Photography

“I've got itchy fingers, for inky fingers...” /  by Shaun Armstrong

Taking my fingers, hands and the rest to a screen-printing workshop at the Inky Fingers studio in the depths of Hackney Wick.

Firstly, creds for the post title to band Yard Act, taken from my favourite non-album track Human Sacrifice. All links open in new windows.

As part of my ongoing artistic and personal development and plans to create unique prints from my photography, I took myself along to a day screen-printing workshop at the Inky Fingers gallery and studio, run by the dynamic due of Ricky Byrne (aka Mesh&Blade) and internationally renowned sweary dog-snogger and JaffaCake eater artist Dave Buonaguidi (aka Real Hackney Dave).

I travel up to London quite regularly, but the combination of the closed mainline railway meant the journey to Hackney Wick incorporated an unusual and new combination of car, parking, train and underground journeys plus an unexpected but enjoyable walk from Stratford. That and a double espresso meant I was well and truly unfrozen and alive for new ideas and experiences before I started.

I’d not screen-printed before but Ricky and Dave were engaging, informative, honest, relaxed-but-professional and supportive and made the whole day a memorable joy; from the lemon-drizzle cake welcome, to the careful packing up of our small edition of beautiful A2 prints on 400gsm paper stock and the help and banter in between. Despite being on the back of the draining culmination of the Voting Schmoting show launch, a day or so before.

The 2-layer prints we produced are quality items, not just souvenirs and I chose my ‘Rodeo Drive’ image which I thought would work well with a single image layer on a colour block. After a few dab tests I went with an orange background with purple image, which can be seen in the photos below. I have a couple of AP’s, one for home and a unique limited edition of 5 signed and numbered prints which will be for sale at some point (follow on socials or just get in touch!)

I’m not going to detail out the whole day, you can get the gist from the selection of images I took below, but the combination of straight-talking, technical nous from Ricky and honest art-business-life advice from Dave, was SO valuable. Thanks guys.

The ‘Rodeo Drive’ image appears in my book ‘USA: Black & White’ available to buy here.

SHADOWPLAY /  by Shaun Armstrong

A different perspective of fluidity…

Visits to art galleries can work on many levels.

We visit to see what’s there, what’s the new display; what someone has to say through what they’ve created and brought into a white space to inform, educate, entertain and challenge you. You know. The usual stuff.

In addition, I lapse into finding ways of observing the unexpected interaction between the exhibits and the visitors; the fixed and the constantly variable. 2 + 2 = 5.

Trickster Figures: Sculpture and the Body is the new exhibition (until 7th May 23) at MK Gallery bringing together 11 British artists breaking boundaries with sculptures that invite interplay and exploration and ask questions about our world and how there is growing fluidity in all things; from the natural environment to technology, to our own bodies.

However, an unexpectedly quiet day, with few humans, challenged me to explore the exhibition on a different level than the one I had expected or was expected of me. Perhaps the idea that interaction here was expected was counter to my normal desire to observe interactions that weren’t expected…

What drew my attention this time was the shadows. The counterpoint to the installations had a life and unseen display of its own, from angular to more fluid. Depending on your perspective…

“The historic or mythological “trickster” is often defined as a character who disobeys the rules and defies categories and conventions. The academic and philosopher Donna Haraway refers to tricksters as “wildcards that reconfigure possible worlds” I see the artists in this exhibition doing just that”

Jes Fernie, Curator Trickster Figures.

Artists: Saelia Aparicio, Alice Channer, Jesse Darling, Nicolas Deshayes, Kira Freije, Siobhán Hapaska, Nnena Kalu, Joe Namy, Harold Offeh, Ro Robertson, Vanessa da Silva

All photos ©ShaunArmstrong2023

MK Gallery (until 7 May 2023)

(see more At The Gallery)

Vivian Maier "...I see, I see, I see" - MK Gallery /  by Shaun Armstrong

Reflections of Vivian Maier: Anthology - photography exhibition at MK Gallery.

All photographs ©ShaunArmstrong2022

As a documentary photographer, I’ve admired the work of Vivian Maier since she was ‘discovered’ in 2007, along with a fascination in her story, both before and after her work was revealed. From John Maloof’s award-winning documentary Finding Vivian Maier to attending an exhibit and talk by her biographer Ann Marks at PhotoLondon2019, along with reading Ann’s book Vivian Maier Developed upon its recent publication.

So the arrival of the first UK show of a comprehensive Vivian Maier Anthology at my local contemporary gallery, MK Gallery, gave me an opportunity to view much more of her photography up close in a dedicated setting, along with other supporting artefacts and media. This included some taped recordings of her speaking, which ironically, was a highlight for me albeit it was not visual. More of that later.

All photos in this post are unstaged reportage from my first visit (I didn’t get the memo to wear orange but I’m glad some folk did) - if you want to see Vivian Maier's actual photos do buy a book or better still visit MK Gallery www.mkgallery.org - until 25th September 2022.

So, brief background; Vivian Maier came from dysfunctional French heritage to live and work as a nanny in New York and Chicago in the 1950’s to 1970’s. She was also a prolific, gifted, but essentially amateur, despite commercial aspirations, street photographer, who captured all manner of the quotidian with insight and aesthetic.

Her core story is that her work was never really discovered as such until after her death at age 83 in 2009, and even then a considerable volume was never even developed from the original film. And therefore all unseen, even by her. It was only the chance purchase of boxes of ‘unknown’ negatives, film etc. at an auction by a young artist (John Maloof) in 2007 that really got the awareness started, although she had passed before the connection was made and any opportunity to involve her had passed also. More info on the story on Wikipedia. or in Ann Mark’s book - link above.

Why my interest?

Viv and I. Gonna need a bigger hat…

Besides the photography and the romance and intrigue behind her enigmatic story, before and after discovery, what really draws me is what photography meant to her. I think because I see parallels in my own personal relationship with photography. Of how, when you’re in a state of flow visually, you see images everywhere, almost instinctively and you get a hunger for it. In an instant the intersection of subject, line, colour, contrast, shape, texture, expression, movement, light, emotion, reality. But you do it for you; for the split-second satisfaction of both seeing that image and recording it ‘to keep’. And then it’s gone. But it hasn’t. It’s more journey than destination.

This is what I feel is overlooked in the Vivian Maier story. Her keeping the work to herself was not due to her being inheritantly shy, or that she didn’t have funds to develop the film, but that it was just part of her way of moving through life and the satisfaction it gave her of itself, to the point that she didn’t even need to develop the film to see the fruits of her ‘moments’ or risk having to self-critique which is The Photographers Curse. She knew. And that was enough.

What about her photography?

Paper.

It’s good. Some of it (that we see) is very good. An element is exceptional. But with an estimated 140,000 images shot of which the majority weren’t developed and only 3000 or so were ever printed, there is either a considerable amount of good stuff left or possibly, with just some time, technical skill, an exceptional eye, and a decent camera you’re going to get some keepers at that sort of shot-rate.

Also, the other mainstay of the ballooning interest in her photography is the content; the sheer volume of day-to-day life around the cities of mid-century New York and Chicago which wasn’t really documented with the same vigour, diversity and comprehensiveness she brought. They are images of a golden, highly visual, time and this adds to the broad interest, quite distinctly from her actual capability and personal story.

What makes her work extra special, in my opinion, is that she does have ‘the gift’ which I believe defines any good photographer; the creative-sight as I described earlier - a sixth sense to see or anticipate a moment as it unfolds and capture it with panache and instinct in equal measure. Her ability to do this with a film camera and retain the quality that she did underpins her technical skills, but she did mix with professional photographers at stages throughout her life and had aspirations to make and sell postcards, so she had chops. But I’d be super interested to see the other 137,000 images.

Creative-sight. The ability to see, anticipate and capture a moment without staging.

Vivian Maier the person?

Quite a lot has been written about how she was private, lonely, shy and/or poor and these were the driving forces behind her story and photography. I’m not so sure. I agree private, but by choice with whom she wanted to interact with - the other aspects not so much. She approached strangers in the street for certain portraits, found ways to access buildings for images and was not shy to enter crime scenes, celebrity gatherings alongside press stringers and areas of the city that may be considered ‘risky’. She also had a proactive, engaged and valued relationship with her young charges. These are the skills of a confident and self-aware person, not a shy one.

She was also a hoarder, particularly newspapers and magazines which built up significantly as she aged and I suspect the main reason for her moving from jobs with regularity. Parents don’t like weird folk around their children and whilst not enough to give her a bad reference, I suspect this was a driver to ‘help her onward’. She had around 8 tonnes of material in storage when it was auctioned off due to fees not being paid; not because she didn’t have the money necessarily (via Ann Marks) but probably because it slipped her mind or she frankly wasn’t that bothered in the final analysis. If she wasn’t bothered to develop her film, for the reasons I’ve suggested, it was no great shakes to lose them - her enjoyment was at, and in the moment of, taking the images for personal challenge and enjoyment.

Portraits.

Other Multimedia

This anthology is also really interesting as it presents other media and artefacts in addition to the photography. I think, like many photographers, she liked a bit of tech, experimenting with new kit in still and moving image, and audio.

Her Super8 cine footage is blurry and grainy and a little stream-of-conscious but, like her photographs, documents daily life from a time past and this brings charm and interest now, that would not have been the case necessarily at the time. I think Vivian generally had a voyeuristic approach to people and, with her creative-sight and a new toy, was visually fascinated by different ages, peoples’ shapes and clothes and with film, their movement. This is what I see in her films; it’s almost surveillance-like.

One of my favourite parts of the exhibition was, via a ceiling-mounted ‘sonic hairdryer,’ a looped piece of audio Vivian recorded on tape with the children she was Nanny to; asking them questions about themselves, their family and their aspirations in her gentle French-tinged American accent - listening to her voice made her come to life and anchored all that I had read about her, her photography and my view of her. I heard nothing but a relaxed, smart, humorous, self-confident and engaged human.

What did strike me though was her reactions to the answers the children gave; she says “I see” almost 30 times and sometimes, “…I see, I see”.

Now I may be making too much of a leap here but in a way this sums Vivian Maier up, there is no complexity or mystery to her situation, photography or motivation. She just ‘sees’. All the time. This was her gift to herself primarily and we’re lucky to be able to see her images at last.

PS

I have a real problem in exhibitions in that I find myself constantly distracted from the works by other visitors and how they interact, move and present themselves. And want to photograph these moments I see, for shall we say, a little ‘Vivian Tingle’.

The images throughout this post follow this theme and there are a few more below. I also have a gallery of such images (MK Gallery is a rich and local hunting ground) which you can view here.

“I see…”

‘Touch’ - photography for Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust community art project. /  by Shaun Armstrong

I’ve had the privilege of supplying supporting photography to a HM The Queen Platinum Jubillee-funded community art project that took place in two local hospitals.

All photographs ©ShaunArmstrong2022

The ‘take heART’ art and wellbeing staff-led group within Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation, along with Creative Community Producer and all-round dynamo Kayte Judge, developed a project to give back; commissioning artist Anne-Marie Abbate to make new artworks as the basis for wall-art installations whilst also delivering creative staff workshops and a flash-mob distribution of thank-you gifts that acknowledged the importance of ‘human touch’, especially given the recent challenges of the COVID pandemic.

Inspired by the poem ‘These are the hands…’ by Michael Rosen, Anne-Marie’s artwork considered human touch and was based on microscopic images of touch receptors in the fingers. From this idea, she created pieces of handmade artwork using paper marbling, sewing, applique and other crafting skills.

Anne-Marie Abbate

I was commissioned to produce highly detailed and defined macro images of the artwork: my selective artistic details of trial pieces for branding and promotional materials and the final pieces so they could be blown up from their original c30cm size to over 1.8m for high-impact wall installations, whilst retaining the intricacy, depth and details of patterns, threads and tiny beads.

These images were then printed and mounted in prominent public corridors at Bedford Hospital and Luton & Dunstable Hospital, along with the poem and framed original artwork pieces.

Installation - Bedford Hospital

I also documented the free on-site workshops where staff, across all parts of the hospital, could drop in and try their hand at the techniques used in the artwork and I focused on ‘hands at work’.

Sheena McClaggan and Rachel Chater (caught sneaking a Tunnocks!) - NHS take heART collective

The whole project was a tremendous success with some great feedback and strong feelings of fun, warmth, gratitude and love all around.

I very much hope to be working on similar projects in the future.

Acknowledgements:

Anna-Marie Abbate - Artist

Kayte Judge - Collaborative Community Creative Producer & Fundraiser

take heART leads - Sheena McClaggan and Rachel Chater

Workshop Poets - Cameron Stewart & Satwinder Kaur

Arts Council England Jubilee Fund is made possible thanks to Lottery Good Causes. Administered by UK Community Foundations

Further supported by NHS Charities Together.

School project funded by The Culture Challenge, Bedford Creative Arts and run by Katie Allen.

Gifts/Donations: Walter & May, Number 14 Ampthill

Kusamazing? - Yayoi Kusama at Tate Modern. /  by Shaun Armstrong

Images and thoughts from a recent visit to the Tate Modern to see the Infinity Mirror rooms by Yayoi Kusama.

All photographs ©ShaunArmstrong2022

Yayoi Kusama, Tate Modern - April 2022

I first came across the name Kusama in 2010 as a result of the so-titled 10” EP by The Duke Spirit in 2010 as the Japanese multi-media artist was a muse to lead singer Leila Moss. Whilst I’d seen some of her polka-dot work over the years I thought I’d find out more when Tate Modern opened an exhibition last year.

The Infinity Rooms opened in May 2021, but with Covid impacts and an unprecedented ability for tickets to sell out months in advance, even for Members, a visit had been a while coming. The exhibit is now in its third block of extension and now sold out until September 2022.

Having seen a few images of the main room “Filled with The Brilliance of Life” and it being described as “one of Kusama’s largest installations to date” I was expecting something grand that I could immerse myself in and be transported to otherworldly planes of reflection (none intended) and contemplation…

Filled With The Brilliance of Life. Image ©ShaunArmstrong

You get two (it seems less) ushered-in-and-out minutes in an approx 5m x 5m box, it may be less, with a few other folk. Oh, and mind where you step.

No, really.

Well, to be fair you get two minutes in two 5m x 5m boxes as the exhibit (in one room) also has another mirror space “Chandelier of Grief” worked on a similar basis which I enjoyed (not really) with a young couple and a toddler.

The effect of the lights and mirrors to create the infinite patterns you expect to see is very clever in such a tight space but the, unfortunately necessary experience-management, coupled with my inability to not be inspired to photograph artwork spaces, meant it was all over pretty quickly. I could have spent a long while - this was one installation where a VR headset, some headphones with paired audio and a nice chair would have made all the difference.

The objective and sensibility of what the work aims to communicate and challenge is very much understood and appreciated but neutered through the viewing process, in my opinion.

To be fair you can go around and queue again, as much as you like, not that this is made overly apparent, but I never felt that ability to engage with an immersive artwork or space like I hoped I would. Twice was fine.

In addition to these spaces, there was some film and photography on the long and extraordinary life of Yayoi Kusama which was enlightening. Her ability to stay living (just) close to the edge of mental health whilst producing many ground-breaking works over her 90 years is indeed amazing.

The visit, as always, brought more opportunity to add to my At The Gallery project, observing the interplay between visitor and visited, not only at the Kusama exhibit, but the new and extensive Surrealism Beyond Borders exhibit and around Tate Modern generally.

Cleethorpes in Winter /  by Shaun Armstrong

Photography from Cleethorpes on the North Lincolnshire coast.

I’ve never been to the North Lincolnshire coast before, but with my daughter having moved there for work and the threat of super-fresh fish and chips on the cards, well why not.

Despite it being bitterly cold, I really enjoyed the quiet, off-season, lots of things closed, slightly faded air in Cleethorpes that comes with so many seaside towns in the UK. And as I live as far as you can get from the sea in Britain, it’s refreshing in other ways.

And whilst I quite like fish and chips in paper outside with a view of the sea (it’s the law normally), this was not that sort of day. So without the need for a better excuse, it was time to introduce my daughter to the joys of “sit-down indoor fish and chips”.

We ventured into Steels CornerHouse restaurant which despite its less-than-ideal “Sports Direct” banner branding outside, revealed a step back in time inside. Lovely old signs, little booths and tables, waitresses with grey hair, pots of tea in ‘70’s metal teapots and a plate of bread and butter to accompany the best haddock and chips I can remember.

No shots of food to see here though. I made a few photographs that I hoped captured the look and feel of the day. And a lone airman.

I liked Cleethorpes and will return.

Goodwood Road Racing Club - 79th Members Meeting 2022 /  by Shaun Armstrong

Photography from the GRRC Members Meeting 2022. All photographs ©ShaunArmstrong

I’ve been going to the Goodwood Festival of Speed since 2002.

2022 was my first Spring visit to the Members’ Meeting as a full member of the Goodwood Road Racing Club.

I love getting up close to the cars, which these events allow you to do. To experience the noise, sounds and smells and see the details of the machinery and liveries; from the classic to the modern to the iconic.

And to see owners and famous drivers, past and present, enjoying the rare opportunity to let loose on the track, regardless of the vehicle’s rarity and value.

And to photograph. Sometimes events are an inspiration for my ArtAutoArt but with the Members’ Meeting, which was as much a social event, to capture the moments of the day; trying to be in the right place at the right time.

Alongside some great wheel-to-wheel racing, static displays and hospitality in the sunshine, this event saw the launch of the T33 by legendary designer Gordon Murray, a display of F1 cars from the V10 era and an amazing collection of Porsche 956 and 962 Group C prototype sports cars.

It was a great day!

All images shot with Fuji x-Pro2 and 23mm lens or iPhone 12Pro and edited in Adobe Lightroom.

V&A - Getting it on with Mary Quant - Timeless Portrait Photography /  by Shaun Armstrong

Images from a day of practical portrait photography with Owen Harvey at the Victoria & Albert museum.

The theme was to be “timeless portrait photography” and as I hope to do more posed work as a counter to my more natural reportage, this seemed like a great opportunity to learn in a different and stimulating place. There was also access into the Mary Quant exhibition and as I love 60’s art and culture - happy days.

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The session at the V&A started with a meet-everyone-else round table of introductions and there was a full range of folk from beginners to keen amateurs, and all really nice people. Even the ones with Leica’s.

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After a great presentation by Owen Harvey on his work documenting sub-cultures in UK & US (and a brownie point for me for spotting his Taylor-Wessing portrait) plus some experimentation with flash (not a fan of the controlled studio and strobes but there you go) we had some time to view the brilliant Mary Quant exhibition before working in groups around the V&A to find interesting portrait opportunities using available light.

As I looked around the Mary Quant exhibition, which is quite dark with mainly display lighting, I could see the visitors were mainly women, and ones with style too. Whilst I normally prefer the candid shot, the light wasn’t up to it and I’ve never really been brave enough to just stop people and ask to take their photo. But I thought, heck I’ve got special permission to be here with a camera, I’m trying to take myself out of my comfort zone and as this isn’t even part of what we supposed to be doing, what’s the worse that can happen as long as I’m polite?

So, after a little gentle stalking and a recce of where there was some useful light and background I dived in and was pleasantly surprised. No one hit me. Here are my favourites, including one lovely lady who was dressed from head to toe in original Mary Quant garb.

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We then moved onto the group work and went about the V&A taking it in turns to photograph and be “models” - this I was not expecting preferring to be the other side of the lens. I also let myself do a little candid street work, as old habits and all that…

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Afterward the day was over, our SD cards were imported to a group file and a selection of “best shots” quickly drawn out for Owen to review and feedback on as we went around the group. Some really good feedback on my work, including a few of the Quant shots which no-one knew I’d taken and which raised a few eyebrows. 10 years in to professional photography I still have terrible imposter syndrome but really cool to get some nods of appreciation from fellow professionals and enthusiasts.

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Some more images from the day. All shot with natural light on location using a Canon 5DMKIII and Canon 100mm 2.8L lens.

Thanks to everyone who let me photograph them.

MK Gallery, Milton Keynes - Reopens /  by Shaun Armstrong

Review and images from inspired inside the new contemporary art gallery, meeting and exhibition space MK Gallery in Milton Keynes.

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I’ve been a regular visitor to MK Gallery in Milton Keynes over the years and have been following the expansion and refurbishment programme with interest until March 2019 when it finally reopened its doors. So I wandered along to have a nosey and to capture a sense of the new space with reportage photography.

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The shiny metal box with its feature windows already sits well with the other iconic building shapes at the eastern end of Central Milton Keynes and when the outside landscaping is complete it will be both a gateway and a destination location.

The interior space has been beautifully conceived (6a architects) comprising clean white-box exhibit spaces, areas of exposed concrete and bright primary-coloured steelwork and signage to complement the light, urban feel. More Pompidou than pomp. With the addition of a fine cafe space, expanded shop and spacious Sky Room meeting/exhibit/theatre/meeting space with lovely views across Campbell Park and beyond it already feels right at home.

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As you can read in my earlier posts I find as much, if not sometimes more, photographic inspiration from space and the people that weave around it than the exhibits, not that these disappoint. On the contrary the inaugural exhibition “Lie of The Land” is both eclectic and informative.

That said, I did find equal muse in the building and the people…

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A visit to MK Gallery (free entry / membership benefits available) is highly recommended and I look forward to popping in again soon…

USA - Tourists /  by Shaun Armstrong

Observing and photographing the visitors to popular attractions in the USA.

I’ve talked in a previous post about my inability to attend an art gallery or museum without being drawn into photographing my fellow visitors. They are always interesting and, more often than not, dressed with more panache that I can manage. Not always the same with tourists outside in hot weather.

Carrying my observing-the-observers burden on a road-trip to Western USA yet again the folk around drew my attention despite the grandeur and iconic settings…

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Sunset in Monument Valley. Folk positioning themselves ready for the unfolding rich splendour. These massive, but also small in context, buttes warm up into all sorts of rich reds, oranges and browns as the sun sets. Helped by some aesthetic clouds it is a wonder to behold.

I just loved the way everyone was having their own moment, even from behind, and there’s a natural balance in positioning that draws you in I think.

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Viewpoint Golden Gate bridge, San Fransisco. Hundreds of people pile into this car park / visitors rest / viewpoint to get an identikit we-went-here shot. And fair enough if you’re passing through, rather than having walked from Fishermans Wharf (well worth the effort) it’s safer than the bridge itself.

It’s actually not that great a view, photographically, but amazing how people don’t invest a little time walking to get a better photo or just a better view . The cheery people on the left will no doubt be delighted when they see their image of them, a foggy bit of the bridge and three strange ladies in their shot.

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Holy heck it was hot. The Neon Museum or Boneyard, Las Vegas Nevada. Tucked away at the north end of the city sits a collection of bits and bobs of signage from over the years and it’s splendid. The stories of the old casinos, days of the Rat Pack and how lights and design evolved is captivating. I had the pleasure of a large, extended family of Mexicans on my tour and even they clamoured to get into the shade at any opportunity…

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Horseshoe Bend, Paige AZ. A walk of about 1/2 mile across an area of sandy pathway/wilderness brings you from a small car park to what is probably one of the best and most spectacular views; even better than the Grand Canyon in my opinion as you can see from the ridge to the bottom. Not that you can see it in this shot…

When I first did this walk in 1997 we were there with about six other people and didn’t see that many more in the small dust “car park” where we parked with one or two other vehicles. Back then it was “off the grid”. Now (2017) the car park is paved, massive, busy and there were perhaps a few hundred people filing / shuffling to and from the ridge edge in 100+ degree heat.

And when I say edge I mean edge; the drop from this rocky outcrop is straight down hundreds of metres. That’s a one way trip. You can’t photograph that in any meaningful way, nor the view really, but everyone tries to. I believe the plan is now to manage people and put up rails. It’s a shame, as you will feel you are looking at a view rather than being part of it as it used to be…

Hollywood Boulevard Walk Of Fame. Just your usual street characters and only one looking at a screen…

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Death Valley, California.

Not dissimilar to Monument Valley : the car park, the wall, the view, the shot. These wild spaces are so beautiful and worthy of off-piste exploration and contemplation but when that’s not possible at least the viewpoints provide extra layers of interest to the street photographer.

See a larger gallery of Tourists USA images.

The Photographers' Gallery - Roman Vishniac /  by Shaun Armstrong

Yet again caught up in documenting the visitors to an art exhibition, this time at The Photographers’ Gallery.

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It’s been a while since I’ve visited The Photographers’ Gallery and not since the major refurbishment a few years ago. I was drawn in particular to the Roman Vishniac Rediscovered exhibition in association with Jewish Museum London. Covering a body of work from 1920 to 1970 but focussed mainly on his powerful reportage work of the impoverished and oppressed Jewish community in inter-war Germany. This photography commission was aimed originally at raising awareness of the Jews in the 1930s, against the backcloth of rising fascism. The subsequent events of the second world war made these images even more important as historic documents of a way of life now lost and like all good reportage, show observed elements of real-life shot with the skill and aesthetic of a great reportage photographer.

Covering two floors of the Gallery, it also covers the period of his move to the US in 1940 where he documented Jewish families relocating and settling into their immigrant lives and his subsequent portrait work and his lifelong interest in biology and advances in colour photomicroscopy.

Roman Vishniac Rediscovered is on at The Photographers’ Gallery until 24 Feb 2019

However, I again failed to stop myself being drawn into taking candid iPhone images of some of the other visitors to the galleries - always interesting people who, weaving in amongst the fixed displays never fail to bring out the reportage photographer in me. Including Mr Beret who punctuated each stop-and-look movement with a firm thud of his walking pole…!

Orford Ness, Suffolk - Hidden History /  by Shaun Armstrong

Secret atomic testing base still has secrets to tell…

Sleepy Orford Ness. In the background the multi£m US cold-war listening complex - Cobra Mist

Sleepy Orford Ness. In the background the multi£m US cold-war listening complex - Cobra Mist

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I recently spent a day exploring the large area of essentially shingle and marsh off the coast of Suffolk, known as Orford Ness. A natural spit of land created as oblique waves slowly moved the beach into the sea and now a nature reserve under the control of the National Trust. But in between it was the site of cutting-edge military research and testing.

Boarding a small boat from the quaint seaside village of Orford, with its castle, agreeable restaurants and specialist food emporiums, the (literally) three minute water crossing takes you to another world.

Despite its quiet and desolate beauty, many of the part-destroyed buildings remain still largely intact but spread across acres of flat, but eerily wavy, shingle; an attraction for my interest in documenting shapes, details and textures.

All images shot with Fuji X-Pro2 and 23mm 1.2.

These Walls Tell Stories: Photography Exhibition and limited edition prints. /  by Shaun Armstrong

These Walls Tell Stories was a professionally curated exhibition of photography drawn from my 5-year documentary commission of the Hat District heritage regeneration project for The Culture Trust, Luton.

Luton in Bedfordshire was for many years since the 17th Century the centre of the UK’s hat-making industry. As trends, production techniques and global trade evolved, the industry eventually compacted.

Whilst Luton still has some specialised hat suppliers and manufacturers, many beautiful buildings were left in disrepair or under-utilised.

The Culture Trust Luton had the vision to continue this process of adaptation and reinvention with a focus on generating an eco-system of spaces to attract and support creative industries.

A programme of restorations and refurbishment, to be known as The Hat District, incorporated spaces to be known as Hat Factory, Hat House, Hat Works and in due course a new-build, Hat Studios.

My 5-year commission covered documenting the spaces before, during and after, alongside the process of specialised work and industries.

This exhibition, incorporating a mixture of framed images and wall-prints, presented in a Wolfgang Tillmans style, focuses on capturing details and abstract elements pre-restoration. The patterns created by the diverse materials and building layout as it starts to change

These Walls Tell Stories in collaboration with The Culture Trust and presented by Matthew Shaul of Departure Lounge, took place at The Storefront in Luton (an old hat factory showroom) between 30 Nov and 21 December 2018.

Tate Modern - Pictures and Picasso /  by Shaun Armstrong

“Essentially there is only love. Whatever it may be” Pablo Picasso

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Every artist or creative should make time to view the work of others, especially those who are successful in their chosen field and better still if not of the same genre. It stimulates new ideas and routes to more unique experimentation within your own skill-set. And for me, no visit to London is complete without a visit to Tate Modern where there is usually something interesting or challenging to see.

This visit gave an opportunity to see the “1932” exhibition of works by Pablo Picasso during this key year of creativity and output but also “SHAPE OF LIGHT : 100 Years of photography & abstract art” exploring the evolution of creative approaches to image creation.

Here are a few quotes I liked from Shape of Light :

“Why should the inspiration that comes from an artist’s manipulation of the hairs fo a brush be any different from that of the artist who bends at will the rays of light?”

Pierre Dubreuil

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My only aim was to express reality, for there is nothing more surreal than reality itself. If reality fails to fill us with wonder, it is because we have fallen into the habit of seeing it as ordinary”

Brassaï

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Whilst I enjoyed the Picasso retrospective , I found myself more intrigued by those viewing than the work itself. The photographer’s curse I guess; not really be able to be somewhere interesting without seeing images you want to capture…

People are just fascinating, so here are some moments of (indoor) street iphonography…