Think global, act local...

Exercise 32 - (1) read the article 'Think Global, Act Local' by Diane Smyth; (2) research Tom Hunters work; (3) listen to Hunter talking about his most iconic image 'Woman reading a possession order. Now summarise your thoughts.

This is less about my thoughts and more about the discussion points that captured my attention whilst listening to the interviews, in no particular order:

One of the best things he ever did was get a Vermeer book with the specific intention of recreating the images as photographs. He learnt how to see and understand light, especially as it moves through time and across surfaces.

In order to recreate the (Vermeer) paintings so that they had meaning to a new audience he entered in full dialogue with his models - the people who shared a squat with him- together they developed the concept and the composition of the new images.

Hunter hates prints, they never do justice to the image captured on film. Hence is obsession of presenting his images on light boxes, he likens the experience to walking into a cathedral for the first time and seeing the sun shining through a stained glass window - everything is so intense, so vivid, so alive.

He admits to being evangelical about his work and genuinely believes it can be a force for good. This is not however his motivation, it is his love for photography that drives him to create images.

He has been a lecturer at university for years and enjoys his work because of his exposure to this continuously changing medium. He believes his roll is not to influence or to judge his students, but to question their ideas so that they (both he and the students) understand what they are trying to achieve and how they want to communicate. His job is to enable his students to become the best photographers they can.

Hunter meticulously plans every single image he takes, he takes 100% control of every aspect of the image to ensure it turns out exactly as he envisioned. If the result is not absolutely perfect it does not get shown - to anyone. He is a perfectionist and a complete control freak. This is one of the reasons for not doing much commercial work - rather than delivering a brief, he has to develop his own ideas for a project and invariably they are better than those of the customer.

He gets his ideas for images from everyone and everywhere; the cinema, pub or from gossip; from general observation, newspapers, photographs and art; from looking, walking, talking and cycling... The list is endless.

Whilst he accepts that there is something melancholic about photography because its always looking at the past. Also that photography (as a medium) is used to portray some difficult, disturbing and challenging subjects; nonetheless, he firmly believes that the images create should be beautiful.

He photographs London because it is the most fantastic place to photograph - it is for ever changing and has an almost unlimited range of subject materials, from palaces to squats; from Michelin star restaurants to greasy spoon cafes.

He is a dinosaur and rather than moving forward with the times (to digital) he is intentionally moving backwards - his next project is with a 10x8 pinhole camera! He enjoys using the wrong equipment, with the wrong film, normally in the wrong light conditions (he invariably uses natural light). This whole process is very organic and its what makes and gives his work its unique feel.

Digital has created an archival nightmare:
   - In terms of the volume of images we take, there is now no need for us to think all we do is press the button and sift through the rubbish later (if ever).
   - In the event that we change our phones we loose our images for ever...
   - In the time it takes him to take 2 or 3 considered images, we have taken 200 to 300 thought-free images - how do we ever make sense of that volume of material?
   - He is concerned that we never really sit down, review and truly consider our images  - what we take, why we took them and how we could improve upon them?

After showing his tutor (Peter Kennard author of @earth) his portfolio of the ghetto, Kennard recommended that he look at the work of Vermeer. This was a pivotal moment in his career; whilst Hunter has only ever directly referenced Vermeer in one body of work, he always uses the vision he developed whilst looking at Vermeer to make his own images.

I found it very interesting listening to the interviews, particularly because Hunter came across as being a very genuine individual - unflappable regarding his fame; unchanged because of his wealth; yet nervous, or rather uncomfortable, about being the centre of attention during the interviews. Once the conversation moved from him to his work - his inspiration, his conceptualisation, his execution - he became enthusiastic, animated and engaging.