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More art photography book criticism.
TOURIST VISAS – a commendable first effort.
Review of “Tourist Visas”, a black-white photography and poetry book with photography by Per Miljeteig (Norway) and verse by Judith Ennew (UK). The book is published by Black on White Publications, Thailand in 2006, 108 pages, 27 photographs, glossy, IBSN 974-94794-8-3. It is available online from:
Knowing Children at ($US 38).
This book represents the artists’ debut – both together and individually – in the genre of art photography books, and it also represents Ennew’s first poetry book publication. Miljeteig has worked with photography since 2001, and had his first public photography exhibition in 2005 (in Oslo, Norway).
Photography:
Generally speaking, the photographs in this book are planned and executed in ways that give the impression of timelessness, and insignificance of place or external features, but at the same time they accentuate motion, transition, texture and a myriad of possibilities which invite the viewer to make his/her own associations and to enter into his/her own process of observation, reflection and personal creation. He photographs in black and white exclusively, and his photographs are often on the “soft side”, often blurred or with low shadow contrast, creative play with exposure, and with an almost sepia-tone quality, all of which works well with his chosen book theme and the concept of suspension of time and space. Miljeteig has the unique ability to see beyond the illusionary “photographic sharpness” and to delve further into the inner workings and psychology of his subjects and their interactions (or non-conscious interactions) with their physical and social environments. Black and white photography provides many possibilities for this style, in my opinion.
There are a number of interesting photographs in this book. I would have preferred to have seen a number of them in larger format, as much of the intended effect gets a bit lost in the small size of some of the photographs. This is especially the case in regards to the photographs that depict motion and group activities, and which otherwise invite the viewer to enter into the anonymous and somewhat useless occupation of going anywhere and nowhere at the same time – a pasttime that requires a bit of size in order to truly involve oneself personally in the artist’s suggested world.
On the whole, I would say that Per Miljeteig has made a courageous art photography book debut with this publication, and of the two contributors he is, in my opinion, the stronger “artist” in this particular publication. His photos bridge photography with both the painted canvas (“new impressionism”), video art, and poetry. I would like to see a future book by him that consists solely of black and white art photography, without verse or commentary – as this would also fit quite well with his desire to leave as much as possible open to interpretation. Another alternative would be for him to team up with a poet whose technique is that of surrealistic prose poetry.
My favorite photographs from this book are “waiting for the doors to open (2006)” (on book page 91), “last time i saw you (2006)”, and “end of the road (2002)” (on book page 23).
Verse:
The verse of Judith Ennew in this book is well-written but, in my opinion, could have been better expressed in a different context. To begin with, the writing style is often reminiscent of that found on literary and well-written non-literary blogs – complete with commentary and anecdotes, as well as personal opinion. There is room for that in fine arts poetry, but there attention is usually given to many other “artistic” questions such as degree of abstraction and/or symbolism, degree of poetic rapture vs. economy, the strength of identifiable voices and their function in pulling the reader into the experience of the writer to name a few.
On the other hand, there are some beautiful passages that are quite “poetic”, and which could provide foundation for expansion into a full volume of poetry. For example: from “For your entertainment” (book page 55):
I paint my face subtly,
night and morning,
adjusting the light to fall
sympathetically on facial planes.
You will never see me age,
or cry.
Here, and other places, Ennew has created an interesting intimacy that could easily be expanded upon. Sometimes it is a useful exercise to cut apart those sections of a poem that function very well, and to use them as the starting point for new works – with new life.
One complete poem which is rather interesting is “Sounds of Asia” (book page 73), this because the format of the poem depicts two voices side-by-side, not quite in dialogue with each other but perhaps two intertwined expressions of one’s Self speaking concurrently. This poem illustrates Ennew’s strength as a performer or public speaker. Poetry reads and is heard differently from context to context. Reading poetry in books differs from reading it on the internet or text messages, or in blogs or newspapers. Poetry suitable for reading aloud (performance) is yet another form of poetry-writing that is an age-old tradition (certainly much older than written and published poetry from recorded history), and which usually has an element of story-telling, character identification or simple visual imagery that transports the listener to the doorstep of his/her own experience almost immediately. In “Sounds of Asia” Ennew reveals her talent in reaching out to her audience and creating a sense of theatre, where the listener/reader is effectively drawn into the work of art. In my opinion, achieving the creation of poetry which functions both onstage and in book form is tantamount to grabbing hold of the ring on the merry go round. That Ennew has an “artist” living within her is undeniable. I believe that writing her own poetry book, which contains her own poetry from cover to cover, will strengthen her “inner poet” greatly.
Overall, the book presentation (design, format, typefaces used etc.) is very tasteful and attractive. I am very impressed that Miljeteig and Ennew have avoided the previously popular inclination to match photos directly with small literary “captions”, and have opted instead to arrange a planned but coincidental meeting of artistic disciplines and expressions, thus allowing each to make its own statement and stand on its own merit.
Tourist Visas is a commendable first art photography book.
-- criticism by Adam Donaldson Powell, 2008.
Adam Donaldson Powell (Norway) is a multilingual author and a literary critic, writing in English, Spanish, French and Norwegian; and a visual artist. He has published several collections of poetry, essays, novellas and short stories: in the USA, Norway and India, as well as art photography criticism and literary criticism in publications (both print and electronic) based in the Americas, Europe and Asia. He has previously authored theatrical works performed on-stage, and he has (to date) read his poetry at venues in New York City (USA), Oslo (Norway), Buenos Aires (Argentina), and Kathmandu (Nepal).
See a slideshow of photos from this book here.
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