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It was a beautiful autumn day and my sister was up visiting from London, so we headed for a wander around some of Manchester's finest galleries and exhibitions. These are some of the highlights.
Walking home
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Manchester After Hours is the rainy city’s take on the national, annual Museums at Night celebrations: for one night only, museums, galleries and libraries stay open late for some creative goings on - with nearly everything free to attend.
First up was the Unit X exhibition at Federation House. Unit X took over Federation House for its annual showcase of emerging talent from Manchester School of Art. Film, art, design and photography come together in exhibitions and installations throughout the building.
After a pit stop in Trof for a cheeky pint (the free bar ran out in Federatin House just as we got to the front of the queue), we bumped into the choir and brass band which were touring the Northern Quarter playing and singing to whoever was passing by.
Next stop was Fred Aldous which was hosting an evening of FREE creative collaboration including; live painting, photobooth mugshots and a Risograph zine workshop.
Up next was a visit to the roof terrace above Manchester creative agency, Music, where they were playing a few tunes whilst offering up good views back over Stevenson Square and the Northern Quarter.
A crowd gathering around the brass band below.
It was getting cold now, so we headed down to Ply below for a little break and to kill some time before heading over to the NCP car park in the centre of the Northern Quarter for our final event of the evening.
A-top of the NCP multi-storey car park on Church Street, musicians, choirs, street performers and brass bands deliver a pumping finale to the Northern Quarter’s proceedings. As the pictures and videos below show, it was a great way to end the evening with everyone getting involved in the carnival atmosphere.
Over the Bank Holiday weekend I spent a day in London where I was lucky enough go up the Shard, visit the Lichtenstein exhibition at the Tate as well as go for dinner and drinks along the Thames.
Having never got round to going on the London Eye, and generally doing my best to visit the viewing platforms of the tallest buildings whenever I visit new cities I had been desperate to visit the viewing platform at the top of the Shard. And it didn't disappoint, on a clear day you can apparently see for 40 miles from the 72nd floor and with London's skyline still relatively low in comparison to other major cities you get a great vantage of all the major landmarks.
Whilst on the outside viewing platform, two guys on harnesses put on a bit of a show. I'm not entirely sure what they were up to, but I'm not sure I fancy his job.
The view from lunch was pretty decent.
After a spot of dinner we talk a walk along the south bank to the Tate Modern to check out the Roy Lichtenstein retrospective exhibition. "Lichtenstein: A Retrospective is the first full-scale retrospective of this important artist in over twenty years. This momentous show brings together 125 of his most definitive paintings and sculptures and reassesses his enduring legacy."
The exhibition runs at the Tate Modern from 21st February until 27th May 2013.
Roy Lichtenstein Whaam! 1963
Acrylic and oil on canvas support: 1727 x 4064 mm frame: 1747 x 4084 x 60 mm
Purchased 1966© Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
To finish off the day we had a few drinks a short walk further down the south bank at a new pop-up bar outside the National Theatre created entirely from spare props and scenery.
Finally, I had not been to Kings Cross station since it had been redeveloped, and it is so much nicer. The new ceiling is incredible and the Fullers pub, the Parcel Yardputs all other train station pubs to shame. Pro-tip if you need the loo, go upstairs into the pub and use the ones there and save yourself 30p!
For Christmas I was given a photography workshop and tour of Salford Quays, which I finally was able to take on Saturday. It consisted of 2 hours with photographer Dan Tyack, and a small group of other participants, as he took us around Salford Quays and the newly completed Media City. He provided us with some advice on how to take better photos in manual mode by understanding the settings better as well as providing some tips on composition and pointing out some potential shots around the Quays.
As a designer I feel I have a good grasp of composition, but it is always helpful getting tips from experts in their field and getting to discuss different ways of doing things. As someone who pretty much always shoots in semi-auto mode (AV = Aperture Value or TV = Time Value/Shutter priority), it was helpful in having someone explain whilst being out using the camera how to best manage all the camera controls and settings instead of adjusting one.
And here are a couple taken on my iPhone 4S & instagram
Most years I get given a calender for the upcoming year by my family for Christmas. With this year the first time for as long as I can remember when that hasn't happened I decided to make my own using photographs from the previous 12 months. Fortunately last year was pretty good, with loads of great shots/memories to choose from - I now just have to plan some equally cool stuff so that I don't get too depressed in 2013 looking back on last years trips.
Over the weekend I happened to wander past the recently installed Manchester LomoWall. I'd been meaning to have a look for a while after submitting some shots a few months ago, and being unable to make the launch party.
I was secretly hoping that I'd been able to sneak a few shots in (as they needed 14000!), but I wasn't holding my breath. Slowly moving up and down the wall, I was delighted to find 8 or 9 of my own photographs featured and with each one being used multiple times too. Here are some snaps from my iPhone.
Here are the original shots.
Check out the making of videos.
Billed as the “World’s first permanent LomoWall,” the Lomographic Society’s LomoWall Manchester was unveiled yesterday on Tariff Street. Now open to the public, the LomoWall Manchester is a 30m x 3m long artwork containing 14,000 individual “lomographs.” Alexandra King, Piccadilly Partnership Director said: “This is a new landmark on the Northern Quarter landscape, here in the heart of the Piccadilly Basin. The LomoWall adds to the street art scene in this part of the city centre and will become a visitor attraction in its own right. We are very proud to host it and to have the world’s first permanent LomoWall is a real honour. It’s a welcome addition to the urban landscape.” Lomography Press Release
David Tester of Lomography Manchester said, ”The theme of water was chosen as it fits in well with the 2012 Canal Festival and also as it reflects the surrounding area of the wall. The photos were generated via our online community and through workshops taking place at Lomography Gallery Store Manchester. Every photo that has been used has been taken in and around Manchester. We had a great response, as always, from our community”.
I was however disappointed to notice that the wall had already been vandalised in places, with a section of photographs being torn down and another area being graffitti'd.
If you want to go and have a look, free parking is available at the nearby Urban Exchange (Aldi, Go Outdoors, etc) retail development off Great Ancoats Street, or for more information on Lomography visit http://www.lomography.com or check out shop at 20 Oldham Street.
http://www.lomography.com/homes/bentopliss
http://www.lomography.com/magazine/news/2012/07/20/is-your-photo-becoming-a-p...
http://www.lomography.com/magazine/news/2012/08/02/lomowall-manchester-launch...
http://microsites.lomography.com/stores/gallery-stores/manchester
'The burning house: what would you take?' is a blog that has been turned into a book by Portland-based photographer Foster Huntington.
The project is a growing collection of images that people have curated of their belongings based on what they would bring with
them if their home was to be on fire. The selection is insightful and intimate, bringing attention to the things that are most important
to people in their lives.
This collection belongs to:
Alice Bernardo
Age: 31
Location: Minho, Portugal
Occupation: Finder of really good stuff
This collection belongs to:
Ben R.
Age: 28
Location: Germany
This collection belongs to:
Erin wallace
Age: 28
Location: Maine
Occupation: Photographer
This collection belongs to:
Joshua Lee Bacon
Age: 20
Location: Boone, Iowa
Occupation: Student
This collection belongs to:
Miguel
Age: 36
Location: Porto
Occupation: Bike shop man
Photography students, Giesemann André and Daniel Schulz photograph nightclubs the morning after the night before.
I'm not sure what/where these club are, but the bottom one looks like the amazing Cocoon in Frankfurt.
via fubiz.net
'ONE OFF’ LEAP DAY INSPIRES NEW SOCIAL MEDIA LED ART EXHIBITION.
To celebrate the ‘one off’ leap year day on Wednesday, four Manchester instagrammers (Kate Towey, James G Brown, Gina Hewitt and Fiona McGarva) organised a social media led collaborative art project to create ‘One Off’: a photography exhibition in Northern Quarter gift shop Incognito’s gallery space, an old bank vault.
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The ‘People’s Choice’ Vault – photo by instruct.
Entrants were asked to simply take a photo using the hugely popular iPhone photography app, instagram on the theme ‘One Off’ and tag it using the corresponding hashtag. All submitted photos were displayed with the most popular 18 photos being framed and entered into the ‘people’s choice’ competition with the winner decided by those who attended. Checking the tag now, there were almost 350 submitted photos.
I submitted a couple of images, with one being lucky enough to be selected for the ‘people’s choice’ award and being framed and displayed with 17 selected others inside the old vault. Unfortunately I didn’t win, but I think 13 votes was quite respectable (which put me in about 5th place, not that I was counting or anything!)
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My submission - bentopliss
The exhibition will run until to March 14th, so if you’re in the area its well worth having a look or feel free to follow me on instagram (@bentopliss).
The winning entry – photo by marklloyd68
Incognito, 5 Stevenson Square, M1 1DN. 0161 228 7999
Opening hours Mon - Sat 10am - 5.30pm, Sun 12pm - 4pmIncognito / @Incognito_UK
http://www.instameetmcr.co.uk/
http://web.stagram.com/tag/oneoff/
Photographer John Clang has cut, glued and then reassembled a series of photographs all taken from the same spot. By mixing the different elements from multiple images, he portrays a sense of flow and movement that you don't always get in a singular image.
Hong Kong-based designer Yiu Yu Hoi turns his fast-paced city into a slow moving dream with the use of infrared photography. He first learned about this technique from photography forums which got him "totally fascinated" with how shockingly different he could make his city scenes appear.
Look through his photos and you'll notice that Hoi seeks out trees in Hong Kong, making them look vibrant in their pink-ish tone. "The glowing trees can be obtained in-camera, but they are bluish straight out of camera," he tells us. "A more natural reddish tone could be available by simply swapping Blue and Red channels in Photoshop. That is a very popular, yet powerful way to develop colored infrared photos."
Infrared photography has the ability to show us what the eye cannot see, it's the art of capturing invisible light. These days, digital photographers can use filters and image-editing software like Photoshop to achieve this otherworldly effect.
Yiu Yu Hoi's photos can also be found in the third issue of his quarterly publication 16HOURS Magazine, Urban. 16HOURS is the result of two designers, each on opposite sides of the world, collaborating on a magazine aimed to get you inspired from each and every angle of life. A quarterly publication where each issue is based around a specific theme, to date there has been: Wanderlust, Home and now Urban. To capture these themes and feelings in print they collect art to showcase from photographers, designers, illustrators and writers from around the world.
It's called 16HOURS because that's the time difference between Calgary, Canada and Sydney, Australia, the two cities where you'll find the designers who curate and put the magazine together.
via mymodernmet.com
Minifigure heads on the Lego production line in Billund, Denmark, where two million Lego pieces are made every hour. This machine, one of several similar ones in the factory, can paint different expressions on each side of the heads.
The Billund factory’s ‘Cathedral’ warehouse, which is ‘manned’ by eight robots and 15 automatic cranes.
Minifigures are assembled on the production line.
Left: The Toy Story characters; and a virtual Buzz Lightyear – the lines in the background indicate brick size.
Lego heads in the painting machine.
One of the 12 production ‘legs’ in the factory – the finished Lego pieces are stored in the Cathedral.
Left: A large minifigure welcomes visitors to the ‘Idea House’; and completed products on display.
(I think the photography is by Alex Howe?)
via designyoutrust.com
Hydro Project plots the the construction of dams in Ethiopia and China. The series by photographer Rüdiger Nehmzow, portrays the relationships between nature and how human endeavour can control it for its own benefit. I find the scale of everything really mind blowing.
