced to live on the fringes of society as a result. The poorest country in the Middle East, Yemen is a state beset with problems. Furthermore a recent revolution, combined with an ongoing secessionist movement in one part of the country and al-Qaeda dominant elsewhere, means that political will is currently at an all time low when it comes to dealing with the rights of minorities.
Untitled.
Will berridge wberridge@gmail.com wberridgephoto.virb.com
The tale of the copper town At the peak of Soviet Armenia almost 50,000 tons of copper were produced in Alaverdi, the centre of the copper industry in northern Armenia. Now the Armenian owned Vallex copper facility is in decline, from employing 3,000 at its peak, there are now only 250 employees. Facing a declining population, a lack of opportunities and serious health problems - due in part to the constant pollution and smoke pumped into the air from the factory - Alaverdi faces many challenges to survive in the post Soviet era. Yet everyday the freight train continues to leave the Vallex copper smelter and slowly make its way across the border and into Georgia and Russia, taking with it the profits and leaving little for the people of Alaverdi. Men, who have worked for the factory for most of their lives, earn barely enough to live on. For ‘The tale of the copper town’ I wanted to photograph the fragments of what remains, the people who live beneath the smoke, and discover what future is there for the copper town of Alaverdi.
Boris Sahakyan.
Will berridge wberridge@gmail.com wberridgephoto.virb.com
The tale of the copper town At the peak of Soviet Armenia almost 50,000 tons of copper were produced in Alaverdi, the centre of the copper industry in northern Armenia. Now the Armenian owned Vallex copper facility is in decline, from employing 3,000 at its peak, there are now only 250 employees. Facing a declining population, a lack of opportunities and serious health problems - due in part to the constant pollution and smoke pumped into the air from the factory - Alaverdi faces many challenges to survive in the post Soviet era. Yet everyday the freight train continues to leave the Vallex copper smelter and slowly make its way across the border and into Georgia and Russia, taking with it the profits and leaving little for the people of Alaverdi. Men, who have worked for the factory for most of their lives, earn barely enough to live on. For ‘The tale of the copper town’ I wanted to photograph the fragments of what remains, the people who live beneath the smoke, and discover what future is there for the copper town of Alaverdi.
Boris Sahakyan.
Zlata Rodionova zrodionova@hotmail.com
In the shadow of faded dreams The idealism and iconography of the Soviet space programme speaks of serving humanity and a belief in a peaceful future. The pride of the Soviet Union in their scientific achievement was expressed in mosaics, paintings, sculptures, posters and widely popular photographs of cosmonauts. However, politics has left a negative trace on these humanist ideas and nowadays we often associate Gagarin with the space race, arms race, and the tense atmosphere of the Cold War. Still, for people working at the Yuri Gagarin Russian State Training Centre, a military complex where all cosmonauts have been trained since the 1960s, Gagarin remains a hero and symbol of national pride while space is the only reality they know. Although the glory days of the Soviet Space programme have long gone, due to the insularity of this world its spirit has been preserved. As if trapped in a window of time, its residents blend with the surreal machines they work with. Following their childhood dreams, their only goal is to reach the stars. In the shadow of faded dreams, reveals the nostalgia associated with the USSR’s status of a space superpower and sheds the light on a close-knit community of space lovers, still clinging to the decaying legacy of the 1960s Space dream.
Hydrolab instructor: The instructor’s role is to help cosmonauts to adjust the lift, drift the balance and guarantee their safety when they train underwater. A training session can last up to six hours. The trainer wished to remain anonymous.
Zlata Rodionova zrodionova@hotmail.com
In the shadow of faded dreams The idealism and iconography of the Soviet space programme speaks of serving humanity and a belief in a peaceful future. The pride of the Soviet Union in their scientific achievement was expressed in mosaics, paintings, sculptures, posters and widely popular photographs of cosmonauts. However, politics has left a negative trace on these humanist ideas and nowadays we often associate Gagarin with the space race, arms race, and the tense atmosphere of the Cold War. Still, for people working at the Yuri Gagarin Russian State Training Centre, a military complex where all cosmonauts have been trained since the 1960s, Gagarin remains a hero and symbol of national pride while space is the only reality they know. Although the glory days of the Soviet Space programme have long gone, due to the insularity of this world its spirit has been preserved. As if trapped in a window of time, its residents blend with the surreal machines they work with. Following their childhood dreams, their only goal is to reach the stars. In the shadow of faded dreams, reveals the nostalgia associated with the USSR’s status of a space superpower and sheds the light on a close-knit community of space lovers, still clinging to the decaying legacy of the 1960s Space dream.
Hydrolab instructor: The instructor’s role is to help cosmonauts to adjust the lift, drift the balance and guarantee their safety when they train underwater. A training session can last up to six hours. The trainer wished to remain anonymous.
part - time students
part - time students
daniel norwood djnorwood@gmail.com djnorwood.com
Flux Definition - continuous change, passage or movement There is little sympathy amongst the institutions tasked with keeping an eye on Greece and making sure it sticks to the austerity measures laid out by the IMF and European governments. Yet life goes on for the people of Athens and the surrounding islands, where the sun winks still in the cool cobalt waters, oblivious to all matters fiscal. The land is a backdrop to this unfolding drama where civil disobedience is planned and strong bonds and ideologies are formed.
“I think more of the little kids from a school in a little village in Niger who get teaching two hours a day, sharing one chair for three of them, and who are very keen to get an education. I have them in my mind all the time. Because I think they need even more help than the people in Athens.� Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund
This project aims to investigate the landscape and environment as a metaphor for the ongoing financial turmoil in Europe. Using this oblique approach, I will respond to three countries within the framework of this drama, and reflect on the consequences of actions made in financial institutions far from these hidden spaces.
Young men gather on Strefi Hill, located in the Exarcheia district of Athens - a famous stomping ground for Greek anarchists.
daniel norwood djnorwood@gmail.com djnorwood.com
Flux Definition - continuous change, passage or movement There is little sympathy amongst the institutions tasked with keeping an eye on Greece and making sure it sticks to the austerity measures laid out by the IMF and European governments. Yet life goes on for the people of Athens and the surrounding islands, where the sun winks still in the cool cobalt waters, oblivious to all matters fiscal. The land is a backdrop to this unfolding drama where civil disobedience is planned and strong bonds and ideologies are formed.
“I think more of the little kids from a school in a little village in Niger who get teaching two hours a day, sharing one chair for three of them, and who are very keen to get an education. I have them in my mind all the time. Because I think they need even more help than the people in Athens.� Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund
This project aims to investigate the landscape and environment as a metaphor for the ongoing financial turmoil in Europe. Using this oblique approach, I will respond to three countries within the framework of this drama, and reflect on the consequences of actions made in financial institutions far from these hidden spaces.
Young men gather on Strefi Hill, located in the Exarcheia district of Athens - a famous stomping ground for Greek anarchists.
Elizabeth Waight info@elizabethwaight.com elizabethwaight.com
Iconic The ‘Iconic’ project is a series of photographs, which aims to subvert the current obsession with physical perfection. This will be done through the recreation of a series of iconic photographic portraits of the past 100 years, featuring people with disabilities. These recreations will apply the visual language (in this case iconography) of glamour, to subjects not usually considered glamorous by our current society or its media. The new images retain the trappings of glamour and iconography but the model possesses a physical feature that would usually exclude them from that visual language. The viewer must therefore work to analyse what they are seeing and to consider whether the impact of the image is affected by using a model with a disability. The project’s first shoot was based on Steven Meisel’s image of Madonna. This image was chosen as Madonna is a quintessential icon and her nakedness in the image displays her body in its purest form.
Untitled.
Elizabeth Waight info@elizabethwaight.com elizabethwaight.com
Iconic The ‘Iconic’ project is a series of photographs, which aims to subvert the current obsession with physical perfection. This will be done through the recreation of a series of iconic photographic portraits of the past 100 years, featuring people with disabilities. These recreations will apply the visual language (in this case iconography) of glamour, to subjects not usually considered glamorous by our current society or its media. The new images retain the trappings of glamour and iconography but the model possesses a physical feature that would usually exclude them from that visual language. The viewer must therefore work to analyse what they are seeing and to consider whether the impact of the image is affected by using a model with a disability. The project’s first shoot was based on Steven Meisel’s image of Madonna. This image was chosen as Madonna is a quintessential icon and her nakedness in the image displays her body in its purest form.
Untitled.
Phil Clarke - Hill phil@philclarkehill.co.uk philclarkehill.co.uk
Terra Brazil is the world’s largest producer of sugarcane and beef, second largest of soy and third for maize. An export industry reliant on basic commodities like this requires vast quantities of land, which has made land rights an important and controversial issue in Brazil. With any large industry comes social and environmental concerns. Agribusiness has come under fire from human rights campaigners, reporting instances of land grabbing and rural violence; in some cases rape and murder. Reports state cases of bonded labour for the indigenous communities, giving them no option but to work on the farms or fight for the rights to their ancestral land. Mato Grosso do Sul is home to 80% of the Brazilian indigenous Guarani Kaiowá population; approximately 40,000 people, who are now at real risk of losing their traditional culture and unique way of life. Many of the Guaraní have been extradited from their settlements by huge agricultural operations, often funded by foreign investment. The unparalleled growth in this sector is also having an impact on the land, destroying the Cerrado savannah and Atlantic forest; through direct deforestation for agriculture and population growth. The story poses the question: does progress always have to have a price? Ladio Veron’s father Marcus was beaten to death in front of him by vigilantes, hired by the owner of the soya and corn farm that backs onto their community. The women from the village were raped and Ladio was covered in petrol, but narrowly escaped murder due to a witness spotting the scene. This is one of the worst cases of violence in Mato Grosso do Sul.
Phil Clarke - Hill phil@philclarkehill.co.uk philclarkehill.co.uk
Terra Brazil is the world’s largest producer of sugarcane and beef, second largest of soy and third for maize. An export industry reliant on basic commodities like this requires vast quantities of land, which has made land rights an important and controversial issue in Brazil. With any large industry comes social and environmental concerns. Agribusiness has come under fire from human rights campaigners, reporting instances of land grabbing and rural violence; in some cases rape and murder. Reports state cases of bonded labour for the indigenous communities, giving them no option but to work on the farms or fight for the rights to their ancestral land. Mato Grosso do Sul is home to 80% of the Brazilian indigenous Guarani Kaiowá population; approximately 40,000 people, who are now at real risk of losing their traditional culture and unique way of life. Many of the Guaraní have been extradited from their settlements by huge agricultural operations, often funded by foreign investment. The unparalleled growth in this sector is also having an impact on the land, destroying the Cerrado savannah and Atlantic forest; through direct deforestation for agriculture and population growth. The story poses the question: does progress always have to have a price? Ladio Veron’s father Marcus was beaten to death in front of him by vigilantes, hired by the owner of the soya and corn farm that backs onto their community. The women from the village were raped and Ladio was covered in petrol, but narrowly escaped murder due to a witness spotting the scene. This is one of the worst cases of violence in Mato Grosso do Sul.
COURSE INFORMATION PHOTOJOURNALISM MA
Length of course One year full-time or two years part-time (day) UCAS code 035659 Course Leader Max Houghton
INTRODUCTION
Application for the part-time mode should be made directly to the University, forms obtainable from: Admissions and Marketing Office T: +44 (0)20 7911 5903 E: harrow-admissions@westminster.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer Ben Edwards
Contact University of Westminster 101 New Cavendish Street London W1W 6XH
Location Harrow
T: 020 7915 5511 E: course-enquiries@westminster.ac.uk
The part-time mode is flexibly structured to suit students with different time constraints. You will experience parity with full-time students with the only difference being that you progress at a rate negotiated to accommodate your other commitments.
The emphasis of the course is on contemporary approaches to editorial and documentary photography. You will receive tuition in the history and theory of the published page, creating photo essays and single images for publication, picture editing, critical and journalistic writing, the production and design of a magazine, and conceiving and executing a successful major project. On this journey, you will gain a critical understanding of images, as well as image/text relations, which will serve you well in your future careers as the country’s foremost visual thinkers and practitioners. Graduates from Photojournalism MA are eminently employable, and regularly achieve success, awards and acclaim as photographers, picture researchers, picture editors, writers, lecturers, designers, art buyers and festival organisers.
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.
CORE MODULES Semester One
Semester Two
History and Theory of the Published Page This module aims to provide you with the historical and theoretical contexts that inform the practice and deployment of photojournalism in the contemporary media sphere. Through a series of close readings of published photographs, you will develop a critical awareness about a range of political, ethical and moral issues that confront practitioners within the media.
Magazine Editorial Production During this module you will work in groups with fellow course members to produce a finished magazine to a professional standard. Each group will devise a magazine concept, produce the photographs and text, design the pages and see the project through to print stage. Specialist design tuition and weekly editorial meetings throughout the module will monitor progress of the publication. The resulting magazine will be an important part of your final portfolio.
Photography for Publication You will focus on how to produce successful news or feature images for the press. The module will cover pre-production and postproduction of digital images in Photoshop. The Picture Story This module concentrates on the structure, form and content of the picture essay. You will produce a professional-quality photo story by the end of the module, along with a written critical assessment.
Writing Photography This module will reinforce the skills of researching and introduce the practice of writing to different models. You will develop critical tools with which to appraise the work of other writers and photographers, and engage in a through exploration of the relationship between words and pictures. Semester Three Major Project or Dissertation You will negotiate your project with your tutors, taking into account your expected career path. Projects can range from a substantial photographic portfolio on a major theme to a book dummy or website. The work produced on this module should be used as a significant career asset when you enter the world.
Entry Requirements
Associated Careers
You should posses a good first degree from a recognised university or institution of higher education, or relevant working experience to an equivalent level that equips you for postgraduate study. We welcome mature applicants with a background in the media or related areas. If your first language in not English, you will need an IELTS score of 7 or equivalent plus sufficient academic or professional background.
This course gives you a number of key skills that will make you highly employable in the media and publishing industries, whatever area you choose as your speciality, be it photography, book or magazine publishing or web-based publications. You will create work of a high standard to enhance your professional portfolio.
A charity and a company limited by guarantee. Registration number: 977818. Registered office: 309 Regent Street, London W1B 2UW. 5770/08.12/RB/GP
COURSE INFORMATION PHOTOJOURNALISM MA
Length of course One year full-time or two years part-time (day) UCAS code 035659 Course Leader Max Houghton
INTRODUCTION
Application for the part-time mode should be made directly to the University, forms obtainable from: Admissions and Marketing Office T: +44 (0)20 7911 5903 E: harrow-admissions@westminster.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer Ben Edwards
Contact University of Westminster 101 New Cavendish Street London W1W 6XH
Location Harrow
T: 020 7915 5511 E: course-enquiries@westminster.ac.uk
The part-time mode is flexibly structured to suit students with different time constraints. You will experience parity with full-time students with the only difference being that you progress at a rate negotiated to accommodate your other commitments.
The emphasis of the course is on contemporary approaches to editorial and documentary photography. You will receive tuition in the history and theory of the published page, creating photo essays and single images for publication, picture editing, critical and journalistic writing, the production and design of a magazine, and conceiving and executing a successful major project. On this journey, you will gain a critical understanding of images, as well as image/text relations, which will serve you well in your future careers as the country’s foremost visual thinkers and practitioners. Graduates from Photojournalism MA are eminently employable, and regularly achieve success, awards and acclaim as photographers, picture researchers, picture editors, writers, lecturers, designers, art buyers and festival organisers.
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.
CORE MODULES Semester One
Semester Two
History and Theory of the Published Page This module aims to provide you with the historical and theoretical contexts that inform the practice and deployment of photojournalism in the contemporary media sphere. Through a series of close readings of published photographs, you will develop a critical awareness about a range of political, ethical and moral issues that confront practitioners within the media.
Magazine Editorial Production During this module you will work in groups with fellow course members to produce a finished magazine to a professional standard. Each group will devise a magazine concept, produce the photographs and text, design the pages and see the project through to print stage. Specialist design tuition and weekly editorial meetings throughout the module will monitor progress of the publication. The resulting magazine will be an important part of your final portfolio.
Photography for Publication You will focus on how to produce successful news or feature images for the press. The module will cover pre-production and postproduction of digital images in Photoshop. The Picture Story This module concentrates on the structure, form and content of the picture essay. You will produce a professional-quality photo story by the end of the module, along with a written critical assessment.
Writing Photography This module will reinforce the skills of researching and introduce the practice of writing to different models. You will develop critical tools with which to appraise the work of other writers and photographers, and engage in a through exploration of the relationship between words and pictures. Semester Three Major Project or Dissertation You will negotiate your project with your tutors, taking into account your expected career path. Projects can range from a substantial photographic portfolio on a major theme to a book dummy or website. The work produced on this module should be used as a significant career asset when you enter the world.
Entry Requirements
Associated Careers
You should posses a good first degree from a recognised university or institution of higher education, or relevant working experience to an equivalent level that equips you for postgraduate study. We welcome mature applicants with a background in the media or related areas. If your first language in not English, you will need an IELTS score of 7 or equivalent plus sufficient academic or professional background.
This course gives you a number of key skills that will make you highly employable in the media and publishing industries, whatever area you choose as your speciality, be it photography, book or magazine publishing or web-based publications. You will create work of a high standard to enhance your professional portfolio.
A charity and a company limited by guarantee. Registration number: 977818. Registered office: 309 Regent Street, London W1B 2UW. 5770/08.12/RB/GP
westminster.ac.uk