PHOTOGRAPHY AT ITS BEST

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22451, 12 July 1938, Page 11

PHOTOGRAPHY AT ITS BEST

* BRITISH SOCIETY’S COLLECTION EXHIBITION IN CITY An exhibition of photographs of unusual quality is at present on display at the Durham Street Art Gallery. The collection which comprises the pictorial section of the Royal Photographic Society’s 1937 annual exhibition, is being shown under the auspices of the leading photographic societies of New Zealand, in association with Kodak (Australasia), Ltd. This is the first occasion on which a pictorial section of the Royal Photographic Society has been shown in New Zealand. At a private view last evening, when the exhibition was officially opened by Mr R. Wallwork, director of the School of Art, the importance of the opportunity of seeing such work was emphasised by Mr F. L. Casbolt. president of the Christchurch Photographic Society. Mr Casbolt thanked Kodak, Ltd., for the financial help which made it possible to show the collection to the public. In declaring the exhibition open, Mr Wallwork said that the ease with which the cult of the camera had seized Europe 100 years ago had not been surprising. The people of European countries had come to expect from the artist an attempt at representational veracity. A picture was expected to satisfy the layman that he was looking at the scene or object itself. European art was different from the old art of China, Japan, Persia, and Egypt, where there was a lack of orderly perspective and light and shade and shadow, so that it was dissociated, in a measure from orderly reality. In Europe, the camera, as a means of direct recording, fitted quickly into its place, and look its part in progress. “To the photographers of this city, this show will, I know, make a special aopeal,” said Mr Wallwork, in conclusion. “I trust they will realise that there is room for their personal quota of application and artistry, over and above the scientific aspect of appliances. There is the need for their own personal selection, arrangements, and treatment. It is out of this that their artistry may be revealed. “I feel they will find inspiration in the exhibition, and that it will recruit many new followers to the cult of photography.” The Work on View The work on view Covers a very widg range. It demonstrates the technical and artistic achievement of the best photographers of Great Britain together with a number of outstanding workers from America and other countries. The technical aspect means a great deal to the initiate, but little to the layman, who can, however, appreciate the pictorial qualities of a good photograph. Both types of appeal are combined in such a photograph as “Wave” (No. 29), by Albert Karplus, .with its dramatic sweep, clear texture,' and depth. “Lunch” (No. 21). by Yousuf Karsch. is a happy study of a child, and “Cold Weather” (No. 25), by E. Yaraazaki, a Japanese child study, has a similar appeal. “Sjogren” (No. 6), by Harold Lonnqvist, is a striking and humorous portrait of a house painter, with good modelling of the face. “Rape Blossoms” (No. 13)., by Masao Nomura, shows a Japanese quality of pattern. Among the many portraits, ‘'Mary” (No. 55), by R. N. Haile, is one of the most pleasant. “Uriah” (No. 80), by Dr. Julian Smith, is a strong, fantastic figure study, and “Legal Problem” (No. 85), by Walter Thomas, although perhaps too deliberately like an old master; is an interesting character study. Photography as reporting a fact is well represented by “It’s in the News” (No. 49), by E. Heimann, with its random group of people studying news placards. “Shadows” (No. 98), by W. H. Wolfs, places an arrangement of barred shadows against a oile of sacks, and “Low Tide” (No. 99), by Ward Hutchinson, catches the solidity of wind-ribbed sand. “Flight” (No. 128). by B. A. Butt, has caught a gull against the sky in expressive movement. “August Sand” (No. 22), by Donald Miner, succeeds by the simplicity of its composition and its directness of treatment. “Hollyhocks” (No. 226), by C. R. R. Robson builds tall, well-defined plants against the sky. “Climbing Pattern” (No 156), by G r Crosby, is a fine study of gradations of light from the brilliance of crystalline snow to reflected glow on the clothing of silhouetted . figures. “Ebb Tide” (No. 164). by Olive Leigh, satisfied by its simplicity and its unaffected composition, with a tilted boat on sand broken by lines of footmarks. These are only a few among the many notable photographs. that deserve special mention. In addition there are a number that show how a photographer may stray into the meaningless effort of imitating other art mediums. These approach as near as can be to looking like etchings, aquatints, lithographs, or crayon drawings, and fail because they are neither one thing nor the other. Others are marked by false sentimentality. Yet all contribute to the educative quality of a highly interesting exhibition.