Atlas Gallery of Photography at Snape Maltings.

I came across this gallery when I was working on my previous project (positioning a point) and had no idea it was there.

Atlas Gallery opened a new gallery space at Snape Maltings, Suffolk, to coincide with the 2011 Aldeburgh Festival, Snap Festival, which features work by a number of contemporary British artists and photographers.  The new gallery is the first extension of the main gallery in London where Atlas have built up their reputation specialising in photography in the UK.

The new gallery, the creation of its founder and director, Ben Burdett, provides an added visual arts space at the already present Snape Maltings concert hall site. The original Aldeburgh Festival was founded by Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears over sixty years ago as a Festival of Music and the Arts. The Atlas Gallery provides an extra, new dimension presenting photography alongside the already present galleries, auditoria and concert halls. Work that is to be  exhibited will include documentary, landscape, fashion, and contemporary works. The main gallery in London has provided expert advice to a wide variety of institutions and corporate collections, as well as to private collections, small and large over more recent years. The gallery aims to “bring this expertise to a new audience at Snape, whilst also helping those to appreciating fine photography in the deeper understanding of its many complexities.”

The exhibition displays examples of vintage and contemporary work, with solo exhibitions by some of the most renowned names in the history of photography.

The gallery is housed in an old out building on the maltings site. The photographs are just around the white walls of the fairly large room with quite a lot of unused space in the centre. Below I have included some of the images seen.



Elliot Erwitt, Cannes, France, 1975



Elliot Erwitt, Cannes, France, 1975 


I like the contrast between these two images. The first seems like a nice calm sunny day with two people just enjoying the weather. Without their presence in the second image there is much more movement with the wind blowing through the empty seats. I find this second photograph much more interesting because of this as the first image is a bit too static.

Ernst Haas, Albert Einstein, Princeton, New Jersey, 1953

Everyone who looks at this photograph will instantly know who is pictured. Einstein is stood in what appears to be his office, surrounded by many books and papers in what can only be described as chaos.  Even though this picture looks like it has been spontaneously taken I am sure that much thought has gone into the exact location of the shot and Einstein’s positioning. With him centred in the frame he is very much the subject without the overall image appearing dull.

 

Dominique Tarle, Mick and Keith, Villa Nellcote, 1971.

This photograph obviously shows Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. With this picture it seems as though you are catching a glimpse of their lives, as if you are there with them. There are another two glasses at the table, who else is relaxing with them?

Nick Brandt, Portrait of two zebras turning heads, Ngorongoro Crater, 2005

At first glance it seems as though the image of the zebra has just been replicated. Taking a closer look there are slight differences  with the stripes on their bodies and faces and the zebra on the right is resting its left hind leg. This is also a much more modern looking shot compared to the others and I could image it hanging on the wall in peoples houses.

I feel it is easy for people to connect with this exhibition as you are bound to either recognise the name of the photographer, the place being photographed of the famous faces in many of the pieces regardless of how interested in photography you are.

TAOP Positioning a point.

I am now moving on to the second part of TAOP. This first exercise is about how positioning a point within the frame can alter the movement, balance and division of the image as a whole. To be classed as a point, the subject must be small within the frame and in some way contrast with its surroundings.

Objects that could be classed as a point:

·         Flower in a field

·         Hot air balloon in the sky

·         Tree

·         Sculpture

·         Plane or birds in the sky

·         Boat in the sea

·         Animal in field

·         Duck on water

I have started by reviewing my previously taken photographs to see if there are any points that clearly stand out and found that my images tend to show the focal point in the centre of the frame. I have then gone on to take photos specifically for this exercise.

For this exercise I used a sculpture by Barbara Hepworth which can be found at Snape Maltings. I have converted the images I took into black and white which had been suggested in the course notes. This allows me to focus on the point rather than looking at the contrast between the colours shown in the photos.



Central position









This is my least favourite image. I feel that the positioning does not work with the sculpture in a central position as is looks very static and uninteresting. The point looks rather flat and does not particularly stand out very well.



Positioned close to the edge of the frame

Having walked around the sculpture to change the composition I have realised that placing the point where I have, near the edge, encourages the eye to wander around the frame searching for other subjects. I do like the the detail of the grass in the foreground but it does detract from the point somewhat.



Off centre to the right



The position of the point works better in this photo. Having the sculpture slightly off the centre point creates more depth and is definitely my composition of choice.

Conclusion.

From this exercise I have learnt that positioning the point can dramatically alter the sense of movement in the image, as having just the one focal point naturally divides the frame. By positioning the point in the centre of the frame, the overall movement is affected creating a static nature (although in some instances this can work if justified). In some photos having the point close to the edge of the frame does not work as it can detract from the point and unbalance the frame, whereas in other images it can help to convey more of a scene. I have realised from working on this exercise that I am guilty of positioning a single point in the centre of the frame, usually so that it fills the frame, and therefore creating rather a dull image.

The Photograph As Contemporary Art - Charlotte Cotton.

I have just read the photograph as contemporary art by Charlotte Cotton. This is the second edition of her book and is split into eight chapters: “If This Is Art” (images orchestrated by the photographer), “Once Upon A Time” (the use of storytelling – tableau-vivant photography), “Deadpan” (“ deadpan aesthetic: a cool, detached and keenly sharp type of photography”), “Something and Nothing” (everyday objects – “non-human things” – and how they can be photographed to make them extraordinary), “Intimate Life” (how domestic life is presented), “Moments in History” (“how photography can bear witness to the ways of life and events of the world”), “Revived and Remade” (postmodernist, anti-modernist) and “Physical and Material” (analogue and digital photography and the differences between them).

I did think that whilst the purpose of this book is “not to create a checklist of all the photographers who merit a mention in a discussion on contemporary art”, a large number of photographers have been listed. I did find it a bit hard going at times but once I got used to the style of writing I got quite into it and found it well written, especially how a bit of history is given on each photographer as I think that this can change how you look at their photos. This book does introduce a vast amount of photographers, many of which I had never heard of before, and this in turn has led me on to looking at a wider variety of work. I have also realised that what may be perceived by some people as incorrect can been seen as pleasing to the eye by others.  I was not keen on some of the images in the book and I realise that people may view my work in the same way.

I did find it a little weird that chapter eight rather abruptly stops. I was expecting some form of conclusion to the book, instead there is just an index so you can easily look up the photographers mentioned.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in photography and contemporary art as a really good introduction to the subject.


Cotton, C. (2009) The Photograph as Contemporary Art (2nd revised edition). London: Thames & Hudson.