There is a rising fashion for film in recent years, with the realisation of the fragility of digital records, and fashion for all things ‘vintage’. In many ways, from an artistic perspective, we live in a wonderful age, where we have access to so many mediums. Historic processes in printmaking, analogue and digital photography processes and a whole variety of painting methods. Even within the more traditional disciplines, there is access to hundreds if not thousands of years of development in the processes.
Using what I learnt on a photography module in 2017 led me to consider further developing my collection of film, cameras, and equipment. Following discussions with my uncle, who has a keen interest in analogue cameras, I began eBay hunting, alongside extensively developing my haggling skills with junk dealers based more locally! The odd long term loan of some film cameras from the family helped. Eventually I had amassed quite a collection of both cameras and development equipment. This expensive project was brought suddenly to a halt when, what at the time was my only enlarger, a 1970s Durst, died. Now with two working enlargers I hope to continue, but with regret I have had to shelve this project to focus on the archive inspired painting project which began developing.
Now, for those still reading, you are probably wondering at the relevance of this summer project in analogue photography to the painting work which has begun to develop. Well it was during my eBay searches for old cameras when I discovered many families and vintage-dealers, selling job-lots of antique photographs and slides at affordable prices. But more about that later on as I narrate you though what became known as my ‘Archive Painting Project’
Chris Corish Art 