Newsletter: October 2011

FotoFreo 2012 is approaching rapidly, five months and counting.

But interesting things are beginning to happen.

The major photographic project for the Festival, the Martin Parr photo shoot, has been completed and Martin has finished the final edit for the exhibition, entitled No Worries: Martin Parr.

An exciting outcome is that a book with the same title will be produced and launched at the Festival. Signed copies will be sold by subscription pre-publication. So watch this space for the notification of pre-sales.

Also, invitations are being sort for the FotoFreo Fringe exhibition programme. Participation in this event is open to everyone. Many applications have already been received. We are encouraging more participation from overseas photographers and for them we have waived the application fee.

And we are now calling for volunteers. Already quite a few have offered their services.  The FotoFreo Volunteers are an essential component for the success of the Festival and Nikon Australia recognises thier contribution by providing a range of incentives for the volunteers. So much so that we now have a core of volunteers. But there are never enough! If you would like to help with this worthy cause go to the FotoFreo website and fill in the online application form.

Also, we have established a FotoFreo blog, check it out

No Worries: Martin Parr

This project looks at the people, at work and at their leisure, in a number of port towns and cities in Western Australia. This is a photo essay about the people that live in these places and not about the places. The places are in fact the 'backdrop'. Since Western Australians are essentially coast dwellers (as are most Australians) this will be something of a cross section of Western Australian life. 

Martin Parr arrived in Perth on the 1st of September and spent 19 days shooting in the port cities/towns of Broome, Port Hedland and Fremantle. Of special interest was the timing of the photo shoot to coincide with the 40th Shinju Matsuri festival in Broome.

Photographers David Dare Parker, Brad Rimmer and Graham Miller accompanied Martin on his investigation of the people in the places visited. As a result, the project was comprehensively documented and David Dare Parker has produced a 16 minute film of the event. You can view this film on You Tube. Just Google No Worries Martin Parr and follow the link. At the time of finalising this newsletter the film had been viewed more than 3,700 times since it was uploaded on October the 7th. The film has also been been posted on a number of other websites including, Vimeo, the Phaidon (books) site, Zeit Online, ASX (American Suburb X), Frankments, Topsy, Simplephotography and more.

The FotoFreo 2012 Fringe

Applications are being called for to participate in the FotoFreo 2012 Fringe and it is easier to do than ever before.. Go to the FotoFreo wesite and make an online application. Quite a number of applications have now been received and it is gratifying that a significant number, about 30%, have come from interstate.

Please note that for overseas particpants there is no application fee.

Also, for FotoFreo 2012 the Fringe will have its own survey exhibition consisting of at least one image from each of the Fringe exhibitions on show. This survey exhibiton will be at the Fremantle Arts Centre. In this way, viewers will be able to see what is on offer and where. The idea is to make the planning of a visit to the exhibitions of interest easier to organise.

Sam Harris, Postcards from Home

Sam Harris is from South London but now lives and works from his studio in the forests of South Western Australian where he settled in 2008. He has travelled extensively and has shot editorial portraits for publications as the Sunday Times Magazine, Esquire, Dazed and Confused and The Telegraph Magazine. He now shoots personal projects, commissions and teaches photography.

Sam’s exhibition, Postcards from Home, revolves around his domestic life and especially focuses on his two daughters growing up. He explains, “As I witness my daughters’ transformation in what feels like the briefest of moments, I’m compelled to preserve something of our time living together”.

Postcards from Home is part of the FotoFreo 2012 Fringe. It was recently selected to be shown in the inaugural Delhi Photo Festival 2011 and chosen from a field of 600 submissions received from around the world to be part of the 28 solo shows in the festival. Sam has also produced a limited edition artist book which can be purchased from him.

Our Supporters

The Plastic Sandwich Co 
(one of FotoFreo’s long term supporters) 

Proprietors Tim Doyle and Marianne Francuzik have been associated with FotoFreo for nearly six years, actively working as volunteers and with their business, originally Art Framers and now Plastic Sandwich, as a sponsor. 

The Plastic Sandwich Co. has been providing graphic presentation services for over 20 years. The company, under the guidance of Tim and Marianne, deals with industry and artists' laminating, mounting and presenting graphics and photographic images.  They have worked with FotoFreo's visiting photographers, Douglas Kirkland in 2006, Edward Burtynsky, Stephen Dupont, Paolo Pelligrini and Denis Darzaq in 2008 and are looking forward to an exciting festival in 2012. 

The Plastic Sandwich Co. is located at 78 Jersey St, Jolimont, WA and the phone number is 08 9387 8887.

Future newsletters will carry more details of our supporters.