Club Meeting, Five Members x Fifteen Minutes - Tuesday 1st October 2019.

                          

On Tuesday 1st October Morpeth Camera Club’s theme for the evening was ‘5 Members, 15 minutes’ where five
members were asked to give a presentation within the allotted time. First off was John Thompson with a photo-
documentary of coal mines in the region. He had been inspired to visit Lynemouth beach after seeing other club
members’ photographs which had been entered in various competitions where the theme was debris and neglect.

He began with background information on Lynemouth Colliery, how it was first sunk in 1927, how the village had
expanded dramatically when, at its height, 1800 men were working on a shift and the pit produced more than any
other in Northumberland and Durham. After 30 years of mining, and after an enormous fire, the mine went quiet
and in the late 90’s it was demolished, bulldozed and the waste was deposited on the beach. John showed images
of the beach today and the seam of pit debris which is daily drawn into the sea by the tides. Showing images of
old bricks, wires, cables, rags and seeping colourful liquid, John pointed out toxic elements are the colour jade,
pretty but noxious which end up in the sea.

He began to build up an archive of photographs. After producing a series of raw, gritty images of this seam of
detritus, he decided to make them more attractive, colourful and graphic. Some photographers see debris as an
interesting art form but John realised that by stylizing this pollution he would be minimising the severity of the
situation. He wants to continue with this project and extend it by contacting the authorities to find out what is
being done about this situation, his anxiety he concluded was based on the lack of information available.

Next to talk was Peter Hetherington with a presentation of Pdi's of his favourite places and things. There were
colourful images of Sienna’s main piazza, with flags & scarves, old wooden doorways, shops and bodegas. Detailed
stonework in Cortona’s alleyways, poppies in ancient olive groves, and an iconic Montepulciano landscape were then
followed by scenes at an open museum, with colourful cartwheels, steam engines in red and yellow with gleaming
brass and copper. Pan shots of rally drivers in vintage cars, zoom bursts of foliage, studies in rust at Otterburn and
rusting trains at Tanfield contrasted with autumn landscapes, atmospheric snowy winter scenes, glowing sheep and
grass and moorland scenes at sunset. Peter concluded his presentation with images taken at Ayr airshow of a Vulcan
bomber and of a visit to Canada, where images taken from and inside an Avro Lancaster at the Canadian Warplane
Heritage Museum. Peter said that to fly in it was an emotional experience of a lifetime for him as he did it in memory
of his late father who was shot down in one in September 1943 and was the sole survivor.

Stephanie Robson continued with scenes from a holiday in Jamaica, with colourful beach characters selling dubious
goods, a visit to the Bob Marley mausoleum in the bustling town of Nine Miles, with its high security walls and guards,
vibrant wall art and interiors. Stephanie explained that a rustic local market which had been on the wharfs where the
giant cruise liners berth had been replaced by a modern ‘village market’ selling luxury goods to the cruise passengers.
Images of a now sanitised market nearby, with colourful ladies selling their crafts concluded this section of her show.
Photographs taken in Paris, Versailles and Fontainebleau followed, ending with Stephanie showing a series of satirical
works which were displayed on park railings. She went on to describe an awkward situation with the artist; after having
photographed all his work without noticing him painting in the shade, it thankfully ended in a friendly exchange.

Gordon Hine came on next with photographs of his favourite venue, Beamish Museum. He started off with a selection
of extraordinary old machinery, challenging the audience to identify what they actually were; these included mangles,
a rolling mill stand and all manner of defunct equipment. Cogs, wheels, rolls of cable, engines, old farm equipment,
threshers, wooden casks, kitchen interiors, lovely old brass beds covered in clippy mats, and a dentist’s room, were
followed by street scenes, where, dressed in character were soldiers and station workers. Images of shop fronts and
trams concluded his presentation of times past.

Last to present was Glyn Trueman with an array of photographs of birds. He said that on a good day out you may be
lucky to photograph, nuthatch, red spotted woodpecker, tree creepers, reed bunting, coots and teals, excellent examples
of which were shown. A visit to Birmingham’s Selfridge building followed with alternative abstract shots of its architecture
creating patterns of colour with great effect. The City Library interiors with vibrantly coloured books and angular escalators
gave Glyn the opportunity to portray the abstract lines and shapes for which he is so well known. At the Tate Modern, the
audience enjoyed images of people wandering through water vapour, together with silhouettes of people in mist with orange
and white light which possessed a mysterious quality. Also included were roof lights, alleyways in the rain, modern sculpture,
graffiti and iconic views of Coventry Cathedral. Images of the statue of the Knife Angel created from a knife amnesty that
has become a symbol of Anti Knife crime concluded Glyn’s interesting talk.

   

Chairman John Barnes thanked all who took part in this evening of eclectic work after which coffee was served.

Steph.