Getting away with murder...

John Stoddart

Homage to a murder is an interesting concept tapping into our fascination with the macabre and the murder mystery genre. John Stoddart's work has always had touch of Helmut Newton about the choreography and a feeling of the smash grab aesthetic of a paparazzi so his style naturally fits the theme of the 'Black Dahlia Murder.' Earlier this week my learner's had been looking at themes in photography so I found the murder mystery narrative in John's work particularly relevant. The ability to tell a story clearly in a single image is not easy. The work on show also provides a rather 'dark' humorous look at the modern fascination with being famous at all costs. John is an internationally published photographer whose clients have included Vanity Fair, GQ and The New York Times. If you are going to be in London over the next month then this is worth a look especially as it is situated right in the heart of Soho at The Society Club.

Nicholas Brewer

Recently a class discussed pictures of twins and in particular the famous image by Diane Arbus. It is a lengthy process explaining that pictures of natures clones raise deeper questions than just our initial response to trying to spot the difference. I try to get students to think about their own identity and how that has evolved. Is it harder for twins to find their individuality as they are often treated as a collective?
"A positive attitude really can make dreams come true, it did for me" David Bailey.
Below is an interesting drama about David Bailey,  you should be able to watch it for about a week.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01b674s/Well_Take_Manhattan/