10 22 June 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
Also out now
Thelatestandbestbooksandexhibitions
from the world of photography
GangaMa
ByGiulioDiSturco,GOSTBooks,£35, 136
pages, hardback,ISBN978-1-910401-28-
From 2008 to2018,theItalian
photographerGiulioDiSturcoworkedhis
waydownthe2,500kmlengthof the
Ganges(thetitularGangaMatranslating
toMotherGanges).Onhisway,he
photographedtheriverandthosewhose
livesareintrinsicallylinkedtoit. Whilehisstyleis
distantin a physicalsense,it doesn’tlackemotion.If
anything,asa viewer,it feelsyouarelookingoverhis
shoulderandseeingwhathesees.
Rarelyarehissubjectslookingat thecamera;often
theyhavetheirbacksturned,addingtothesenseof
detachment.Thisapproachisn’teveryone’scupof tea,
butformeit worksbeautifullyandsuitsthepale,
bleached-outtreatmentthathintsat dust,parched
landandheat.Withitsredcanvasbindingandthick,
cream-colouredpaperthat’salmostlikecard,Ganga
Mais alsoa pleasurablebooktohold and browse.
★★★★★Ailsa McWhinnie
© GIULIO DI STURCO
Urban Impulses
‘UrbanImpulses’runsuntil6 Octoberat thePhotographers’Galleryin London.Tickets are £5 or free after 5pm daily.
Visitwww.thephotographersgallery.org.uk
I
sartaninherentlypoliticalact?Not
always,butasthewriterAminatta
Fornarecentlysaid,if yourworkis
notpoliticalthenit’sverylikely
becausepoliticsis workingin yourfavour.
Perhapsthen,thebestworkis reactionary
- it respondsto itsclimate,oftenfillingin
theblankswhenthesocialandpolitical
policyof a cultureis oneof oppressionand
redaction.Thatcurrentof thinkingruns
deepthroughoutthisexhaustivesurveyof
LatinAmericanphotography.Theimages
ondisplayspantheperiodof 1959to
2016 andrepresentthemultifacetedand
ever-shifting sociopolitical climates of
MexicoandSouthAmerica.It’sanapttime
forthisexhibition,withPresidentDonald
Trumpseeminglyona missionto
demoniseAmerica’sLatinpopulation.
What‘UrbanImpulses’revealsabout
LatinAmericanphotographyis itsactivist
spirit.It showshownecessaryartis in
timesof governmentsubjugationand
unease.Peoplecanvanishbutthework
theymakecanbeendlesslyreproduced.
Theexhibitionspansnotjusttime,but
genreaswell,astheworksareproduced
withinthefieldsof streetphotography,
collage,documentaryandmultimedia.
‘UrbanImpulses’is dividedintotwo
sections:‘Shouts’and‘Pop-ular’.In the
former,wefindphotography’svoiceand
itsabilitytorepresentbothpresence–
in thenotionof identity– andabsence–
in thenotionof kidnappingandforced
disappearances.Wherethelawfails,art
takesover.In thelatter,weseehowLatin
Americain the1960sbegantoredefine
itselfasa consumerandpop-culture
societythroughwidespreadcolour-
saturatedadvertisementsandbillboards.
WhenwelooktoAmerica,wecaneasily
becomepreoccupiedwiththedominant
historyof NorthAmerica’sphotography.
Thisexhibitioncorrectsthis.It’sa fantastic
andstirringshow– onethatdoesmuch to
revealthevitalityof art as activism.
Oliver Atwell
EduardoLongoni’s
‘Labatalladela
PlazadeMayo’,
20 December 2001
BOOK
BOOK
EXHIBITION
StreetPhotography:
52 Assignments
ByBrianLloydDuckett,Ammonite Press
£12.99, 128 pages,hardback,
ISBN 978-
Settingyourselfa photoassignmentis a
greatwaytomakestreetphotographyfeel
lessdaunting– whenyou’reshootingtoa
briefthere’slesstimetofeelnervous.
PhotographerBrianLloydDuckettis a
greatbelieverin ‘developinga project
mentality’,andthishardbacksuggestsa year’sworth
of weeklycommissionstogiveyoua ‘creativenudge’.
Someof thesuggestionsarea littlepredictable,but
thereareplentyof inspiredideastoo.Assignment11,
forinstance,getsyoushootingallthelocationsona
Monopolyboard,whileAssignment2 urgesyouto
imagineyourtownhasbeenhitbya zombie
apocalypseandyouhavesevendaystorecordwhere
youlivebeforeit vanishesforever.It’sa fun,nicely
illustratedbookwithplentyof ideastoinjectinterest
into your street shots.★★★★★Tracy Calder
Latin American Photography from 1959 to 2016
AtaúlfoPérezAznar’s‘Desaparecidos, Calle 6
entre 46 y 47, La Plata’, 1983
© ATAÚLFO PÉREZ A ZNAR
© EDUARDO LONGONI