Posted on April 15th, 2010 in Art & Theory, Education, Europe, travel | Leave A Comment
Next month, on May 1, the exhibition, “In Honour of Archer” will open in London. There will be close to thirty  pieces of artwork in the show. All of the work is Collodion or Collodion-based from artists all over the world working in the Collodion process. I can’t over emphasize the importance of this exhibit and event. Not only for today, moreover, for posterity.
Every once in a while, there’s an opportunity to contribute and be involved in something that will be far more important in the future than it is today. The problem is being able to recognize those opportunities and then having the chutzpah to make the sacrifices to get “some skin in the game”.
“In Honour of Archer”, is one of those opportunities that I can say with great confidence, will take its place in history. It’s bigger than all of us. It’s its own thing, like a mountain so high that it generates its own weather system. It has its own energy, we’re just trying to keep up.
The work presented in the show will have a certain gravitas, too. A provenance, if you will. In this case, the context of the work is much greater than the work itself. I don’t mean that in the pejorative, I really like the work that has been submitted, I mean that in the way that this isn’t “just another exhibition”. I mean that the photographs in this exhibition are forever connected to this event. It’s the connection that gives this purpose – that’s what makes this so important. I wonder if people get that.
A hundred years from now, no one will know or care what you or I did today. We may see what we’re doing in our daily lives as important, but no one will remember. No one will care. John Popper, from the Blues Traveler band, has a great lyric in a song called, “100 Years”. It sums up the ephemeral nature of our day-to-day existence. He says,
“Big angry man in the doorway there
Just keep on walking like I don’t care
Why you giving such an evil eye
Could it be you were ignored by every passerby
And it won’t mean a thing in a hundred years
No, it won’t mean a thing in a hundred years”
Our death denial illusions are exposed and open for G-d and the world to see them when we talk about our achievements for future generations. However, in my opinion, this event transcends those illusions. This is one of those things that we all know is the right thing to do. So why has it taken 157 years?
I feel neither allegiance nor indebtedness to anyone except Archer when it comes to the Wet Plate Collodion process. Without Archer, and some others in the 19th Century, Collodion would have been a shelved process, at least as far as we know it today. He’s never received the recognition or the proper acknowledgments from his country, the big photography museums or the academic establishments. They should be embarrassed and ashamed. I’m glad, however, that like people us, the Collodion Collective, were able to come together and make his commemoration what it should be.
Unfortunately, as Parker and Stone said, “Sometimes what’s right isn’t as important as what’s profitable.” In that context, this is not, “just another exhibition”.
Thank you to everyone that participated in any way – you’ve done a great thing!
Tags: frederick scott archer, In Honour of Archer, photography, Quinn Jacobson, wet plate collodion
Posted on January 19th, 2010 in Art & Theory, Education, Europe | Leave A Comment
If there’s one constant in life and art, it’s change. And I’m learning to embrace it.
After some serious soul searching, I’ve come to the conclusion that my work falls under one main idea - one thought - “the other”. I can’t distinguish any longer between a portrait of a mentally challenged trash man in Utah or an image of a smokestack next to a (former) concentration camp in Germany. The theme and ideas are the same to me now.
To my mind, my work is about difference (I often refer to this as, "the other") and memory. It’s an investigation about how we see each other and what that means in our daily lives. The memory is both personal and universal - do we learn anything from the past, or is it something we ignore and/or deny? I want my work to question self-consciousness, too. I request that the viewer think about themselves from the inside out, not outside in - a unexamined life…
I heard a comment about the words, "equal" and "the same", last night on the radio. It was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, so it was a good time to reflect on equality, difference, and sameness.
I came to realize that I don’t want everyone to be the same, but I want equality. In a perfect world, we would all be equal (rights, respect, etc.) and we would embrace one another’s differences. That’s in a perfect world. I suppose that’s what I try to do. In a circuitous way, I try to celebrate the differences between us. I enjoy a unique face as much, or more, than a "beautiful" face, etc. etc.
I am infinitely infatuated with difference (in a good way). I think I equate difference/uniqueness with awareness somehow. I don’t mean that in the sense of trends or fads, but in the sense of being who you are, fully aware of that (internally) and letting the world deal with it - not the other way around.
That brings me to the intent of my blog; a Spanish online magazine called, "1:1Foto Magazine" out of Madrid has featured some of my work in this issue. You can see it here or click on the image to go to the site. They are a great group of people and actually understand what I’m doing and have done. Muchas gracias!
I’m very happy to be making work, thinking, dreaming and living more as an artist now. I will continue to work toward being more self-aware and not being disconcerted about being who I am. And I’ll continue to make work in that context with the hope of teaching myself, and others, tolerance.
Thomas Huxley said, "Try to learn something about everything and everything about something."
Tags: collodion, Quinn Jacobson, Spanish magazine
Posted on December 8th, 2009 in Art & Theory, Collodion Images, Collodion Workshops, Education, Europe, Kristallnacht, Quinn Jacobson, travel | Leave A Comment
This isn’t the first time you’ve heard me talk about (or read me write about) my show in Paris. And I can assure you, it won’t be the last.
I’m excited beyond words. I’m completely focused on making this the best it possibly can be. So, if I seem aloof, slow to respond or appear to be dropped-out, you know what I’m doing and where my head is!
The Centre-Iris Gallery has started to publicize the events. There will be a few highlights; first, the exhibition (of course!). I will be showing both of my projects; work that I made in the United States and my current European project. I’ll have about 50 images from the project, “Portraits from Madison Avenue“. I will also have several pieces, I’m not exactly sure how many, of my new project, “Vergangenheitsbewältigung” (loose translation: “struggling to come to terms with the past”). I’m still working on this project, but I hope to have quite a few pieces in this show.
The content and Collodion variant processes will span the gamut. There will be portraits, landscapes, still lifes, etc. There will be Black Glass Ambrotypes, Clear Glass Ambrotypes, Albumen prints, Alumitypes, and Ferrotypes (Tintypes). I’m going to offer sell the work, too. This is a big deal for me and it’s very important that I do this right!
 Quinn making Pierre's portraits in Paris - June 2009 Secondly, I will be doing a public demonstration the afternoon of the opening (March 9). I’ll also be teaching two workshops during the week. If you’re in, or near Paris, drop Centre-Iris Gallery an email and have them hold a spot for you!
And last, but not least, the gallery has asked me to do a “Portrait Day”. This will be on March 10. People can come by the gallery and I will make a portrait for them (for a fee, of course). It was a hit in Paris last June. I would expect the same here, maybe even more people Oy! We’ll see.
This is a gigantic logistical challenge. I’m going to rent a Mercedes Sprinter Van. Thanks for the tip, Vernon! I need to pack all of my artwork (huge space and very delicate items), Collodion equipment (dark-box, camera, lenses), chemistry and substrate, and luggage. And then we have to fit in it, too! I’m hoping this works! It’s a four and a half hour drive to Paris. Have you ever driven in the city of Paris? Oy!
There will be more to follow… I promise.
Tags: Collodion Workshops, paris exhibition, Quinn Jacobson, wet plate collodion, workshops
Posted on July 6th, 2009 in Collodion Images, Europe, Family | Leave A Comment
Yesterday we were sitting under large Chestnut trees (Kastanienbaum) next to the Main River in Frankfurt, Germany eating peaches and souvlaki (yes, I said peaches and souvlaki).
It felt unbelievably good. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt that kind of peace and "rightness". Do you know what I mean? Being in the right place at the right time and doing absolutely nothing.
I’ve said this before and will say it again - Europeans know how to relax and they have an understanding of what "community" means. This seems to be lost on Americans. I’m a little anxious about returning to the states. I’m trying to be present to what I have here. I’m trying to be "in the moment", feel everything and experience as much as I can.
It was a big day for the Höchster Schloßfest (Castle Festival). We were on opposite side of the river, normally, we setup where you see the white tents in this photo.
We were given some artwork and a bottle of (private stock) Riesling wine yesterday by our artist friends. It was very kind of them (thanks again!). One of them, Mirjam, brought a catalog of an exhibition that was in Frankfurt a few years ago. All of the images were Dags, Calotypes, and Collodion. There were some beautiful Albumen prints! It’s called, "Frühe Photographie im Rhein-Main-Gebiet 1839-1885" I’m going to buy a copy. You can see Mirjam’s portrait in my June 22, 2009 blog.
I didn’t do a lot of portraits yesterday, but the ones I did I’m happy with. I also made a negative of the the huge Chestnut tree we were setup near. I really like the feel of the image. Although, I consider myself a portrait photographer, I do like to make images (now and then) of nature.
After I made a few images, we packed everything up in the Toyota and wandered around the fest for a while. We had a beer, Apfelschorle, Rindwurst and an Eis. It was a very nice day.
Tags: germany, Höchster Schloßfest Portraits, Quinn Jacobson, wet plate collodion
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pieces of artwork in the show. All of the work is Collodion or Collodion-based from artists all over the world working in the Collodion process. I can’t over emphasize the importance of this exhibit and event. Not only for today, moreover, for posterity.
