Re: Learning a new process

Being a relative newbie to alt. processes myself let me offer my two cents.
If you are thinking about exploring alt photo for the first time I'd
recomend starting with cyanotype. You can buy pratically a life supply of
the chemicals for very little (a pound of each chemical for a total of $60).
It's a good idea to start with something cheap and easy so you can work out
all the bugs. Coating, sizing, figuring out where to let 40 sheets of light
sensitive material dry..... Because it is cheap you can explore more
variables. Different papers, number of coats, humidity, negative
density..... And if you wanted to get more into it there is room for
exploration with toning, Ware's cyanotype, stuff like that. Think of it as a
primer for working in alt process rather than learning cyanotype. Best of
luck and lets us know how it turns out!

Jordan
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bill King" <bill@billkingphoto.com>
To: <alt-photo-process-l@usask.ca>
Sent: Saturday, August 13, 2005 10:33 PM
Subject: Learning a new process

> I've been struggling with my notions of photography, art, and craft over
> the
> past few years, and I would love to ask the list for some advice.
>
> Looking over the pictures I've taken over the past ten years, I can see an
> evolution of style and technique. My early photographs showed glimmers of
> originality, but those glimmers were usually overcome by technical issues
> (learning how film sees differently from my eyes) and too heavy an
> influence
> of David Muench. Many pictures were well-lit, well-composed, perhaps even
> lovely, but they were not art. They were all-too-often copies of others'
> art or style.
>
> Since 2002, I've really struggled to take pictures; I've been doing battle
> with the dreaded Block. My photos have felt emptier and emptier. I have
> felt like I wasn't expressing myself, my own vision, my own sense of
> emotion. I have felt too removed from the final product - as though I was
> capturing something rather than creating it. I guess I've felt distanced
> from both art (expressing my personal vision) and craft (the process of
> creation).
>
> And so I basically began reading in place of creating. I read books about
> philosophy, art, photography, woodworking, ceramics, pottery, the craft of
> writing, etc., etc. Perhaps the break from shooting cliches and the
> exposure to so many different sources helped further my notions of art and
> craft. Certainly, I feel now that I have a much better idea of what I'm
> trying to accomplish - I have a much better sense of what I'm trying to
> communicate and display in my work now.
>
> So over the past few months, I've had the camera out a little more often,
> and I'm feeling much better about what I'm capturing. Artistically, I'm
> feeling like I've been making some progress. But yet it still seems a bit
> on the empty side. I guess I still feel like I'm missing the notion of
> craft in my photography. I want to shape and knead these captured images
> into beautiful prints that have the essence, and texture, and richness of
> my
> imagination, but I do not have the skills or training to do this. I want
> to
> put my imprint on the final product, and I'm feeling wholly unsatisfied
> watching the final product roll off an inkjet printer.
>
> So my rather simplistic sounding question is this: how do you recommend
> learning an alt-photo process from scratch? From what I can tell, gum
> printing looks like it would be a great way to begin realizing the visions
> in my head. I have lots of reading material about gums, and certainly
> this
> list is a great resource, and I have a decent intellectual notion about
> how
> to accomplish it, but I'm wondering where to make the next step - the step
> to take action.
>
> Unlike learning to draw, it's hard to run over to the local community
> college and take a class on gum printing. I'm not aware of anyone in my
> area doing gum printing. So, it's a big outlay, but do I just buy a
> Nu-Arc,
> nice scale, good paints, paper, chemicals, gum, etc. and go at it on my
> own?
> Would this be a little too risky, a little too unsupported? Or might it
> be
> the most rewarding way to go about it? Would I be best served by
> traveling
> to a workshop or two to get me started? Are there mentors to be found?
> (I
> live in Northern Arizona.) Should I find a BFA/MFA program, where I could
> a
> find a mentor and immerse myself in art and craft for a few years?
>
> I know that this is a rather personal question, and I apologize if it's
> unanswerable. I've been feeling a bit stuck and I thought perhaps
> throwing
> my question out to a wider audience might help. Thanks for helping the
> artist and craftsperson in me emerge.
>
> Bill
>
>
>
Received on Sun Aug 14 09:47:03 2005