Landscape Photographer of the Year

While I waited for S to arrive at the National Film Theatre I had a wander around our rival competition to Garden Photographer of the Year www.gpoty.org

Charlie Waite a good friend of members of the GPOTY team is behind this inaugural year.

It’s a shame that the competition did not allow locations outside the UK. Yes the British Isles are beautiful but I like to see places from other parts of the world. Like Earth from the Air.

The printing and display were fantastic. However I felt that some of the images were all little over Photoshoped and a bit dated in style.

This image is a collage of all of the winning entries.

‘I’m an actor and a tree’.

October 07

‘I’m an actor and a tree’.

Steve Buscemi

With thanks to S who works at The Times we got tickets to a National Film and Television School Masterclass as part of The Times BFI 51^st London Film Festival.

Host Briony Hanson was interviewing Indiewood’s most well respected character actors, Steve Buscemi. You say boosemi I say boo-SHEM-ē. Actually he does not mind how you pronounce it which only goes to emphasize Steve’s non-egotistical attitude.

What came across in this interview was his modesty about his acting and directing talent. He has a rare quality unknown in many Hollywood stars as having the ability to laugh at himself. Perhaps this comes from his background as a stand up comic. He described himself as an actor and a tree causing the audience to chuckle.

When asked about why he still takes roles in the high profile blockbusters such asMr. Pink in Reservoir Dogs, he said that he uses them to fund his indi work. However he was quick to point out that he is still selective about which scripts he accepts.

The obvious question was asked about being type cast as s dysfunctional character.. His response was that it is inevitable however does not consider his characters to be losers. He talks about them with some affection and naively refers to them as ‘just people with problems’.

It was encouraging to hear that even Buscemi has the dreaded writers block. He too finds it difficult to write and it frustrates him that this delays his creative process however ‘anything you write is worthwhile and it’s ok to tear it up’, sounding a bit like a life coach.

Buscemi openly admitted, again showing he is not afraid to share his insecurities, that he finds directing on series such as Homicide, his first series as director as ‘terrifying’ and ‘petrified’ that he has no time to prepare. Tree’s Lounge was his first feature film as writer and director and he described the experience as a learning curve. A process that he is still riding.

The audience had a chance to ask questions and it was interesting to hear about the production/technical side of his work. On his series work he has limited editing control particularly on Sopranos. Unless he is in LA tapes have to be sent back and forth hence the limited amount of input he can put in. He agreed that advances in technology are making it easier for people to make films however distribution has become much harder. Other questions from the floor were cringeable with one bizarre fan gleefully telling Buscemi that she found one of his films on DVD in a charity shop.

Sadly I never got the chance to ask him what kind of tree he sees himself as.

Steve Buscemi’s latest release is Interview

The City Within a City Η Πόλη μέσα στην Πόλη

Sept –Oct 07

A walking exhibition tour of Heraklion Crete

One of the best ways to get around many cities is by foot. Heraklion is no exception especially as many of the streets are more like village alleyways, too narrow for even cars to pass although somehow they do.

By chance I was invited to the opening ceremony and walking tour of The City Within a City Project. The only information I had was to be at an ice cream parlour on Democratias Avenue for 1pm on Sunday.

It took me sometime time to find the right one as there were several and despite being late so were the other participants. This is the typical laid back attitude to any event organised by Greeks. In England weeks of planning would have been undertaken with press releases and personal invites sent out.

The project is part of the Comprehensive Urban Development Plan for Heraklion old town. Thanks to some European funding the project includes an exhibition, book and DVD with music composed by Crete based, Irish musician Ros Daly.

Maria Houlaki project co-ordinator began the event with a short speech and introduced some of the photographers that would talk about their work.

There was a mix of pro photographers (male) and amateurs as well as their families which made it a really nice informal event.

The exhibition of 30 images is unusual in that it does not have one specific venue. All of the images are displayed on single sheet advertising panels. Dotted throughout the city the tour took us through smart residential suburbs, around the main squares, along the Venetian ramparts and down to the new and old port.

Photographer Atalanta talking about her work

For several years Heraklion has been and still is a building site as it undergoes a makeover. Thankfully consideration has been taken to also preserve the old. A similar process was implemented with the extension of the underground system in Athens where brand new stations were blended with ancient discoveries. Some of the Athenian stations are like mini museums with glass panels showcasing sections of temple walls. In Heraklion ancient sites are being restored with European grants, to refresh a tired and well worn city.

The purpose of the exhibition is a’ project aimed at breaking down the barriers between the old and new town.’ Personally I don’t see any barriers. The two are merged and that’s what makes the city an interesting place to visit.

As a visitor I can see beauty and pathos amongst the derelict buildings. It was good to see that some of the other photographers had captured this. One photographer had carefully framed an image from cheese shop showing sheep grazing on grass and juxtaposed it with the reflection of a Venetian archway. Admittedly when I first saw the image I thought it had been created in Photoshop. Thanks to the artist describing how he took the image it was then clear to see the different elements.

The organisers’ objective is to use photography as a lever and a communication tool to bring about social debate. This is certainly a valid objective but surely the images must first be noticed? We are in world where we are bombarded by imagery. Billboards are one just one of these forms of mass communication. How does this exhibition get the citizens attention? Unfortunately it does not. We rarely stop to look at an advertisement and many of these images just blend into their surrounding environment.

When the images are seen by the citizens how do they have their dialogue heard? Images on a wall in a gallery or where ever they are displayed and where the objective is a dialogue should be about a two way dialogue. Don’t ask people to engage but then not give them a vehicle for their response.