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Some 20 or so large format colour digital C-type prints make up this travelling exhibition from Western Australian Museum. Burtynsky captures astounding scenes in these industrial landscapes. Some of the compositions are quite other worldly as the panoramic birds-eye views create abstracted forms resembling lunar landscapes or expressionistic paintings rather than photographs.
Burtynsky travelled in a helicopter to obtain these aerial views. The result is a riveting look at man-made gorges, abstract scenes of a land cut open revealing the earth’s stratigraphy like a layer cake, massive upside-down pyramids of the Super Pit #4 at Kalgoorlie and the painterly abstraction of Tailings #1 and Silverlake Operations #15.
Tailings #1 2007, Kalgoorlie WA, Chromogenic Colour print
While all of the images are spectacular, a real standout is Super Pit #4. The photo also provokes thoughts about how comparatively insignificant the boom town appears perched next to the pit's perimeter, ironically showing how massive our industrial footprint is at the same time. The sheer scale and detail captured in one shot is reminiscent of the panoramic mastery of Melvin Vaniman a century before.
These minescapes were a Foto Freo (City of Fremantle Festival of Photography) commission coming off the renowned international reputation of Burtynsky’s previous series, Shipbreaking in Bangladesh (2000) and Shipbuilding in China (2005). ACP in fact shows a few photographs from these series in the adjoining gallery. The continued ‘industrial wastelands theme’ is also complimented by a stirring audio visual presentation of yet another body of work called the China Series. This series shows the decrepit landscapes of rubbish tips, derelict houses and city demolition sites, alongside oil mines, massive road networks and hundreds of factory workers going about their business.
Overall the images of production and destruction, progression and regression are juxtaposed to great effect. Better be quick to catch this one!
17 July – 22 August 2009
Free entry
Tuesday – Friday 12:00 – 7:00pm every day
Saturday and Sunday 10:00am – 6.00pm
Australian Centre for Photography (ACP)
Oxford Street
Paddington NSW 2021
www.acp.org.au
Yes... this show is about “swimmers, togs, sluggos, lolly bags, noodle benders, bathers, neck-to-knee, lolly catchers, budgie smugglers and dick stickers” and a few interesting things in between (pardon the pun).
It is a great exhibition choc-a-block full of objects and some surprising stories drawn from the National Maritime Collection and supplemented with loans from the National Museum of Australia, National Archives, private lenders and designers from around the country. With around 75 swimsuits, posters, postcards, advertisements, audio visuals, designer sketches, accessories and interactives, it’s worth spending some time to look at this exhibition in detail.
One of the primary stories threading through this exhibition is the “reinvention of the bathing beauty which has continued since it emerged in the early 1900s”. With the help of Annette Kellerman “Australia’s Mermaid’ and screen sirens such as Esther Williams, Jayne Mansfield and Ursula Anders, the quintessential bathing beauty image has enduring popularity and become an icon of Hollywood. The swimsuit too has seen its fair share of popularity and endorsement since the early developments in 1890 and its early controversies of being risqué and naughty around the turn of the 20th century. Just taking in a few of the posters upon entry you realise that we’ve certainly had fun with the bikini over many decades. Whether you’re looking at the wistful Bridget Bardot as “a lighthouse keeper’s daughter who believes in dressing light” or the spectacular Esther Williams advertising “dangerous curves ahead” and “how to stuff a wild bikini”, the 1950s promotion of a bikini being naughty AND nice still piques our senses today.
The exhibition takes you back in time with the breadth of familiar and rare historical collection items as well as into the future with an interesting slick mirrored catwalk display of current designs (Zimmerman, Tigerlilly, Seafolly, Jets and Flamingo Sands) evoking an active glamour inspired by Annette Kellerman. I especially like the designs and display of these modern interpretations by our iconic designers with the large format fashion video backdrop.
As well as looking at the quirky side of fads and fashion the technical evolution of swimwear is also represented. The curator, Penny Cuthbert, has included titanium fabrics that mimic shark skin and the controversial LZ men’s Olympic suit, which add depth to all the fun and frivolity. Unexpected elements such as the topless swimsuit, of which 3,000 actually sold commercially, and “when less is more” – the history of the g-string, add to a well rounded and highly entertaining romp through the history of swimwear.
Prepare to be titillated!
Rating: 8/10 mankinis from meAustralian National Maritime Museum
2 July – 25 October 2009
Free entry to the galleries
9:30 – 5:00pm every day (except Christmas day)
2 Murray Street,
Darling Harbour NSW 2009
http://www.anmm.gov.au/
On entering this exhibition you realize that the story of Vaniman is an intriguing one. He was an adventurer, singer, balloonist and a photographer as well as an inventor. His photographic images are a reflection of his enterprising spirit and show a remarkable detail and a window into a bygone era of Sydney in 1903-1904 where people rode horse drawn buggies and carts through the city.
The first room showcases a general introductory wall panel and a large scale panorama with an interesting contemporary replica of the same view of Town Hall. Accompanying this is a ‘making of’ audio visual which alludes to the fact that these turn of the 20th century panoramas are no mean feat.
The second room displays another five panoramas of various pastoral, urban and harbour and scenes. They show industry and a world going about its business, where cargo is delivered by steamships and the old rail tracks are laden with coal for the city’s sustenance. Again the remarkable detail shows that in amongst all the activity, a worker pausing against a fence railing for a mid-morning cigarette. There is something quaint and nostalgic about this lost city and I’m drawn in to scene after scene comparing them to the modern Sydney I know so well. Is that building still standing? Is that view of the harbor down Bathurst Street still the same? I wonder if the old painted signage remains on that façade.
The panoramas are large scale graphic reproductions with interpretive text integrated in the panels. While the images themselves are compelling, at this point in the exhibition, I couldn’t help but feel a little let down with the overall spartan approach to the curatorial direction and design. A foreword to the exhibition describes how “the State Library of New South Wales is fortunate to hold the world’s finest and most extensive collection of photographic panoramas by Melvin Vaniman”. If this is so, then why are so few on display?
I understand that the platinum contact prints from the original negatives are obviously too fragile for display and that a pragmatic approach creating high res scans and reproduction graphics have to prevail. BUT, on learning that Vaniman scaled a 30m pole he constructed, if a ships mast or hill wasn’t available for a birds-eye view, you can’t help but think “this is really quite something! Now here’s a man with a wholehearted passion for his art”. ...by the way - what did this pole look like and what compelled Vaniman to continue with the panorama format?
Another seven panoramas appeared in the third room. The most interesting image here is of Sydney looking south from Crows Nest where Vaniman tethered his imported American hot air balloon some 180m above the ground to take the shot of the then ‘bridgeless’ harbour. And so my original disappointment continued. Again I couldn’t help but wonder; how did he do this? Perhaps some information about this would have shed some light on the remarkable results that Vaniman achieved. It was only in the room brochure that I gleaned he had used developed special large format camera to make the most of a panoramic view. His invention allowed a single photograph 2 meters by 50 cm high in a single shot! Sounds impressive hey? Well …what did this camera look like? How did he achieve the crystal clear detail with his equipment even way up high, amongst the elements in moving balloon?
Some further research into the man, the social history of the time, or even historical info about the specific locations at the turn of the century would certainly have elevated these photographic images from a general sentiment of ‘olde-worlde’ nostalgia. Vaniman is the perfect romantic adventurer and a more than worthy subject for an exciting, breathtaking and out of the ordinary experience that COULD have been this exhibition.
The exhibition continues until January 2010 so wouldn’t you expect more effort from such a long running program? Perhaps this is a sign and a prelude to future disappointments as government cutbacks continue in the arts and heritage sector? I certainly hope not! If I had to rate the exhibit I’d give it a deflated 2/10.State Library of New South Wales 20 June 2009 - 31 January 2010Free entryMonday -Thursday 9am -5pmWeekends 10am - 5pmMacquarie StreetSydney NSW 2001http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/
