Photojournalism Now: Friday Round Up - 26 May, 2017

This week on Photojournalism Now: Friday Round Up - the 14th Auckland Festival of Photography, farewell to Stills Gallery in Sydney, and last days to see #dysturb's exhibition in Melbourne.

Festival:
Auckland Festival of Photography
1-24 June

Next week I'll be blogging live from the 14th annual Auckland Festival of Photography. This week a few images from two feature exhibitions, one curated by noted Bangladeshi photojournalist and activist Shahidul Alam on this year's theme, Identity.

The other, a group show Ata Te Tangata curated by Rosanna Raymond and featuring works by indigenous Aoteroa New Zealand photographers including two of the past recipients of the Festival's annual commission, Russ Flatt and Tanu Gago. The Festival opens Thursday 1st June. See the Festival website for all the details.

Group Show curated by Shahidul Alam.
Featuring: J.D. Okhai Ojeikere, Dina Goldstein, Pushpamala N, Kim Hak, Çağdaş Erdoğan and Shahria Sharmin.

(C) Dina Goldstein - Gods of Suburbia


(C) JD Okhai Ojeikere 


(C) Kim Hak - Alive


(C) Pushpamala N - Native Women of South India: Manners and Customs


(C) Shahria Sharmin - Call Me Heena


(C) Çağdaş Erdoğan - Night Blind

1-20 June

Silo 6, Silo Park, Auckland City


Ata Te Tangata


(C) Aitu Falencie by Pati Solomona Tyrell


(C) Natalie Robertson Driftwood


(C) Ena Ena by Tuafale Tanoa'i aka Linda T


(C) Tanu Gago - Raukawa


(C) Siliga Setoga - Oki fa’a kama Samoa moni lou ulu

(C) Russ Flatt - Spoon

Until 15 June
Studio One Toi Tu
1 Ponsonby Road
Ponsonby

Farewell: Sydney
Curtain Call - Stills Gallery, 

After 16 years Stills Gallery in Paddington (Sydney) is to close its doors. It's a sad day for photography, another nail in the coffin, and perhaps indicative of the maturity of the photography collector market in this country. I have enjoyed many shows at Stills, a marvellous space and one I hope may continue as an art space. Congratulations to the team at Stills for flying the flag for so long.

In the gallery's final exhibition Curtain Call, "we are taking the opportunity to look back over the history of the gallery to present the mother of all salon hangs featuring over 70 artists from over the 26 years of exhibitions. Here is a selection of the works on show.

Michael Light, The Moon Seen From 1000 Miles, Showing Farside Highlands; Photographed by Kenneth Mattingly, Apollo 16, April 16-27, 1972, 1972/1999, digital type C print, 100 x 100cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney.

Pat Brassington, Going, 2010, pigment print, 100 x 72cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney.

Brenda L Croft, full/blood, pigment print, 111.2 x 90.5cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney. 

Justine Varga, Carry-on, type C hand print, 97 x 78cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney.

Mark Kimber They never, never wake again who sleep upon your bed!, 2012, pigment print, 40 x 40cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney.

Robyn Stacey, Surrender (blue), 2001, type C print, 183 x 123cm. Courtesy of the artist and STILLS Gallery, Sydney.
Until 30 June
Stills Gallery
36 Gosbell Street
Paddington

Exhibition: Melbourne

#whereilaymyhead - #dysturb
Last Days 

This exhibition features the work of nine photojournalists, in paste-ups on the street and on the walls of Hillvale Gallery in the inner Melbourne suburb of Brunswick: Ismail Ferdous, Malin Fezehai, Barat Ali Batoor, Daro Sulakauri, Emin Ozmen, Ashley Gilbertson, Jane Hahn, Laura Boushnak and Alexandra Rose Howland. (Below: photos from the opening night)

And at McKinnon Secondary College (below)

 

© Benjamin Petit

Ends 28 May

Hillvale Gallery
342D Albert Street
Brunswick

Check out Dysturb's new website for more information on what this innovative group is doing. 

Friday Round Up - 29th April, 2016

This week it's all about Head On Photo Festival which opened in Sydney tonight. A crowd of around 1000 packed the Lower Sydney Town Hall to find out who were the winners of the prestigious Head On Photo Awards that are sponsored by Fujifilm this year. Congratulations to...



HEAD ON PORTRAIT PRIZE

First place: Antonio Heredia - Survivor

“Some years ago, 29 year-old lawyer Oscar Prieto was diagnosed with brain cancer. Following surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Oscar was able to beat the disease. Nowadays, he is the president of ASATE, an organization which provides help and guidance to those affected by brain cancer. By showing his own scars, Oscar tries to inspire and demonstrate that one can overcome cancer.”

Second place Giles Clarke - Toxic Trespass

“Sameer, 16, is held by his mother Wahida at home in Bhopal's Jamalpura neighborhood. Sameer was born to parents contaminated by carcinogenic and mutagenic water stemming from the 1984 Union Carbide gas tragedy which has claimed 25,000 lives to date. For decades thousands of families have used contaminated water leading to serious illness and birth defects, as afflicted Sameer. The title refers to scholar-activist Sandra Steingraber's concept of toxic trespass, in which toxic chemicals enter our bodies without our consent.”

Third place Kristian Taylor-Wood - HighScroller, Lauren Winzer

“Lauren is one of the shining lights of the increasingly fashionable tattoo industry. Her quirky and unique pop-art tattooing style and expertise at blogging and social media have made her one of the most recognised names in the tattoo game. Lauren currently has 205K followers on Instagram, with the likes of Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus banging on her door to get inked. This portrait is part of a larger series named HighScrollers.”

LANDSCAPE PRIZE

First place David Chancellor - Giraffe, Blue Sheet, Eastern Cape South Africa

“The Fallen. There's a moment between life and death, sleeping and waking that passes in an instant. For the briefest of moments one can see the beast at peace, calm and in a world that only he inhabits. All the chaos and trauma that went before is no longer bothersome; whilst vets regroup or hunters high five he waits patiently for life to start once more, or for some this is the end, and as I watch, the eye no longer is the gateway to the soul, but rather a reflection of the sky.”

Second place Paul Hoelen – Vanilla Sky

“Mining access roads built through the salt pan lake of Lake Lefroy, south of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.”

Third place Yasmin Mund - Rooftop Dreams, Varanasi

“It was 5:30am and I had just arrived at my guesthouse in Varanasi and instinctively climbed the 7 flights of stairs to see the sunrise over the famous river Ganga. As I looked over the side of the rooftop terrace my jaw dropped in disbelief. Below were mothers, fathers, children, cats, dogs, monkeys all sleeping on the roofs. It was mid-summer in Varanasi and sleeping without AC was difficult.”

Landscape NSW Award Ireneusz Luty - Manly Beach, Sydney

“Part of the series City de Noir. City de Noir assembles a suite of black and white images that focus on presenting intimate moments extracted from the urban environment. Through this, the selection draws attention to and captures both fleeting moments and particular contexts that might represent the unseen and overlooked life within the city of Sydney. Pictures employ long-exposure infrared techniques to capture the dynamism with a sensitive restraint of palette and temporality.”

MOBILE PRIZE

First place Andrew Robert Morgan - Losing Independence

“My grandfather, Albert, is forced to take a back seat ride home after a family dinner because he is no longer allowed to drive at night. He is an extremely independent 87 year old man, but the truth is that he cannot continue doing everything himself.”

Second place Markus Andersen - Veil 

Third place Ako Salemi - Freedom

“A woman covered by a burqa passes by the Roze Sharif holy shrine in Mazar-e-Sharif, where white pigeons often congregate. The pigeon is the symbol of freedom in Afghanistan.”

STUDENT PRIZE

First place Isabelle Sijan – Girl See’s All

“Girl Sees All depicts the average teenage girl looking at life’s obstacles. This is represented via the snow-caps of New Zealand’s Mount Cook, which can be seen as a double exposure in the subject’s eyes. While the mountain may seem out of place, especially considering the somewhat empty background, it acts as a representation of the obstacles in one’s life – whether a physical challenge or mental – and thus is not equally reflected in the setting behind the girl.”

Second place Pia Wylie - Façade

“My artwork involves placing a physical object in the form of a mirror into the natural environment, blending and blurring the lines between reality and the reflection of reality via the manmade. I love the idea of allowing a photograph, something that is 2D to show multiple facades. I aim to evoke a sense of contemplation and allow the audience to create their own personal reflection through the complex and almost surreal image.”

Third place Ana Burenkova - Stunned

“The water was colder than they thought it would be. I managed to capture the exact moment that they both realised they'd made a terrible mistake.”

To find out more about Head On Photo Festival which is on in Sydney at various venues visit the website here.

Head On Photo Festival Awards - The Winners

Friday Round Up - Special Update: 1st May, 2015 8pm Sydney

Head On Photo Festival Awards...and the winners are:

PORTRAIT PRIZE
Being Sandra
Molly Harris

“Sandra was born as John but started living as Sandra 6 years ago. When she became Sandra she left behind a career that spanned 37 years in the Air force. In this photo Sandra is getting ready for Anzac Day.”

LANDSCAPE PRIZE
Urban landscape. Central Jakarta, Indonesia
Alfonso Perez

“Jakarta is a heavily populated metropolis full of contrasts with few green spaces. Shepherds from neighboring villages bring their sheep to graze at Karet Bivat cemetery; one of the largest in Jakarta. In the background stands Wisma 46, which at 250 metres tall, is the tallest building in Indonesia.”

MOBILE PRIZE
Life
Laki Sideris

“Found it on my phone sometime after my mother's funeral. I can't remember taking it.”

STUDENT PRIZE
Shattered Euphoria
Paul Philpott

“It's my northern lights.”

MOVING IMAGE PRIZE
Stereotypes - What are you listening to?
Dan Gray

“Headphones can offer a world of comfort and control within the disconnected and chaotic environment of a busy city. Far from tuning-out of the world, we found our subjects were wanting to tune-in and be tuned-in to. Music not only provides a soundtrack to city life, it also provides a soul.”

Friday Round Up - 20 June, 2014

This week on Friday Round Up last chance to see two fantastic exhibitions in Sydney, World Refugee Day in Melbourne and a new exhibition at Monash Gallery of Art explores the notion of 'the road'.

Exhibitions: State Library NSW
Ends 22 June

(C) Phillipe Lopez - World Press Photo 2014

This weekend is your last chance to see two exhibitions currently showing at the State Library of NSW in Sydney - World Press Photo and Sydney Morning Herald Photos 1440.

I saw both of these exhibitions at the State Library, which is a brilliant setting for these large scale shows. Viewing the works with me were high-school students who had the opportunity to learn about the images and their makers, as well as a large cross-section of the general public. While I was there  a steady stream of people moved through the exhibitions, and many left via the bookshop. Clearly there is a market and an audience for quality photography in this country and it was heartening to see such attendance.

Sydney Morning Herald Photos 1440 

(C) Nick Moir

With 1440 minutes to the day this exhibition presents photographs taken by Sydney Morning Herald photographers in the course of their daily jobs. When this show went up all of the exhibiting photographers were in the employ of Fairfax Media, the Herald's publisher. With the recent decimation of the photography department at the Herald, these former staffers are now swimming in the overcrowded freelance pool while the Herald takes its images from agencies. More cost-cutting measures marking the continued demise of original, quality content made even more depressing by the exhibition's narrative that reinforced the important work that these photographers do in capturing unique views of Sydney and its people. 

(C) Anthony Johnson 

(C) Jenny Evans

(C) Kate Geraghty 

World Press Photo 2014
I really admire the way the World Press Photo (WPP) exhibitions are presented. With clear information panels that support the large scale images the WPP is all encompassing. Having viewed many of these winning images on screen it was fantastic to see them in reality and to gain an understanding of scope. John Stanmeyer's winning photograph (below) was even more impressive in print. While this photograph has attracted controversy, for me it speaks volumes about the world today, our reliance on technology and above all, our will to hope. 

(C) John Stanmeyer


(C) Alessandro Penso


(C) Julius Schrank

Until Sunday 22nd June
State Library of NSW
Sydney

Screening:
Beyond Borders
MAPgroup 

(C)Silvi Glattauer

On Sunday at 12noon on the Big Screen at Federation Square the film 'Beyond Borders' will be aired as part of the activities to celebrate World Refugee Day. 'Beyond Borders' is a collaborative project with refugees and asylum seekers and members of the MAPgroup; MAP stands for Many Australian Photographers. 

“Beyond Borders presents an alternative view around some of the issues relating to asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. The topic of asylum seekers and refugees dissects our community, yet few of us have met, befriended or shared stories with people in the unenviable position of having to seek asylum in another country. If we believe Australia is the sum of all her parts, we as citizens all benefit from knowing more about this topic and about the people in this position" - MAPgroup. 

(C) Ponch Hawkes

(C) Naomi Herzog

(C) Joseph Feil

(C) Joyce Evans

(C) Juanita Wilson

(C)Silvi Glattauer

MAPgroup members involved with the 'Beyond Borders' project include Silvi Glattauer, Julie Bowyer, Tobias Titz, Ponch Hawkes, Morganna Magee, Nicole Marie, Joseph Feil, Andrew Chapman, Naomi Herzog, Jenny Hodge, Jim McFarlane, Helga Leunig, Juanita Wilson, Julia Millowick and Joyce Evans.

World Refugee Day
Sunday 22nd June
Beyond Borders screens 12noon
Federation Square
Melbourne

Exhibition:
The Road - Group Show

(C) Micky Allan

The ‘road’ has long been the subject of artistic expression, a symbol of the physical and allegorical paths we follow. In this group exhibition featuring eight artists - Micky Allan, Virginia Coventry, Gerrit Fokkema, John Gollings, Tim Handfield, Ian North, Robert Rooney, Wes Stacey - the archives of the Monash Gallery of Art have been mined to uncover works taken in the 1970s and 1980s. These photographs examine the meaning of the road in modern Australian life through the exploration of the relationship of photography and the experience of road travel.

MGA Curator Stephen Zagala says, "The road has often provided Australian photographers with a means to an end, whether a landscape or a picturesque community in some distant part of the country. But as this important exhibition shows, during the 1970s, the road took on a whole new meaning for Australian photographers. It provided a space for innovation and experimentation, and also a photographic reconsideration of Australian life."

(C) Wesley Stacey


(C) Tim Handfield

The exhibition features Wes Stacey's visual travelogue of the trips he made in the early seventies around Australia in a Kombi. "The Road" also includes John Gollings’s monumental, ten-metre long streetscapes of Surfers Paradise Boulevard from 1973, and Robert Rooney’s iconic Holden park, featuring Rooney's Holden parked in 20 different locations across Melbourne. "The Road" also features work by "two of Australia’s most important feminist photographers, Micky Allan and Virginia Coventry, who both challenged many of the gendered assumptions about the road, automotive travel and Australian life during the ‘70s and ‘80s".

Opens Saturday 21st June at 3pm

Until 31 August
Monash Gallery of Art
860 Ferntree Gully Rd, Wheelers Hill
(Melbourne)