Street (2)
02 November 2006
Guest: Mattias Schulstad
Ever since I first saw this picture by Mattias I have been thinking of it
from time to time. I am glad to be able to show it here on The F Blog.
invited by ulf fågelhammar
Here is what Mattias writes about the photo:
"(Realitet) I´ve choosen to call this picture reality. The picture is taken
in the morning. Before breakfast, before makup, before getting dressed.
It´s just her, the cold kitchen and the bright morning sun outside."
Street
An old project, photographing the Stockholm street art scene a few years ago. For an up-to-date view of the scene, take a look at www.gatukonst.se (although the photography is not very good there.)
01 November 2006
Guest: Alec Soth
Ever since my hands first opened Sleeping by the Mississippi (Steidl, 2005) and my eyes glanced at the world through Alec Soth's mind, I have been returning to his images, time and time again. In them I find something quite remarkable. I call it the intense gaze. It seems to me that Soth - when looking at the world - can see right through it, into its narrative core.
When I see a bus full of people, crossing my way as I walk to work, I always wonder what stories each and everyone in that bus could tell me. If Soth were to photograph that imaginary bus of mine, I am pretty sure that he - his intense gaze - would answer my question. Maybe the resulting photograph would not have told me every person's story. I am, however, convinced that it would not have been far off the mark.
In an interview in SeeSaw Magazine, Soth objects: "I long for stories. Novels and movies satisfy, but photographs often leave me feel like something is missing. [...] Some day I would like to figure out a way to tell a good story." I do not agree. At all. Soth's photographs, to me, are full of stories.
The story of Soth that have affected me the most is the story of Dog Days. It is the story of Carmen Laura - and the story of Bogotá. Soth writes:
My wife and I adopted our baby girl, Carmen Laura, from Bogotá, Colombia. While the courts processed her paperwork, we spent two months in Bogotá waiting to take Carmen home.
Carmen's birthmother gave her a book filled with letters, pictures and poems. "I hope that the hardness of the world will not hurt your sensitivity," she wrote, "When I think about you I hope that your life is full of beautiful things."
With those words as a mission statement, I began making my own book for Carmen. In photographing the city of her birth, I hope I've described some of the beauty in this hard place.
Below you will find some of the photographs Alec Soth made for Carmen. More of Soth's work can be seen here.
J. S-g.
Invited by Joakim Sebring.
31 October 2006
Big City Tour
Photo: Christian Wettergren
This photo reminds me of a wonderful photo from Hong Kong taken 1997 by Roger Turesson.
It appears in the photo journalistic book called 'Monsun Hong Kong 1997', covering the week before Hong Kong was handed over to the Chinese Authorities (Text by Peter Kadhammar, photo by Roger above). This book is a great inspiration to me, try to get it or borrow it!
But the picture above is mine altogether. :-)
30 October 2006
For your eyes only
Some sketches from the 'grad
Old photos from the last winter and early spring I scanned to preper for the coming hunting season.
Guest: Carolina Lopes
Portuguese photographers are often trapped by surrounding them reality of old towns, olive trees and donkeys – cannons of traditional BW Portuguese photography.
I am personally impressed by the fact she didn’t allow herself to become a hostage and she dares to show her real world, not Lisbon Story like frames.
Carolina Lopes, very young photographer from
More works of Carolina you can find on her blog
invited by Marcin Górski
Meeting Marcin
-by Ulla Larsson
This spring Markus Andersson delightfully told me that we were to invite a Polish photographer as exhibitor this autumn. It felt exciting, and now the autumn is here! Marcin Gorski, the photographer, good friend of Markus and a member of Gruppo F, opened his exhibition People I met during the Polish week here in Uppsala.
The first picture is also Marcin’s own choice for exhibition poster. As one chair is free we feel specially invited to the exhibition.
One man, perhaps a waitor, is sitting down in a café in Warsaw. Perhaps he is planning today’s work. A beautiful sunlit wall, with interesting shades and nice lines. The picture has a very classic and
timeless feeling to it, an impression also given by the man’s clothes. The café chair with an elegant back, perhaps in the jugend style, as a piece of jewellery. The pattern of the chair’s seat gives a beautiful shade.
Sorrento, Italy
Here I met an old man with a white cap. The man has a characteristic profile, emitting strength. He holds his hands together. I keep looking at his old hands. It gives me the special feeling, which the French literary critic and philosopher Barthes(1) named “punctum”. I’m fascinated and my imagination tells me that this old man has a long and exciting life story to tell us. The picture seems to be filled with wisdom.
Henryk & Andżelika.
My eye is caught by a very light and positive picture. An old man with tattooes holds a girl with a scarf nicely arranged up in his arms. I’m told that he is usually watching over the small children in the neighbourhood. I see the child’s joy of life and the man’s experience and ability of taking good care.
Man & Plane.
An elegant picture, fine lines and smooth surfaces. Contrasting in an exciting way with the man’s creased clothes. Very interesting composition.
Silesian Songs, old town Gliwice.
Three boys, about twelve, are looking up, meeting the eye of the photographer. The interesting thing here is that I find three completely different facial expressions. One boy seems curious, the other just happy and the third has a tougher, somewhat questioning expression on his face. Maybe totally different personalities?
The exhibition of Marcin is interesting, beautiful and conveys a warm feeling. I have found many favourites among the photographs and here I only share a small part of the total exhibition.Thank you Marcin for letting us meet the people you have met! Welcome back to us and to our photo gallery. Next stop Warsaw for me.
Warm greetings from Ulla – exhibition group, Uppsala Fotografiska Sällskap UFS
(1)French literary critic, literary and social theorist, philosopher, and semiotician.
29 October 2006
Guest: Gerry Johansson
One of the most strange, fascinating and beautiful photobooks I have ever seen is "Sverige" (Sweden) by Gerry Johansson, published in 2005. It is a really outstanding and very inspiring book by a highly creative photographer. Therefore, I was really happy that Gerry accepted my invitation to the F blog and I am honoured to present some of his pictures here.
About his work Gerry says: "I photograph what I find beautiful. That can include both a run-down 1970s urban scene and a romantic rural landscape. My pictures can be seen as a counterweight to the dystopic portrayal of our world in mass media."
The photographs below are from his ongoing exhibition "Landsbygd" (Countryside) at Nordiska museet in Stockholm. You can see the exhibition now and it ends in January 7, 2007. For more information, please look here.
Invited by Fredrik Skott.
Huaröd, Skåne, 1989. Photo: Gerry Johansson.
Godegård, Halland, 1989. Photo: Gerry Johansson.
Brunnskog, Halland, 1989. Photo Gerry Johansson.
Veinge, Halland, 1989. Photo: Gerry Johansson.
Interiors
When I found the photo "Barber Shop" by Walker Evans
I could not help thinking about another picture. It´s from
another time, created by another photographer...but there
is a resemblance.
Anders asked himself why he did not shoot more interiors.
I ask myself too. "Working Class Hero" is a picture that
inspires me, and hopefully all of you!
- Ulf Fågelhammar
Photographer: Helena Nilsson (one of our invited photographers)
book of questions (first chapter)
1. Who are we?
2. Who is Eugene Extremo von Scannerman?
3. Too emotional?
4. Good or original?
5. Did Velásquez use a camera obscura?
6. Good enough?
7. Alligator Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est?
8. How´s New York?
9. Who turned off the color telly?
10. In what way is Strindberg involved?
11. Is there anybody out there?
12. Where is paradise?
13. Who is the ghost?
14. Warum?
15. Would you like a cup of coffee?
16. Who said that?
Let me be the one who brings you back to the light VI
I did´n want to mix this one. Think she has to be alone in all her beauty
28 October 2006
The Barber Shop
Negro barber shop. Atlanta, Georgia.
Evans, Walker, 1903-1975, photographer.
CREATED/PUBLISHED 1936 Mar.
Interiors are fascinating. I came across this picture while browsing the
FSA archive of more than 160 000 B/W photographs at the Library of
Congress(see F links) The absence of people, the presence of objects.
It´s a kind of picture that leaves a lot to my imagination. I think of the
people coming here to get a haircut, I think of the barbers, the flow
of human life.
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