The power of 9
Nine UK-based photographers present nine perspectives in Vision 9, an exhibition at gallery@oxo this April.
What do you get if you take nine talented contemporary photographers from the UK and exhibit them under the same roof? The answer is, an extraordinary breadth of work, which demonstrates just how hard it is to pigeon hole artists.
From the vivid, abstract strokes of Doug Chinnery, through to Valda Bailey’s mysterious, layered interpretations of nature and Rachael Talibart’s stormy seascapes, there is something for everyone at Vision 9, which comes to gallery@oxo on April 11th.
“What cements this exhibition is the beauty of the variety,” explains Beata Moore, organizer of Vision 9. “I wanted to show that contemporary photography means something different to each of us. You will see everything from big views, intimate landscapes, cityscapes, vibrant splashes of colour, dramatic black and white images and photos that look like a painting. Whatever your taste, you will come across something that will make you stop, stare and think.”
The sea is a favourite subject for many of the Vision 9 photographers, although their interpretations of it vary enormously.
Rachael Talibart’s seas are often raging; ‘Poseidon Rising’, a powerful black and white image of a ferocious sea with the suggestion of a face rising from the tip of a wave, is the product of hours of patience and was snapped during storm Imogen in February 2016.
“It was such an exciting day,” says Rachael. “I took a shot of a wave racing across the sea and an idea clicked – I wanted to capture pictures that looked like they could be creatures or monsters and then decided to name them after Greek Gods. That is how my Sirens portfolio was born.”
Talibart is this year’s Black + White Photographer of the Year with her image ‘Nyx’.
Rachael captured ‘Poseidon Rising’ in one thousandth of a second, while dedicated black and white photographer Paul Sanders uses long exposure times to depict the sea. It allows him to create a sense of calm, a visual relaxation that captures and expresses the way he feels when making his images.
Marianthi Lainas is also a fan of coastal locations, her most recent series of work being inspired by Radio 4's Shipping Forecast.
"I am drawn to those wild and open spaces at the edges of our lands: shifting sands, cycles of ebb and flow, and unpredictable seas encountered on daily walks close to my home and during frequent visits to the Western Isles of Scotland" explains Marianthi.
Cheryl Hamer uses long exposures and splashes of colour to portray the swell of the waves. She also finds using multiple exposures liberating as it enables her to express the spirit of a place in all its forms.
Linda Wevill, a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society who has been widely published, adds movement and mood to her seascapes by experimenting with techniques from varying shutter speeds through to using texture layers in Photoshop.
Astrid McGechan, author of ‘The Elmbridge Hundred: A Visual Journey’, has a great eye for big views. Mountains and lakes feature strongly, and while she loves using colour to paint her landscapes, she also enjoys working in black and white to portray urban life.
“I find her street life photographs striking and meaningful,” says Moore. “Astrid has got a fantastic eye for capturing the right moment in the street and the beauty of the city.”
Doug Chinnery is a professional landscape photographer, writer and teacher, and was twice shortlisted in the Landscape Photographer of the Year competition. His images are full of movement and colour, which he uses to express his abstract view of the world around him.
Valda Bailey, driven by emotions and colour, leaves behind the representational.
“I enjoy trying to push the boundaries of what photography can be. I use multiple exposures and camera movement to help simplify and abstract the detail in a scene” says Valda.
And finally, Beata Moore, author of seven books, explains that she too shares a passion for black and white photography along with a love of Venice, bordering on obsession.
“I am completely in love with this most exquisite city, it’s almost as if Venice was built with photographers in mind,” she says. Her classic noir approach echoes the glorious past of “La Serenissima” and a lingering sense of sadness in front of its slow decline.
Vision 9 takes place at gallery@oxo, Oxo Tower Wharf, Bargehouse Street, South Bank, SE1 9PH from April 11th – 15th 2018. Entry is free. Opening times are: 11am – 6pm.
