Category: News
Several Amazon environmental activists murdered in Brazil in less then 2 weeks, also co-inciding with the full approval of Belo Monte Dam on 1st June, something smells fishy – http://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/elist/eListRead/in_brazil_murder_of_activists_underscores_bitter_fight_over_amazons_resourc/
Food or Future
The next few months are going be the summer of food and things food related. A subject that is both close to my heart and of great international importance at this time, and will only be increasingly so, as volcanic ash clouds ground flights and developing countries economies and populations grow, increasing their domestic demand for food that is currently grown for western consumption.
Even though agriculture is the largest manufacturing industry in the UK, we now import over 50% of the food consumed annually (according to the Food and Drink Federation) a total of approx £31 Billion worth of food and drink every year.
So we really need to be looking at alternative ways to eat, or else we’ll be caught out and going hungry. I’m investigating interesting, innovative and forward thinking solutions to what could become a real problem if it’s not addressed. On the other end of the spectrum I will also be looking at more commonly recognised agricultural techniques, seeing how they work and what they can do to adapt to a changing world.
This week I will be documenting a permaculture course in Norfolk, run by Richard Perkins of integral permanence
Very powerful and moving story about child brides just published in National Geographic by Stephanie Sinclair of VII: http://www.viiphoto.com/feature.html
Belo Monte Dam, Brazil
I’m now back in the UK. The lack of radio contact recently is because I was in the deepest Brazilian Amazon, shooting a feature about the controversial Belo Monte hydro dam project in Para. For this story I was working in conjunction with Amazon Watch and Survival International : key NGO’s in the Belo Monte campaign.
Last week was a significant moment for the campaign, a decision was made that will affect the people of the Amazon and the World – Brazil’s environment agency IBAMA approved the full licence for the building of Belo Monte. Read the New York Times and AmazonWatch press release here
I’m currently in the process of editing the feature, and will be sending out to press this week. Here’s a couple of images from the project…
Heading to Brazil via Paraguay
It’s now time to leave Bolivia, and a busy time it certainly has been.
After shooting Oruro Carnival for Bizarre magazine, they asked me to shoot 2 more assignments – one about the mines in Potosi and the other about the Lucha Libre wrestling, which includes Cholitas (women in traditional Bolivian dress). Two very different subjects to shoot, and both equally interesting in different ways.
All this commissioned work meant unfortunately I didn’t have time to revisit the Lustrabotas.
I am now heading to Brazil to work on a personal assignment, more details soon.
Below is an iconic Bolivia image, llamas included…
La Paz Landslide
Torrential rains have been causing floods all over Bolivia for several weeks, resulting in thousands of people losing their homes and having to seek temporary shelter.
The Kupini and Pampahasi districts of La Paz were badly affected, where whole roads and housing estates were destroyed overnight by a landslide. Thankfully there were very few casualties.
Community Farming
Yesterday, I was working at a community allotment in Tottenham that’s part of Putting Down Roots – an initiative of St Mungo’s: a homeless charity that runs community projects: building skills and confidence through community work and active rehabilitation. As this was an initial recce and introduction, the aim was to show willing and get involved, so I helped to make a new raised bed planter. I decided to wait until my 2nd session (next Monday) to take the first photos. This immediately helped build trust with the volunteers and service users, plus I’ve always wanted to learn to grow my own food, so here’s a great opportunity to start…
The project is similar to another scheme I’ve been collaborating with at Branches hostel in Leytonstone, where residents and staff have developed an allotment in a disused space at the back of the shelter, and now grow food for the hostel kitchen. Some images of a shoot from this project are below:
Brazil and Bolivia: Feb – April 2011
It’s confirmed; I’m going to be in Brazil and Bolivia shooting new work for 2 months from mid Feb to mid April.
During this time I hope to revisit the Lustrabotas – the shoeshine boys of La Paz, whom I photographed back in 2007. During the project I collaborated with a newspaper called Hormigon Armado, which is sold by the boys on the streets, operating in a similar way to the Big Issue in the UK, and many other street papers internationally (see the insp: http://www.street-papers.org/)
Lustrabota: Ardilla
In April I’ll be in brazil, continuing looking at agriculture and the environment, more details about this soon…
Back at it in 2011…
Hi everyone, sending you the very best wishes for the new year. I’d like to say thanks to everyone I worked with and who helped me out the last year, I’d be nowhere without you all.
I’ll be photographing, blogging and showing work as ever throughout the year, with a few interesting projects and shows already in the pipeline, watch this space for more info.
2010 saw me concentrating on projects in the UK such as ‘Rave’: an ongoing series about the London Rave scene, which I’ve now been shooting for about 6 months (photos will be posted here very soon). I’ll be continuing this project into 2011, to release in the coming months.
This year I’ll be focusing a lot on ‘The future of farming’: documenting how the culture and total reliance on imported food is likely to affect us all in the near future. The project will have many different aspects, looking at unusual and localised food production initiatives. So far I’m working with Branches: a homeless shelter in East London, in which the residents are growing food for consumption in the hostel, and are about to regenerate a previously abandoned allotment site. In 2011 I’ll be working with St Mungo’s hostel, WWOOF and various community farms in London.
In the meantime, here’s an image from ‘Traces of humanity’ an ongoing personal project, I think the title’s self explanatory…
Aaron Huey talks about Pine Ridge Reservation
American Photojournalist Aaron Huey with a very moving TED talk about his project on Pine Ridge – A Native American reservation. The images are very powerful and deeply involved, some of the best documentary photography I’ve seen in ages:
http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf
Aaron’s website: http://www.aaronhuey.com/
Photojournalism: Wait. Worry. Who cares?
This is an excellent post from BJP’s Olivier Laurent, it really puts in a nutshell what a lot of young upcoming documentary photographers including myself are thinking…
Read it here
Student Protest 9th Dec
On Thursday, the student protest kicked off in Parliament square and in other parts of London. In the morning at the meeting point on Malet St there was a positive atmosphere. There were thousands of University students, lecturers, parents, school / college students and workers, all gathered to show their support of the protest against the raise in tuition fees, and the cutting of Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) which helps 6th form students stay in education.
From the beginning however, there was tension in the air. The Police were out in force, evidently prepared for it to turn violent. The protest started with Police holding the front of the line, this caused demonstrators to try and break through the Police line, which ended in a scuffle and a Police officer getting injured.
The volatile atmosphere continued as the march reached Trafalgar then Parliament squares, where the crowd was held. It is alleged there was high levels of violence from protesters and Police and property damaged.
On the positive side, there was a diverse cross-section of society from different backgrounds and of different ages at the march. Some say the demo was ‘hijacked’ by gangs and hardcore anarchists, I’m not sure if this is the case, it seemed that they were a lot young people from poorer backgrounds, taking an opportunity to show their opinion, which unfortunately turned into violence.
Rap news bulletin
Brilliant amusing take on all that’s going on right now, from Rap news vol 5…
watch – [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXbCwq4ewBU&feature=related]
UK-uncut closes down Topshop Oxford Street store
New direct action group UKuncut closed down the flagship Oxford St branch of Topshop on Saturday. The action was aimed to raise public awareness about alleged tax evasion from major high street chains and those in positions of power.
The protest was intended to bring to the public’s attention Philip Green: owner of high street giant Arcadia (Topshop, BHS, Dorothy Perkins) who is alleged of owing millions in unpaid tax by sending it to Monaco. The protests were sparked as he has been recently appointed as a Government advisor regarding the cuts in public spending.
The protest was carried out peacefully, although there was some confrontation with Police and private security guards when protesters were asked to move away from the front of the shop. After refusing, they were forcibly removed by Police and Security.
The Future of Food
As part of my research for my current project about farming in the UK and international food security, I came across this film directed by Deborah Koons Garcia.
It’s all about genetic engineering and why GM food is a really bad idea, both for humanity and the independant food industry. If you want to find out how powerful the American and Canadian seed companies such as Monsanto are, and how them and the Government have their hands in each others’ pockets, take a look…