Gruppo F inbox: clouds - Karin Bengtsson

@Karin Bengtsson

Gruppo F inbox: JP Zorn

From the pond series

In the power of this vision I live

It´s hard to find Gunnar Ekelöf translated into English. He is, in my opinion, one of the greatest Swedish poets of all times. I found something here. For Christian, who is a great fan of Ekelöf but also for photographer Lasse Mellberg who also loves his poetry.

Emotional photography (1)

Christian divorcing

All of us go through a difficult period from time to time, as life naturally, and sometimes tragically, goes on. In my case, I was going through a divorce, which (then) took me by surprise.

While going through all the emotional roller-coaster stages, I kept photographing, but even more, expressing my feelings through photography. The quality of it varied, but it served an excellent purpose of being my safety valve during this period.

Below is some of the photos that I in hindsight feel meant the most to me. Some good, some ugly, -- simply emotional photos.

I don't wish anyone a crisis in any way, although they sometimes are inevitable. But if you are going through one, try - well really try - to keep on expressing and capturing your feelings throughout the period. I firmly believe it is a strong channel to your feelings.

All the Dead Ends

Preeminitions (before)

Falling

Failed Expectations

Too many books (moving out)

I'm okey, I'm fine

The F Blog - where things are moving

The F blog is a place where the unexpected constantly happens. Seventeen editors working independently of each other assure the readers that things are moving – and not just in one direction. I guess this is crucial for their ultimate goal, to make you see what you don´t notice.

The blog has become the photography blog for huge numbers of readers from all over the world. To this date, fifty photographers – famous, infamous and unknown – have been invited to exhibit their work on the blog.

Among the invited guests, one will recognise established artists like Gerry Johansson, Loretta Lux, Diego Levy, Michael Kenna, Joy Goldkind, Mika Kaurismäki, Alec Soth, Joanna Kinowska, Artur Allan Willman, and more. The F Blog is not only for the established artists, however, as many publicly unknown photographic talents and other talented photographers have been invited to participate on the blog. Again, with seventeen editors, the choice of invited guests, known or unknown, is never going to be predictable. Having a mixture of guests is the best guarantee that this will always be the case. You will find all invited guests here.

The F blog was launched in September 2006 and has already in November generated half a thousand posts. It´s a meeting place where readers find that photography is the sole and obvious focus of attention, in the photographs presented, the articles published and the guests invited. It is, in all its glorious simplicity, a blog about photography, with photographs, by photographers.

The F blog strives to maintain a creative dialogue with its readers. To do this, everyone is encouraged to make spontaneous submissions to the Gruppo F inbox. The F people tell me that they welcome photographs, articles on photography, and other things related to photography. They consider these submissions an essential and additional dialogue with the readers. Since photography in itself, is about communication, this is something that the F blog cherishes.

Of course, the seventeen editors are keen publishers and they submit posts on an almost daily basis. Clearly, there are seventeen individuals expressing their views. Some are keen writers and some prefer posting pictures only. To add to the creative diversity, some members also appear on the blog using a nickname, usually showing hilarious things.

Beside the blog, Group F is devoting time and energy to stage exhibitions, both on a national and international level.

This place is insane.

But I love it!

Nenne Gulden

Before Rush Hour

Haga

Vintage camera folders are great. I just say that.
:-

photo: abeku

Gruppo F inbox: Nina Östman

Hommage á Bacon 1,2 & 3

"Djuren är åtminstone mänskliga" - Christopher Marlowe

"Jag trodde länge, säkert i likhet med många andra, att tidelag var en historisk företeelse som människan lämnat bakom sig. Att det också förekommer idag har överraskat mig. Sex med djur var den största skammen och rädslan för smitta var under århundraden utbredd i svenska jordbruksbygder. Att pojkar och äldre män blev avrättade och att de kor, kvigor och ston de utnyttjat samtidigt avlivades, kan vi utläsa av samtida dokument och nutida forskning. Ocensurerat djursex kan hittas på Internet där hästar, hundar, kor, katter och till och med marsvin bjuds ut som sexobjekt. På nätet har djuren fått en roll i sexindustrin världen över. Historiska fakta visar att det inte var så stor skillnad mellan då och nu. Människan förvånar och svensk lagstiftning saknar motstycke i Europa. Endast Sverige och ett land till har inget lagstiftat skydd."

Ur artikeln "En kvigas berättelse" - Om lagen, tiden och tidelagen, av Nina Östman, från boken "Här är Platsen" från Hälsinge Akademi. Utkommer den 8 december 2006.

Invited Guest: Maleonn Ma

Those photos are from the albums: X of my life, The portrait of Mephisto, The fairy story of my life, My horse, My Circus.

Maleonn Ma, a photographer, short film editor, film art director, graphic designer.....and so forth, started to photograph stills for only two years ago. He´s born in Shanghai in China 1970. Since he started to post his photos at photosites on internet i have admired his fascinating photos - the images make me think of a teather scene and all images are full of storys, symbols, metaphores and are surreal and dreamlike. I always find something new in them and never get bored to return to the "jewels".

Therefore i´m glad to present his work here today.

Maleonn have exhibited his photography at Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjing, Lianzhou, New York, Hongkong, San Francisco, Singapore and Toronto. Before he start shooting he write extremely detailed plans, and make some rough drawings which - as he says - is a good habit from his director career. He reads and travels a lot to search his themes.

Maleonn says: - /"I´m unwilling to consider myself as a traditional photgrapher like nobody in the photography association would notice my existence. Still, I hate the photography vest and what that represent is the most plebian part in photgraphy. But I have to say that now I´m truly falling in love with taking pictures.

I have been shooting and have completed over three hundred pieces of works in these two years in a intricate way. Gradually I´ve addicted myself to this pleasure of continously creating and expressing. Although there´s some more realistic adversity appears in my life which was unusual for me. My spiritual life become more and more funny, and no longer obsessed in the disappointment to myself. That was the time i felt I´m living actively, and the word "Self" came back again into my language. That´s the most precious gift that the matter of taking pictures gave me.

I always hope my camera and I to be more simple and don´t have to carry any sense of suffering. There´s no longer any pedestalled icon in this age. The actual being of those so called photography against this untrue world has already become suspicious. That means no matter how pretentiously I consider my photographs is, my pictures can only be little fable finally, or just an inexprected performance, that´s all. What I desire is the applause and the smile of the audience, the curtain call or an encore of. All is that simple, no nice"./

This is a part of the preface from Maleonns book. So far only sold in China, but let us hope it shall be sold internationally or over internet as well.
You can see more of Maleonn Ma´s work here

Invited by Jeanette Hägglund

Nativity

photo: Jeanne Wells
We had a few technical difficulties, but I got everyone to stand still for this one. Two of the wise men/pears went missing, so we went ahead without them. Only 21 shopping days left till Christmas, you know . . .