Cyan Blue

See You On The Other Side

2009-10-09T23:16:00.005+01:00

Well...I'm defecting. Having had some problems with Blogger, I've decided to move my blog over to Wordpress.

I've updated my domain to point at the new Wordpress blog instead of this one, so you shouldn't be seeing this message.

If you're still seeing this page, make sure that your bookmark is pointing at www.cyanblue.co.uk

Any problems, just drop me a line on mat{at}cyanblue.co.uk

"Oh little body, do not die"

2008-12-10T13:47:00.008Z

It's a sad day for me...Sunday just gone I woke up early (couldn't sleep) to a beautiful sunrise. As is my habit I reached for my polaroid camera, pressed the shutter and...kaput. My beloved SX70 is now dead. It could be in a temporary coma, but I prefer not to apply the balm of false hope.

All this in the week that a package of rare polaroid film arrived from Austria. Fate is taunting me.

The last time I saw Paris

2008-12-10T13:36:00.007Z

«Taxi!»

Well, the shots from Paris have been processed for some time now - either hanging up in my bathroom (several rolls of black & white: tri-x and acros100) or back from their trip to the lab. Now begins the long slog of dusting, mounting, scanning and spotting said negatives and slides...but I'm being lazy. So far I've only managed to upload one and a half rolls of colour from our trip. That leaves 25 and a half rolls left to upload!

This is 2008...surely we sould have robots to do this sort of thing for us by now?

Blue for you!

2008-09-11T23:12:00.007+01:00

At the moment I'm busy setting up an online shop to sell selected limited edition prints. These are fine art giclée prints produced in the UK by master printers Redcliffe Imaging, each beautiful printed to a very high standard. First up are a series of limited edition prints of my Polaroids, 12" x 12" - they are printed on high quality 308g Hahnemühle Photo Rag and individually signed and numbered.

As soon as the prints are available for sale I'll post a link here, but in the meantime if you want to be kept up to date on developments, drop me an email: mat{at}cyanblue.co.uk

Latest work

2008-09-11T22:58:00.004+01:00

My very latest work can be found on my Flickr stream - there's lots of Polaroid shots, plus some new medium format black and white work. Visit www.flickr.com/photos/cyanblue and i'll make you tea!

Instant Era

2008-09-11T22:38:00.004+01:00

Just to let you know that I'm currently showing work in a group exhibition dedicated to the art of Polaroid. We're showing at The Nest gallery in California and as this is my first show for a while I'm pretty excited! The private view is tonight, but if you miss that don't worry; the exhibition runs from the 11th September to 31st October.

The show accompanies the recent "For the Love of Light" book, and I'm showing along with my fellow contributors Jenifer Altman, Anna L. Beard, Jennifer Evans, Jen Gotch, Anna Kathrin Koch, Monika Elena Kost, Nanako Koyoma, Fernanda Montoro, Mia Moreno and Anne Naumann.

To find out more about "For the Love of Light" project or to buy copies, click here.

The Nest gallery is well worth a visit, plus they do a lot to raise money for local arts grants. You can find them on the web at www.napanest.com, though it's not as much fun as seeing the work in the flesh. If you in the area, drop in and see them at 1019 Atlas Peak Road, Napa, California 94558. Their opening times are Fri, Sat, Sun 10am to 6pm, though you can call them on 707.255.7484.

If you go, be sure to say hi to the lovely Ann Trinca who helped organise the show!

Pre-order "For The Love of Light" now!

2008-06-05T11:51:00.003+01:00

Pre-order "For The Love of Light" now!
Originally uploaded by cyan blue

25 photographers, 10 countries, 50 photographs, 110 pages - one medium.

Hi friends! As you may know, I was asked to contribute two photographs, along with 24 other superb artists, to a celebration of the life of the Polaroid photograph. The expression of our shared love for this sadly doomed medium is "For the Love of Light" - a beautiful book designed and edited by the very talented Jen Altman.

We are now taking pre-orders for the limited edition, individually numbered run of the book. Each book in the initial run will also come with a limited edition 5x5" print.

You can pre-order your copy and find out more about this fantastic project by visiting the website: www.fortheloveoflight.com

I hope you can join us on our journey!

Diversion

2008-06-05T11:47:00.004+01:00

My Indian Summer II
Originally uploaded by cyan blue

As you've probably guessed, I haven't been updating my blog much recently. It's just such a pain to post stuff to Flickr, then come here to do it all over again, only for blogger to muck up the formatting of my photos! So, in the meantime, until I decide to sort out my blog, the best place to visit to see my latest work is my Flickr account.

Just go here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyanblue/

Thanks all!

Mum III

2008-03-02T13:05:00.003Z

Mum III
Originally uploaded by cyan blue

Transubstantiated I

2007-12-10T00:29:00.002Z

Transubstantiated I
Originally uploaded by cyan blue

Take one ancient box brownie type camera and a mag-lite...start to paint with light in the darkness

In the night garden I

2007-11-28T09:50:00.001Z

Ajar I

2007-11-06T11:26:00.001Z

Marcus II

2007-11-06T11:25:00.001Z

Marcus II, originally uploaded by cyan blue.

Jeans II

2007-11-05T00:57:00.001Z

Jeans II, originally uploaded by cyan blue.

Come in

2007-10-29T11:38:00.001Z

Come in, originally uploaded by cyan blue.

Apples in the Yard

2007-10-24T08:44:00.001+01:00

Some apples strung up for the birds in the back yard. Taken at night.

Blakeney Approach in Fog

2007-10-24T08:43:00.001+01:00

Rusted groyne - Happisburg, Norfolk

2007-10-12T02:19:00.001+01:00

Happisburg, June

2007-10-12T02:08:00.001+01:00

Night Journey 2

2007-10-12T02:03:00.001+01:00

Night Journey 1

2007-10-12T01:55:00.001+01:00

The Key

2007-10-12T01:48:00.000+01:00

Key found on a wall

Abandoned bike

2007-10-06T16:15:00.001+01:00

Very early one Sunday morning, this little bike was stood in the road next to my car.

Faces

2007-09-21T14:11:00.001+01:00

Numbers 1 and 2 of an occasional series.

I'm obsessed with photographing random objects which look like faces - this was a paper towel holder in a mall toilet. Trying taking a photo in a public toilet without looking suspicious...it can't be done.
Incidentally it looks like a cyberman, albeit a happy one. As cybermen have their emotions removed when converted from humans, I can only imagine the conversion process went wrong somewhere along the line.

This was a child seat chained to some railings. I'm trying to work out if there was ever a bike attached, or whether someone stole the bike and left the seat. I'm also trying to work out whether it has bags under its eyes, or whether those are actually its eyes.

Catching ghosts

2007-09-21T13:08:00.000+01:00

When I was about 7 years old, I remember my teacher sending me to the classroom store cupboard to get some books. As I drew the door closed behind me, I noticed in the muffled and dust-furred corner a vision the equal of any marian apparition. There, playing across the spines of the books before me, was a perfect, full-motion recreation of the classroom outside, extruded through the keyhole into the blackness.

I ran to tell my teacher, Mr Featherstone-Haugh, who explained the principles of the Camera Obscura to me. I didn't care about physics though. I had discovered a parallel, inverted world, running alongside the real world. It seemed as if I was watching the spirits of my school friends, removed and unaware of their real-world brothers quietly writing in the next room.

I think this is what using the Holga - a notoriously flimsy, medium-format camera - reminds me of. It has limited exposure control, it leaks light all over your film and its plastic lens is little better than a pinhole camera - it's about as far away from serious photography as you can get.

What it does do though is take me back to that cupboard, surrounded by the ghosts of the living world. Those luminous figures are finally captured, caught in the little room inside my camera.

Holga Image by Mark Wheeler

Pantomime Horse

2007-09-20T20:43:00.001+01:00

I can't remember whether I took this over my friend's garden fence (in which case the horse's name is Marcus) or whether I took it from my car window on a drive in the country (I pulled over first, I'm not that much of a multi-tasker).
Anyway, I decided to shoot the front end then the back end separately and join them later in pshop, hence "Pantomime Horse".

I got this processed at Jessops, which is the only place to get 120 film processed in Norwich. My favourite lab Reflections had moved to the middle of deepest darkest Norfolk and no longer reachable on foot.
I wish I hadn't; it was pretty cheap, but you can see that there's some really nasty bands at the top of the photo. Not only that, but the negs were pretty dirty and they'd rolled up my films rather than put them in neg bags, so they were curlier than steel springs. It was a total nightmare getting sproingy, curly negs into the neg holder to scan them, when all they wanted to do was jump out again. It would have been easier to get Lil Kim into a pair of sensible trousers.

Incidentally, I think I was influenced by the cover of one of my favourite 12" from my teenage years:

Holga loaded with Reala

It was really nothing...

2007-09-20T18:55:00.000+01:00

My friend's baby William. Lit by the afternoon sun bouncing across the Cley fields into her front room.

Olympus OM2000, FP4+ in HC-110

Life-line

2007-09-20T18:03:00.000+01:00

This is what growing up in the suburbs feels like...waiting for someone to take your hand and show you the way out before you finally sink below the waves of boredom, petty gossip and amateur paint effects.

Lomo LC-A, generic cheapo C-41 film

High Tide

2007-09-20T17:34:00.000+01:00

Baywatch, North Norfolk style

Lomo LC-A, generic cheapo C-41 film

Have a seat

2007-09-19T23:15:00.000+01:00

Holga CFN120 loaded with FP4+ developed in Diafine.