S9 Talks 02
If you wonder what this series of interviews is about, please take 3 minutes to read our intro.
An interview with Prefab_concrete
Name: Maciej Lenartowicz
IG: prefab_concrete
What is your favourite photography technique or subject and why?
For past few years I’ve been focused on architectural photography with strong influence of New Topographics as well as abstract photography. Beyond plain fascination for architecture itself I do find certain kind of sadness and nostalgia in man-made landscapes, especially those that relate to impermanence or banality of everyday life.
I can only hope that this feeling is somewhat transferred onto the sensor along with the image. 😉
While I’m not shooting, especially in the winter months, I work on dystopian soundscapes as ‘minor fractures’ https://soundcloud.com/minorfractures/
What is your favourite photograph and why? (taken by yourself or others)
There is a picture of pink umbrella I took years ago. Sure, the color contrast might be an obvious thing to like here, but what I really appreciate about it is that it feels like it’s some kind of a statement.
There’s some absurdity to it, it feels like it needs to be noticed and heard. It could be a start of discussion: should we shape the urban space as we like, or do we need rules to avoid such randomness?
Could you share 1 project idea that came up during Covid19 social distancing? (feel free to share any link, so we can also feature your work)
As someone focused on architecture I find it extremely hard to shoot anything while spending most of my time indoors. That might change though as there are endless option for abstract photography hiding in the curves of my room’s radiator for instance. Gotta finally try that out. 🙃
What do you think is currently missing in (your city’s) photographic community? What would you like to see/do to improve it?
Maybe it’s an exaggeration but I feel like it’s just hard to actually join the community. I do come from abroad, I haven’t studied here and so on, so apart from Prague Street Photography Collective I didn’t really have a chance to participate in something.
Maybe it’s time to create a meetup, once this catastrophe is over?
Dreamy question: If you won 1 million dollars, what would you like to do with it? (Related to photography)
I would pack my bags and leave immediately. 😉 There are so many locations I would love to shoot. Sure, faraway places seem exciting, but I think there’s still so much to discover for me around Central Europe and the Balkans.
I do feel like I have unfinished business on both sides of the Oder river, and time is running out. I’d love to have solid photography archive of early 20th century tenement houses, prefabricated monstrosities of communism and of course the haunted brutalist freaks — as close to the original state as possible.
An interview with: Lena Storjohann
Name: Lena Storjohann
Web: lalouve
What is your favourite photography technique or subject and why?
In my pictures I try to reflect on the beauty, the humour and the absurdity of this world. For me, this works best with the technique of multiple exposures. It is made for the visualization of unexpected clashes of different aspects of life what I cheerfully call ‘vibrant plurality’. I am an enthusiast of coincidence and luck, so multiple exposures on film are my chosen way to experience & show the potential beauty of chance.
What is your favourite photograph and why? (taken by yourself or others)
I feel that there is far too much beauty and skills all around to choose a single favorite photograph. What I really like about photographs the way I work on them is when vitality is as much visible as chance. My current favorite photograph of myself is this one: https://www.lomography.de/homes/lalouve/albums/2360335-trippy-souped-triples/24600854
Could you share 1 project idea that came up during Covid19 social distancing? (feel free to share any link, so we can also feature your work)
Covid19 did not affect my photographic work as I mostly work on my very own. Still this year smelled like solitude so I started to work on a technique that includes working unseen and attaching small pinhole cameras at best invisibly: Solargraphy. Some of my extreme long exposures you can see here: https://www.lomography.de/homes/lalouve/albums/2354729-solargraphy
What do you think is currently missing in (your city’s) photographic community? What would you like to see/do to improve it?
Well, in general I’d like to improve openness for improvisation and experimental arts as this fluid process more often than not leads to new ideas, new concepts and often to new solutions.
Besides your sincere networking the experimental photo festival https://en.experimentalphotofestival.com/ is a driving force regarding the connection of a growing community of experimental photographers.
At their upcoming festival next summer I’ll offer some workshops on multiple exposures just to give what I can for the desired improvement.
Dreamy question: If you won 1 million dollars, what would you like to do with it? (Related to photography)
Oh a lot could be done with that! First of all I guess I would reactivate the production of a number of films you hardly can get since production stopped years ago. Of course I’d arrange a worldwide availability for these films. If there’s some dreamy money left after that I would donate it to nature- and animalwelfare to preserve beautiful nature we all want to capture on film. Wait, I guess the other way round would be much wiser so I ‘d start with the welfare part.
An interview with: Áša Sárová
Name: Áša Sárová
IG: @asa.sarova
What is your favourite photography technique or subject and why?
It’s changing all the time. Right now, I am attracted to details, to subtle and somehow elusive sights and subjects. I am not sure, if there is some favourite theme — for me, taking photos is very intuitive process. I just grab the camera and go and I try not to think about any concepts and techniques, it tangles my brain up and usually I get stuck then.
Technique is definitely secondary for me, I like to keep things simple.
I guess that more important to me is to find the way how to capture the intensities, imprints or observations I encounter on my long photographic walks.
What is your favourite photograph and why? (taken by yourself or others)
I can´t name one. There would be many of them. However, in my room on the wall I still have a picture of swimming horse from Jitka Hanzlová´s exhibition Silences (last year in Prague). Which is strikingly beautiful in its simplicity. ( https://www.artsy.net/artwork/jitka-hanzlova-number-40-untitled-swimming)
Could you share 1 project idea that came up during Covid19 social distancing? (feel free to share any link, so we can also feature your work)
Nothing really new came up 🙂 I just try to develop the stuff I did before. Even though it is hard, because most of the time I am limited to place where I live.
So I started to re-discover my surroundings again. It is a challenge to see it with fresh eyes, to remap all of the connections and meanings, which seem to be inherent and unchangable. And personally, I didn´t want to engage photographically in depiction of pandemic situation.
I didn’t want to take pictures of the symptoms (mask all around, empty streets etc.) as it seems to me very superficial — changes, impact and consequences, it’s huge and complex and I would say it needs much more time to get to the bottom of it and to be able to reflect it artistically.
What do you think is currently missing in (your city’s) photographic community? What would you like to see/do to improve it?
Definitely interconnection. There are many people and subjects involved in photography in Brno, but it seems to me that they don´t know about each other much. There is no place or organization where we could meet and share regularly. And even though I remember some attempts in form of events, it really didn´t last long.
Dreamy question: If you won 1 million dollars, what would you like to do with it? (Related to photography)
One of the nicest things it crossed my mind is to build a center for photograpic community — for workshops, exhibitions, talks, meetings, residencies, lectures…
Thank you very much!
We enjoyed your contribution and work!
Can’t wait to be able to meet again and take some photographs together!
If you enjoyed it too, share it!
Until the next interview!
Originally published at https://saturn9.eu on November 28, 2020.
