Ballarat International Foto Biennale.

Ballarat International Foto Biennale  and other nonsense.

Shane with prints

The Ballarat International Foto Biennale 2013 starts tonight. There are 21 Australian and international exhibitors in the "core" program and 97 others like me, in the "fringe".

All my stuff is up at "The Bean Barn", 217 Sturt St  Ballarat … well six pieces but they’re 20x30’s and I think look OK.

The Bean Barn, Ballarat.

My show is called “Meditations on RD”: the works being a  homage to the paintings of the American, Richard Diebenkorn.
Elements in his paintings like the planar and structural approach I have found very appealing and although not strictly veristic in their evocations of the California coastline they cannot be considered fully abstract either. Robert Hughes’ comment that they were in “…in a tradition of Equivalents..” (which I take to mean being an allusion to the photographs of Alfred Stieglitz) seemed to encapsulate RD's conceptual base. 

3039 BIFB '13

In a similar fashion, I didn’t want to present these as “straight” representations of the subject and the two in the show that are more sculptural are attempts to the extend the metaphor of movement in a more subtle fashion than by making flags.

BIFB,2013 Lawrence Winder

Another element that I had to consider was that on viewing the original files it became apparent that even though the shutter speed was low, ¼ - ½ sec, there was sufficient detail in the pieces as to warrant the larger scale so that there was a more direct “painterly” reference to near and far, movement and stillness and also a quality of increased depth. 

Movement

Originally I had wanted to print the multiples in reasonably large, A3, sections but the paper I thought suitable, wasn’t: too flat and dull in its finish so serendipitously I decided on 8x6’s that have worked well.

You see, there’s quite a strong air movement when people enter and leave The Bean Barn and the smaller prints waft a little in the breeze replicating the cloth’s movement.

I have left a small book at the venue for the comments for any interested “togs” who may come up to Ballarat to visit for the month of the biennale.

As with my  blog on the BIFB of 2011, I will concentrate on reviwing as many of the "Fringe" exhibitions as I can, and from a cursory dash about yesterday there is a lot of interesting stuff to be seen. 

Wombat Droppings or Oz politics

It now seems that “having sex appeal’ is a criteria to be a Liarbril candidate in this election. Which is something at least ‘cause they don’t seem to have much else.

“Rabbott’s” tasteless remarks really indidicate the low level of this would-be PM’s standards.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-08-14/crabb-a-daggy-dad-off-with-less-amusing-undercurrents/4886676

His confidant demeanour has become a single-finger salute at the whole country; and the aspirational bogans who are informed by the press of the “Ugly American”, Murdoch, are loving it.

The disjunction between language and reality was perhaps best illustrated by “Rabbott” leaning against a semi-trailer and again intoning, “We…..um…..are…..going to …..get …rid….of the um ….carbon tax, get rid….of the carbon….tax”. 
In other words read the signals: diesel fumes are good for you.

Or wanting a “Green Corps” whilst taking wilderness areas off the World Heritage list so they can be logged and saying he’ll agree with Gonski funding whilst indicating that it’s alright to sell public schools to the private sector.

No wonder he’s called “The Mad Monk!”

And let’s not talk about his Christian attitude to asylum seekers or his deviousness in obfuscating about releasing his policy costing. One does get the feeling that they can’t cost them ‘cause they don’t exist.

Abbott's Policy Costings

I think Petals, we are looking into the abyss of a new dark age.

Shane

...to things noted

G'day Possums,

......there's another one almost gone.

My favourite shots from 2012

Giselle rehearsal

Says much, I think, of the ballet and rehearsal mood.

Giselle, Myrtah, Wilis.

This one was the most popular publicly...... to the extent that one couple looking at it on exhibition accurately described to me the scenario in some detail though they hadn't seen a performance before. I felt chuffed at that.

Giselle, Wilis.

Mood of the performance and the Romantic sensibility.

Summation of the year? ... wasn't bad photographically but the moments of bad faith, deception, plain rudeness and selfish bad manners that even Polly-Anna wouldn't countenance appear to be increasing year for year.... or is it that peoples' minds are narrowing?

Next year: another Ballarat International Foto Biennale exhibit... venues booked, forms signedand paid for .... Title: Meditations on RD.   More later......

....and hopefully, soon, some interesting location ballet stuff...generally I hate ballet shots on location so it will be a challenge to make something "other" of it.

..it aint cricket....

Politics or Wombat droppings

Annabel Crabbe, journalist, commentator, blogger and it seems, a terrific cook had a T.V. program called “Kitchen Cabinet” where she would visit politicians in their homes; they would cook lunch (she supplied dessert) and converse about aspects of the pollies life and work.

The programs’ real interest lay not so much in the conversations but the subtext messages radiated by the pollies.

Often this year I have commented on the appallingly poor behaviour emanating mostly from the conservative side of politics. Sophie “Pit-Bull” Mirabella, Kellie “ Shaddupa-ya Face” O’Dwyer, Tony “Rabbit” Abbot most readily coming to mind but Crabbe’s program shone a whole new light on some of those who would like to rule us.

It was the meal with Christopher “the Whyne” Pyne.  (He who fibbed, no lied about his initial involvement with “Slippery Pete’s” disgraced accuser’, Ashby)

Apparently Pyne can’t cook so he changed the venue to his old mate Amanda Vanstone’s home because she can.

(Psstt….Joe Hockey couldn’t cook either but that didn’t stop him attempting a BBQ, Chrissie.)

It was as if on one hand Pyne wanted to control the setting and on the other promote Vanstone again to the public (remember Mandy? Used to ship Australian’s offshore, not just asylum seekers) whilst diffusing Crabbe’s scrutiny of him.

It struck me just how little Pyne involved himself in the proceedings and how off-hand both were to Crabbe, too.

Crabbe had brought flowers as a token for Vanstone who noted them but offered no thanks (well, we didn’t see it on camera) and Vanstone then just left them on the kitchen bench until eventually she became aware the camera-man was “making a meal” of her lack of manners by shooting the scene with them in close-up at base of shot.

They disappeared but we never did find out if they got to a vase and water.

Although not as fiercely guarded as Bronwyn “Pompadour” Bishop during her meal/interview, there was still a palpable sense throughout of “we-can’t-wait-for-this-to-be-over” and I felt a real sense of “I-just-wish-this-person-would-go-away”, with Vanstone making most of the running and Pyne saying little.

You would think that if you felt it below your dignity to appear on these sorts of programs, you’d just say, “No thanks” and not appear; but if you do, you should at least appear to be polite!

I can only contrast this with the interviews Crabbe had with Penny Wong and Tanya Plibersek from Labor.

Both were impressive in their openness and engaging behaviour and presented themselves as highly intelligent and committed women; the exact opposite of what I saw from the conservatives.  Have a look and judge for yourself….   http://www.abc.net.au/tv/kitchencabinet/

....all honking away...

 Then there was Chris Uhlmann, spouting, no, spitting lines verbatim, spruiked from the Abbott’s and Hockey’s Liarbril script at Penny Wong about the lack of a surplus…. The ABC’s “7:30” has, under Sales and Uhlmann, become as relevant to current affairs as “Play School” is to quantum physics.  Balanced, thoughtful journalism? Nah, tabloid crap.

Are the producers of this program are plotting its demise?

arrest.. Paris, St Martin Canal...

 All of which segues into “Coot–With-Queer-Ideas” from the Institute of Pubic "Affaire's", Chris Berg, who bewailing that he thought that there was no talk on policy this year only muck raking: “This Mindless Pursuit of Scandal…..” (The Age 30-12-12) whilst doing his best to spend 95% of the article raking well over the muck, leaving policy to get a mention “en passant”… a typical, loony-right conflation propaganda technique, conveniently tarring the Government who actually did implement policy, with the same brush as the Liarbrils (the side that he most keenly supports) who are drowning in their “tactique-merde” have no policy to discuss. And the little bit of policy he mentioned ?…Well, it was mentioned.

He’s a queer coot who appears not able to discriminate between free-speech, truth and propaganda.

The Wombats’ look forward to more of IPA’s hysterical rantings on 774 this year… as they provide insight into what appear to be the foetid, amoral minds misting through our land at present.

Barren, deserted and the wide blue yonder....

Speaking of which, John Singleton (mate of Gina “our Biggest Miner” Reinhardt) has, like his mate bought into Fairfax press. As an old “Ad-man”, when he talks about the integrity of reporting and journalistic standards you know he knows exactly what he’s talking about: ‘cause he spent years doing the opposite! 

Can we expect further interesting editorial “lurches to the right” from Fairfax?  

In the “State of Tardis” (where all goes backward) Police Minister (I-know-Nuffin) Ryan extols the good behaviour of our partying youth, which is a signal indicating that again, the opposite is probably true and that the “Tardis State” has nothing of real value to say....particularly about "Overlandgate" and "Frankstongate".

“Big Bird” Baillieu, (Silvertail Incompetens) is keeping everything “commercial-in-confidence”, particularly the deal with Myki who now make a profit from Victorian public transport users. Sniff, Sniff?

future

I’ve got a feeling Petals, that this is going to be a loooong year.

Cheers,

Shane