Image Mark Page"Street photography" on the whole leaves me pretty cold. All that decisive moment stuff, comedy juxtaposing all seasoned with a splash of surrealism and a big dollop of irony. But confronted with this scene while I was waiting for the tram how could I resist?
Image copyright Alec Soth"Thirty-three Theatres & a Funeral Home" is, if not brand new, newly uploaded to Alec Soth's website. http://www.alecsoth.com/cinema/pages/cinema.html Commissioned by Magnum, It's a typology which is not Soth's usual method. Great stuff though, bringing his usual large format, measured, response to this most American of subjects, the "movie house".
Image copyright Nigel ShafranThere's so much interesting stuff on Nigel Shafran's site it's hard to know where to begin. http://www.nigelshafran.com/
Archaeology by Lisa Risbec & poetry by Gaia Holmes.
Spent a great afternoon yesterday down at Urbis http://www.urbis.org.uk/ watching "showreel" which was slide shows from various North West photographers organised by The Kiosk Gallery & also short films from Comma Films. http://www.kioskgallery.co.uk/ Many of the photographers have been featured here on this blog before. In fact in the case of Julian McKenny, David Dunnico and Seba Kurtis very recently.
I'd not got a clue though about Comma Films or Comma press until yesterday. Comma Press is a not-for-profit publishers who concentrate on innovative poetry and short stories who have already made a bit of a name for themselves, described as "Trailblazing" by The Arts Coucil. http://www.commapress.co.uk/?section=about Now if you put that kind of writing together with some great young film makers well you get something special. http://www.commapress.co.uk/
The first ever photography blog that I read on a regular basis was the very excellent but now defunct Alec Soth blog. http://www.alecsoth.com/ Each Friday Alec would upload a poem by different author's this section was called "The Friday Poem" and although there were many good ones a lot were to be honest, just crap.
JM Colberg has, over on his blog http://www.jmcolberg.com/weblog/ started doing what he calls "The Friday mix" featuring music video's.
So as this kind of Friday "treat" on photography blogs seems to be the done thing Manchester Photography brings you "Funny as Fuck Fridays". First up The brilliant Dave Spikey from Phoenix Nights and "Black Bin Bags"......................................
Glad I found Ed Panar's work www.edpanar.com thought it was intriguing and wanted to know more about it's but not much by way of text on his site. Luckily found this interview with Ed over on "This is That"http://johannareed.blogspot.com/2008/02/interview-w-ed-panar.html
Image copyright Dryden GoodwinOften working with unsuspecting subjects in and around London, Goodwin's work Explores the dialogue between photography and drawing. www.drydengoodwin.com He has a solo show opening this Friday 26th at The Photographer's Gallery, London entitled "Cast". Until 16th November http://www.photonet.org.uk/index.php?pxid=943
Image copyright Julian McKenny
After the last post here's a picture. You can have that. It's yours. Print it off as many times as you like. I would make it bigger but Blogger limits me. 
For The Love of God
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Images courtesy of oldsalford.co.ukSo that's my little rundown. By no means complete I'm sure but it should give you something to look at over the weekend. If you know of anymore, let me know. I'm going to go and put that lot on the side bar as a links list. I do all this for you for free you know, ain't I lovely..............
Images by Jill Greenburg although she may well be wishing they weren't.
Image copyright Erik BokerThe above image is from Erik Boker's www.erikboker.com series "Product Dissections" It's about, art science, nature, consumerism, institutions, product, fabrication, etc. I kid you not! Erik explains it here: http://erikboker.com/texts.htm good stuff, and also check out "God for Dummies" not telling ya go see...........
Animation & image copyright David Shrigley
I knew about David Shrigley's http://www.davidshrigley.com/ smart little drawing's and animations, but not about his photographs http://www.davidshrigley.com/list_photographs.html
Image copyright Graham MillerI've never been so I'm probably completely wrong and I'm sure it's not, but I've always thought Australia is a little bit scary. A little bit like us, a little bit like America but....different, I don't know just a bit strange. And I think that goes for Australian photographer Graham Miller's work, but in a good way, a very good way.He manages to cram so much tension and atmosphere into his pictures, each one is like a minnie film, a stage set. So when he puts together a series like "Suburban Splendour" well see for yourselves:http://www.grahammiller.com.au/?goto=suburbansplendour&thumbs=ok
Image copyright Ber MurphyI first became aware of Ber's work because of Blurb's (the self-publishing people) book competition. www.blurb.com here to vote order, see Bur's book "Sleeping Giant/11101 Rezoned" http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/208640 here for details of the project: http://www.bermurphyphotography.com/sleepinggiant.html and here for Mr Murphy's website: http://www.bermurphyphotography.com/
Sorry this post seems a bit rushed today, it's because it is. I'm trying to get in a proposal in, in retrospect! (which is an odd way of doing things I know) for a commission I have, well subject to funding! Fuck, this game can be really complicated at times. Will tell you about it soon but got to dash, laters.... I'll leave you in the capable hands of Ber Murphy. Who's also a blogger http://pelicula64.blogspot.com/
"In The Real World "
"By The Ways"
Two trailer's from two films helping to build the legend. First up "In The Real World" by Michael Almereyda, here:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443698/
and number two "By The Ways" by Vincent Gerard & Cedric Laty, here:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0492450/
Not sure though how easy these are to get hold of in the UK. "In The Real World" which, apparently is the weaker of the two can be bought on UK Amazon, but only in an American format which needs a special DVD player. Still, enjoy the (short) clips...........
Liverpool Biennial International 08: MADE UP Nancy Davenport20 September - 30 November.
Images copyright JH EngstromWhat JH Engstrom has to say about "Trying To Dance" which is the first series in the trilogy that also includes, "Haunts" and "Wells".
"I’m always looking for presence.Whenever I try, my doubts get unmasked.Easier then to stick with absence.I’m not trying to prove anything.I don't have that many memories yet."
The Three images above are one image from each of those series. As you can see they are for want of a better word eclectic. This is an artist who isn't in the least bit scared to change style, method aesthetic at will, to show his vision. No single style or photograph is enough, different tacks, sequences and layer after layer of meaning. This is blurring boundaries between visual art and what? poetry? archive? diary? It's hard work, but rewarding. http://www.jhengstrom.com/index.html
Image copyright Seba KurtisSometimes you can get "blogger block" (that's copyright of me by the way) and then you end up fucking about doing silly posts like the last one, and that's what was happening tonight. I was just finishing off my bedtime glass of red, (a little more Rock n Roll than Horlicks but only just) when ping my inbox gets a new message.
Hallelujah, to that when I read it. It was from Seba Kurtis telling me about his new show entitled "700 miles" that's opening here in Manchester from 19 Sept - 07 Nov 2008 at Kiosk Gallery, AMC Foyer, Great Northern Warehouse, Deansgate, Manchester. Opening hours 10am-10pm.
In brief it's about illegal immigration in the USA largely Mexicans, and the worry by White Americans that their culture and lifestyle are under threat, (ring any bells UK) Anyway this is one exhibition I am really looking forward to. Also take a look at Seba's site for other great work as it doesn't stop with "700 Miles", oh no! http://www.sebakurtis.com/ and here for more details http://www.foto8.com/home/content/view/612/161/ and here as well http://1000wordsphotographymagazine.blogspot.com/ and here for details on Kiosk Gallery although as usual their site could do with an update! http://www.kioskgallery.co.uk/ Seba was born in Argentina, and having been an illegal himself in Europe for five years this work is seasoned with plenty of self-experience. Seba is now based here in the North-West and for that we should be truly grateful...............................
Image copyright Glen ErlerLast tonight, but not least Glen Erler. www.glenerler.com some great (lots) of projects, with simple non wafflely statements for each one.
Image copyright Josef Koudelka
Yep, I obviously had not been paying attention because I only found out really about this yesterday. I remember the "Becks Fusion"http://www.becks.co.uk/fusion.aspx thing going on last year in Manchester but didn't pay it much heed as the main event was happening in London with the Chemical Brothers. This year the organisers must have realised that if you really want a party then Manchester is the place. So yesterday my ears pricked up. Massive Attack and Art you say, FREE you say, I'll have a bit of that I say. So off I went down to Castlefield. "Can I have some FREE Massive Attack tickets please?" I asked waiting for the posh southern blond girl in the ticket booth to laugh in my ugly northern face. "Sure no problem" she chirped in an annoyingly pleasant manner.
Now of course non of this helps you lot unless you've already got tickets, as I believe they had to be won. Yesterday's give away was just a token for locals, so sorry if I've got you all excited. You could get on the old railway line behind, (But I never told you that, but it does bring me to a future post, more another day) Anyway if your not going to the huge FREE Massive Attack/Art extravaganza you could go to New Islington's folky festival thingy instead, organised in part by Urban Cash. Urm Becks & Massive Attack or homemade Ancoates cider & Banjo's?http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=102416808 Still, we will be united by the fact that we are all going to get piss wet through............ http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/5day.shtml?id=2613
Images copyright Justin James Reed
Image copyright Henry IddonOnce you get over the strange and "clunky" website design http://www.spots-of-time.co.uk/map.php You start to discover impressive landscape photographs of The Lake District by Blackpool based photographer Henry Iddon. Landscape photography especially of somewhere so over photographed as the lakes is not something that would usually register on my radar, but depending on whose review of the series "Spots of Time" you read, there is something more interesting going on than just another set of romantic pictorial images of one of England's most popular tourist spots.
These are no longer pristine natural wildernesses as they were in Wordsworth's day.They are now peppered with the glow of towns and villages. They appear like cultures forming on a petra dish, they prevent the viewer from ever finding an escape here from the onslaught of modern, overcrowded British life, and it's this, that for me, makes this work interesting. Iddon talks about the work at the next Redeye networking meet in Manchester on the 9th September 2008, start time is 6.30pm, drinks and networking from 6.00pm. The venue is: Manchester Digital Development Agency Lower Ground Floor 117-119 Portland Street ManchesterM1 6ED
From the series "Ultima Thule" by Tiina ItkonenItkonen'shttp://www.kashyahildebrand.org/zurich/itkonen/itkonen003_010.html personnel odyssey to find her place in the North. "Ultima Thule" is inspired by the story "The Mother of the Sea". It can be seen at The Michael Hoppen Gallery, London until October 7th. http://www.michaelhoppengallery.com/exhibition,current,3,0,0,0,56,0,0,0,tiina_itkonen_ultima_thule.html?link=exhibition%2Ccurrent%2C3%2C0%2C0%2C0%2C56%2C0%2C0%2C0%2Ctiina%5Fitkonen%5Fultima%5Fthule%2Ehtml&searchString=%5Flevel0%2Erow%5F0&index=12&iD=0&targetButton=%5Flevel0%2Ebutton%5F0&targetCover=%5Flevel0%2Ecover%5F0&targetBackground=%5Flevel0%2Ed%5F0&targetLabel=%5Flevel0%2Eb%5F0&onRollOver=%5Btype+Function%5D&onDragOut=%5Btype+Function%5D&onRollOut=%5Btype+Function%5D&onRelease=%5Btype+Function%5D
