F11 Magazine Feature

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On the first of April I was moved by the words of f11 editor Tim Steele, in response to the images that make up ‘Internal Landscapes’. F11 is an online magazine for professional and enthusiast photographers and designers, written in New Zealand and viewed throughout the world. Tim got in touch with me back in November 2011 about doing a feature on my work. It was an honour to have him approach me as the work he features in f11 is always that of very experienced and incredibly talented photographers, frequently highlighting how their work as evolved and grown over many years, sometimes decades. To know that Tim connected with my images was humbling and to now read his words and receive feedback as a result of the feature has been overwhelming, to say the least!

I didn’t know what to expect or what I was aiming for when creating my first true body of work. What has come from it has been beyond what I could have imagined and leaves me with a great sense of gratitude to the fine art and photography community, for seeking out new work and engaging with emerging artists, and also making a space for my images on their walls.

To read the feature please view f11 online by clicking on the image below.

f11 - April 2012 - Issue 9

Cover of f11, Issue 9

A Photographer’s Gallery

Posted by & filed under Exhibitions, Fine Art, Photography, Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , ,

On a recent trip to Napier I came across the perfect creative space. Seriously. I would have packed it up into a box and taken it home with me if I could. Enter Photographer’s Gallery and The Kitchen Table on Tennyson Street in Napier. It is the perfect amalgamation of food, drink, photography, gallery, creative and interactive space with a vibrant contrast between the 1970′s and contemporary art and decoration.

It is these kind of spaces that create a well of inspiration inside me. Open floors, big prints, a range of subjects and compositions, detailed artist statements, teacups and worn leather armchairs. I could envision the large white square table in the cafe as the perfect kind of space for laying out collections of prints for the selection process, leaving them there for a day or two to see what unfolds.

Needless to say, the whole space engaged the wheels in my brain to start turning and new ideas started forming, eventually making their way on to paper and ready for phase two of the concept phase – photographing. I have been offered a ‘solo’ space in a Wellington gallery for November, exhibiting a new body of work – so hopefully the little bits of inspiration that arose from being in such a healthy creative space, on a beautiful weekend in Napier, will make their way to fruition.

Perseverance

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One of the many things that has surprised and encouraged me since finishing the exhibition in September has been the momentum that has been created in the wake of putting the images on display. I half expected everything to stop in its tracks once the gallery doors closed. But in this case, as with many others, the momentum that was created carried me away, more quickly than I was expecting, leaving me a bit dazed but also receptive towards the next step.

In the past two months I have attended many exhibitions around Wellington and three workshops as part of the Smart Art Workshop series at Toi Poneke Community Art Centre. This series of workshops was designed to educate artists and create discussion around being ‘business savvy’ with art. What do you need to do to get someone to review your work here in Wellington? What does being in business mean for artists? And what are the paths that one takes to becoming a successful artist (aside from creating worthy artwork…) The overarching theme that I was able to take away from these workshops was perseverance.

So my challenge now is to persevere, even through the difficult times when I am feeling uninspired and lacking energy and motivation. These are the times where I need to be wandering through art galleries, building a collection of media contacts, flicking through the pages of Art News or meandering around photography blogs – looking for inspiration but also spending time building relationships within the art community and taking time to enjoy the discussions and sharing of ideas and experience that come from these encounters.

One Journey’s End, The Beginning of Another

Posted by & filed under Exhibitions, Photography.

Internal Landscapes - A photographic exhibition by Kelsi Doscher

Visitors viewing Kelsi Doscher's 'Internal Landscapses' exhibition at Thistle Hall Gallery in Wellington, NZ

It has been such incredible journey to get to this place, this moment right now.  The months and months of photographing, planning, re-photographing, marketing, designing, scanning and printing finally came together on Monday evening and the exhibition got hung without (too many) hitches.  The opening night was an amazing experience, seeing so many people who have been my support since I first stepped foot on New Zealand soil almost six years ago, and meeting many new people.

Internal Landscapes - a photographic exhibition by Kelsi Doscher

Opening Night for 'Internal Landscapes' exhibition at Thistle Hall Gallery in Wellington NZ

Spending five days in the gallery, speaking with such a diverse group of people, has been the highlight of my week.  There have been those who wander into the gallery off the street, those who received a recommendation from a friend, people who picked up invitations in a café while having their brunch, or saw a poster when out for a stroll.  There have been artists, art appreciators, students, children, adults, iphone photographers and well-established and respected local photographers, business owners, bloggers, travel writers, gallery owners and more.  I have loved listening to visitors trying to establish how the images were taken, and what they immediately see or feel in the images.  Many of their comments have taught me even more about the images and the landscape from which the photographs are borrowed.  The feedback has been so positive and more than I could have wished for.  And the pure joy of having the opportunity to sit in a beautiful space surrounded by images I have poured my soul into has been magical.  It has helped me to focus on where to go from here.

It will be hard to leave the gallery tonight, but I look forward to passing the space on to the next local artist and seeing how they fill the walls with the product of their creative passion.

 

 

Internal Landscapes

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I started working on this body of work in 2008 after purchasing a Holga camera to experiment with.  I wanted to simplify the photograph process and focus solely on subject and not technology.  And that is precisely what this little camera has given me.  The freedom of not being weighted down by camera gear, lights, lens, memory cards, etc. has allowed me to concentrate entirely on what I am seeing and the experience of being part of the landscape, and not separate from it.  It has opened me up to a space that I can inhabit, not solely in the landscape and not entirely retreated within my internal space, but a quiet introspective space in between.

The body of work that will be exhibited this week came out of over three years of photographing and only immerged in its true form in January this year, and even still, those first photos do not appear in the exhibition (despite my strong personal connection to them).  The evolution of Internal Landscapes has taken me on a journey that I was not expecting but have found that I was in much need of. It has been an adventure in the purest sense. I am very much looking forward to sharing the images that depict the landscape that we are all traveling through, with friends, honorary family and guests tomorrow evening. Continue reading »

Elements of Self

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Light and mist– the two elements I find myself searching for when traveling and photographing.  They are the two elements that identify my internal landscape.

Moments of light and clarity – where my emotions and ambitions, dreams and expectations all fall into place like the pieces of a puzzle.  These articulate moments create the pillars for my movement forward, and a place to retreat to when the fog moves in.

Mist turns the landscape in on itself, only allowing me to see what is directly in front of me.  I know from memory that there is depth to the landscape, which expands into the distance, but I am prevented from seeing it clearly.  Despite mist’s loneliness, it still feels comforting.  It is a place to focus on feeling what surrounds me and not be distracted by what lies off in the distance of the past or the future.

Both elements – equally beautiful and important for personal evolution – and the perfect stage for the photograph to unfold as its truest self.