Think Of A Project, Any Project

It's my final year at university.  I can't quite believe how fast it has come around.  When I handed in my notice at work in 2013 I was quite calm in the knowledge that I had a plan for the next three years, but now, those three years have become eight short months.  So many shades of scary.

I'm doing a double module in Photography this year entitled Digital Photography: Production, Curation and Exhibition.  There are three assignments, create a Portfolio; write a Critical Evaluation;
and host a Production Event; the conclusion to the project.

First things first, I need to think of a topic for my project.  The world and everything in it is my oyster, I can chose any topic I like.  That's quite a lot to consider.  To try to narrow this down I thought about the things I am most passionate about and what I felt would be worthwhile exploring in greater detail.  I have a great love for wildlife, nature and the coast.  For one of my modules last year I went a placement to Costa Rica where I volunteered at a national park where they monitor sea turtles.  Although it was probably on the periphery of my mind, I'd never really considered just how much plastic makes it's way into our seas and, in turn, our marine life.  In Costa Rica, I experienced it first hand with daily beach cleaning patrols.  For a beach that is monitored for plastic on a regular basis, we still managed to collect several black bags full of plastic each day.

When I got home, as always seems to be the case when a thing you just found out about suddenly seems to crop up everywhere, this video showing a research team who found a turtle with a 10-12cm plastic straw lodged in it's nostril, was released in August this year.

Video courtesy of Christine Figgener

*****warning: strong language and graphic scenes*****

Over the summer I kept an eye out for other news articles about plastics in our oceans and anything else related to this subject.  I went to the Environmental Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Royal Geographical Society in London.  The competition is an international showcase for the very best in environmental photography and film. Honouring amateurs and professionals of all ages, it provides an opportunity for photographers to share images of environmental and social issues with international audiences, and to enhance our understanding of the causes, consequences and solutions to climate change and social inequality.

Eduardo Leal's project, Plastic Trees, was made to raise awareness of the problems caused by plastic bags on the Bolivian Altiplano.

Image courtesy of Eduardo Leal

These images are not specific to this area of the world, I know I can remember seeing plastic bags caught in trees in my local park, it is something we are all witness too.

I am currently researching other photographers who have created photography projects on the impact people and industry have had on the environment to further inform my own project.  More information on this in a couple of weeks.

If you would like to support Christine's research into sea turtles, visit her Go Fund Me webpage.

Zanele Muholi Exhibition, Open Eye Gallery, Review

Art can sometimes take the form of political and social activism, with the artist seeking to influence a culture and society.  The Open Eye Gallery in Liverpool is currently hosting the Zanele Muholi Vukani/Rise exhibition.  Muholi is a self-titled "visual activist" who uses photography as her medium to communicate her message and affect the lives of people around her.  All of her projects are ongoing and encourage the viewer to bear and share witness to the dehumanising of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and intersexual (LGBTI), South African community.

The exhibition includes a selection of images from four of Muholi's projects, Faces and Phases; ZaVa; Brave Beauties; and Mo(u)rning.  We are first introduced to Faces and Phases, a growing collection of black and white portraits of the black South African lesbian and transgender male community.  Muholi's aim is to give her participants a voice and visual presence.  She works closely with each person, on location in their home, teasing out their strength, dignity and personality, which translate into their relaxed stance in front of the camera.  Notable empty spaces are visible between the faces peering out at the viewer to represent those who have been lost to the aggression, intolerance and ignorance.

You are introduced to the other projects in the next room of the gallery, dominated by an image from Muholi's blog, Inkanyiso, of Nathi Dlamini after she attended the funeral of a gay man who was brutally attacked and raped by a group of men for being gay.  The funeral was a celebration of the life of someone who didn't hide away and this is reflected in the larger than life, 2m plus, glamorous image of Dlamini in her eye-catching outfit.

ZaVa is a collection of intimate moments of Muholi and her partner, Valerie.  Again the images are black and white with neutral backgrounds, depicting Muholi and her lover at ease and enjoying the closeness of each other.  They offer the viewer an insight into their lives at rest, in contrast to the message behind the other images in this exhibition.

Brave Beauties celebrates the gay and transgender men featured in this project, emphasising their ease with their bodies and of being seen in these stylised, playful poses.  Muholi wants them to be adored by the viewer, creating safety and acceptance; however, this is not their reality.  Their bravery props up the beauty that is so deliberately on display.

The final project on display, Mo(u)rning, is a staged event in remembrance for those from the LGBTI community who have died through intolerance and hate crime.  The images are in the main lit with soft candlelight and use a narrow range of colours, creating coherence to the collection.  However, the images selected from this project stand out from the others included in the exhibition.  There is an unreal and artificial quality to them, which isn’t shared with the other collections.

There is a unity amongst the images that lends itself to the community Muholi is seeking to create.  That community engage with their audience through intently holding their gaze, drawing them in, not allowing them to look away from or ignore the atrocious way the participants, and many others, have been treated.

The exhibition is an interesting and thought-provoking one, although does require some time spent in the gallery perusing through the literature and watching the videos playing on the first floor to understand the narrative in full.  The participants in Faces and Phases are still to be identified with their names, which would overcome a minor feeling of many faceless victims without a story, which is anything but what the project aims to portray.  The gallery encourages contemplation and reflection with benches in each room where visitors can sit and absorb the messages Muholi is expressing through her photography.

14 October 2015