21st and 22nd November 2020
In August I attended an exhibition by Stuart Clook at the Photospace Gallery in Wellington. Stuart has been experimenting with a number of different printing techniques and I discovered that he was offering a workshop down in Christchurch. The first was in September but that was full so I booked onto the one in November.
For the next two days I learnt all about one of his techniques: Platinum and Palladium printing. One of the best things about this process is you don’t have to have a darkroom or any special lighting (we did because the sun was not out for use) as you can leave the prints to process in the sun – takes hours and we only had two days.
Clook has an amazing space – converted garage and he was happy for photographs to be taken so that you can reproduce the set up when you get back home. It was a steep learning curve for me as I’m not a Photoshop user but once I understood the process (really detailed notes were provided) it became routine. I think the biggest expense if I decided to continue would be the printer as you need to be able to apply enough ink to block the light on the digital negative (hence the use of Photoshop). I’m sure these could be produced by someone with the same printer, just need to ensure the right quality.
I really enjoyed the process and the results and think that I would like to produce some from my final edit and definitely explore this and other techniques for my SYP. I managed to scan the printed results of the workshop – although the scans don’t really show the difference in tones that well – you can see the results here.
24th November 2020
Earlier in the year (July 15th) I researched the women of Denniston, a remote mining location on the West coast of the South Island and so as I was already on a road trip I decided to go and visit and see how and if the women of the time were remembered.
The site has started to be restored and there a number of different locations with just one part that is still mined today. There is a museum in the town which details the history of the location and the industry which now relies more on tourism, shipping, fishing and conservation than heavy industry. Although the details in the museum were extensive it was all about the lives and conditions of the miners and nothing much about the women or children that were born and raised there. After much searching and driving along a number of back roads I can across a property described as the ‘Friends of Denniston’. Outside this was a small memorial stone to the women of Denniston:
On the main mining site which offers amazing views of the West coast there stands a number of information boards. Down in one corner was the sad story of a young girl called Martha Kerr who took her own life. It also detailed the case of Mary Ann Callaghan and the James Matthews. Sad cases that highlight the results of the conditions in which these residents lived:
Michele Usher 