When I had some picture frames made for an exhibition I had (Allen Hall Gallery. Glandford. Norfolk) I unwrapped the clingfilm and the corner protectors. These are cardboard triangles fitted for protection (obviously). I thought they were worth a photo. Thrown on the floor arbitarialy in front of a window, I took a few shots. Once again; what to do with them?? They eventually ended up on a platform at Hilarys Boatyard near Perth in Australia. This is an outdoor stage for entertainment on the boardwalk at the marina; a tourist spot with hotels, cafes, restaurants, pubs etc. I photographed it because In liked the configuration. Placing the triangles on the stage seemed to work. I created the shadows for them and applied some filters. I had to crop and distort the original platform photo to adjust for the triangles.
Subterranean
Trawling through my large photo library, I came across one of many photographs I took of some contestants in a Triathlon event. They were preparing to swim in Whitlingham Great Broad. These four men were in amongst a lot of other competitors, so I isolated them from those in the background. I had trouble knowing what to do with then, so they remained on the ‘back burner’. During Covid, I used to go for long walks and one of my favourites was the University of East Anglia because no-one was there. This threw up a whole wealth of photo opportunities. Here is one example, which is the back of one of the Science blocks, with its famous concrete architecture. I thought the space was very Escher. I have applied a filter to make the scene very dank and sinister, hence the title.
Flowing Floating Rigid Strident
I was struck by the way the fishing trawler was illuminated by the low lying sun. The boat is the Lydia Eva, which is docked at the South quay in Yarmouth. It is open to the public as a floating museum. I liked the mooring rope which runs towards the camera. I eventually put it in a disused shoe factory on St. Marys Plain in Norwich! I took a few photos of the upstairs workroom with its peeling paint and large windows. I loved the space and the dilapidation. The combination was quite incongruous but sympathetic. I left the windows white and empty (as in the original photo…meter reading) to maintain the strong composition. I stretched, distorted and curved the bow of the boat to create some ‘movement’.
Perpendicular, Quite Honestly
I don’t know how I came up with the title, but the church; St. Michaels at Coslany, is a fine example of a Perpendicular style with its white stone and black flint decoration. I think it is very beautiful. I was walking along the docks at Gt. Yarmouth and saw one of the supply ships with a huge crane/lift on its stern, it looked very HG Wells!, so I had to photograph it from different angles. The white plastic containers were stacked on the quayside, I think they were improvised lobster pots. Anyway, they covered the bottom of the crane and a multitude of sins. I saturated the colour of the grass in the foreground to give the picture a base. the whole image was put through a filter to give a gritty look and accentuate the stonework. Of course the elements in the image have no relation in size.
What Does That Mean?
I had this perverse idea of replacing the cross of the crucifixion with a wooden coat hanger, the conceit being that religion can be worn when it is convenient and then stored away for future occasions. The figure of Jesus is at Walsingham which I photographed it when I visited the Holy Shrine with my mother years ago. I came across the dilapidated shed on the beach by Winterton-On-Sea by the car park. I thought it had a lot of character. I eventually married the two images, and it seemed to work. I put a halo around Jesus’s head. I saturated the colours to give the picture more strength. I don’t wish to be considered blasphemous.
Untitled No.73
There are some stainless steel (?) tubular railings that run down (up) the steps at the entrance to Cromer Pier. Here I am looking down the length of them after it had been raining, you can see my reflection in the ball. This is simply a montage of the of the set of three rails. Set behind them is a sunshade awning that is spread above a shopping arcade/street in Hobart Tasmania. I created what I think is an extraordinary visage without (as usual) any preconception and was very happy with the result. I used a filter on the sunshade to give a slightly blurred effect and a bolder definition.
Swirling (Swans)
Walking along the seafront at Yarmouth on the North Coast Path, there are some cafes that have closed for the end of the season. One of them was the Beach Terrace Tea Rooms. Like most of them, the business’s sell buckets and spades etc. I noticed by the Tea Rooms bins a discarded display frame looking sculptural. Made of thin white metal hoops and horizontal rods, it was a tiered frame for which (I thought) was designed to stack beachballs, one on top of another, about 120cm tall. I wish I could show you the original photograph….but hope you get the idea, badly explained! I isolated the background and looked for something incongruous to place it against. I immediately came across the photo I took of some swans by the Rushcutters Pub. I cropped the image and put the frame on top and started distorting and squashing it (the frame). I duplicated the said frame and distorted that too. I reduced the opacity and applied a couple of filters to the swan picture. The result was quite startling ; I had no preconceived plan and suprised myself. Its in the Figurative category because I couldn’t think where else to place it.
Gone
This is a ‘poem’ I wrote late one night whilst being maudlin, reflecting on mortality and the futility of life; one minute you’re here, the next second you’ve gone. As if, in mid sentence there is no textbook beginning to end, and time to reflect with a satisfactory conclusion. Anyway….. I did think of a photograph I had taken which might suit the prose. It was on a beach in Dar-e-Salaam in Tanzania. The couple were looking out to sea and unaware of me. The shadow of the palm tree ‘made’ the picture. I was thinking about putting something on the horizon as a point of focus. I came up with the yacht which was on the River Mersey…in Devonport, Tasmania. I edited and revised the text and hopefully merge it into the image. I put the result through a filter to soften the scenario.
The Art Of Negotiating
On the South Quay in Yarmouth there are always boats that service the offshore gas industry. On one such boat, the Isle Of Jura working for HS Marine, had two telescopic boom cranes on its stern deck. I took a couple of shots of each; both were facing in opposite directions. The picture was a process of adding and/or subtracting different elements, and eventually arriving at a complimentary composition with a credible narrative. The rope was on the quayside. The fabricated girders were stacked in Lowestoft ready to be used. I distorted the girders ( bending a rigid stance) and coloured one of the cranes red (boxing parlance…”and in the red corner….”). It’s all very tenuous, but hey!…artistic licence.
Learning How To Fly
Walking around Valletta, I came upon a small demolition/building site. Enclosing it was a temporary fencing panel, on which hung an old blanket, serving as a make-shift debris screen. It was ripped in places and looked worse for wear. I thought it looked like an art installation, so I photographed it and didn’t think anymore about it. Fast forward a couple of years and seeing the photo again, I thought it could be used as an element in a collage. As usual, I tried a few things/situations and eventually came across the electricity pylon. Stretching and adjusting the blanket behind the the girders the picture suddenly took on the appearance of The Angel Of The North, by Anthony Gormley. A bit tenuous, but striking all the same. The landscape/background went through a lot of experimentation. As you can see, the result was quite fitting. It is the outside of the Roller Coaster on South Beach Parade, Yarmouth. What you see are the panels which enclose the framework superstructure of the undulating track, being prepared for a new coat of paint. I had the title in mind half way through the creative process.