SEEING AND FEELING

MARGARET STREET GALLERY

DOROTHY BOHM: SEEING AND FEELING

EXHIBITION: 30TH JULY- 29TH SEPTEMBER

www.margaretsteeetgallery.com
(Information below found in the exhibition handout)

I little gem of a gallery in London which happens to have featured a legend of British Photography, Dorothy Bohm. Being one of the most productive and versatile photographers for over 70 years she is still active today, with examples of her work being exhibited in public and private collections all over the world. She has published all of 14 books and has had several one-women exhibitions. At 88 her enthusiasm is still there for taking pictures and continues unabated.

Bohm came to England in 1939 after escaping Nazism in Lithuania at the age of fourteen. She finished school in Sussex and then went on to study Photography in Manchester. She later opened her own photographic studio in the same city aged 21, making a name for herself as a portrait photographer.

Polaroids 1980-82

Frequent visits to the Swiss lakes influenced her practice in outdoor photography, with the impressive quality of light and being encourage by well-known painters and sculptures, she soon exchanged studio work for images of the figure in their natural environment. After and during the mid 50's she spent a year in Paris and again encouraged by artist friends she continuously photographed and traveled to other countries and continents.

The Polaroids were the highlight of the exhibition, displayed in a glass top cabinet they were like little elements of her journey as a photographer, almost like a diary or a journal. This work has inspired me to just photograph anything and everything even if it's not relevant to any specific project you're working on, as later on they may become useful for something else. Each image above and below has a strong appearance in colour and Bohm has really used the frame to it's fullest to get every detail there is.

Polaroids 1980-82

In the early 1980's Bohm was encouraged by Andre Kertesz and began experimenting with colour polaroids and discovered a new love, no longer wishing to photograph in black and white. Colour made it possible for Bohm to express her fascination with reflections and surfaces, allowing for witty exploration of spacial ambiguity, almost verging on abstraction.

I love the format of Polaroids, as they are small and square in shape and give a really vibrant and subtle quality to the image that a digital camera can't give you. The contrast between the black and white and colour images show a difference in the way Bohm looked at things and how she decided to interpret the everyday, using expressive colours that you wouldn't normally see in a black and white image.

Monte Carlo, 1987, Manchester, 2010 (Monochrome), Spain, 2000

Bohm manages to capture the essence of everyday life and as Sir Roland Penrose wrote in his introduction to her first book, 

"Dorothy Bohm knows that her camera does not only see, it also feels. It caresses the rough surfaces of plastered walls and cobblestones, it gently strokes the bloom of a girl's cheek, it penetrates into the intimacy of a shadow".

Bond street, London, 1996, School boys and teacher, Metro Station, Paris, 1988, Bond Street, London 1997

The black and white and colour prints in the exhibition are drawn from 'A world observed', the first comprehensive retrospective of Dorothy Bohm's work, which was a major hit at Manchester Art Gallery in 2010, and the Sainsbury Centre for visual Arts, Norwich, in 2011. They are supplemented by a substantial number of jewel-like Polaroids she took between 1980 and 1982. The show coincides with 'Another London', a major exhibition being held at the Tate Britain, which includes a selection of her work, and anticipates her solo exhibition 'women in focus' at the museum of London, which opens in November.

These architectural images are stunning and although there isn't much colour in the image, 'Reichstag, Berlin 2006', the composition is enough to enthrall you in and captivate your imagination and curiosity. 

From left to right, Torn Poster, London, 1997 (foot), Torn Poster, London, 1997 (Bjork), Torn PosterMarseilles, France, 1997 (hands)

For further information, see www.dorothybohm.com 

TAYLOR WESSING PORTRAIT PRIZE

THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY-LONDON

Tuesday 31st January

Follow this link for the National Portrait Gallery website and more information:

 http://www.npg.org.uk/photoprize1/site10/index.php

This exhibition was in relation to my "Representation" project (on portraiture). It also contributes to my exhibition reviewing for visual exploration.
A very interesting and thought-provoking exhibition on contemporary portrait photography, and although there were works that didn't grab my attention, there were many that were stunning, and they were the ones that for me told a story at first glance. I have chosen one the winning image to sum up the exhibition as it stood out for me most.

Harriet and Gentleman Jack, by Jooney Woodward, has won the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize for 2011. Photograph: Jooney Woodward/PA.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2011/nov/08/taylor-wessing-portrait-prizewinner

This piece is very striking and immediately shows character and depth. Her work is taken in film, which was seen as unusual at the exhibition, however I think it gives certain uniqueness to photographs that you can't get with digital. Her red hair and the juxtaposition of the Guinea Pig is dominating the image, against the white overalls, it really shows that the two characters are as important as each other.

 "I prefer the quality and depth you get from using film; unfortunately it's a dying art."-Woodward.

The picture was taken with a Mamiya RZ medium format camera, which I am currently learning to master at University. Our portraiture project is based around medium format, so this image is a huge inspiration.

"I don't mess around with Photoshop so what you see is what you get. Enhanced images can portray a false sense of reality, whereas my work celebrates the people and places as they appear every day," she said.

Dolly Parton by Zed Nelson, 2011 © the artist

Andie

by David Knight © the artist

His portrait of 15-year-old Andiee Poetschka, was commissioned
 by Loud for the Cerebral Palsy Alliance to raise awareness of the condition throughout Australia. He says:

‘I wanted the portraits to be positive and to convey the kids in an uplifting way
 You don’t immediately notice Andiee is in a wheelchair; you just see a
 beautiful young woman. The image doesn’t demand you look at it, but gently
draws you in.’

(Information taken by The NPG website)