RICHARD WENTWORTH
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CHRISTIAN MARCLAY
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Richard Wentworth is an artist and photographer, well known for his series 'Making Do and Getting by'. Within this he registers chance encounters of oddities and discrepancies in the modern landscape. Wentworth is inclined to explore the nuances of modern life and the human role therein.
Mundane snapshots and fragments of the modern landscape are elevated to an analysis of human resourcefulness and improvisation, whereby amusing oddities that would otherwise go by unnoticed become the subject of intent contemplation. |
Christian Marclay is well known as a visual artist and composer whose innovative work explores sound recording, photography, video and film.
In his 2016 film Christian Marclay photographs the unconventional aspects of street photography in his neighbourhood, London. The detritus the artist spots on the sidewalk as he strolls through London includes chewed gum, plastic straws, bottle caps, cotton swabs, and cigarette butts. All of which are compiled into digital flip books acting as a reminder that what’s useful one minute is useless the next. |
"I came to London around 15 years ago. I wasn't sure how long I would be around for, but I met someone whilst I was working at Simmons House down the road. We've been together for 12 years now with 2 kids. I probably won't leave Muswell Hill anytime soon. My kids are 7 years old and 4 months, so I guess they can go to school here. I mean it's quite laid back and safe around here, so why not?" |
"WOMAN: We've been together around 35 years now, right? MAN: around abouts yeah. It was definitely during college. We both did an art foundation." "WOMAN: Yeah, we've kind of been around here ever since then. Never moved away from London, just didn't felt the need to. I mean we've both been around Muswell Hill since secondary school, because I used to go to Creighton Avenue School, just around the corner. MAN: Yeah I was at Bishop Douglas, but I'd always be up here because we'd get in fights with her school. You'd just show up at the gate and a fight would already be going on, so we'd just join in. " |
"WOMAN: My Mum was the oldest of 18, a proper large Irish family and his dad was the oldest of 12.
Funny though, because we are both only children. MAN: we definitely weren't following our grandparents route, so we've only got 2 girls. One of them has moved away from London, but the other is still with us." |
"It was the 1970s when I moved to London from Romania. I would work when I was a kid, I'd take the bus from school straight to my father's factory. He made quality Italian shoes for women. Since then the factory has been a sort of family business, I ended up taking over when he died, but I'm retired now. It's been a long time... maybe 10 years? I guess that is a long time, a bit boring too if I'm honest. Do you speak any other languages?" |
ROSE : "I've never moved, don't see why I would at this point. As corny as it sounds I made my home here. I have my job and friends here and that suits me to be honest. I've always been easily entertained so small shops down Crouch End Hill or Parkland Walk nearby suit me well."
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DAMIEN : "I've been renting out a place for a year, near here actually. My only daughter is visiting for the christmas holidays with her boyfriend, so it has been quite cramped recently but I don't mind really, it's nice to have all the family back together again y'know?
... I'm not sure I'll be living here permanently, it could just be another home to add to the list of others I've had, who knows." |
DIANA : "I'm an actress and singer. Well aspiring to be. I'm living with my parents right now because I just got back from uni... I was doing a degree in Music at Sussex. I loved it out there, I mean I can just see myself living there with my mates. I'm gonna move back out there at some point when I'm not as broke, but until I can get some more gigs I'm pretty much just hanging around and putting my name out there."
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ELVIRA : "Oh I'm actually originally from Greece, if you can't tell from my accent. I moved here four years ago? It was hard, My English wasn't the best and I didn't really know anyone, but I eventually got used to it all
... I have an 11, 8 and 6 year old, two girls and one boy. Crouch End was not my first choice, but it works, being quite close to their school helps. Who knows though, maybe I'll be back in Greece one day, but for now I'm happy enough." |
"I've only been around here couple years, it's nice though. I would probably prefer to be in a big studio apartment in Central London, but not all of us can be rich But I mean it doesn't really matter, I live in a pretty nice flat above my cafe. I haven't been running it for too long so I'm still getting to know the ropes of running my own business. It's a lot of work but it's still fun, plus I can get free coffee and pastries in the morning" |
Upon exploring mediums in which to present my final piece I came across a photographer named Ben Watts.
Ben Watts was born in London 1967, he graduated from Sydney College of Arts and started out in a job as a photographers assistant. He eventually began to work for Australian ELLE and VOGUE, among others before pursuing a career in New York. At this time, around 1990, Watts began to document urban youth groups, often venturing around the streets and clubs of the city. This led to the publication of his photographic book 'BIG UP', an impressive array of portraits featuring rappers, actors, boxers, dancers, skateboarders, children, and other street characters. |