book press

 it's highly unlikely i'll ever need a book oress but, after seeing this, i want to make one!

sylvia plath

really interesting podcast re sylvia plath. i'm not the biggest plath fan, in part because of the baggage plath comes with and, for a long while i avoided her because, as a man, it just didn't seem possible to enage with her. i do like anne sexton tho and it was interesting reading her letters that the antagonistic relationship i'd been led to believe in, wasn't really supported by the primary material. plus, the sylvia plath that emerged, was much more the version that emerges in this podcast - a vibrant, interesting writer, rather than someone who killed herself and lived in the shadow of some bloke. 

back in the day i parallel read anne sexton's biography, her letters and the poems and it was a great exercise. on the basis of this i really fancy going back to plath and doing the same 

georgia o'keeffe

 georgia o'keeffe documentary? can't go wrong with that!

gary mayer

they had me at 'i work in construction'. for me, tho not at first, having a job was the single most important thing in terms of creative development. i'm not dependent on or accountable to anyone and the time i have outside of work is precious. 

labels

do photographers talk more about their work rather than actually doing it more than any other creative types? except poetry types obviously! lol but, facetiousness aside, i was quite interested in this in the way it talked about validation in relation to creative output. me, i don't publish/sell anything anymore, partly because, with visual art in particular, people kept keeping my money and/or my stuff, but mainly because that whole side of things just made me miserable.

am i lessened by it? in real terms, definitely not. i'm at a rich point in my 'creative journey' and living my best life. at the same time i haven't escaped my consumerist culture in that, if i'm not selling, am i really 'an artist'? not that bothered but interesting to think about 

logan hicks

 check this guy out! not to my taste but loving the technique. i've no idea how he gets his stencils made - here, i can't even get a decent bnw print made! lol so no chance to try it.  website here 

beckett

 i'm not going to lie, i'm excited about this. love, love, love beckett 

larissa huff

 of whom i know nothing beyond this. that said as a fully paid up member of the patriarchy it's been interesting as my life's gone by to watch as i see my firsts - female medical consultants, firefighters, bike mechanics etc etc. and i'm so old now i'm meeting the female children of the above at work! (time to retire!). 

why is this important? because when i was a father/uncle etc i felt i really needed to be able to show my little women what was possible, not just say it. that said, it's an ongoing process. it's been gladdening to see more female photographers out and about but as yet i only know two female pinhole photographers. sound recording i think i only know one one female sound recordist. and i've never met a female cabinet maker so now i've seen larissa huff i'm waiting for her to appear.  

learning another language

i don't think i have enough life left for my language learning needs but if i did, and i could, shona would be right up there. for no good reason other than the loveliness of it upon the tongue. check it out 

raiders of the lost ark - the soderbergh mix

after yesterday's post here's this. i couldn't find the soderbergh cut and, while this is a bit didactic, you'll get the point.

black and white

it's true that my photographic practice at the moment is entirely monochrome but that doesn't mean i think bnw is 'better'. i love a lush macro even if i don't like to think about the photshopping, let alone the in camera work, that goes into it. i'm kind of the same about film. as i've said before i really don't watch much in the way of films or movies these days but i do like a self indulgent sunday with some old classics. it makes me wistful for black and white movies.

so here's this. fury road was likely the last action movie i actually enjoyed and i love the notion here that the colour version is like a musical! 

cycling west sweden

every so often i like to torture myself with a video from sweden. brexit, brexit, brexit. that's all i'll say about that.  plus a healthy chunk of swedish bureaucracy but it is what is is and i am where i am. nevertheless i miss the place and the life i thought i might once have had. this vid has all the bits i like. except the running! lol sverige är bäst! 

large format developing

 i do have a super simple darkroom and, while i'd love to use a large format camera, i'm not sure i want to be committing the money to the process, even though the image making is lovely. were i to do so tho, who better to guide than martin henson? 

*i will be getting a couple more pinhole cameras tho. after that i think i'll be delving into macro

not accepting the rain

finally the weather is appropriate for sptember, i had to put the heating on briefly last night and a solid rain is falling. which is a relief but at the same time i'm not going to accept it. having a painting day and going to fill my ears with summer vibes 

el ministerio del tiempo

after yesterday's link to rtve play here's el minsterio del tiempo, my favourite spanish series ever. i can just about follow it with spanish subtitles but when i first saw it with english subtitles it was both a joy and an education! and funny. if anyone ever sees the english subtitled box set....

luis garcia montero

it's been a long time since i posted any poetry and, to be honest, i can't remember what i last read in english. i do, however, still like reading poetry in other languages, not least for the vocabulary practice! here's this  (i don't know who the translation is by - not me or it would've been shonkier!)

La ausencia es una forma de invierno

 

Como el cuerpo de un hombre derrotado en la nieve,

con ese mismo invierno que hiela las canciones

cuando la tarde cae en la radio de un coche,

como los telegramas, como la voz herida

que cruza los teléfonos nocturnos,

igual que un faro cruza

por la melancolía de las barcas en tierra,

como las dudas y las certidumbres,

como mi silueta en la ventana,

así duele una noche,

con ese mismo invierno de cuando tú me faltas,

con esa misma nieve que me ha dejado en blanco,

pues todo se me olvida

si tengo que aprender a recordarte.

Absence is a form of winter

Like a man's body defeated in the snow,

with that same winter that freezes the songs

when afternoon falls on a car radio,

like telegrams, like the voice wounded

who crosses the late night phones,

Just like a cross lighthouse

for the melancholy of the ships on land,

like doubts and certainties,

like my silhouette in the window,

so it hurts one night,

with that same winter when I miss you,

with the same snow that has left me white,

because I forget everything

if I have to learn to remember you.

you can listen to him reading it here

anselm

 no surprise i'm excited about this 

the last letterpress

 lovely wee film about a traditional printers which, somehow, is still managing to keep afloat. as i get older i find myself drawn more and more to these type of endeavours (indeed, sadly, all my sound recording gear and electronica is lying redundant as part of this), whether it's bookbinding, pinhole photography, mechanical bikes, or  

martin henson

martin henson's a niche pinhole treasure. this video on its own made me sit up and think about what i'm doing when i make images. absolutely subscribe.  

big daddy kane

 more old school rap with a band 

rakim

 old school rap with a band! outstanding! 

taking pinhole pictures

 here's ari, with a decent dive into the world of pinhole photography. you don't need all the shenanigans to start but if you do...you will! lol (talking of which 4x5 film holders are not cheap - if anyone wants to sort a brother out with a good deal, i'm all ears!) 

here's a second binus ari video. warning - instrument abuse ahead! a couple of things. first, you can make an image making tool out of just about anything - i'd super encourage this behaviour as it's a lark (see previous camera obscura posts). secondly, you'll note the presence of ukuleles, pianos etc in ari's house. having different interests is essential to practice! and, imo, the more analogue the better! 

women and photography

early women's photography. well, early wealthy women's photography but nonetheless. not the most dynamic vid but worth a listen 

and a bonus vid re julia margaret cameron. because i'm a fan but also that quote 'through endless failures....' 

toshio shibata

 hahaha! yt threw this up and i remembered i have a toshio shibata book in the house. as i'm taking a lot of pinhole images currently the problem of sky is always current, esp as, for the time being, i'm using the pinhole as a documentary tool. reflectivity of built surfaces - that's a whole other thing! lol but, it's always the way that the more that you look at ohter people's work, the more you get inspired, allow yourself to be influenced, or just see a different way of treating problems 

tim's vermeer

 after going on about this the other week the whole documentary pops up on yt. i found it really interesting, not so much re vermeer (there was some criticism around it, some justified, some just plain sniffy), but definitely as a portrait of a fixation. unfortunately the documentary makers don't really go into that at all. fair play to tim tho, he knew what he wanted to do and he got it done! 

portrait of nature

i'm never likely to do any of this sort of printing. i did do a wet plate collodion course a while ago but, while interesting, it wasn't for me. that said, i do love watching the process. so here's this  

long distance biking in scotland

 camping - cold, wet, getting eaten alive by midgies, cleggs and ticks, awful food, bad sleep. here's these guys doing it so that you don't have to 

and away from the sausage party of male cycling here's evidence that this sort of masochism isn't solely the domain of a y chromosome 

maybe i'd have been up for this caper when i was younger but there's so no chance i'd do this now (which altho i say this i have to admit to still have a cupboard full of gear that i can't sell/give away just yet!). that said, nestled on the couch, nice and warm, i like a watch of these things. fair play and well done to all involved.

bass practice

okay, not just bass practice, but it's the one i find most fun to do. as summer draws to a close i'm finding i'm picking up instruments and having a noodle. i really like desmond doom's videos because not only are they entertaining and funny but they're also really good to play along to or give you a starting point to branch off and do your own thing. i like the bass best - riffs are always easy but decent technique is the thing to really focus on. i don't love a computer these days but good also for having a fiddle with your daw. 

another camera obscura post

 once i regain the ability to bend over i want to get started on making another camera obscura and i'm going to use the plans that this guy has attached to this handy video. i ordered new magnifying glasses last week and they're waiting for use. i'm keen to make it old smartphone compatible, as previous, but i'm also aware, due to an acute lack of decent weather this year, my anthotype making has been non-existent and i'm wondering, with focused light, if i could put a sheet of reactive paper in there and get some sort of result. or a cyanotype? time will tell.