Spaces of Capital 1 – Allan Sekula – The Forgotten Space (2010)

“The Forgotten Space follows container cargo aboard ships, barges, trains and trucks, listening to workers, engineers, planners, politicians, and those marginalized by the global transport system. We visit displaced farmers and villagers in Holland and Belgium, underpaid truck drivers in Los Angeles, seafarers aboard mega-ships shuttling between Asia and Europe, and factory workers in China, whose low wages are the fragile key to the whole puzzle. And in Bilbao, we discover the most sophisticated expression of the belief that the maritime economy, and the sea itself, is somehow obsolete” from www.theforgottenspace.net website.

Sekula’s earlier photographic work has dealt with issues of labour and with economic issues especially around maritime histories. The film The Forgotten Space builds on work from his previous project Fish Story.

For an overview of his work see Socialism and the Sea article in Radical Philosophy. See also the interview of Sekula (Ship of Fools) by Grant Watson.

Life In The New Cities

Michael Wolf’s photographic series the Architecture of Density highlights the emergent landscape of Hong Kong’s high rise apartments. The formalist portrayal of these buildings depicts them as “abstractions, never-ending repetitions of architectural patterns” according to Wolf.

For a full overview of Wolf’s work see his Life in Cities site.

Randa Mirza

This is an image from Randa Mirza’s project entitled Beirutopia. A series of photographs of billboards showing new developments in Beirut, that are distressed, damaged or otherwise interrupted by the life taking place around them.

See more of Randa Mirza’s work here: http://www.randamirza.com/

Urban Exploration

Excellent  video exploring the ideas, motivations and practices around urban exploration of ruined buildings.

 

Neoliberalism & Everyday Life-Conference Brighton

Early in September IUD are presenting a paper at Neoliberalism and Everyday Life, the annual conference organised by Nicola Clewer for CAPPE, the University of Brighton. Keynote speaker for 2014 is Imogen Tyler, author of Revolting Subjects: Social Abjection & Resistance in Neoliberal Britain. Our paper is entitled All materials of value have been removed: everyday cleansing in the neoliberal housing environment.

Rafal Milach – Black Sea of Concrete

Rafal Milach is a documentary photographer who has been working on transition issues in Russian speaking countries. Black Sea of Concrete details Milach’s 2009 portrayal of the post Soviet Ukrainian Black Sea Coast.

Ferit Kuyas – Chongquing – City of Ambition

Work of Swiss born photographer Ferit Kuyas documenting the cityscapes of Chongquing, China.

Kuyas likens Chongquing’s rapid growth  to that of Manhattan in the 1920’s, described by Stieglitz as a city of ambition.

 

 

Camilo Jose Vergara: Tracking Time

“For more than four decades I have devoted myself to photographing and documenting the poorest and most segregated communities in urban America. I feel that a people’s past, including their accomplishments, aspirations and failures, are reflected less in the faces of those who live in these neighborhoods than in the material, built environment in which they move and modify over time. Photography for me is a tool for continuously asking questions, for understanding the spirit of a place, and, as I have discovered over time, for loving and appreciating cities”.

http://www.camilojosevergara.com/

http://invinciblecities.camden.rutgers.edu/intro.html