Just received a text from these two at Dave’s opening of a new exhibition in his London gallery.
Rather interesting to see these two James Smith now head of photography at Norwich University of the Arts
and Dave Stewart who is considered one of the top ten advertising photographers in London. This continues the story
of the course at Blackpool.
They messaged below and the article is from a recent Creative Review
‘We’re off to see Dean Chalkley in a little while as well! Blackpool is still going!’
Dean is also an ex-student
Dean Chalkley
“Photography can be a thing unto itself. It’s more than documentation.” Dean Chalkley discusses how his 2005 portrait of Noel Gallagher marked a personal turning point in terms of culture and photography
This picture of Noel Gallagher signifies a period of time that felt like a cultural reset. Artists like Dizzee Rascal were part of a new phase, while Oasis had crossed over from a generation before. I took it on 14 November 2005, as a commission for NME magazine, and it was part of the first major exhibition I’d organised, Now Stand Tall – which brought photography together with live music.
I’ve always tried to follow my heart with my work. When I was studying, I started doing stuff for Dazed and Confused, and photographing musicians like George Clinton and Ice T. I also ended up working quite a bit with the art editor of the magazine and shooting Chris Ofili, Douglas Gordon, Sam Taylor-Wood, and the Wilson Twins – all of whom came to be known as the YBAs at the time.
I was also interested in tattooing and piercing and things that, at the time, were quite out there and on the periphery of popular culture. I found myself drawn to that kind of thing. I started to do a lot of work with Mixmag – going out to Ibiza and places like that, because that’s where it was seen to be at. But around 2000 there was a significant scene change in music.
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