The Sussex Photography Project

Spirit of the Downs - Exhibition Review

The Spirit of the Downs is an exhibition by Sussex photographer Oliver Perrott.

The exhibition, which was showing at the Court Gardens Vineyard, Ditchling until October 16th, will be relocating to Highdown Vineyard, Ferring, West Sussex, from October 29th - with a Private View between 6:30 and 8:30pm on the 28th.

The 'Spirit of the Downs' is inspired by the South Downs way and the environment within the South Downs National Park. The images are captured on traditional film and explore the natural landscape and how it has been moulded and influenced by man's activities.

I visted the exhibition on its final weeked at Ditchling. The full series of 30+ photographs, which can be viewed on Oliver's website, features a range of traditional and contemporary vistas, intimate landscapes and portraits of people using and enjoying the landscape. Not surprisingly, the exhibition mainly features the more 'crowd pleasing' traditional and contemporary vistas.

Perrott's images - which are somewhat reminiscent of the work of Jem Southam in style - eschew picturesque landscape clichés and instead feature vistas which highlight the forms, patterns and textures of the South Downs landscape. I was particularly struck by two images. The first, a beautifully illuminated and simple intimate landscape of grass and water; the second, (shown below) a grander vista of the Downs meeting the sea, with a costal path picked out by a splash of light.

© Oliver Perrott

There's also a book on display where you can browse those photos from the project that are not part of the exhibition.

All the photos displayed in the exhibition are available as Limited Edition prints.

The exhibition is well worth a visit. It's great to see a local photographer producing such a varied project on the Downland landscape - a landscape that, with the possible exception of certain spots such as Beachy Head, doesn't garner the level of photographic attention it deserves.

Exhibition Details:
Highdown Vineyard
A259 Littlehampton Road
Ferring
West Sussex
BN12 6PG

Private View: Fri 28th Oct 6:30 - 8:30pm

Open to the Public:
29th October 2011 to 30th March 2012
Tues - Sat: 10am - 5:30pm Free Entry

The exhibition is produced by the Fawn Art Consultancy and supported by Village Interiors, Bell Gardens Ltd, Peacehaven Framing and Spectrum Photographic.

High & Over Exhibition

Currently at Gallery North in Hailsham is 'High & Over' an exhibition of traditional and digital photography by local professional photographers Vivienne Blakey, Liz Scott, Roger Scott, James Stephen Davis and David Mills.

Exhibiting Photographer Vivienne Blakey and Gallery Director Jenny West

The exhibition explores the local landscape of the South Downs, the Cuckmere Valley and the Sussex coastline.

Sussex photographer Vivienne Blakey shows a collection images depicting the landscape around her home on the South Downs. Often working at dawn, she repeatedly visits the same location: "One morning the land might be painted in a silver misty light and the next it will be red, the fields flooded with vermillion. Every morning is painted a different colour, a different image of the same place each day.”

© Vivienne Blakey

The exhibition runs until March 26th.

More of Vivienne's work can be found at www.vivienneblakey.co.uk.

Exhibition Details:
Gallery North, 70 High Street, Hailsham, East Sussex BN27 1AX
T: 01323 846938
Open: 10am to 4pm - Tuesday to Saturday

Pictures from 'A Celebration of Kodachrome'

Last night was the preview night of a 'Celebration of Kodachrome' an Exhibition at the AOP Gallery in London.

The exhibition showcases a range of images shot on the now discontinued Kodachrome slide film. The exhibition prints display Kodachrome's trademark rich and contrasty colour - a particular 'look' that digital struggles to recreate.

Highlights include the photos from Ian Dawson, Derek Richards and Sussex photographer Lucy Phillips.

AOP member Adam Woolfitt displayed a collection of Kodachrome slides and was inviting visitors to take one away as a momento.

The exhibition runs until February 10th.

Elsewhere:

The Kodachrome Project

Kodachrome Flickr Group

A Celebration of Kodachrome

Sussex based Lucy Phillips is one of the photographers featured in A Celebration of Kodachrome - an exhibition at the AOP Gallery.

The exhibition showcases a range of images shot on Kodachrome slide film - a film stock that was discontinued last year after 74 years.

The show features work from AOP members and members of the public.  AOP photographer member Adam Woolfitt is planning an installation of his collection of Kodachrome slides inviting visitors to take a slide.  So you could walk away with your own bit of history on a Kodachrome slide!

All of Lucy's images were made in 2010, using discounted stock in processing paid envelopes that she managed to find locally. Lucy says: "The film was processed by the last remaining company to process the film, Dwayne's Photo in Kansas (miraculously it went via Kodak in Switzerland and was returned to me in less than 3 weeks!)."

All photos © Lucy Phillips

About the images, Lucy says: "The first two images featured above (Brighton and Eastbourne) were shot on Kodachrome 64, and are part of an ongoing exploration of the urban landscapes of the South Coast.

"Images 3 and 4 were made using a matchbox pinhole camera and a roll of expired Kodachrome 200. The Marine Court image was made with a long exposure at dusk whilst Moon Trail traces the path of the full moon over a period of approximately four hours.

"All prints are Cibachromes, printed by local printer Owen Boyd - probably one of the last printers to still work with Cibachrome."

The exhibition opens with a Private View on January 19th and continues until February 10th.

Exhibition Details:

AOP Gallery, 81 Leonard Street, EC2
Tube: Old Street (Exit 4)
Monday-Friday 10am to 6pm

Success at KCPA Audio Visual competition for Eastbourne Photographic Society

Two members of Eastbourne Photographic Society, Eileen James and Alan Carter, achieved success at the KCPA Audio Visual competition held on Saturday 27th November 2010 and hosted by Folkestone Camera Club.

Eileen James came third in the audience vote for her sequence of “Swan Lake”. Alan Carter won the award for “Best Photography” with his sequence of “Nostalgia”.

The main honours went to Melanie Chalk CPAGB of Folkestone Camera club who took away the Folkestone Town Council Trophy and also the Phantasmagoria Trophy for “Best Transitions” with the Sequence entitled “Sandgate Evolves”.

The Folkestone Camera Club must be congratulated in hosting an excellent competition with entrants from many clubs and societies in Kent and Sussex.

More information is available at www.folkestonecameraclub.co.uk where the winning entry “Sandgate  Evolves” by Melanie Chalk can be seen on YouTube.

Lewes Bonfire Night

© Jerry Webb

© Heather Buckley

© Andrew Novell

It would be hard to think of a more photogenic event than the Lewes Bonfire Night celebrations. Of course, photographing torchlight parades and fireworks at night is a far from easy task - torches tend to play havoc with a camera's metering. But when the photographer gets it right the results are spectacular.

Consequently our little local celebration has been featured on the Flickr blog. If you've taken any photos of the Bonfire Night celebrations in Sussex, then don't forget to submit them to the Sussex Photography Project Flickr group.

Your Life is my Vanity Project by Kevin Mason

Another reminder about this exhibition that we mentioned previously in our Brighton Fringe photography round-up.

The exhibition, by Kevin Mason, shows the results of a project that emerged from a chance encounter in a cafe between the photographer and sixteen year-old Georgie Hobday. Eight months, thirty photoshoots and a thousand photos later, the project plots the changes in both photographer and subject.

The exhibition is sponsored by Garage Studios.

Event details:

Garage Studios
13-16 Vine Street
Brighton
BN1 4AG

All Bank Holiday weekend, 10:30am to 8pm.