CONTACT Photo Fest: Turf

April 1-May 14 2019​ |Opening Reception May 2

Darren Calabrese, Carl MacNeil, Dinao MacCormick, Chad Tobin, Steve Wadden

A collaborative exhibition of fictional, documentary, and contemplative photographs exploring literal and abstract concepts of home. It combines selections from ongoing personal projects of five Canadian photographers from the East Coast who comprise the Hot Fog Collective.

On a spectrum between place and feeling, individual meanings of home emerge. Turf asks how the individual shapes the place, and how the place shapes the individual.

The artists illustrate relationships with land, identity, community, and changing geographic and social landscapes. While raising questions about intuition and perception, they imagine home as a sense of being and creative process as a means of transportation.

Curated by Hot Fog Collective

Darren Calabrese

Atlantic Canadians are a coastal people. Living on the periphery, we are connected through our relationship with the sea – an existence that is both isolating and freeing. The tensions of living off the sea have long existed, but today the region is suffering through an historically high rate of unemployment that is forcing many to fight to hold onto their livelihoods, communities, and identity. This is a movement full of stories that, in concert, are both stark and life-affirming. Calabrese works to explore the relationships and communities formed along the eastern coastlines, which he believes are a pathway not only to our history, but to our future.

Portraits of a Revolution: Marc Betsworth

 

Portraits of a Revolution
March 1-31
Opening reception: March 1 6-9pm
Artist Talk: March 23 2-4pm

What is your process?

For these shots, I wanted to be as nimble as possible so I used a very simple one-light set up: a gridded beauty dish and a reflector – that’s it. I tended to use a gold reflector to warm up the tones. There’s a pattern of light I’m after and it can be elusive. It means playing with the angle of the reflector a lot. Beyond that,I focus on what my subject is giving me. Primarily, I’m looking for authentic moments – nothing too contrived. As a former musician, I find that music can be really helpful on that front. It inspires my approach and in a way, it can relax and direct the subject better than any verbal direction I can provide. Sometimes, if the music’s right, I can just sit back and wait until it naturally evokes the expression and mood I’m after.

The post process was a bit more involved. Given the era, I knew I wanted to employ a painterly look to the images but I didn’t want them to look too heavy handed or filtered. This meant applying a painterly texture as subtly as possible while preserving the “photographic” integrity of the image. Although I do use a tablet and tend to sculpt in the light, I’m not a fan of out-of-the-box “painterly” effects or brush strokes in a photographic image. To preserve authenticity and character, it was also important to ease up on the retouching.

Noir/Chroma Spotlight: Kerry Hayes

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

What is your process

I never feel more present then when hunting with my camera. Senses on high alert, ready to pull the trigger to capture a fleeting instance when light, composition, gesture and moment come together. I am a non discriminatory predator, almost any game will do but it is strictly capture and release. Never more present then with with my camera I work with an empty, quiet mind, open to unconscious influences, seeking to capture an image that is greater then the sum of it’s parts. Or as Garry Winogrand’s beautifully expressed it, when “the photograph isn’t what was photographed, it is something else, a new fact”.
I shoot with three digital cameras but eschew any significance to particular brand or type of light recording device I use. I switch between two popular brands of high resolution digital cameras and a smart phone depending on the circumstance. The ultimate impact or enjoyment of my photography rests little on camera brand. The only really significant recording device is a photographers eye which can not be bought.
After editing tens of thousand of frames mere dozens get further attention. I work in Adobe Lightroom, adjusting the increasing breadth of variables which along with the sophistication of controls that software sliders give one today allows for tremendous post production manipulation to refine your vision.

Noir/Chroma Spotlight:Peter Dušek

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

Hush

What is your process

My process is one of great searching for a something in nature, uncluttered, yet in perfect balance, that best represents the essence of the world. I try to look for the small, overlooked aspects, and rarely the obvious. These elements can be found everywhere, but they are often lost among nature’s or manmade chaos, so it is difficult to find them in a way that they can be isolated and shown to the viewer. My motto is “as little as possible, as much as necessary” leading to the perfect balance between too little and too much. I often find myself, like a painter, subtracting from what I see, whether it’s in the camera using camera placement, darkness, fog or a snow storm to hide or reveal “just enough”. Later, on the computer, I often subtract clutter that distracts; clutter that when looking at the scene, the eye may see but the mind ignores. I often photograph in the winter on snow, using its lightness, along with the sky, as an empty canvas, only adding the “brush strokes” of the objects that I want to show.

Noir/Chroma Spotlight: Marlene Hilton Moore

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

What is your process?

My photography exclusively depicts photographs of an individual woman and her place. I approach the medium of photography conceptually and orchestrate each series to my vision of the individual woman who is the subject of the work. I develop a concept that integrates the woman, her place, and a dress and then I abandon to the joy of discovery. Fleeting glances, pointed gaze, and body language all reveal a distinctive identity. I allow the camera to be a critical tool but the evocative image is the defining ingredient.

Do you see common themes in all of your work?

Women and their place is the subject of my photographic work. There is the essential
theme of a woman, a place, a dress and a vision. Accidental elements of light, motion, and mood create unique moments that add to the resonance of each image.

In your opinion, what makes an image powerful.

Photographs that capture what is universally human yet exhibit personal and intimate
identities are powerful. Images presented within the framework of beauty and truth create indelible artwork.

Noir/Chroma Spotlight: Alan Dunlop

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

What is your process?

For several years now I have been pursuing my own creative vision, looking for ways to break the rules of traditional photography and transport the viewer to an alternate, more abstract reality. I think this quote by actress Mary Lou Cook says a lot “Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking the rules, making mistakes and having fun”.
My work has evolved from blending multiple images into collage-like works using Photoshop to – more recently – capturing fragmented images in-camera.

Do you see common themes in all of your work?

Whether photographing nature, people or the city streets the common theme is to explore time space and motion.

In your opinion, what makes an image powerful.

There are many elements that make a good picture, it can be the quality of the light, the angle, the subject matter, the overall composition.
Ultimately a good photograph, in my opinion, is one that makes people stop, take a second look and ask questions. It should communicate something to the viewer, draw them in, tell a story, and arouse some emotion.

Noir/Chroma Spotlight: Susan Kerr

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

Tofino #20

What is your process?

Both the Noir image and the Chroma image were captured digitally. I like to wander until I find something that moves me; I really need to feel inspired to take a picture.

Initially, I sort through my images, pick the ones I like, and rate them. Then I let them sit for quite a while before I go back and make final selections. It’s an ongoing process that takes time to select the images that I want to print and display.

Do you see common themes in all of your work?

Generally, yes and particularly with these images. I am looking for more than a “tree” or “kelp” I want to find the essence of my subject and hope to bring that to the viewer, to show what may go unnoticed; not only visually, but also in terms of the feeling that one experiences when near the subjects.

In your opinion, what makes an image powerful?

I think an image is more powerful when the photographer feels a real connection to their subject and there is some understanding of what is going on in front of the camera.
For example, there is more to a forest than just trees.
There are many collaborations taking place. For me the old growth forest, its elements and the interactions provide a somewhat mystical experience.
In addition, there must be technical understanding so that what you want to present looks as you intended. The capture, the post production, and the final print must be executed with technical expertise.
However, that is not enough if the photograph does not convey to the viewer what the
photographer intended.

Nereocystis luetkeana

Noir/Chroma Spotlight: Leah Oates

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019

Opening reception January 17 2019

Peter Dušek, Alan Dunlop, Susan Kerr, Kerry Hayes, Marlene Hilton Moore, Leah Oates

Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Lily & Branch # 2

What is your process?

I shoot with film with a 35 mm camera and a medium format camera and utilize different lenses with adaptors, light leaks and multiple exposures onto the film. I then have the whole roll of film scanned and I edit and manipulate the images digitally. From this process and I create artist books and photographic prints.
Do you see common themes in all of your work.

The common themes in my work are the intersection between nature and an urban environment, transformation and flux.
The Transitory Space series deals with urban and natural locations that are transforming due to the passage of time, altered natural conditions and a continual human imprint. In everyone and in everything there are daily changes and this series articulates fluctuation in the photographic image and captures movement through time and space.
Transitory spaces have a messy human energy that is perpetually in the present yet continually altering. They are endlessly interesting, alive places where there is a great deal of beauty and fragility. They are temporary monuments to the ephemeral nature of existence.

In your opinion, what makes an image powerful.

You know I’m really not sure what makes an image powerful. It’s something to do with composition, skill and the subject being photographed but these three aspects do not alone make a a powerful image. I think a powerful image gives off an energy and illuminates an aspect of life that becomes more apparent in the images which makes it powerful.

leahoates.com

Call for Submissions: Noir/Chroma

Jan 3 – Feb 28 2019
Opening reception January 17 2019

The Connections Gallery is seeking submissions for a two month exhibition in early 2019.

This exhibition, Noir/Chroma, showcases exquisite black and white images and images exploring colour. No specific theme.

Photographers will each have one 30″x37″ mounted print.

This exhibition is being printed in its entirety by Bob Carnie, each photographer will receive their mounted print once the show comes down. There are two choices for production methods of images. The hybrid historical-contemporary Lambda will be used to produce the black and white silver gelatin prints, or artists can have their work printed via inkjet for black/white and colour. Bob will work together with the photographers to choose their best image and printing method. Promoting the printer/photographer dynamic, printing will be a collaborative effort.

Logistics

Each artist will have either:

1- 28×28” approx. Lambda print mounted on 30″x37″ art board

OR

1- 30″x37″ inkjet print mounted on the same size board

Exhibition fee + Production: $700 plus tax

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Submissions

Send up to 5-10 JPEGS

Bio

Statement

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Contact

Carissa Ainslie carissa@alternativephotoservices.com

Vancouver and Capture!

Carissa just returned from Vancouver where she was stationed for ten days. We rented a pop up space for two weeks in Chinatown, installing Series, Clearcut and Ipseity.

Series

SERIES brings together five photographers with five different stories to tell. Salina Kassam, Thomas Brasch, Larry D. Hayden and Skip Dean have explored their own environments through the photographic medium.

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Clearcut

The intersection of man and nature is a dominant theme in Matthew Plexman’s work. Clearcut captures the evolution of an old logging road in northeastern Ontario: old sections are blocked off and new routes added, leading to new areas of logging activity. The borders between clearcut and forest are abrupt at first—open areas of chewed-up earth and toppled trees abut untouched woodland. Over time, the process of healing begins and the borders blur. Plexman attempts to find beauty and symmetry in the tension between destruction and regeneration, inviting dialogue about the conflict inherent in our dependence on nature for both resource extraction and emotional sustenance.

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Meeting New People

Carissa had the pleasure of meeting some really interesting folks on her travels. Sally Buck and Kent Lins popped up their photos in cube vans every weekend during the Capture Photo Fest.

She also got a fantastic tour of the new Emily Carr University campus by photo studio tech Geoffrey, and met up with Kathy from Beau Photo.

With a bit of down time, she also got to take in some of the sights of Vancouver and Whistler.