I’ve just learned that Larry Sultan died. I’ve long been an admirer of his work, he deals with pretty heavy themes (childhood, belonging, aging parents, suburbia) in fresh and interesting ways. He’s probably best known for Pictures From Home, a series of photographs documenting his parents and their relationships in old age. My favourite work of his is probably The Valley. He documents the sets of porn movies in middle-class houses in California. There’s nothing particularly voyeuristic about these photographs, they are quite matter of fact. There’s also nothing titillating about them, nothing more than the odd buttock or (gasp) naked thigh. Primarily it’s a thoughtful look at the American middle-class dream that these houses are lived in by families and rented to pornographic studios during times of absence, Sultan himself growing up in a similar environment. Bizarrely the actors and crew almost seem like props, little reference tags putting the main subject, the area, into perspective.

Larry Sultan – Tasha’s Third Film (from The Valley)

A truly thoughtful photograph with an individual view of the work. Larry, you’ll be missed.

Shred #7

I’m quite enjoying this work. There’s no aim in mind, just a cohesive bunch of images.

Rinko Kawauchi

Rinko Kawauchi – Untitled (from Utatane)

The work of Rinko Kawauchi is becoming increasingly important to me, the tenderness and delicacy she uses to document her world fascinates me. She often exhibits her work alongside haikus she has written which is very apt as her work is very poetic.

I first saw the above photograph a few years back and it really grabbed my attention. To this day I can still spend hours looking at it.

I thought I’d show some new work. I’m not totally sure where it’s going, these may just remain as sketches.

Shred #1

Shred #2

Also, I’ve found BBC2’s School Of Saatchi to be quite distasteful – I don’t like art being a horserace. Especially when put into this X-Factor style format. It’s quite a shame as the show does have it’s  good points. Matthew Collings and Kate Bush always have interesting and constructive points to make.  The work of Suki Chan is by far my favourite. Really subtle and poetic. She’d be a deserving winner. I’d seen some of her work at the Chinese Art Centre in Manchester a few years ago, I remember liking it but then forgot who it was by. Revisiting it has been a very pleasant surprise!

One from the archives.

I’m back. Here’s an experiment.

Nine Prints #1-9

I don’t post enough of my work on here.

Al Palmer – Isn’t Anywhere

As promised. More photo, less chat.

Isn’t Anywhere

It’s good to get back into the project side of things, rather than just the taking of photographs.

I know I’ve been a bit slow in posting lately, I have been working hard and tying up loose ends. On that note here’s a photograph from a project I’ve been working on. I should have plenty more to show soon.

Soliloquy

I’ve been fairly productive lately, trying to stay creative and take plenty photos. A timely re-read of Gerhard Richter’s Atlas has given me plenty inspiration and the heart to plow ahead with new ideas. I think I shy away from things that may fail, I’m trying to remedy that. Trying to take chances and not play it safe.

I’ll leave you all with a quote from Richter:

“I want to leave everything as it is. I therefore neither plan nor invent; I add nothing and omit nothing. At the same time, I know that I inevitably shall plan, invent, alter, make and manipulate. But I don’t know that.”

Well, I wanted to blog about the photography of Chris(tine) Boarts Larson who, in my mind, was/is THE live music photographer. I used to love opening up a new issue of Slug & Lettuce to see her ultra-energetic, atmospheric photos on newsprint. Sadly I couldn’t find enough of her work to post here. You can see her MySpace here although it doesn’t do justice seeing it on a computer screen, it looked even better in print.

Also, really sad to see the Wood St premises of Open Eye in Liverpool has shut. I know it’s re-opening elsewhere but I always liked that space.