This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2013/jul/18/photoireland-festival-web-photography

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Is the web photography's friend or foe? Is the web photography's friend or foe?
(2 months later)
"The internet is essentially stupid," declared Jörg Colberg this week. Colberg's photography site Conscientious is one of the key places to find out about new photography online, so there were an audible intake of breath as he said it. He delivered a manifesto for change at this year's PhotoIreland festival, describing the internet as a great adventure, but one that still exists for many as "a drive-by culture"."The internet is essentially stupid," declared Jörg Colberg this week. Colberg's photography site Conscientious is one of the key places to find out about new photography online, so there were an audible intake of breath as he said it. He delivered a manifesto for change at this year's PhotoIreland festival, describing the internet as a great adventure, but one that still exists for many as "a drive-by culture".
Colberg took on the ethics of online ownership, the difficulty of finding rigorous thinking and writing about photography, and the impossibility of making sense of the overload of digital images now floating in cyberspace – 90 million a day on Instagram alone. He said the web requires all of us not just to be aware of the misuse of images and the cavalier attitude to ownership, but to actively intervene each time we spotted the same.Colberg took on the ethics of online ownership, the difficulty of finding rigorous thinking and writing about photography, and the impossibility of making sense of the overload of digital images now floating in cyberspace – 90 million a day on Instagram alone. He said the web requires all of us not just to be aware of the misuse of images and the cavalier attitude to ownership, but to actively intervene each time we spotted the same.
It was one of the most provocative talks in the opening programme of PhotoIreland in Dublin. And in a deft bit of programming by director Ángel Luis González, Colberg was followed by Andy Adams, the man behind FlakPhoto.com and a champion of all things online. He had me onside mostly, talking about the possibilities of the web for sharing, marketing and discussing photography – but the questions posed by Colberg undercut the all-round positivity of his presentation. Quoting from Jason Evans's essay Online Photographic Thinking, Adams insisted the web offered a new way of thinking both for photographers and their public. He name-checked Marshall McLuhan's essay, The Medium is the Message but not The Medium is the Massage, the cult book which suggested that new mediums lull us into passivity rather than make us more aware.It was one of the most provocative talks in the opening programme of PhotoIreland in Dublin. And in a deft bit of programming by director Ángel Luis González, Colberg was followed by Andy Adams, the man behind FlakPhoto.com and a champion of all things online. He had me onside mostly, talking about the possibilities of the web for sharing, marketing and discussing photography – but the questions posed by Colberg undercut the all-round positivity of his presentation. Quoting from Jason Evans's essay Online Photographic Thinking, Adams insisted the web offered a new way of thinking both for photographers and their public. He name-checked Marshall McLuhan's essay, The Medium is the Message but not The Medium is the Massage, the cult book which suggested that new mediums lull us into passivity rather than make us more aware.
Elsewhere at the festival I hosted a conversation with photographer Cristina de Middel on life before and after The Afronauts, her phenomenally successful self-published photo book. She gave the audience a tantalising glimpse of her new project, a mischievous take on Chairman Mao's Little Red Book. De Middel said she was more influenced by comics and films than photography books. She also said photography had not yet discovered its ability to tell stories and create fictions, which is her aim as an artist. De Middel also regaled us with tales of how certain intrepid photobook collectors tracked her down and turned up on her doorstep offering wads of cash for a copy of The Afronauts – a book that now changes hands for£1,200.Elsewhere at the festival I hosted a conversation with photographer Cristina de Middel on life before and after The Afronauts, her phenomenally successful self-published photo book. She gave the audience a tantalising glimpse of her new project, a mischievous take on Chairman Mao's Little Red Book. De Middel said she was more influenced by comics and films than photography books. She also said photography had not yet discovered its ability to tell stories and create fictions, which is her aim as an artist. De Middel also regaled us with tales of how certain intrepid photobook collectors tracked her down and turned up on her doorstep offering wads of cash for a copy of The Afronauts – a book that now changes hands for£1,200.
On a quick tour of the exhibitions, I was taken by Shane Lynam's Contours, which "creates a fictional greenbelt around the city" that suggests the original optimistic vision behind the planning of Parisian suburbs. Linda Brownlee's series, Achill, conjures the stillness of the island in County Mayo and the singular sense of belonging felt by local teenagers. Barry Hughes offers a very different take on landscape with his project Metastatic, a conceptual exploration of environment and dread though an old John Wayne film, The Conqueror. It was shot in Snow Canyon State Park in Utah, close to a nuclear test site. (The fact that the director Dick Powell, stars and 91 crew members later died of cancer led some to believe that nuclear fallout was the cause.) Hughed gives an interesting visual meditation on anxiety and contamination.On a quick tour of the exhibitions, I was taken by Shane Lynam's Contours, which "creates a fictional greenbelt around the city" that suggests the original optimistic vision behind the planning of Parisian suburbs. Linda Brownlee's series, Achill, conjures the stillness of the island in County Mayo and the singular sense of belonging felt by local teenagers. Barry Hughes offers a very different take on landscape with his project Metastatic, a conceptual exploration of environment and dread though an old John Wayne film, The Conqueror. It was shot in Snow Canyon State Park in Utah, close to a nuclear test site. (The fact that the director Dick Powell, stars and 91 crew members later died of cancer led some to believe that nuclear fallout was the cause.) Hughed gives an interesting visual meditation on anxiety and contamination.
Landscape loomed large at PhotoIreland. Kevin Griffin's Omey Island – Last Man Standing centred on Pascal Whelen, the last resident of the the tiny island of Omey off the coast of Galway, while Robert Ellis's New Line looked at the space inhabited by an alternative community in the west of Ireland.Landscape loomed large at PhotoIreland. Kevin Griffin's Omey Island – Last Man Standing centred on Pascal Whelen, the last resident of the the tiny island of Omey off the coast of Galway, while Robert Ellis's New Line looked at the space inhabited by an alternative community in the west of Ireland.
A word, too, for Paul Gaffney's palpably silent landscapes, We Make the Path by Walking, which reflect his state of mind while travelling 3,500 kilometres on foot through rural Spain, Portugal and France. Muted colours add to the Sebaldian mystery of crossroads, thickets and open fields.A word, too, for Paul Gaffney's palpably silent landscapes, We Make the Path by Walking, which reflect his state of mind while travelling 3,500 kilometres on foot through rural Spain, Portugal and France. Muted colours add to the Sebaldian mystery of crossroads, thickets and open fields.
Dublin-based photographer Yvette Monahan took a well-deserved Portfiolio Award for her series The Time of Dreaming the World Awake. Monahan describes her images of Bugarach, a so-called magic mountain in the south of France, as "a portrait of place, a landscape of possibility". It was here, according to esoteric readings of Mayan prophecies, that a new Arcadia would arise following the end of the world on 21 December 2012. The mountain drew apocalyptic believers from all over, and must have been a nexus of disappointmentwhen 21 December came and went. "Despite this," Monahan notes, "I realised how attractive it was to believe in the possibility of an idyll, even if it only existed in my mind." Her photographs illuminate that idyll, and are a testament to a peculiar kind of collective wishful thinking that holds sway in our age of anxiety.Dublin-based photographer Yvette Monahan took a well-deserved Portfiolio Award for her series The Time of Dreaming the World Awake. Monahan describes her images of Bugarach, a so-called magic mountain in the south of France, as "a portrait of place, a landscape of possibility". It was here, according to esoteric readings of Mayan prophecies, that a new Arcadia would arise following the end of the world on 21 December 2012. The mountain drew apocalyptic believers from all over, and must have been a nexus of disappointmentwhen 21 December came and went. "Despite this," Monahan notes, "I realised how attractive it was to believe in the possibility of an idyll, even if it only existed in my mind." Her photographs illuminate that idyll, and are a testament to a peculiar kind of collective wishful thinking that holds sway in our age of anxiety.
Now see thisNow see this
Peckham in south London is the venue for this weekend's Copeland Book Market which brings together 46 small independent publishers dealing in photography and art. There will be talks, stalls and dancing over the weekend in the Bold Tendencies space. Highlights include tonight's publication launch by Dutch duo of WassinkLundgren, a Friday night after-party hosted by Preston Is My Paris and friends. Friday evening also sees the launch of Jeremy Deller's book, It's A Kind of English Magic, which features a book signing and limited edition LP by the artist, a live performance by the Melodian's Steel Orchestra and a record store run by Vinyl Factory. Among the publishers promoting their wares are Art Licks, GOST Books, MELK, Morel Books, Nobody and Trolley Books. Thursday and Friday: 5- 9pm; Saturday and Sunday: 1- 7pm.Peckham in south London is the venue for this weekend's Copeland Book Market which brings together 46 small independent publishers dealing in photography and art. There will be talks, stalls and dancing over the weekend in the Bold Tendencies space. Highlights include tonight's publication launch by Dutch duo of WassinkLundgren, a Friday night after-party hosted by Preston Is My Paris and friends. Friday evening also sees the launch of Jeremy Deller's book, It's A Kind of English Magic, which features a book signing and limited edition LP by the artist, a live performance by the Melodian's Steel Orchestra and a record store run by Vinyl Factory. Among the publishers promoting their wares are Art Licks, GOST Books, MELK, Morel Books, Nobody and Trolley Books. Thursday and Friday: 5- 9pm; Saturday and Sunday: 1- 7pm.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.