Promoted Work: Acquaintances: A Cross Country Photographic Journey

Hope Yoders has created a Kickstarter - Acquaintances: A Cross Country Photographic Journey; it's an unpretentious and honest project.

​This is one of those very quiet projects that could easily be lost behind other more flash projects on Kickstarter; I've backed it because it's a genuine look at how we form connections to each other through the work we create.

​The rewards for backers are pretty straight forward; please support her​.

Side note: I'm a big fan of the idea of Kickstarter & I've backed three other projects (Billy Kidd, Brittany Markert & Van Sarki)​. I don't back that many, partly because I don't have massive amounts of free cash and partly because most of the projects aren't really my thing. If I do find something, I try to support it the best I can.

Most of the content on the internet is paid for through advertising pageviews; it's bullshit - it skews things toward those that cater to the lowest common denominator and works against the artists just starting out as well as those with a more considered aesthetic. 

Please support young artists putting themselves out there; buy their books & prints and back their Kickstarters. The world needs better art, not more content.​

Promoted Work: George E. Holroyd III

George E. Holroyd III was diagnosed with Essential Tremor, a progressive neurological disorder which can cause debilitating tremors and loss of coordination. The symptoms that he has had since adolescence eventually worsened to the point that he began experiencing difficulty in performing simple everyday tasks.

"The series, "And I" is a diary; a collection of glances which illustrate a reality distorted by frustration, embarrassment, and a growing sense of social isolation. It serves as a visualization of the impact that Essential Tremor has on me and my closest relationships as I continue to come to terms with the new realities that I am presented with."

George E. Holroyd III uses his art to fight. His work has embraced the condition that has burdened him; he has not backed down; he has not lost desire.

Respect.

Promoted Work: Black Biscuit - a film by Fabrizio Federico

There is this myth that our lives play out as a neat, coherent and meaningful narrative. It's bullshit.

Fabrizio Federico's Black Biscuit is not easy viewing but it is honest; it's chaotic and self aware; raw and imperfect. His cast are "the social misfits who hang out at the crossroads with the devil".

This is punk DIY cinema. Watch at your own risk.

Fabrizio has a manifesto with some interesting ideas:

  • Film school is poison.
  • Filming must be done without any preparation or a traditional script.
  • Special lighting is not acceptable.
  • Mistakes are beautiful.
  • Continuity is wrong.
  • Answer to one person only - yourself.

(see the full manifesto here)

​

Fabrizio pointed me to the work of Jonas Mekas as one of his influences, this is worth a view:

Promoted Work: Toronto Photo Workshops

Robert Gaudette and Mike Lewis run the Toronto Photo Workshops. 

Normally my bullshit sensors go up for photography tutorials / workshops because they're so often run by hacks teaching people how to photoshop the living shit out of their models or turn boring landscapes into a kitsch nightmare (HDR photography). The Toronto Photo Workshops are actually something that I would love to do (if I didn't live on the other side of the world).

These guys are working professionals but their work isn't commercial; there is an authenticity to what they do.

The workshops are very affordable but space is limited.

Promoted Work: Joel Brown

I've shown some of Joel Brown's nudes on my site but I really wanted to do a promotion to show his larger body of work.​ His work is a great collection of the landscapes, architecture and people of the West Coast.

Joel Brown has held on to traditional processes, shooting images using large format cameras and printing high quality silver gelatin prints; prints are available from his site.