Author: Alasdair

Art nonsense

Posted on by Alasdair

So, the Turner prize this year goes to Tomma Abts. Personally, I preferred Mark Titchner‘s work – his themes and his general approach are things I have a lot of personal sympathy with, but hers were a close second favourite. I thought Phil Collins (not that one) documentary was interesting, but I think I’d rather just have watched the documentary of telly, rather than get presented with it as “Art”. Rebecca Warren, well, think I see what she’s trying to do, but it’s a fairly old hat idea.

I do wonder if Abts won in part because her painting are closer to most people’s idea of conventional “Art”, and if the Turner Prize committee are trying to balance the scales a little, after least years Shedboatshed, and Jeremey Deller’s documentary the year before that.

Turner

Posted on by Alasdair

So, the Turner prize this year goes to Tomma Abts. Personally, I preferred Mark Titchner’s work – his themes and his general approach are things I have a lot of personal sympathy with, but hers were a close second favourite. I thought Phil Collins (not that one) documentary was interesting, but I think I’d rather just have watched the documentary of telly, rather than get presented with it as “Art”. Rebecca Warren, well, think I see what she’s trying to do, but it’s a fairly old hat idea.

I do wonder if Abts won in part because her painting are closer to most people’s idea of conventional “Art”, and if the Turner Prize committee are trying to balance the scales a little, after least years Shedboatshed, and Jeremey Deller’s documentary the year before that.

Well, arse.

Posted on by Alasdair

So, I won’t be in Edinburgh before Christmas. Bollocks. There’s just no way to do it in an affordable manner that doesn’t involve hellish travel, a much shorter stay than I’d like, or risking my mother never speaking to me again if I miss the family Christmas in Belfast because a ferry gets cancelled, or anything like that. I’d rather try and come up for a decent length of time early next year.

So, instead I shall spend the week before Christmas kicking about London, camera in hand.

Weather permitting, I quite fancy doing at least one straight derivé – pick somewhere around say zone 2, plonk a glass on a map at random, draw round it, and follow the line as best as the roads/public spaces permit, something like that. Apart from that, and the the Slides at the Tate, what else should I go take pictures of? And does anyone fancy coming with me?

Weaving The Rainbow

Posted on by Alasdair

Weaving The Rainbow

The second of these abstract pieces. I spent quite a while talking about them last night, so I have less to say about this one. I think that is is perhaps a little more immediately accessible, though. What do you think?

Italo Calvino

Posted on by Alasdair

You have all failed me.

Specifically, why did no-one ever hand me a copy if Italo Calvino’s “Invisible Cities” and say “You must read this book, otherwise you’re just wasting your life”?

Still, I’ve read it now, having picked it up on a whim when I was buying a book on psychogeography. And you can all redeem yourselves, anyway. I’ve just now ordered a copy of “If On A Winter’s Night A Traveller”, for reading when I’m done with aforesaid psychogeography book, but I need to know: what else of his stuff should I read? Or at least, what else do I need to read urgently?

A Fine Sceptic

Posted on by Alasdair

“I mean, if you want to believe in psychics, fine. You’re a dangerous idiot and I wouldn’t trust you to operate a spoon without putting an eye out … but fine.” – Charlie Brooker, from the article “When it comes to psychics, my stance is hardcore: they must die alone in windowless cells“.

And I strongly urge you to click through and read the piece on Creationism at the bottom of the article. It’s not going to tell you anything you don’t know, but it’s bloody funny. Say what you like, the man has a gift for the bile-filled phrase…

12:45 – Restate My Assumptions

Posted on by Alasdair

The Lost Cocteau Twins Album

No, it’s not the cover of a lost Cocteau Twins album.

I may annoy a few of you with the next shot or two, as I go wandering off into the realms of abstract photography for a bit. My apologies – I’ve a conventional portrait of my Dad coming up afterward, just to reassure you all, and possibly answer some of the questions about where I get my looks from.

I don’t normally talk too much about my thoughts and feelings around an image – I like to let people work out what I’m saying, but I think I probably ought to make it a little clearer with this sequence, which are about how I respond to the beauty of nature. I’m firmly with Richard Dawkins, here – “Unweaving the Rainbow” does not destroy it’s majesty, and the more one understands of the scientific process behind the natural world, the more impressive it is. That’s the point of view that gave me the inspiration for these shots.

On the technical side, well, while this image, and the any that follow it are not as strictly composed as my normal work, you’d be mistaken if you thought that all I did was whirl the camera around at random while on a long exposure to get them. As you can probably see, there are three distinct elements to this that the camera was moved in relation to for different periods of time. I didn’t know exactly what the final shot would look like, but I did have some sense of the elements image I wanted to produce.

I’d love to know what you think of them…

Dopamine Mine

Posted on by Alasdair

Dopamine Mine

Another from Borough. I get hungry just looking at this one.

Other than that, not a lot to say. Sorry. I’ll try and be more entertaining with the next shot.