THE BORROWER'S ART

David Hockney, the Godfather of Joiner Photos, once referred to Photography as a "little Art". I prefer to think of it as the Borrower's Art. How can we say that a photographic image is our own creation? A child could pick up a camera and take a decent photograph with as much effort as it takes to eat chocolate. We could claim this as chance or accident but as these are essential ingredients to a procedure that thrives on the unpredictable interaction of forms fixed in light for fractions of a second it would not be completely fair to do so.  It is not like singing a Verdi aria or carving a marble statue of the Three Graces, and, though a college course can stretch the process out to three years, the rudiments of taking a good photograph can be taught to the proper candidate in an afternoon.

That is not to say photography is not capable of great things. Photography is important. It is far more essential to the modern world than the Art of painting which, despite all society’s best efforts, remains elitist and esoteric. Painting is capable of greater things than the humble art of “light and shadow” but as it is suitably restricted by the necessary levels of skill, endeavour and that special spark of creative brilliance few of us will ever create a proficient work on canvas.  Photography on the other hand is a vital Art, a democratic Art, one which most of us can enjoy and participate in. It does not share Painting and Sculpture’s long and illustrious history and though this may deny it a certain pedigree it also provides it with a greater freedom and a unique potential.

Of course some photographers have a fine style about them and an inventive mind and appear so much better than the rest of us at capturing an image that arrests the eye. And if they are happy with the discipline of restricting their craft to the Zen-like choices needed for a single photograph when the camera makes that sweet and satisfying 'click' then good luck to them. Joiner photography gives you the opportunity to extend that moment into the past and future, up and down and left and right. The choices to be made by the creator are then extended exponentially to provide opportunities for a more personal and unique image. We would like to emphasize the 'personal'. Though the formal qualities are discussed repeatedly in a lot of these photographs there is often an intention to be 'intimist', to record our family and friends, the things we do, where we live and the places we visit. They are extended records of a few moments doing what photography does best - provide a memory for our lives. This is not great Art. It is a little Art, a borrower's Art. I hope you like it.