JULY 2023: ALYS TOMLINSON
“MAKE THREE PICTURES, INSPIRED BY SOMETHING YOU READ”
This month renowned British editorial and fine art photographer Alys Tomlinson sets an assignment where she challenges you to make a set of three photographs, inspired by some text. This assignment was set initially in episode #388.
THE ASSIGNMENT BRIEF
From Alys: “The way I work when I’m researching a long-term photo project, means that ideas can be sparked by and from the unexpected. When I was researching my latest book project Gli Isolani, inspiration came in the form of an inscription I saw in a book which had been scribed onto an old bell in Sicily; ‘I cast out demons, I calm the storms, I call to the living, I cry for the dead.’
When I read that, it sent shudders down my spine and I thought about how well it encapsulated the darkness of good and evil, how it talked about the lives we lead now and the elements in nature. It talked about demons and the darker side of the human spirit, and I thought, that would guide my work in a book about the traditional costumes and masks worn during festivals and celebrations on the islands of the Venetian lagoon, Sicily and Sardinia.
I often find that text brings something to my thought process that is different from simply looking at more images, so my assignment for you is to take inspiration from some form of text. It could be a line from a film, a song title, a book, or perhaps a poem. Make a series of three images (a triptych) that respond in some way to the words you have been inspired by, from that song, book etc.
The images need to be presented together as a set, work well with each other and reflect the text that you have chosen. We also need you to include the text you were moved by, so that we can include it below for context.”
HOW TO ENTER
Send your entries to stories@photowalk.show, pictures should be 2,500 pixels wide if possible. Be sure to include the original text that inspired you and if feel you want to expand on the story and even technical approach behind the pictures, include that too.
Entries are shown below and good luck!
Neale
ALYS TOMLINSON
‘I cast out demons, I calm the storms, I call to the living, I cry for the dead.’ The inscription on a Sicilian bell that inspired Alys Tomlinson’s work in her project Gli Isolani.
MARTIN PENDRY: flask winner for JULY
From Martin Pendry
“Taking action and not being a bystander.” Paul Choy, documentary photographer.
I recently listened to episode 388, where this assignment was shared and it was followed by Paul Choy's inspiring talk about taking action and not being a bystander. The essence of the conversation was being proactive and ready to act when needed. Paul emphasised the importance of allowing people to have conversations, taking them on a journey of understanding, as he put it, even if they hold opinions that differ from our own. This got me thinking about my experience attending London Pride 2023.
Back in the 1980s, when I first started marching for equality, things were vastly different. Although homosexuality had been decriminalised, being gay was only legal within the privacy of one's home, and you had to be over 21 years old. After Pride, there was always the fear of losing your job or facing repercussions for being associated with the parade. I remember marching with an older friend who had endured a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. He represented all those who couldn't march openly due to the potential consequences they would face. He would march in a pinstripe suit, bowler hat and umbrella and stated that he represented all the people who could not march, wearing a typical ‘businessman’s uniform’ of the City of London in the 1980s.
Fast forward to the present, and I'm now an osteopath regulated by the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC). This year, I had the honour of joining GOsC as they participated in the Pride parade for the first time. Witnessing the progress made by the LGBTQ+ community, supported by our allies, is truly inspiring. Looking back on my long-standing involvement in Pride since the mid-1980s, seeing how far we've come is remarkable.
In the early days, the queer community marched with trepidation, fearing the impact on their livelihoods and employers' reputation. However, we've evolved over time into an inclusive community that ensures no one feels excluded. Engaging in meaningful conversations with diverse individuals has taught us the value of tolerance and acceptance. While disagreements exist, we understand the importance of maintaining an open dialogue to find solutions, such as addressing concerns about transgender individuals in sports.
As a gay man in the osteopathic community, I've mostly found support, even during the darker days of the HIV epidemic. So, I commend the GOsC for participating in the London Pride parade, reflecting their commitment to equality.
Long may we have meaningful conversations to embrace difference!
DREW BROWN
From Drew Brown
“Sittin' in the mornin' sun, I'll be sittin' when the evenin' comes.” Otis Redding.
My 3 photos are from a fabulous family holiday in early June this year. With the lousy, rainy weather in the U.K. throughout July, our minds have regularly returned to Lake Garda in early June. We stayed in Val di Sogno a stunning bay, a mile from the town of Malcesine complete with its own castle.
With the children playing in the lake and the grownups relaxing on the small beach, it was just beautiful and we could have stayed there all day long. The Otis Redding classic just fits perfectly with the scene.
I was composing the centre shot of the bench with mountains beyond and a person approached it, to relax in the morning sun. I think it adds context to the shot/story of the day. The photo on the left of the 3 was the view to the left of the bench and the photo to the right, the view to the right of the bench, complete with great light on Malcesine and of course the castle.
We all have our favourite destinations, but for us, this area of northern Lake Garda is hard to beat, and ticks all the boxes.
MICHAEL MIXON
From Michael Mixon
“I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I found joy in the things that made me happy.” Neil Gaiman, from The Ocean at the End of the Lane.
While I may not necessarily miss my childhood, I definitely miss my son's and the regular, unfiltered hit of happiness I would experience watching him discover a world I had grown a bit numb to.
KIM MCHARDY
From Kim McHardy
“If you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude. It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them.” Jodi Picoult
I discovered your Podcast due to a friend and noticed your Monthly task for July. I am not an avid reader, however, sometimes I see quotes that resonate with life and how life is – some good, some despairing. Here are 3 pics that came to mind when reading the quote by Jodi Picoult. The pictures are self-portraits. It is through photography and vying to explore different genres that I feel at home.
RON BABER
From Ron Baber
I heard Gill’s chat and found your website during a short visit to north Norfolk recently. Typical summer weather throughout my few days, and while sitting in a cafe on Blakeney's quay-side, the idea for my entry took shape. A single shot through the cafe window of outside chairs and tables empty and wet; a girl with an umbrella on the quayside under grey skies; and the threat of a storm over the Coal Barn at Thornham, all brought together to describe a typical English summer inspired by a (paraphrased) quote by Robert Browning - “Oh to be in England, now that summer is there.”
JOHN LANCASTER
From John Lancaster
“All I ask for, at the end, is a last long resting place by the side of Innominate Tarn, on Haystacks,” wrote Alfred Wainwright, in Memoirs of a Fellwalker. “A quiet place, a lonely place. I shall go to it, for the last time, and be carried: someone who knew me in life will take me and empty me out of a little box and leave me there alone. And if you, dear reader, should get a bit of grit in your boot as you are crossing Haystacks in the years to come, please treat it with respect. It might be me."
This is inspired, as I always am when in the Lakeland fells, by the words of Alfred Wainwright. His ashes have been up here for 30 years now, and the ducks were doing his bidding on this day. I’ve walked all the Wainwright’s and I’m on the second round now, always with the camera. The discovery of your podcast has been a high point of the summer.
COLIN MAYER
From Colin Mayer
“Not to mention the right to grow old and ugly and impotent; the right to have syphilis and cancer; the right to have too little to eat; the right to be lousy; the right to live in constant apprehension of what may happen tomorrow; the right to catch typhoid; the right to be tortured by unspeakable pains of every kind. There was a long silence.” Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.
These are photographs of my children, David and V, now young adults in their 20s. So far in life, I have watched helplessly as anorexia and self-harm nearly took V before she was sectioned and taken to hospital for treatment. My son David still suffers from depression, the blues.
How crazy is our world, where Fakebook, Instafame, and all the many social media channels warp young people’s minds and change their perception of reality?
The AI bots seem to me just like the Soma in Aldus Huxley’s Brave New World where, in that novel, the government encourages its citizens to take Soma to eliminate unhappiness because the rulers see unhappiness as antithetical to social stability. The book strongly suggests that the more people take Soma, the greater the level of brainwashing. Sadly in my view much of today’s AI and social media could be used for good but instead causes people to feel ugly, fat, have invalid opinions, and constantly expects them to live in false happy world where pain does not exists, except for them – when alone.
Fill our social media with pictures of reality: happy people, sad people, tall, short, fat, skinny, good looking and ugly people. They are all humans, like us, with feelings, I wish our world would call us to understand those feelings and express them in pictures or however else works for us.
MAURICE WEBSTER
From Maurice Webster
“Why Does It Always Rain on Me?” Travis.
I travelled up to London a couple of weekends ago with Mrs W to celebrate her birthday and obviously to take a photo or two! As our train arrived into the city, the rain started to fall and the forecast confirmed that a day of showers and clouds awaited us.
On selecting a 90’s playlist to provide a soundtrack for the journey, I was amused that the first song in the listed running order was the 1999 Travis classic “Why Does It Always Rain on Me?” This led me to think of the latest assignment and I made a mental note to try and make three photos capturing the sentiment of the song title.
Given how much it rained, there were plenty of opportunities and I think the three attached photos sum up the feelings of many walking the streets of London that day!
DAVID HORNE
From David Horne
“3 Turns, 2 Hearts, 1 Soul”. Unknown.
While the cowboys on bucking broncos and the heart-stopping action of the bull riders command the majority of attention at a rodeo, the precision, speed, balance and horsemanship of the barrel racers must not be overlooked or underestimated.
The barrel racing event challenges the skill and athleticism of rider and horse to negotiate a course of three barrels laid out in the rodeo arena in a triangular shape. A horse and rider team must enter the course from the starting line and travel in a cloverleaf pattern around the barrels, making a turn around each barrel while maintaining their balance and the fastest speed possible, without touching or knocking over any of the barrels. After turning the last barrel they race back to the starting point. The horse and rider who traverse the course with the best time is the winner of the event.
In this symbiotic relationship of horse and rider, there are three turns, two hearts, and one soul. The same could be said for any discipline but with barrel racing you are either connected, or you take a fall!
