Dark Room Studio

Friday 19th- we spent clearing out Edward's disused dark room back into a workable dark room space! the studio is located up at Hopewell Farm studio in Knaresborough so I couldn't be in a more beautiful and inspiring setting. Im just waiting on materials i.e. dev, stop and fix to show up and then I can get working on next show planned for June in Scarborough with painter Adam King.

I am currently working on creating a series of images photographing and recording the interior of Grove Road Methodist (grade 2 listed 1896) Church, Harrogate as it goes through redevelopment to become a family home over the next coming months. 
I have been experimenting with both a Pentax and pin hole camera using 35mm black and white as well as  colour film. The images shown here are taken using a pinhole, left - single shot (8 seconds) and bottom left - triple exposure (4, 8, 12 seconds). Because of the historical context of the churches interior I've decided that pinhole is more interesting...I also like the idea i am not in control, that there is always uncertainty to what I will get until I get into the dark room!  

PLD - SO COOL - Hepworth Gallery Wakefield

If there is one show to visit right now, I would suggest PHILIP-LORCA DICORCIA PHOTOGRAPHS (1975- 2012) of Street photography, Hustlers and Pole-dancers showing at the Hepworth Gallery, Wakefield, February 14th to June 1st. The photographs displayed on a large scale over 4 decades are stunning and every bit a stage in which we the viewer are invited in to form a relationship with the characters.

The work for me demonstrates a strong narrative, a theatre of a somewhat static backdrop that is built up with a stage of people going about their daily business, note here that the people are themselves, not actors; the composition, lighting and placement of characters has been carefully thought out prior to taking the picture. 

In Hustlers, each picture title depicts name, age, hometown and how much Dicorica paid the male prostitutes for their portraits to be taken. The setting in which the men are placed is very interesting, the relationship being a voyeuristic one. The invitation is more removed, yet there is a sense of desire, a fascination to keep looking...the power being theirs and not ours.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUD8tbJ7E0NPfdg6Y6iwr8hg&v=So_FK4qnz5Q

http://www.hepworthwakefield.org/whatson/dicorcia/

NOTES - PhD

ok news update- last month saw (26th March) proposal for PhD has been accepted with some recommendations by the panel! so good news.

Tasks now are to write up notes taken by SE at PA to discuss in next skype session with SE and NS (24th April). However, as already discussed with SE, the other key thing for me do is to focus on is writing a 2 lit review's one on creativity and the other on the spectator derived psychoanalysis, this will give me a firm foundation to what has been written by others, specifically creativity- question to myself? can you enhance creativity??. 

HD ShowStudio process films - 2 way communication built on model of the spectator derived from psychoanalysis. question to how we watch film- the practice of looking and how we do that? interpretation

model to enhance creativity (getting to students to consider more the CP rather than the final outcome- how do they record that process?


Paul - research title too long 'Looking at the creative process through the eyes of the spectator: How can viewing the creative process enhance student creativity in higher education? NOTE to myself - how many times have I used the word creative???????? will need to work on! 

Paul - investigation of creativity in the studio, creativity is at the heart, what can we learn from designerly approach to...

Work focussed on studio behaviour - apply one student group rather than 2 and keep to art and design students

what is the criteria? creative films / non creative films- Question what is creative and what is not? types of films that show the creative event

phase 3- method needs more clarity, again take a more designerly approach

Paul - mixed methods approach i.e. Bricolage - example Gabby Goldschnit Architect student

Paul - single hyposthesis is not enough and out of date

Paul- be clear about your position - students point of view on the creative process, will they need shadowing? studio, home public transport

HD - think about the creative stimuli

Paul to email comparative study - Megan Strickfaden her work on canada and Edinborough

Paul questions if Ethnography is the right approach? that is get the students to be the ethnographers: exploitation of social media, twitter feeds, each student to document

Paul look at Cameron Tomkin wise
1. Topic - what am I studying
2. Question - because I want to find out
3. conceptual significance - in order to help understand
4. potential appliance - so that something can be improved

discussed ethics to be clear that the researcher will use techniques from ethnography - provide postal phone no.

add in - I may withdraw without explanation and with no conquences
refine ethics form - fully anonymised
data locked away at all times

MAIN POINTS 
Research approach - mixed methods
- methods participant observation- self supporting
use of Twitter
Personal blogs

clarification of terms- what do different people say about creativity i.e. Gabby Goldsmith, Ann Haleyan and Bowden

look up Design Journal - design creativity and Innovation