Eva Bachmann

Photofusion: London Creative Network

Eva Bachmann

Reliefs 2017/18
scanned prints from 4x5 negatives

Being part of London Creative Network has enabled me to learn operating a large format camera, specifically for my work ‘Reliefs’, photographs of chimney breasts revealed on London's facades.
Rather than seeing them as a straight forward document of an architectural feature, I see them as sculptural reliefs.

At Photofusion I received a bespoke tuition tailored to my project. During the programme, I learnt how to use the camera and how to develop and scan the negatives. The final stage was about printing the 4x5 negatives.

Rushmure Rd E5 2017/18
scanned print from 4x5 negative

Mission Grove I E17 2017/18 scanned print from 4x5 negative

Mission Grove I E17 2017/18
scanned print from 4x5 negative

 Working with a large format camera helps me to slow down. It is an antidote to the current trend, where taking photos has become accessible to almost everyone.

I compare working with the large format to photographic mindfulness. It forces me to think, contemplate and focus, physically engage with the subject. It draws me in. I get absorbed, physically and emotionally invested in the process of making. It strengthens the conviction of my intention and the relevance of what I shoot. Each photograph takes about half an hour to set up, and it reinforces my commitment to the subject.

Although the method is laborious, costly and lengthy, ultimately it is highly rewarding: The charm of the alchemic printing process keeps me in suspense as the image resurfaces. It is impossible to reproduce the finely-grained film texture and all the details in a digital format.
London Creative Network

Galerie Sehnsucht: The Time Machine - Railway Arches

Eva Bachmann
Andre St, Railway Arches, 2014, 40x 60 cm, limited edition 1/7 giclee print 

Andre St, Railway Arches, 2014, 40x 60 cm, limited edition 1/7 giclee print 

Tucked away from the busy streets of Hackney (London), I stumbled upon Andre Street, a small passage lined with railway arches. The signage and the textured layers of overlapping paint reveal what is happening behind the closed doors when open for business - most of the arches are converted into car mechanic workshops. In their unpretentious appearance, they seem timeless, as if one entered a time warp of the unchanged neighbourhood.
With the series Railway Arches, I am investigating visual realms of accidental creativity done unintentionally. Devoid of people, these images serve as a testament to creative processes done by unsung workers.

Tudor Road: Open Studio - The Deception of Perception

Eva Bachmann

The Deception of Perception

At first sight, the image depicts the wall of a residential area. On closer inspection, it becomes apparent that it is a photograph of a collage, distorting the perception of depth. Some elements from the background come to the fore and the shadow transforms into a solid object.
These distortions emphasize my personal preferences for certain elements over others. The work aims to open a dialogue about degrees of subjectivity in the act of looking at, and perceiving, our environment.

The Deception of Perception B, 2017, Captured on digital, assembled to a collage, re-captured on digital, 35 x 40 cm, limited edition 1/7

 

The Deception of Perception A, 2017, Captured on digital, assembled to a collage, re-captured on digital, 35 x 40 cm, limited edition 1/7

London Independent Photography: 29th Annual Show - Composition IV

Eva Bachmann

Composition IV / Wall, 2017, giclee print, 20 x 30 cm

"The LIP Annual Exhibition, now in its 29th year, provides a platform for members to exhibit their best work to be shared with a wider public audience. This year our new submission process is designed to include more members than ever in the exhibition!

A series of talks and events will feature throughout the exhibition period, with leading figures from the photographic world including Dewi Lewis the celebrated photobook publisher; Simon Roberts, an outstanding landscape photographer with an emphasis on human geography; Tanya Houghton, presenting her project ‘A Migrant’s Tale’ - a collection of narrative explorations told through the language of food; a panel discussion on 'The Street Today', and more.

The exhibition and associated events will attract a huge audience and will be a great showcase for LIP members."
London Independent Photography

Photofusion: Salon 2016 - Delving Into Distant Memories

Eva Bachmann

Delving Into Distant Memories, 40 x 30 cm

Delving Into Distant Memories series questions the notion of displacement, our sense of belonging and the ambiguity of our past experiences. I understand memory as an organic thought process as it shifts and adapts to our formed worldview.

The title refers to my experience of the transitional state when waking, when a vivid dream feels credible, almost tangible. This unsettling feeling leaves me pondering whether these imagined places were ever part of my real experience or whether they were merely a generic representation of our collective memory. 
Photofusion Salon 2016

Cafe Royal Books: Repro Show

Eva Bachmann

image by Cafe Royal books

image by Cafe Royal books

Repro show includes many forms of artwork. Text-based, appropriated, drawing, notes, sculpture, documentation, print, publications, multiples, audio, public art…

Some of the work will have been used, published or shown before — some new, unseen or found. The context in this case is the autonomous image, and the collective processes of the project being developed, displayed, recorded and published. Any previous context, meaning or reason for the works included is irrelevant to this project.

All work selected for inclusion in the show is standardised by printing black on ISO-sized paper using a photocopier and being taped to the wall. 

The exhibition will be updated and added to throughout the show, up to December 15th. The project will be documented and displayed/archived online. 

The gallery will become an experimental space, presenting international works that would otherwise not be placed together.  Away from their original context, sequenced, and unified by a simple print process and display mechanism.

Repro Show at the Art Gallery, Hanover Building, UCLan, Lancashire

Mission Grove E17 Relief c-type print

Hoxton st N1, Absent Presence

Separation c-type print

London Independent Photography: 28th Annual Show - Window

Eva Bachmann

Window_2, ongoing series, 1/7, 27x27cm, box framed

I am displaying three photographs from an ongoing series Window – A Threshold Between the Inside and The Outside World. The images portray the window as a “visual confession of their inhabitants”, highlighting the spatial ambiguity between the external and internal space.
more info: www.londonphotography.org.uk

private view:
15th November 6.30 - 9.30 PM
exhibition continues:
Wed. 16th - Sun. 20th November

Espacio Gallery, Bethnal Green Road
London E2 7DG

Window_1, ongoing series, 1/7, 27x27cm, box framed

Window_6, ongoing series, 1/7, 27x27cm, box framed

Barbican Gallery: Strange & Familiar, Britain as Revealed by International Photographers - Winner of the ‘Weird & Wonderful’category: Wobbly Legs

Eva Bachmann

I am delighted about my image 'Wobbly Legs' being chosen by Martin Parr as a winner of the 'Weird & Wonderful' category in Time Out's photographic competition. It was launched in connection with the 'Strange & Familiar - Britain as Revealed by International Photographers' exhibition at the Barbican Gallery. 

I came across 'Wobbly Legs', a surreal-looking bench, next to a busy road on Morning Lane, Hackney. The rickety street furniture reminded me of someone after a night out, unsteady on their legs, twisting and shifting to try to keep their balance.
With my work I aim to alter our view of the ordinary by exemplifying its creative essence, adding a new visual experience, and shifting our awareness so that we notice what often goes unnoticed.

Uncertain States Annual 2015: Cosmic Dance

Eva Bachmann

private view: 04 November  6.30-8.30 PM
exhibition continues: 05 - 21 November 2015                                   

Cosmic Dance from River Lea series, Fuji Chrome aluminium mounted   60x40 cm, limited edition 1/7

Cosmic Dance is a poetic interpretation of the River Lea’s waste. These images of the contaminated River seem to mirror the otherworldly qualities of interstellar particles gracefully floating in the galactic void. My intent is to bewilder the viewer, engendering a sense of disbelief and hence unsettle our accepted sense of reality. With my work I aim to alter our view of the ordinary by emphasizing its creative essence, adding a new visual experience by shifting our awareness so that we look at what often goes unnoticed.
I was interested to present the series in a relevant context. Here, Mile End Pavilion’s location adjacent to Regents Canal lends itself as a highly appropriate venue for showcasing the dreamy qualities of urban nature.                                                              

"Uncertain States is an artist-led project that publishes and distributes a free quarterly broadsheet newspaper showing lens-based-art. We also hold monthly talks that focus on contemporary photography; we organise and curate an annual exhibition to showcase our contributor's work. Formed in 2009 by Fiona Yaron-Field, David George and Spencer Rowell, the group has grown over the past five years from a small core to a loose confederacy of over 100 writers, artists and academics who share the same ethos: that is, to create a platform for work that reflects some key social and political concerns and challenges how perceptions are formed in society, whilst at the same time nurture a growing community of independent artists who seek alternative outlets for their artistic practice."       
Uncertain States                                          

neo:artprize: Unfinished Business

Eva Bachmann

Palmerston Road, from the series Unfinished Business 2014
giclee print

"neo:artprize is an international biennial.                                             Achieving critical acclaim in its inaugural year and now in its third, the competition offers a prestigious showcase for contemporary visual artists working in any media alongside an impressive list of sponsored prizes and the opportunity to be considered for the 12-week neo:residency supported by University of Bolton, GreatArt and neo: An independent panel of prominent curators and artists juries the competition ensuring high standards are maintained."
neo:artists

flip: Neighbourhood - Mission Grove

Eva Bachmann

Mission Grove E17 IV

Mission Grove E17 II

Seemingly insignificant, yet peculiar in appearance, these facades of London’s residential neighbourhood have sparked my sense of wonder. Windowless, with protruding gables, they looked surreal and displaced, as if left over from a dystopian science-fiction novel.  In this series, I aim to shift the view of the ordinary by exemplifying its creative essence, adding a new visual experience.                        

My images are built on multi-layered meanings: There is a common thread of documenting, collecting and classifying urban structures which run through my work. Like an urban anthropologist, I de-code the language of mundane spaces, tracing cultural and historical references through layers of time. Architecture is my source of inspiration through which to convey these lines of thought. Another angle to my work is to investigate creative elements found in anonymous architecture. Parallel to these concepts, I use photography to explore uncanny interactions of light and shade that add layers of distortion and challenge our view of an ordinary environment. The intent is to bewilder the viewer, engendering a sense of disbelief in order to unsettle our accepted sense of reality.

In keeping with Bernd & Hilla Bechers’ methodical approach, whose work has deeply rooted my formal language,  I developed a systematic way of collecting, cataloguing and documenting architectural elements. I am interested in challenging the conventional understanding of architecture by adding another meaning to it. My intent is similar to Bechers’, where the topological and architectural documentation became merely a side effect, complementing their main inspiration. Captivated by what they called the ‘accidental beauty’ of industrial buildings, they referred to architecture as ‘Anonymous Sculptures’.                                  

Following the concept of serial representation through a repetitious framework, the facades appear to be removed from their usual context and take on a new layer of meaning.                                       Hence the ongoing series Reliefs is a visual inquiry into the unnoticed architectural elements found in residential areas. The intent is to shift our awareness, noticing what often goes unnoticed.  I am investigating visual realms of accidental creativity done unintentionally. Devoid of people, these images serve as a testament to creative processes done by unsung workers. Here, anonymous streets transcend into formal abstraction.

flip - London Independent Photography magazine

Photofusion: NCM Exposed - Unfinished Business

Eva Bachmann

Palmerston Road E17, from the series UnfinisheBusiness, c-print aluminium mounted, 60x40 cm, limited edition 1/7

"This exhibition marks the final stage of New Creative Markets, a three-year professional development programme for early to mid-career artists. Photofusion’s partnership in the consortium with Space, Four Corners and Cockpit Arts, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, enabled us to provide much-needed professional creative support tailored to different photographic genres and needs.                                                           NCM Exposed features over 100 photographers who participated in the programme, each photographer selecting one image representative of a captivating story, concept or visual style. The result is a lively and dynamic salon-style exhibition, showing the diversity of photographic image-making created by London-based photographers. 
New Creative Markets evolved out of the need expressed by artists for support in understanding the business basics of being a professional sole trader, alongside guidance on project development, fundraising, marketing, creating national and international networks, gaining commissions and sales."
Photofusion

Photofusion: Salon 2014 - Railway Arches

Eva Bachmann

Andre St E8 from the series Railway Arches, 2014
C-print aluminium mounted / 42 x 60 cm

Tucked away behind the busy streets of Hackney I stumbled upon Andre Street, a small passage lined with railway arches. The signage and the textured layers of paint revealed what was happening behind closed doors - most of the arches had been converted into car mechanics workshops. In their unpretentious appearance, they seemed timeless, as if one had entered a time warp, an unchanging neighbourhood.

The series stands as a social comment depicting the survival of a long-standing community of small businesses amidst Hackney’s drastic transformation.

Devoid of people, these images serve as a testament to creative acts done by unsung workers. Here, an anonymous street transcends into formal abstractions. 

Photofusion Salon 2014