In WA for March
Little_G_ ©Lift_couch2018
A mixed month on hiring out my studio and gear to other photographers so I could concentrate on some drawing project deadlines. The month ending with travelling to WA, Perth and Margaret River for family reasons, having a break and doing some shooting while travelling.
Been researching the work of Rene' Magritte who I've loved since a child. A big fan of surrealism especially in my drawing. My father had a book on his complete work. Since a boy I was fascinated by a mural of eight paintings he had done called "The "Enchanted Domain". I had looked through all the books in the RMIT University Library in Melbourne and had not been able to track this series down. So when visiting my father I was able to look on this book after many years and learn more. Magritte had painting the mural for the Belgium casino, Knokke-Le-Zoute in 1953.
Many years ago I had read "Some Prefer Nettles," by Tanizaki and was recently given "In Praise of Shadows", by a love.
In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki is a fascinating book, an essay on Japanese aesthetics. Two quotes from it
"The sun never knew how wonderful it was until it fell on the wall of building. Louis Kahn
"...so it is when there comes to use the excitement of realizing that musicians everywhere make their sounds to capture silence or that
architects develop complex shapes just to envelop empty space."
Charles Moore School of Architecture, UCLA.
Tanizaki writes a lot about what I would call a sensibility of shadows, an aesthetic a depth. Westerners are obsessed with over lighting and shinning light on things and filling all the shadows in. I often think of photography especially lighting as one of the control and manipulation of shadows. I am always fascinated by the depth of shadows and playing about at that boundary point with my work. The shadow within the shadow.
Reading : In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki
Watching : Would I lie to you. ABC TV
Listening : Dunkirk Soundtrack by Hans Zimmer
Eating : Pomegranate