Photography and the Artist's book

In 1976, Angela Kelly was my photography tutor at Nelson & Colne College when I was an art & design foundation student. It was an excellent two-year course and there were some great lecturers/tutors, especially her. I can still hear her voice speaking passionately and intelligently about photography of all kinds, and particularly fine art photography and conceptualism. She was equally intelligent about politics, history and painting. I also recall that she arranged trips to galleries in London and other cities and to art schools. (It may have been that the faculty arranged them and she was present, but it is her that I remember.) She introduced us to the big London galleries as well as the commercial galleries then on Cork Street and Bond Street, and the Photographers Gallery, when it was at Great Newport Street. It was with her that I first visited the Ikon Gallery in Birmingham and the Anolfini in Bristol. I also remember that she encouraged my reading and writing as well as my studio work, suggesting to me to read above my comprehension, a strategy I consciously adopted and that has continually proved to be fruitful.

So when I saw that she has a chapter in the new book Photography and the Artists Book, edited by Theresa Wilkie, Jonathan Carson and Rosie Miller, and published by Museums Etc  later this month, I ordered my preview copy straight away.

I am already glad that I did, because with a preview copy you get access to the book’s content online as it develops, which I am finding really exciting. There’s already lots of good stuff to think about, and when I have thunk some more I will write a review for a future blog post.

About these ads