Wednesday, June 22, 2011

5 Reasons to Love Australia...and Photography

The only time I've spent in Australia was in the Sydney airport (once illegally, but that's a 'nutha story!). Yet, I've still been lucky enough to have been exposed to some mega Australian talent since attending David Alan Harvey's 'At Home' Workshop in '09. I was overwhelmed by the images churned out from the photographers I met there and most recently have especially been impacted by the wonder from down under.

Natalie Grono, Simon Lewis and Pete Longworth were students with me in the '09 DAH Workshop, Kerry  Payne was there as alumni and I saw David Smith's work at the '10 DAH Workshop when Dominik Dunsch and I returned for the slide show par-tay!

Kerry and Simon currently live in NY and Natalie and Pete keep Australia as their home base. David is actually a fellow Canuck but has transplanted himself to Oz. ALL of them consistently produce work that mere adjectives can't describe...stirring, striking, soulful, significant. The intense passion they have for their craft is unequivocal and inspires me in my work.

If you don't have time to view all the work at once, I encourage you to keep this email/bookmark this post (however you receive it) and come back to view all the links when you can...a visual, arresting photography feast!
“We do not take pictures with our cameras, but with our hearts and minds.” 
-Arnold Newman



NGrono-8427


Based on the central coast of NSW Australia, Natalie  has won numerous awards shooting for the Newcastle Herald, most recently winning a Walkely Award for her portrait of a war veteran. 

Her  latest images are captured in b & w in an exhibition called 'Sea Dreaming.' An enchanting, whimsical body of work looking at the poignant connection children have with the ocean. Along with her personal projects, she also works on assignment and as a portrait and wedding photographer.


The above image of George Clinton was taken at the Byron Bay Blues Festival.

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Recent Project: Sea Dreaming





Photo: Monica Loz
Simon Lewis is an Australian photographer based in New York City. Working in both Fine Art and Editorial photography, his work is an expression of the human condition, the fluidity of life and the beauty of the collective experience. He has just completed the Photo Global program at the School of Visual Arts and is working towards several exhibitions planned for 2011.

Andy Warhol and Marie Antoinette served as inspiration  for the above self portrait called, 'Finding Maria' in honour of Simon's friend who dressed up as the mother he never knew, 'Maria', in his own photographic series. 

His most recent body of work, 'Memoria,' was influenced by his travel and cultural experiences and the importance of preserving identity and traditions in an ever homogenizing world.

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Recent Project: Memoria







Pete Longworth is a Sydney based photographer. Originally from outback NSW, Pete has spent the majority of his life on the road less traveled. Teaching photography locally and internationally, Pete also shoots idyllic destination weddings to fund a healthy obsession for personal projects.

Enchanted by the collision of image and sound, Pete collaborates extensively on multimedia projects. The most recent, Another Time, Another Pace, screened at the Cannes Short Film Corner and won the New York Independent Film Festival for People's Choice and the Best Experimental Short Film. Pete has done talks for Nikon Australia, Sydney Apple Store and was a guest speaker at TEDx in Auckland.

The playful slide show above, 'Hide and Seek', was shot during David Alan Harvey's 'At Home' Workshop '09 in Central Park, NY.

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Recent Project: A Little Different






 
Kerry, originally from Sydney, Australia, is a traveler whose urge to roam and love for photography have made long-time, happy and steadfast companions.
'I feel most valid when sharing stories that need a voice, or to have a light shone deep down into the heart of them.'
Her deeply personal project, Left Behind (above photo essay), tells the stories of the suicide survivors...those who are left behind when somebody they love chooses to end their life. She is discovering daily the power this work has to heal broken hearts all around the world. Her own included.


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Recent Project: Father




David is a Canadian freelance photographer based in Sydney, shooting documentary projects and lifestyle based commercial work. Subjects range from world famous surfers, to elderly pensioners, focused entrepreneurs, to homeless drug addicts, global recording artists to remote African villagers. His approach is always the same: 'connect with people, get close and shoot'.

The above slide show is a part of his ongoing NYC Hip Hop Culture Project entitled 'ORIGINS' born from his interest in youth culture in his previous career as a social worker. You can  help David to make this meaningful project possible, at Pozible.


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Recent Project: Fight