LOOK BACK IN CHEERINESS: RICOH AUTO HALF SL

Maybe it’s because I took with a Ricoh camera my first picture but I must admit, I love Ricoh. And in 1970,  this was basically the deluxe version of the simple Auto Half in commerce.  It used the same body as the earlier models, but added some nice features: a focusing, 35mm lens, speeds of 1/30 – 1/250, close focusing to 0.8 meters. Ricoh Auto Half SL used to have a focusing scale on the lens marked with distance and idiot symbols. Exposure was similar to the other Ricoh models, and designed to be automatic. Since the camera needed a battery, it also had an OFF switch, which was innovative, at the time. The viewfinder had a special mark to aid in correct exposure settings, just like the SE model. With a dot right in the middle of the viewfinder which was normally yellowish, meaning “adaquate light”, if it appeared reddish, it meant inadequate light i.e. use flash.  Crude, but effective. Available in chrome or black, both with stylish front,  just like the other models. Back in the days when things were cool..and Ricoh in my heart.

Author : Isabella Cecconi

02/16/2012
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

ARCHIVIO CICCONI: A CRAFTED CONTEMPORARY MYTH

There’s only one mean in mankind for stopping time: it’s photography. And Photography if stored professionally, can be considered a real “good” for society. The value of an asset is today determined by history for instance, and with its history a whatnot brand can promote excellence and preciousness. The importance of this heritage resides in an archive itself, so that to become a brand the archive itself.

The Cicconi Photo Archive, recognized by the Italian Ministry of Culture as an archive of historical interest, preserves historical memory through the use of Italian visual material, from photojournalism agencies. The archive itself includes around 7 million images of original plates, negatives and slides of various sizes, holding together Italy’s visual recorded history. The work of Umberto Cicconi, President of the foundation, which manages these assets has been continued by son Edoardo who, getting along with all this treasure, has been inspired with his artisanal work.

Nowadays, Edoardo Cicconi produces antique prints with the confidence of someone who has always lived between glass plates and negatives. He shifts from being a craftsman to a real artist. A touch of new sign by an old crafty master. With a peculiar printing technique whereby he combines tailoring on cotton paper and the technique of gum bichromate, Edoardo reproduces images on a special glassplate. The gum bichromate is a technique used in the 19th century that uses few items: Arabic gum, chrome, colour and obviously light. This seemingly simple process offers endless potential for expression due to the aggregation formula of different elements. It obviously ensures the irreproducibility that is the basic issue of a real work of art.

This ritual is unique and it gives a go to equality and the main idea of matrix and copy. In a place like Rome, where rituals, religion, fashion, art are a spontaneous DNA, Edoardo Cicconi and the Archivio Ciccioni offer an endless quantity of possible photographical interpretations.

Time is where the past and the future coexists.

www.archiviocicconi.com

www.fondazioneallori.it

 

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

02/07/2012
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE INSATIABLE FASCINATION WITH THE UNUSUAL: DIANE ARBUS

Winter in Paris is like autumn in New York. It’s in those grey tones of clouds that you feel the French touch, the vie en rose, the delightful and tasty flavour of a macaron, or of a butter croissant with an espresso coffee, served at Fauchon’s. It’s in those night lights, those high heeled shoes, those sales that make you go crazy, boulevards, love spreading, Colette’s, the golden Jeanne of Arc statue, the Concorde square and those infinite, sublime, roof tops from where the Tour Eiffel can be viewed in all its beauty. Paris is a beating heart, a revolutionary creature, fed by what’s chic and à la mode. As I was wandering in the city centre, waiting for the beginning of the haute couture week, walking and talking in Rue Saint-Honoré, it came to my mind that last time I was in Paris I had the chance to visit the Lee Miller exhibit at the Jeau de Paume. As I was close to it, I decided to go and see what was on. I then crossed the road, made my way to Rue de Rivoli, entered the Jardis de Teulieries and saw those amazing two words: Diane Arbus. Saturday, lunch time, a spare few hours, and there I was, ready, with craving eyes.

As a key figure in the history of the 20th century art, Diane Arbus’s exhibition offered more than 200 pictures drawn from private collections and museum; an itinerary along which the spectator is stroke by powerful images accompanied only by the artist’s own titles so to create a real personal and subjective experience. I realized, Diane Arbus’ work remains problematic for many viewers. This amazingly talented artist transgressed the traditional boundaries of portraiture, making pictures of circus and sideshow freaks, many of whom she formed lasting friendships with. She also killed herself, at aged 48, on 26 July 1971. So now, on the 40th anniversary of her death, I thought it was also worth reconsidering her artistic legacy. She undoubtedly felt at ease among the outsiders she photographed. She also seem to experienced a frisson of guilty pleasure when photographing them, you also feel it in many shots with naked individuals or street scenes. Her works make the viewer question not just the reasons for looking people who are pathetic, pitiable, as well as repulsive, but also our own. Arbus’ black and white portraits particularly of those with mental disabilities or physical abnormalities, retain their power to unsettle and disturb the viewer. Whatever the intention was, the cruel often seems to outweigh the tender. With Diane Arbus, as with Nan Goldin, the life and the art are inextricably intertwined. Arbus seemed a great humanist photographer who foresaw a new kind of photographic art. An ‘avantguardiste’, I’d say. She certainly was a trailblazer of a new photographic aesthetic. Raw and unflinching, disturbing and illuminating, pessimistic and narcissistic. Arbus may have felt an enormous empathy with the people she photographed, even if she was not part of them, and however she identified with their outsider status of being. She had her own troubles, but they were of a different order. The work she left is powerful not just because of its dark beauty or its stark vision, but because it asks questions of the viewer about the limits of looking, about the predatory nature of photography, and about our complicity in all of this.

When we look at one of her images, we cannot help feeling that we are intruders or voyeurs, even though her subjects are in a time and place that has vanished. There is a high sense of complicity because the images hold the viewer in a sway. This is her power: she understood the instinctive conflict and did more than anyone to exploit it artistically.

One of the best exhibition ever seen.

 DIANE ARBUS

Until February the 5th 2012 – Jeu de Paume, Place de la Concorde – Paris

http://www.jeudepaume.org/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

01/26/2012
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

BE MY BABY: KODAK BROWNIE

Do you remember those happy songs by the Ronettes?Those songs about love and broken hearted affairs? Or those wonderful tunes during a summer camp? When parents were away and all you had was the chill of a first summer kiss or a Colorama image in your head? The idea of holiday, happiness, lightness. Oh well those fantastic dancing days are back. Just to let you know. While browsing in my mother’s closet, (an action uneasy to avoid for a busybody like me and for a chichi frou frou mother like mine..) I found out this precious jewel. I remember a picture of hers, where she was about 15 with this camera in her hands, a lake in the horizon and her cheering face. A Magnificent Kodak Brownie. That’s what it is. Call it Chiquita, or Holiday or Bullet Brownie. It’s a Kodak camera, and it’s tiny and delicious like a real brownie.Manifactured in Brasil and the Us between 1953 and 1964, this darling camera was extremely popular back in the days. Made out of Bakelite it took 127 size film. With a moulded black plastic body with white, cream, or grayish controls, depending on the model you would chose.A fun fact I discovered is that some Kodak cameras, like the Brownie Bullet for instance, were described as “premium”. These were cameras that were not normal retail items, but used for promotional purposes often by third-party companies to encourage customers to take advantage of their goods or services. This shows marketing genius on Kodak’s part. A third-party company benefits by selling their own product, the customer gets a free camera, and Kodak gains a new customer that will buy their film and process it! Pretty genius, weren’t they?You eat Campbell soup, you get a camera, and so on.. 
Arthur Hunt Crapsey, Jr designed the Kodak Brownie, from which the Brownie Bullet was later copied. The Brownie Holiday was a small, simple viewfinder camera, also available as the Brownie Holiday Flash – with flash synchronization. It had an easy shutter button and film advance knob which were the only things that broke its sleek lines. It sported a fixed focus lens and took eight pictures, it was a pretty basic point and shoot tool. There were no controls other than clicking the shutter. It was small and had a nice frame size. The shutter sounded slow but the pictures seemed sharp, as much as I can tell with all the grain from the expired film…

The “Holiday” was meant to take on holiday, I guess. And so was I… 

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

01/18/2012
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE POWER OF FRENCH WIZARDRY: JEAN-PAUL GOUDE

Precursor, image manipulator, illustrator, art director, photographer and filmmaker, Jean-Paul Goude is above all a creator who invented a style, a universe. For over 40 years, he’s produced enough intelligent art. For over 40 years, he has revolutionized the advertising world reinventing visual identities of brands, commercials, style icons. It’s hard to imagine Lady Gaga without reference to Goude’s erotic vision of Grace Jones which is classical and punk, gorgeous and grotesque at the same time. He’s always been considered a provocative artist, a graphic designer. He has mesmerized the 80’s style set with its racial and sexual taboo-busting imagery. Nowadays, his influence still grips as new generation of art discovery with taunting wit and his evergreen dark-humored capability. The first major retrospective, the Goudemalion , now on show at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, features some of the multimedia artist’s most legendary works, like the photo of Azzedine Alaia and Farida Khelfa, as well as the memorable images of his muse: Grace Jones. In fact, Goude turned the doyenne of New York’s underground disco scene into an international superstar. Being considered Grace Jones’ Pygmalion, hence the name of the show Goudemalion. The exhibition looks back at the insurmountable image maker’s work ranging from fashion to photography, advertising and performing arts. The exhibition presents, in a journey of intimate spaces and dramatic sequences: drawings, objects and images, spanning through all his career.

Time to go to Paris then. Enjoy.

http://www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr/

http://www.jeanpaulgoude.com/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

01/02/2012
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

MY BEAU MONDE – ELITISM

There aren’t many places where you will discover that an old poem perfectly matches with a new image of an unknown photographer; where electro music, or new waves zoom with fashion and haute couture or sport or entertainment or a food recipie or an architect’s design. This place does exist indeed, and its name is Elitism. As we enter the winter months and gathers together for our Christmas holidays, I couldn’t resist writing a short editorial. This is maybe one of the best thing an editor can do, actually. The scent of soup, the delights of our future season travels, the new year planning and scheduling. We will be present at the Firenze’s Pitti Immagine, we’ll go to Paris’ Fashion Week, we’ll eat hot dogs in New York, browse art in Miami and discover Madrid’s treasures. We’ll try to cover with all our strength a 360 degree vision of the what not. I believe that there is nothing like a treasured discovery and a friendly sharing of information. We are a code sharing flight against the mainstream. This is our rule number one.  Our ideas come from a summer day, from a gentle breeze of the Southern of France, from the smell of green lavender. We like to pretend to be a brilliantly enjoyable novel with a happy ending, or with a  tranquil flowing. We are global style hunters, gracious writers, clothes addict and culture followers. What we bring home, today, is a special find that reminds us that we are followed and read, that we can procrastinate our work with the same joy and wonder of our early days back in 2010. So I thank you and I wish you our best Holiday Season. Merry Christmas to you all and to my special Elitism fellows with whom my seeding ideas would never grow without: Francesca, Marco, Jean Luc, Valentina, Federica, MarcoA., Olivia, Teresa, Maxime, Marta, Gianni.

….Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary…

Author : Isabella Cecconi

12/21/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

CURVES ARE ALWAYS ATTRACTIVE: THE P.90 CAMERA

“Cameras should be curved and made of wood and brass”

I just discovered this amazing Oregon-based builder of wooden cameras,  Kurt Mottweiler, who has constructed a limited edition of 50 irresistible pinhole cameras. At first sight it seemed to me a sort of Leonardo da Vinci’s project. But the P90 cameras is a modern and 100% handmade and crafty creation. The P90 can captures a grand total of 8 frames on a single roll of 120 film,it is constructed out of cherry wood, brass and Phenolic. The back panel is removable, the profile is thin and easy on the hands and to stow in a bag or to carry. The P90 is curvilinear and panoramic and it has a tripod adapter too. Its curves give images equally bright from edge to edge and have the perspective typical of panoramic camera with historic techniques. I guess my fellows at Elitism can consider it if reading my Christmas wish list.

 http://mottweilerstudio.com/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

12/13/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

OUR HIGH RESPECT FOR A WELL READ PERSON IS PRAISE ENOUGH FOR LITERATURE: ORLANDO&OFELIA

 

It was the Fall and I fell (in love) with them. Orlando, Ofelia, are a two and a one, a beating body with a big heart and two minds. My chance encounter with them lead to a nice conversation here reported;(and a nice aperitif, some time ago).  It was amazing meeting and getting to know these two creative and ingenious minds who adore rare books, nice books, illustrations and the whatsoever. They believe in quality, something we really appreciate here at Elitism. I’m so looking forward to seeing them shining like glowing stars, because I believe that effort and love for culture deserve first place.  

What’s Orlando&Ofelia? How did everything start?

Orlando&Ofelia curious bookshop was created by the dream and intention to disseminate and promote the growth and development of culture and visual arts in Italy. We are omnivorous and curious, we look to the future and to the past as stimuli for the present, putting on the research for our bookshop the basis to understand the global movement of art, fashion and image. A small anecdote. One day, strangely affected by a TV show, we heard a person saying something very stimulating: in order to realize a dream, it must be close and clearly easy to its implementation in reality, otherwise the risk is to become just abstraction… We thus started imaging a white place, full of books, ink colors and paper and the good conviviality of people. Maybe OrlandOphelia was born at that precise moment, but in reality it is a path to a lifetime of intimate research, work and passion for creativity in the round.

Five adjectives to describe your work.

Curious, playful, surprising, honest, caring

What’s creativity to you?

Creativity is the ability and courage to build new solutions and perspectives of phenomena. A sheet of paper isn’t always just a sheet of paper, it is the courage to trim it, to tear it, to fold and draw that makes the difference: each time a paper plane, a ball to play, lots of confetti, a philosophical pamphlet, the best illustration of the century!

What is the future of paper books? Do you think that the digital will ever take it all?

We continue believing that in a hypothetical trip to the moon or on a desert island, when asked what would you bring with you? Many people would answer again, a book, a CD and a toothbrush! But reality is slightly different! Surely the evolution of textbook is linked to digital as the simplest form of use, faster and probably more democratic and responsible. We however think that for some ways of expression, paper is still needed and also offers unexplored possibilities. The book itself can be an object with a life regardless of  content, form an smell or color. OrlandOfelia is oriented to books as it has always been meant, printing works / sculpting art, capable of giving excitement and wonder, to live a tactile experience and profound emotional and aesthetic reflection.

You sell special editions and very rare books. Do you suffer in separating form such big treasures?

Absolutely! But there is a particular moment, the moment where a buyer understands and loves something that we love, that makes us happy to go beyond the attachment we can possibly have.

Which was the very first book you remember about?

Orlando: I distinctly remember how many times I read and reread the picture story of Grease! I knew all the jokes and the songs by heart!

Ofelia: I have two. The animal illustrated book to color that I have scribbled over and over again and “Tales on the phone” by Gianni Rodari, the rain of confetti in Barletta and the palace of ice cream in Bologna, are still in my glutton-sweet tooth dreams!

To you, what’s an Elitism book?

A book for Elitism: Papercraft 2 Design and Art with Paper Editors: R. Klanten, B. Meyer Gestalten. And a curious and creative proposal: How to Make Books: Fold, Cut & Stitch Your Way to a One-of-a-Kind Book written by Esther K. Smith

Thank you and let’s always keep on dreaming on reality…

You can find fantabulous ORLANDOFELIA on Facebook  orlandofelia@gmail.com

or at the Dissent Gallery Via Leonina, 85, Rome, Italy

http://www.loveanddissent.com

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

12/07/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

LUKE (SHARATT), THE WIND MAKER

Blame it on the season. Blame it on the harvest. Blame it on our Hunter boots, or on our Duckbill hats. We, Elitists, are summer organic creatures. Autumn is one of the temperate seasons but for us, it’s always spring, or better, we believe in 365 days of pure summer. For us, there’s no equinox and this is not the unofficial beginning of winter. That’s what we’ve decided ever since we started our journey together.

I won’t spent too many words on this talented young photographer. Simply, I’d say, I like Luke Sharratt’s photos. I enjoy his series on wind, on nature, on people behaving with nature’s elements. His images are neat and sharply clear. I like his balanced colors and image tones. He is a young freelance photographer coming from the London’s outskirts. I like his light and feather-like approach. I feel his fascination to swirling air, his contemplation on wind. He displays his images with a wide-eye. So I tell you, dare him, if you wish or dare us if you like winter.

http://www.luketakesphotos.co.uk/

 

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

12/01/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

TAINTED IN SIN: ELLEN ROGERS

‘My search in the black foam and the fog of my psyche’.

I am in the mood for love with Ellen Rogers. Discovering her photography was like traveling through time, like dancing in one of Aubrey Beardsley’s illustration or drinking Absinthe in a café in Paris in the nineteenth century. This all-analogue fashion photographer recreates timeless and dreamy worlds where seduction and lure dance together. I love her sexy-soft images of timeless beauty, the twilight feeling, the gloomy atmosphere, her sensuous bodies. Ellen doesn’t use any digital equipment or computer  manipulation (other than scanning the end result) . She experiments the traditional darkroom processes. Madly deeply sweetly and together in bloom with her vintage and analogical dreams.

http://www.ellenrogers.co.uk/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/24/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

BEHOLD THE LEGOTRON MARK I !

I love the amount of creativity that can come from assembling little blocks into whatever the imagination designs. As far as I’m concerned, LEGO has always been one of my favorite toy to play with. We all know that LEGO is capable of creating things far more advanced than what you were making as a four year old. Have you ever seen a camera made of LEGO bricks? I have no clue how many pieces are in this camera but this little jewel is pretty good for portrait. It certainly can’t focus to infinity but still it’s an ingenious creation.

Get ready to snap! Legotron Mark I

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/17/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE GLAMOUR YEARS, NORMAN PARKINSON

Gallery Vassie of Amsterdam presents Norman Parkinson – The Godfather of British Fashion Photography – The Glamour Years. On display, early vintage silver prints from the 1930s, 40s and 50s of one of the genius that really invented fashion photography. Parkinson’s carrer lasted 50 years and spread along the whole world as a comet. His energy was legendany. He had an eye for elegance and beauty. He was in love with women, their world, their secrets. Audrey Hepburn, Wenda Parkinson, Ava Gardener, Lisa Fonssagrives (later Mrs Irving Penn), Vivien Leigh, Apollonia van Ravenstein, Raquel Welch, Jean Seberg, Iman or Jerry Hall and even the British Royal Family. Women were always confident with him, so confident that they modeled against unusual backdrops, between elephants, heaved into the sky with a crane and int most unusual positions and places. Vogue, Harper’s and many other magazines owe more than a drink to this incredible photographer and human being who died in 1990 in Malaysia doing what he liked most: shooting on location.

“I like to make people look as good as they’d like to look, and with luck, a shade better”

Gallery Vassie, Amsterdam – from 26th of November until the 21st of January 2012

www.galleryvassie.com

Author : Redazione

11/11/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE ADVENTURES OF ZAZIE IN WANDERLUST

Once, during a conversation we were having upon her work she told me: ‘I need chaos in rules’.

There’s a stirring truthfulness in Zazie’s photography. Every image is accompanied by a wisp of impatient purity and energy, a truthfulness that comes from an adventurous, graceful and dreaming soul. Young and gifted Zazie Gnecchi Ruscone, Roman by birth and by choice, has lived part of her life abroad, then moved back to the Capital, where she has continued her career firstly as interior decorator and designer then as a 360 degrees crafty woman. I’d say that if asked to be defined, Zazie would prefer the word artisan rather than artist. Maybe cause the word artisan implies more the working idea using crafty hands. An artisan is a type of worker, a skilled manual person who basically creates items. An artisan can either be functional or decorative. An artist in the pretty basic definition, is someone who creates art. Art as an occupation, but let’s say, it mainly implies the idea of “rêverie”. Both words and fields imply the cultivation of creativity. Devoted to art and to curiosity, Zazie makes beautiful creations on cloths and fabrics, ornamental papers, clothing, furniture items that bring to memory African, linear, geometrical or regular motives, oriental garments, none of them exactly looking alike. Every piece is completely handmade with incredible reverence, every piece has its own story, let’s say “flavour”, dedication. Let’s say that she expresses herself through many medium. Either a brush or a camera. She’s an eclectic figure. Zazie is a promising photographer too. Her exploration of the world of photography was surprisingly sophisticated and engaging to me. When I first visited her exhibit I found out a sort of vintage and analogical approach to the art of photography. She is common to developing her prints in gelatine silver and she uses analog cameras. Her approach to photography can be defined as a thin sneaky line between photojournalism, personal essays, candid snaps, portraits, still life. Her third eye is a window into dreams, parties ( I can’t deny her party-goer being!), anxieties, happiness, love and birth. Her images have been a revelation to me. Her shots are highly personal and private stories of intriguing places and people where she moves restlessly with fun. What transpires is her joy, her intense, bright and fresh view on reality. She makes me think of J.K. Huysmans’s quote concerning his work: “Une fantasie brève sous la forme d’une nouvelle bizarre, d’un lyrisme nouveau”.

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/10/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN THINGS WERE COOL: KEYSTONE CAPRI

If I think of it I see Jackie and Mr.Onassis. I see them using it while sailing in the blue Mediterranean sea. It’s the Dolce Vita time, war is over, and the living seems easy and there’s so much fun in the summer.Capri, the island of leisure and beauty. Now instead, while Autumn is on, and clouds don’t seem to clear up, I wonder what and how many memories did it capture back in the days? This beautiful object used to be one of the best  movie cameras. The Keystone Capri special edition, model 25, manufactured at the beginning of 1946, used to take 8mm film. Elegant and adorable this movie camera was aesthetically a precious item: petite, compact, elegant and full of charm.
At the time it was a reliable tool of photography and movie making. Nowadays, it’s very eye-catching and it’s not at all just a decorative vintage piece. It’s part of hisory and extremely collectable. Details »

Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/08/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

IF CAMERAS COULD TALK: AGFA CLACK

 

I knew it was my fortunate day. It was sunny and warm and Christmas was near. It was the day I bought my beloved Clack camera. Created in 1954-65 this simple, boxlike piece of art has a single-element 95mm meniscus lens with built-in close-up lens and yellow filter. It takes 6×9 cm pictures on 120 film. The Clack also has a small viewfinder on top, that consists of a plastic lens and an ocular. It’s still a weird feeling wrapping the film in it or using the Clibo flash. I haven’t tried the yellow built-in filter yet, but I’m sure that on a cloudy day with an B/W film it would make some great effects. The world as seen through the viewfinder is tiny and fantastic..it’s barrel like distorted. This old tubby plastic jewel is a fantastic little object that actually says “clack”! And it deserves a place in our collective photographical memories. Details »

Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/04/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

RYAN ENN HUGES : The 360° Project

I love this technique, lighting is spectacular, the result is unbelievable. The “360 Project” is a crossroads between photography and motion pictures where dance movements are captured simultaneously by 48 cameras aligned in a circle. The project features ballerinas from Canada’s National Ballet School and dancers from Northbuck Krump. The two styles of dance represent different perspectives in both technique and origin, beauty and heart beats.

The resulting images create a sort of frozen moment, embodying the essence of each dance in 360 degrees. It is a stunning concept and striking visuals by Ryan Enn Hughes.

www.ryanennhughes.com
 

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

11/02/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

I THINK YA BETTER CALL TYRONE (LEBON)

 

I was introduced to Tyrone Lebon’s photography and realized he creates not the typical fashion image. His photos  seem raw and soulful, confident and dynamic. He has an interesting use of light and innovative editing techniques. He does fashion, commercials, videos, films. Born in 1982, Tyrone is both photographer and filmmaker based in London.  A city he seems to love deeply. “London is my city. I was born here. And I grew up here. And I’m very proud to call it home.”. He started his journey into the world of photography at the age of 15. When he was 18, he directed “Daves Indo Tour” which was a surf film made in Indonesia and screened on MTV Asia. He studied for a MA in Anthropology at Edinburgh University from 2001-2005. Tyrone is also the creative director of DoBeDo, a collective of London based photographers and filmmakers who organize exhibitions and screening around the capital. These are some of his striking images. Enjoy.

http://www.tyronelebon.com/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

10/27/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

A L’HOMBRE DE LA JEUNE FILLE EN FLEUR: ANETA BARTOS

 

I’d say intense. That’s maybe the best and first adjective I’d use to describe Aneta Bartos’ photography. This amazing Polish born but NYC based photographer has been a marvelous discovery to my eyes. Her work has been published on countless magazines and world-famous publications. Her projects are drenched in energy and mystery. Hers seems a dark and romantic approach where fragility meets  aggressiveness and later melts with desire. Portrayed bodies are firmly linked to souls, either in men and women. Aneta’ s approach is intimate, sexually charged and soaked in intimacy, voyeurism, exhibitionism. The viewer is projected into her pictures, into her startling body positions. We dare not to blush when staring at those amazing self-pleasuring men having physical gratification. (I’m here referring to the BOYS project).But there’s vulnerability too. Her shots are a sublime exploration against the socially accepted norm of sexuality. She seems to struggle against the standardized idea of dominating men versus women. Her controversial images reveal that men can be as vulnerable as le deuxième sexe, when exposed. They can be fragile and weak creatures. Even though there’s an inevitably determined idea of women in a physiological and psychological approach, historical materialism has showed that the escape from the sphere assigned  to women is for Bartos similar to what Simone de Beauvoir would define in her work The Second Sex: ‘they aspire to full membership in the human race’.

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

10/20/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

WHEN IN ROME: AUDREY

Audrey is an exhibition dedicated to famous actress Audrey Hepburn, organized to support UNICEF and hosted at the Ara Pacis Museum until December the 4th 2011. Dedicated to the 50th anniversary of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and the International Rome Film Festival, the exhibit will show unpublished photographs, videos and personal items from the experience of the Roman goddess and her life in the Caput Mundi. Audrey in the guise of UN Goodwill Ambassador or mother; Audrey as fashion icon or the unknown actress in moments of everyday life in the city. The exhibition is curated by Audrey Hepburn’s second son, Luca Dotti, who well remembers his mother: “A lady who enjoyed long walks with her dogs or taking her children to school. Many have known this Audrey Hepburn, in the nearly two decades she has lived in Rome. ”

The funds raised at the event will support the fight against malnutrition project carried out by the Club Friends of Audrey for UNICEF.

Audrey from Oct 26th til Dec the 4th.

http://www.arapacis.it/

Author : Isabella Cecconi

10/11/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE OCEAN IS CALLING HIM ONCE MORE. NEW SHIP, NEW LIFE: CHRISTIAN GöRAN

 

The story I’m going to tell begins on an early Tuesday morning. It begins in a mid Summer day. Summer, my favourite season. This story deals with a boy, a man actually, and his third eye. It also deals with a girl, a woman actually, and her skeptical heart. It’s also the story of a Swedish man and a Chilean woman who gave birth to the protagonist of this story. The boy, named Christian once grown up became a pilot, a model, a photographer, a surfer and a quite good philosopher. There is also a name and a surname in this story: Christian Göran.

Hands up for how many of you know Christian. Switch on the TV or go through a magazine. Commercials, covers, shootings and many cool images. I won’t say nothing more to describe his beauty and his picture perfect soul holder, his meat container: his body. Yes, he is a hunk, I won’t say the contrary. It’s just undeniable. He is in fashion, with fashion, surrounded by flash lights. But since my first sight, I realized he had something more attractive than beauty. I guess it was all about that glowing eye. I’m sorry but I can’t avoid saying that not everybody has a glowing eye. You just see it in distance, it’s that sparkling light that makes you realize that a human being is alive, is a living soul, rich in content, maybe smart or at least cunning. When I first started my browsing and research I found out more. Interesting pictures, pixilated let’s say, intimate, simple, minimalist images of cozy situations: a house, a bed, a redhead girl, an early morning, an adventurer’s adventure, a blue sky or what his real third eye would see in that precise moment. Insightful, fascinating, often brilliant shots. His work is clearly an inner documentary of his life, of his world, of his deep thoughts. He has a sophisticated prospective of what surrounds him. He portrays his feelings about life contradictions, analyses the social through his eyes and feelings and his imaginary. Photography here seems a benchmark, a recorder of his life, of history, of his people. In general, good listeners, or good observers are difficult to find and I believe, very dangerous. Dangerous because powerful and privileged. Christian is a real adventurer, a traveller. He uses his exciting and unusual experience, his bold and risky undertaking, as best activity. He exploits his potential and physical commitment as life undertaking. Generally adventurous experiences and choices, create psychological and physiological arousal. To me, adventure mostly seems his major pursuit. Some of the oldest and most widespread stories in the world are stories of adventure. An adventurer is a person who bases his lifestyle on acts, who lives by his or her wits. Göran seems a professional adventurer, a photographer who has shot active lifestyle, travel, personal life with intimacy. He  strives to shoot and capture a particular expression, a particular place. Just by using natural light, he brings to our eye his experience and his creativity in projects. To me, his heart is a flower that blooms every hour and while I stare at his images I feel all his mind-blowing experiencing hazard.

The series of images here presented is from Christian’s project Better than Life.

That’s his explanation to the project:

It’s about the anxiety I felt about certain aspects of what I was doing, working as a pilot. I spent many days waiting for next flight out on the country side in Denmark, alone in a empty strange house that the company had for the crew, but I was the only one there. I thought a lot about some of the flights that we did (flying Danish soldiers to Afghanistan) and what I was doing with my life. This is a series about that anxiety, about questioning my life, about war.

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

10/06/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

LOGOS, ETHOS, PATHOS: EDWARD STEICHEN

 

Edward Steichen was born in Luxembourg in 1879, later emigrated with his family to the United States. He began his career formerly as a painter and later took up photography. During World War I, was part of the photographic Division of the American Expeditionary Forces. Once returned home, he worked for the J. W.Thompson Advertising Agency and became chief photographer for Condé Nast Publications’ Vogue and Vanity Fair. Throughout his years he has produced an oeuvre of unequalled brilliance, putting his exceptional talent and energy to work to glamorize the contemporary culture and its high achievers.  From politics to literature and government, from journalism to dance, music, fashion, cinema. No other portrait photographer could rival him. He was bold and created a new style of fashion photography with crisp, detailed, high-key style and verve. He has paved the road to Horst, Avedon, Mapplethorpe, Weber.

What strikes the most nowadays, about seventy-five years later, is the versatility of his approach. Steichen constantly found new ways to show his sitters and their clothes to advantage. One admiring critic claimed that to be photographed by the master was to be “Steichenized”.

And now darling, pass me some Veuve and let’s toast for this great event, cause I can’t hardly wait to attend.

EDWARD STEICHEN

the Condé Nast Years Galleria Carla Sozzani, Milan.

Opening Sat 19th November 2011, on show from 20th November 2011 to 12th February 2012.

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

09/30/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

PHOTOQUAI 2011

Photoquai 2011 is a voyage through the clamour of the world, stimulated by photographers’ perceptions of the state of their societies and of cultures other than their own. For us, they act as watchmen, guards, preventing us from falling asleep.

Once again, Musée du quai Branly, dedicates  to non-Western photography, the 3rd edition of the Photoquai Biennial exhibition. World images will be shown on the quays of the Seine alongside the musée du quai Branly and the museum garden.
Acclaimed for its quality, originality, ambition and relevance, the Photoquai will continue showcasing artists, little known in Europe, by stimulating communication an exchange of world views.
400 works by 46 contemporary photographers from 29 countries. We’ll be there, what about you?

Photoquai Sept. the 13th – Nov. the 11th 2001

www.quaibranly.fr

Author : Isabella Cecconi

09/10/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE ART OF KISSING: ANDY BARTER

Still life has always been Andy Barter’s specialty. A great photographer whose work has mainly involved simple subject  pushed to become abstract and surreal forms, creative images, worldwide add campaigns . His technical approach, highly considered, was aimed at making images beautiful, playful, detailed and extremely clear. His well defined images have always being perfectly strong in impact, striking, amazingly edited, ready to be put on a cover of a magazine. But I always thought, that being one of the greatest on still life photography meant being neglectful, as if feelings were out of his pictures. Pictures that were obviously picture perfect. But neglectful. I found out I was definitely wrong. I’ve just discovered that he can dive into couples and portray some tongue twisting action with his perfectly picture composing gifted ability. That’s Andy Barter’s striking Kiss project, where strong feelings are involved. Kissing couples surrounded by a black aura.  Enjoy…and now, let’s start snogging!

http://www.andybarter.com/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

09/07/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

POETRY,CLARITY AND GRIT: BORIS MIKHAILOV

 

“It is a disgraceful world, populated by some creatures that were once humans, but now these living beings are degraded, ghastly, appalling. This “fauna” is specific especially to the period of quasi-general diffidence, specific for most of the post-communist world.”

People living at the edge of society. The perception of social disintegration ensuing from the break-up of the Soviet Union, in terms of social structures and human condition, social oppression, devastating poverty, the harshness and helplessness of everyday life. Boris Mikhailov is one of the leading photographers from the countries that formerly constituted the Soviet Union, and his work is currently on view in the exhibition Boris Mikhailov: Case History through September the 5th at the MoMa, New York City. For over 40 years, Mikhailov has explored the position of the individual within the mechanisms of public ideology, touching on such subjects as Ukraine under Soviet rule, the living conditions in post-communist Eastern Europe, and the fallen ideals of the Soviet Union. The consequences of the breakdown of the Soviet Union for the people living there, homeless people, who trusted him and his camera. More than five hundred photographs that portrait those who after the breakdown were not able to catch hold in a secured social system.

Few days remaining and a great chance to getting to know a great photographer.

Boris Mikhailov:Case History until Sept. 5th, MoMa NYC

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

08/25/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

LUCHAR LIBRAMENTE: LIONEL BAYOL THéMINES

 

There are many themes to be explored in Lionel Bayol Thémines’ photography. There are many issues to deal with: status, appearance. He is a question pusher. There’s an uncover message captured within every image he shoots. An active French photographer and artist, with numerous exhibitions displayed throughout the world. The viewer is directed to turn his vision towards identity like the possibility of revealing something new, to change his views. The use of Lucha Libre masks from Mexican culture, finds here a new resonance, a new utilization.  Men and women are transformed into active bodies without real appearance. A mutant creation, that pushes us to question our own vision on society.

Identity and its impact on man-kind is the point of convergence of the works of this interesting artist in his amazing project Titanesland.

 

http://www.bayol-themines.com/

 

 

Author : Isabella Cecconi

08/09/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

LIFE IN TWO: WATER DROPS – GIOVANNI DE ANGELIS

 

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I wonder what ‘the without-same’ can-not understand this fundamental commandment of the Catholic religion.”  M. Tournier

A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy.

The word twins often raised an expectation of equality. The study of twins, from a scientific point of view, was inaugurated by Sir Francis Galton in a 1875 article, which suggested using a comparison of twins to determine the influence of hereditary factors from environmental in determining the characteristics or conditions of men. In the  little Brazilian community of Càndido Godói the phenomenon  of twins is so widespread that it has become famous throughout the world. Everybody in this town can boast of having twins in their family. Many are the stories around these phenomena.

Photographer Giovanni DeAngelis has traveled to reach this town and shoot his projects by investigating and portrait with pictures the process of individuation-separation. The theme of twin births from two perspectives: social and anthropological, embarking on an in-depth exploration of the ideas of identity, uniqueness of the individual and relationships with others. The two faces of research, artistic and scientific, have thus been integrated through investigation of the social, psychological and individual reality of this place and its inhabitants. What came up is a beautiful black and white work, exhibited at the Macro Museum of Rome, until September the 15th 2011. Details »

Author : Isabella Cecconi

07/18/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

iPHONEOGRAPHY? TRY THE RED POP

iPhone lovers, this is for you.

Snapping with an iPhone isn’t always as easy and enjoyable as it should be.Beep Industries have come up with their new product: Red Pop. It’s a design accessory and a handy product. It’s a red button. It’s not any button, it’s a brushed aluminium and plastic grip that enhances the experience of taking photos. By eliminating the awkward poking of the touchscreen button, Red Pop replaces an actual big red button. It’s a simple device to attach to your phone and it transforms it into a camera.

It’s a modern and familiar and it gives a twist to your iPhone. The free downloadable apps give a rapid-fire photography and allow the image share the image via Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms.

The iPhoneography culture is growing up. And yes, I’m a little scared, but can’t prevent the avalanche!

http://www.red-pop.com/

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Author : Isabella Cecconi

07/07/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

THE HORIZON LEANS FORWARD. THE DEEP AND BRAVE NEED FOR CHANGE: GIGI STOLL

How many words do I know? How many words do I use when I write? How much courage do I have when I spit my venom on considerations and judgement?Writing is like composing an oeuvre of art, a song, a melody of letters. Funny how I, the composer, the master, my own worst enemy, always full of letters and notes is, (this very time) afraid of writing. This time, the photographer I’m going to talk about is, from my point of view, not only a good picture taker but also a great soul. It’s hard to use words not to appear too flattering or mellow but just honest. My usual sassiness is having some trouble here, I must admit. It’s easier to be tranchant than to be real. As my head is bowed a little, and I’m ready to receive some ash on it,  I’ll start telling you this story. 

The tangent is a kind of straight line, that comes out of the circle. It’s an infinite line that creates confusion, that creates the difference, that is separate from the whole composition. (No, this is not a math class). This is to tell you that a tangent generally eliminates the monotony of the circle, the perfect round motion. It creates a sort of chaos, it creates the unexpected. It is an independent element with its own energy, with its own direction. It doesn’t follow any other pre-established movement. It goes by itself.

The first time I saw a picture of hers, I had the impression of a healthy approach to photography. A sharp eye.  The first time I saw one of her pictures I felt a piercing force coming out. Not to mention that the first time I saw The Pinch image, I had the same feeling I felt when I first saw Guy Bourdin’s photos. Her compositions were neat, her images vivid and delicate. I don’t know why but soon as I saw it first, I had the feeling of being accustomed to those images. Not only cause I had the impression of having seen them before, but because they concentrated part of what I am and like the most: passion, travels, people, stories. Details »

Author : Isabella Cecconi

06/23/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

à REBOURS: POLAROIDS

While the world flows into the digital, the anachronistic-looking Polaroid snapshot dominates media and advertising. When the Polaroid Collections of Europe & the USA were put on the market by the liquidators, WestLicht of Vienna managed to take over the European part of the collection and save it from being dispersed. Founded by Erwin Land in the 1960s this collection encompasses 4400 pieces by 800 international artists.  The exhibition will present a selection of  by well-known names and its publication features selected Polaroid masterpieces and new Impossible instant photography by contemporary artists.

17.06.2011 - 21.08.2011

Westlicht, Vienna

Author : Isabella Cecconi

06/20/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE

RICHARD AVEDON

“Avedon is America’s consummate modern photographer and one of the iconic artists from a generation which produced many extraordinary painters, sculptors, and photographers. We consider it a great privilege to represent one of the true masters of twentieth century art.”

Few words have to be spared on Richard Avedon. A master of photography. He is one of those names we should all know. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century. His images are a meditation on life, death, beauty, class, race, identity. His, is a career that spanned nearly sixty years. Avedon’s has been portraying from fashion famous to anonymous, from the American Civil Rights movement till the fall of the Berlin wall. If you have the chance, it’s worth a visit. (I love Paris in spring!)

From June the 8th till the 28th@ Gagosian – Paris.

Author : Isabella Cecconi

06/09/2011
Category: / THE THIRD EYE