An unforgettable opportunity - learning from Magnum Photographer Donovan Wylie
On Friday 30th September photography staff and students joined invited guests at the National Media Museum for the opening of Outposts,the eagerly awaited exhibition by Donovan Wylie, acclaimed Magnum photographer who was Bradford’s Photography Fellow for 2010/11. The prestigious fellowship started in 1984, jointly funded by Bradford College and the museum (then the National Museum of Photography, Film & Television), with The University of Bradford becoming partners six years later. At the exhibition opening, David Smith, the College’s Dean of HE, recalled this long and successful relationship between the between Bradford College, the University of Bradford and the National Media Museum. He noted that previous fellows, including Fay Godwin and Eamon McCabe, had all made viable contributions, “but the feedback from colleagues was that Donovan has been outstanding. The way in which he has engaged with students has been an exemplar. He has enthused everybody.”
In conversation with David Smith and Head of Photography, Trevor Griffiths, it was immediately apparent how seriously Donovan had taken the Fellow’s obligation to spend five sessions in College. Donovan said, “Any future fellows mustn’t regard the work with College as just stuff to be done but must engage so that students will benefit. The fellow needs to realise that they will receive as well as give in their exchanges with students. I got a better understanding of how to educate kids and introduce young people to the industry of photography. When a young person comes they might think they are saying ‘I want to be a photographer’ but we have a responsibility to help them find their role in that industry; as a photographer, researcher or curator, and tell them the more they love photography, the better it will be. We are lucky that photography is still a very young industry and we are learning in education that we need to do more than trying to make kids photographers. It is a very diverse industry, young in arts, culture and home-grown; like a young film industry.” David Smith expressed some surprise at Donovan’s emphasis on photography as an industry rather than an art form. Donovan answered, “What is not being discussed enough is this; we are certainly art but cross over into animation, video, installation etc. and are grounded in history. Photography is an industry in its own right and it has never been broader. The challenge is to retain the love and passion for the subject but implement education reflecting the opportunities in this massive industry.” Trevor Griffiths thanked Donovan for his commitment and said he had "set the benchmark for future Fellows."
Earlier in the year, Donovan had given students insights into his career and creativity, explaining how had discovered his subject and voice, his illustrated with examples of his work. Read more
Although Donovan is such a highly acclaimed photographer, he did not just spend time with the higher education degree and diploma students, but gave the further education students just starting their photographic studies considerable attention. Trevor Griffiths said “Donovan set a brief to incorporate light and depth of field into a photograph. He had over sixty submissions and chose the winner, by Kerry Hurle, earlier this week. He also introduced some young students to studio work.” Photography Lecturer, Gemma Breese, explained “Before Donovan set the project, he gave the students a lecture about depth of field, lighting, using different camera functions and getting different effects. He then split the students into three groups, gave them each a light meter and took them straight outside to practise the technical stuff we had talked about for different scenarios. When he came back and looked at the project work and talked through the images with the group, he related them to the work he had done for Outposts. For example, he asked if anyone had ever done any target shooting and when one student had, he asked her to how she used to set up. When she replied about breathing he told them the importance of slowing breathing right down so that they would hold the camera steady and avoid shaking. He talked about when he had been working in a war zone that he had to break cover to run up to a ridge, take his picture and then run back. While he was stood on the ridge he was a sitting duck so he did not have time to work out the lighting or anything, he had to work instinctively. He spoke of understanding the language of light and how to read it to the point you understand when what you need without calculations. Having that knowledge will save a lot of time and if you are a war photographer, can save your life. He actually darted about the lecture theatre to demonstrate how quickly he had to work. The really nice thing about it was he remembered the students from session to session and who needed challenging and who needed drawing out. This was even with four months between sessions and he had been to Afghanistan in between. He even included the new first years on his final official visit this autumn. He connected with them so well that he has promised to come back to see their progress.”
You can see images of Donovan working with our students here