Saatchi Gallery: Out of focus

OCA STUDY TRIP TO SAATCHI GALLERY
“Out of Focus”

1 gain a personal perspective on a wide range of photographers
2 Reflect on the experience of seeing photography in a gallery
3 Network with other OCA students

Images at the Saatchi

I recorded several pages of notes, but rather than write up my impressions this time, I’ll describe a little epiphany I had on the day.

I was fortunate in having already visited the exhibition on a preview night where the curator, Patricia Ellis, gave an hour of lectures to a steadily decreasing audience. Patricia described a few exhibits in a fairly factual way, describing for example, how Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin created an exhibit by showing what was hidden under circular stickers placed on photos by archivists. It was all fascinating and I later found that Patricia’s descriptions were all recorded in the exhibition guide and catalog which were written by William A Ewing, a noted Canadian curator and art historian.

My image at the Saatchi

However the OCA study trip was much more valuable for me because it provided an invaluable insight into the photography degree course. In particular, thanks to hints from a nameless tutor, I finally understood that this is creative arts course that is based on photography, and not a photography degree that inclines towards art. The penny dropped when the suggestion was made to relate this exhibition to my own OCA practise, and that the majority of students are much more conservative than the tutors. Looking around the exhibits from there it was a quick conclusion that I should be concentrating less on following literally the course exercises and assignments, and instead produce more creative work along the lines of what surrounded me.

Isn’t this obvious when you sign up to the OCA? For me, and many others I suspect, based on forum and study trip conversations, no, I don’t believe it is obvious.
After the tea break with tutors and students I returned to the galleries and looked again at what I was seeing, and I saw very few images that were anything like my “best”, “award-winning”, portfolio snaps. So from this point on I will never again submit a “record” shot for an assignment. I feel highly motivated and look forward to re-thinking in the coming weeks the next two assignments for People & Place, and Digital Photographic Practice.
Watch this space…