The art of observation

"Industrial societes turn their citizens into image-junkies; it is the most irresistible form of mental pollution." S. Sontag

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Smartify comes to the Artists' Village

Today, for the first time ever, our historic galleries are available for you to enjoy in augmented reality thanks to award winning app SMART

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Picture Research

Picture research and subject research. There is a lot to talk about.

- Child labour, slavery

- kidnapping and missing children

- Children at War

- Children recruited to be solders

- Forced marriages and Female Genital Mutilation.

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View: Camille Pissarro, Portrait of Félix Pissarro. Read about this painting, learn the key facts and zoom in to discover more.

This is another option for a trigger image for a video about children. This painting and the previous one represent somehow a child’s pain. There is no happiness, sparkle etc. I have to do further research on paintings and the background.

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View: Thomas Gainsborough, The Painter's Daughters with a Cat. Read about this painting, learn the key facts and zoom in to discover more.

Before the lockdown I luckily managed to visit National Gallery. I was looking for something to represent my next short video, I wanted directly to focus on children. The research on children goes good despite that it makes me  depressed. Children have been a subject of trafficking, treated like the subject, used to satisfied adults desires, work hard for free, being beaten up, end up in conflict zones, sleep on street. I actually do not know where to start. 

This painting is one of potential trigger images for the video.

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https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/06/the-story-behind-the-viral-photo-of-drowned-migrants.html

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jun/25/photo-drowned-migrant-daughter-rio-grande-us-mexico-border

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Alan_Kurdi

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/shocking-image-of-drowned-syrian-boy-shows-tragic-plight-of-refugees

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/14/europe/alan-kurdi-syria-drowning-sentenced-intl/index.html

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Collaboration with the poem writer - Mark Samspon

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While being on lockdown we are just visiting our local park. Everyday going for a walk with children. The university is closed, before this happened I borrowed 360Insta camera for couple of weeks. As there is no demonstrations and protests, I cannot really wonder around the city I tried to do different photography than before. Spring is beautiful, blossoms are magical. 360 photography allowed me to capture the spring from different perspective than just from normal camera through one lens. The images are unreal you certainly want to look for fairies in the pictures. Well I guess they might be there in the air.

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The video about women rise up was already making me depressed. The image research about children will make me very upset, depressed, angry, anxious, crying all the time. I think I do know what song I will be going for, a child song with all dreams about future. The future which is so utopian - the song what makes children happy.....

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Muhammed Muheisen

New Photojournalist to follow.

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Children burdened by war

Award-winning photographer Muhammed Muheisen captured Afghan children living in a slum on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan. Pakistan has been hosting Afghan...

Further research for my next short video about global issues. I decided to continue creating short videos triggered by selected paintings in National Gallery. After exploring the issue with women’s rights, my second step is to explore the existence of children. Millions of children are having very bad childhood times. They can live during the war or some other political conflict, they can live in rich country but being affected by austerity or they can live with child abuser or being a victim of pedophile, they can be sell off by their own mother or exploited to make money for family.

Through the picture research online I came across this photographer Muhammed Muheisen who did the project with children from Afghanistan living in Pakistan.

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New picture research for second video in Augmented Reality. Two paintings from National Gallery W chick they may be a trigger image and recent images of children affected by stupid adults war. I’m not sure yet what image I’m looking for, children working or children victims.

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WORK IN PROGRESS

“Cranes are about to collapse “

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After the National Gallery.

On one cold evening in February I went to photograph a Women’s protest in Trafalgar Square. Unfortunately I came to late and could not find demonstration.

Instead running through the London streets I decided to go and visit National Gallery as it had late opening that day. The painting and calm environment allowed me to stop, think and enjoy experimental photography.

Playing with lights, reflections, long exposure and movement I created new digital paintings.

Next was the post production in lightroom.

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WORK IN PROGRESS

Following self isolation rules, everyone has to stay st home to reduce the spread of virus.

I started working on new series of collages, the backgrounds are based on Modern British Paintings.

‘A Tale of the Sea’ - Walter Frederick Osborne

‘The Bonfire’ - William Stewart Macgeorge

‘Stewartry girls among blossom’

Edward Atkinson Horner

‘A Tea Party’ - Bessie Macnicol

‘In a Field’ - George Scott Ingles

‘Lady in a Black Hat and Pink Dress’

Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell

‘Her First Catch’

Thomas Bromley Blacklock

‘The Jubilee Hat’

Frank Wright Bourdillon

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Machines - work in progress.

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Curating the Future - Museums Are Not Neutral - BBC Sounds

V&A Director Tristram Hunt explores the politics of the museum