August 2018

27th August: Hmmmm so what has happened over the past couple of months? My show with Michael Meyersfeld came down. I entered Sasol again and received a real WTF moment. I shan't go into details other than to say that I was left completely perplexed by the decision, a state of mind that was shared by many people.

There is some good news though. After having to let my last website fall by the by, I have a new one. The address is www.stjohnfuller.com. I put it together on wordpress. And yes for someone who does not know how to code, it is a deep and terrifying hole. it is not as easy as all the advertising makes it out to be. It's ease of use to the uninitiated, I would liken it to trying to knit whilst wearing lead boxing gloves. But its up and that is what counts.

May 2018

7th May : It's been a couple of month's. Went over to the UK and then back to SA before focus fell fully on my show with Michael Meyersfeld at Rossouw Modern Space. All in all the lead up prep was fairly smooth. There were a couple moments when it felt like that the wheels on the bus were going to stop turning. Indeed I guess those are who more inclined to feel that universe was trying to send them a message would have decided that, well maybe the timing is not right. Cods wollop to that, there was loads of positive feed back on the night. Even though Lawrance couldn't be there, Cathy Brennon delivered a lovely speech. All in all things felt like that they went really well.

February 2018

21st February: Sheila Madikane was kind enough to give up a bit of her time for my current project, (the portrait show that is going up in Heramanus, at the Rossouw Modern Gallery). Although it only took me a couple of minutes to get the source images that I required, she happily chatted with me for an hour or so. While doing so she filled me in on some of the background to what she is fighting for. I think that this can be summed up simply with the following words, empathy, respect and as an equal.

For those of us who are lucky enough to live in comfort, there is a harsh truth that many of us would not like to admit. We have little understanding of how the other half live. Indeed while the laws of apartheid may have been abolished, a form of social segregation is taking its place. When once it was a question of colour, now it would seem to be a question of finance. Owing to the fact that the price of land is guiding social planning, those who can't afford the prices that are being demanded are being pushed further and further out of the city. The net result is a form of social cleansing. For those who are being forced out the result is a double blow. The greater the distance equals more time spent travelling. At the same time more money is needed to pay for the travel. And yet somehow we think that this perversion of logic is OK?

June 2017

23rd: Who is that? Nope not me. Just a subject from my latest series. I have been working on collecting a series of before and after portraits. The hope is to the work ready framed for this years Sasol New Signatures. I think that this year will be the last time I enter, so hopefully I will go out with a bang. Lets see.

April 2017

13th: Pinch and a Punch for the 13th of the Month. So how is my plan for getting more exposure for my work going? Well I suppose it is going alright. Have a show lined up for next year. It will be at the Rossouw Modern gallery in Hermanus. The theme behind the show is political dissenters. I have been trying to find willing sitters but the going has been slow. I did manage to get Zapiro to take part. When I visited him in his studio he was being guarded by an army of miniature Desmond Tutu's. I managed to take a quick pic of one of the legion before been run out of the studio.

Other developments. At the moment I am talking with the AVA gallery in Cape Town. Over July they are planning a photography exhibition. As part of the show they would like me to run some pinhole photography workshops.

Candice Berman is updating my info on her website. As I write this they are still busy, but I am sure that it will ready in due course.

February 2017

27th: There comes a time in artists life when one wonders, what am I doing wrong? Why aren't a filthy stinking rich? Well there many answers, and I guess if your sole purpose of creating art is to be filthy stinking rich, I think that unless you are a superb sales person, or extremely fortunate you aint gonna to get what you want. My hope is that I will be able to earn enough to support my habit while being able to put a little away for a rainy day/year. So the aim for this year is to try and get myself more widely exhibited/known so that more sales will come my way. Lets see.

January 2017

17th: The madness of the Christmas holidays meant that I completely forgot to post update re book launch. It went ok. Sold a few books, loads of colouring took place, and now the big flag is already down! 

The pic above is a portrait of John Matisson, a political broadcaster and author based here in Cape Town. Amongst many other notable positions he was one of the founding councilors of South Africa's Independent Broadcasting Authority. 

November 2016

19th: Had a message pop on th phone yesterday. As I can only ever seem to be spammed I thought best just quickly delete it. Yurns out it was deposit from Art Lovers 1932! Apparently I had won a prize in their annual art competition. owing to a variety of reasons I was completely clueless. I had entered and then life just took over. It's the second time that this had happened. First time was in 2008 with the Sasol New Signatures.

15th: had a quick squiz of my entry for the 2nd. My evaluation? Rubbish, and so have edited.

2nd : Well whats been happening? Had a trip over to the UK. Mostly spent my time in a kitchen. Managed to escape for a weekend to London. Went and saw the Turner prize finalist's. What did I think? Ummmmmmm, what a load of Kak. I can only suggest that this reaction is because I am getting old, and plus I have spent too much time in the Sun , This of course means that my brain has been fried to the point of which I can no longer lie to myself by finding some deeper meaning in something that is patently not there.

Anyway being working on a portrait of Moira Forjaz. It has taken some months to organise but I have finally been able to get there. The above pic is just a little snap of the final images.

July 2016

A page from the "Rainbow Nation"

20th July: Well there is just over a week to go till the final judging happens for this years Sasol New Signatures. I have to admit that while it is really cool to be selected for the final show, it would be nice to be given an award. But as a friend of mine said, 'your work is too subtle',

Great news from this years Turbine Art Fair. Heidi Erdmann from The Photographers Gallery ZA took some of my work along and got plenty of sales.

A couple of weeks ago I popped over to Hermanus to meet up with Lawrence Brennon. He is a photographer that has been developing the photopolymere technique. This all fits into my wider scheme of looking to use plates to print my photographs and not inkjet printers.

June 2016

Sasol New Signatures 2016 Entry

29th June: Another year another Sasol! That makes it six on the bounce. Almost had a complete and utter disaster on my hands but luckily things turned out alright in the end. Ok so the pic up above does not look like much, but most of the work is in the little books that are sat on the plinths. These are mindfulness colouring books with a twist.

Copper Plate being prepared.

2nd: Last week I finished off my internship at Warren Editions. With all that I had hoped to do it was over with a bit too soon. But hopefully I am going to be able to use the studio on an ongoing basis. I am really keen to master the photo gravure printing process. But seeing how difficult it is to prepare a plate, I guess for the moment I will just have to be happy with getting it right. The polishing of the plates is in itself a tricky process. If you get tiny, unwanted scratches at any stage of the process, you are looking at starting all over again. A task that I think that if the Greek Gods were really looking to punish Sisyphus, they would have chosen this one. Pushing a rock up a mountain only to see it roll back down, and repeat for eternity? Easy. Prepare a plate for photogravura, it's going to drive up the wall.

April 2016

So, I open up the blogger page today and I get some warning about some or other EU directive about warning EU residents about cookies and third parties and what not's. So in true Bernard Black style I am going to not enlighten myself, plead ignorance and say, there, that's my warning to you if you are a EU visitor. Got it? Splendid!

News? started an internship at Warren Editions. Not much to say other than I have just started this week. I am hoping that over the coming weeks I will be edging closer to being able to produce my own photogravures. First though I have to master the art of preparing a plate.

February 2016

Jack Ass

11th: So here we are in a new year and a new town. Over the Xmas holidays we packed up everything, baby bath and all and made the great trek down to Cape Town. And so now here we are busy rebuilding. Things are slowly getting there, for me though there is the question of a studio space. So while we have sorted out the space to live now comes the time to sort out a studio. Part of that journey may mean that I just make do with short term solutions.

Meanwhile the above pic is of one of the fab penguins to be found on Bolders Beach. I am busyputting together a piece of work for Intoto Gallery for their Fin Feather Fur exhibition.

November 2015

Invite depicting Roger Ballen

2nd: Well October has been and gone. being working my arse off to put together a show together that is going to happen at the David Krut Bookstore. I have been running around taking pictures of artists and their work. I then printed the pictures, stuck them up on a board, and then rephotographed them using one of my cameras. The invite above is a blend of the process and the result. The top right is a pic of the source material stuck on a board. The bottom left is a pic of the resultant photograph. 

September 2015

Inside the Guard Hut
Photograph thanks to Rupert de Beer

Well all the dust has settled. The prize giving evening of this years Sasol New Signatures has been and gone. What did I think? It was ok. Have to admit that I don't want to grumble too much as it would just feel like sour grapes. I thought my concept was strong and that I stood a good chance of being nominated for one of the prizes. Having said that I did wonder why so many video pieces won prizes, but then again I am just prejudiced. Oh well, best leave it there before I get my rage on.

August 2015

Hole With lens

 21st: Admin admin admin bloody admin. What a pain. Anyway. Pretoria Zoo asked me to bring back the shack. They were having a science week and wanted my camera obscura to be there as part of their displays. Previously I had used 9mm holes drilled into the walls as my apertures. This time I cut out a much bigger hole. I then installed a regular, un-ground lens, which I purchased from my optometrist. This was mounted in front of the hole. Results were amazing. The resultant picture was just about crisp enough to be able to read the writing on the sign outside.

Inside the camera obscura.

July 2015

An orange Post It means?

Guard Hut Camera with photo inside.

21st: Well it is good news. "The man from Delmonte says Yes!" Have been selected again to be a part of the annual Sasol New Signatures competition. That's 5 years on the bounce. I have to admit that the day before I had entered I had decided that I wasn't going to. I was just too unprepared for what I had wanted to do. I had needed to get together all sorts of things. Unfortunately events of the past week had meant that I had totally lost focus. But I woke the next morning with a slightly different mind set, a new plan and just got on with it. It was tight but I managed to get everything together. Although what I had ended up doing was not what I had set out to do, I still reckon it turned out ok.

Inside the Guard Hut Camera

20th: And so it is Sasol New Signatures time again. My entry is a guard hut which I turned into  a camera.I used the hut/camera to take photographs. The resultant photographs were then mounted within the hut. Simples really. I find out tomorrow 10 AM. If I am selected it will be five years on the trot which would be rather fabulous.

I think I worked out one of the reasons why one of my works did not get selected for last years comp. Weight! I forgot to read the little section regarding weight. Entries must be 100kg's or less. So I reckon that the judges took one look at my installation and went no effing way is this thing below 100kg's.

April 2015

There is nothing worse than looking like a complete amature in front of your peers. And so this was the case when I went to photograph Janus and Dennis from the alternative print workshop with Chantal. Usually I can get the exposure right within a couple of shots. But no, not this time. In no particular order the following all happened. Underexposure, paper ripping, Chantal been blown over and yet more underexposure's. I have to admit that I came close to saying, "stuff this, I am going down the pub". But finally the stars came into alignment and I finally had a picture that I was happy with.

Pics of Janus and Dennis to be shot with Chantal

Taking a pic with Chantal

Duds, misfires and an ok print

The last year or so has been a a year of exploring and discovering new things. With Janus and Dennis from the Alternative Print Workshop I have been exploring Cyano Types and Van Dyke Browns. A trip to the UK brought about an opportunity to get an introduction to to the photogravure process with Peter Moseley. There was a lot to take in but the two day workshop left me wondering, 'where have you been all my life'. The process gives beautiful results and I am hoping that it is not too much longer before I can start doing more prints.

March 2015

Plan Chest for Nando from Nando's

Yip February has been and gone. The last couple of months have been months of working to pay the bills. Orders for plan chests came flooding in. There are still more on the books, but I have given myself a couple of weeks to focus on my photography

The plan chest in the picture above was delivered to the offices of Chickenland, to a guy called Nando! I thought it was a wind up but I can assure you that it was not.

Dali Version 1

Dali Version 1 - Detail

Had some great news from the Candice Berman Gallery yesterday. They sold one of my Dali's. So "Milky Bars are on me"

January 2015

Here is a peek at what is being planned for later in the year. At the moment Janus (from the alternative print workshop) and I are still busy working out all the details. This is going to be something new for me. I am quite used to giving walkabouts which tend to last only an hour or so, but having to keep it going for a day while teaching a class, hmmmm, I am sure that it will be ok.

So you don't believe in Santa? The Tooth Fairy? The Easter Bunny? Well I got news for you I am here to tell you that they are all real. Very very real. Yes they drive around in an old Toyota and they do get a bit lost, but I have proof of their existence and it is sitting in my hallway. And what gifts did they bring? Paper, rolls and rolls of paper, and not any old paper but photographic paper. More paper than I know what to do with. So what now? Well I guess pack it away for the moment. Things are a wee bit busy on the work front. I am just going to have to do my best to ignore that it is all there. The cool thing now  is that I don't have to worry about how I am going to get hold of my next lot of paper. So thank you Derick and Janus from the alternative print workshop for a really most unexpected but wonderful gift. I am most especially looking forward to experimenting with the fibre based paper. Thank you.

October 2014

And so with a little over a week to go to the opening of my show, My Family and Other Cameras  things are getting critical. At least progress is happening with the completion of PUG II. Going to be popping in to the Alternative Print Workshop  to go and do some Van Dyke Brown prints of my pinhole images. Did a test run a couple of weeks ago and the results were very promising.