Ida Thoresen, a photography student from Norway, explored the world of fandom this summer, specifically the fandom of the American rock band My Chemical Romance. She was in a young teen when she decided to dedicate her life to the art of photography and has since found her inspiration through music, another huge interest in her life.

”This Is The MCRmy” is the project she’s been working on for the last several months and it’s meant to give an insight to the heart of a die-hard fan. A “fandom” is a term used to refer to a community of fans which grow around a certain area or interest. It can be fans of books, movies, TV shows, common hobbies — or in this case, a band.

“My Chemical Romance tend to have extremely dedicated fans who are passionate about the music, the community they have created, and they are often creative and intelligent people,” said Thoresen. “I wanted to explore who their fans are, why they are fans and get to know them. The result this far is very much a celebration and documentation of their spirit.”

Thoresen has been a fan of My Chemical Romance herself for many years and finds the fandom an interesting phenomena. With this project she asks herself a question that is common among fans of many bands: ‘How can a band become such an important part of people’s lives?’

”I can still become a little puzzled over why on earth one band — four guys who create music together — can mean so much to myself and so many people all over the world,” said Thoresen.

She wanted to get to know these fans to find answers, discuss the matter and find what they might all have in common through the fandom they are all involved in. By talking to fans among her own friends and through other communities she found that it was a question that many were curious about, and so decided to show them through the lens of her camera.

“It would have been easy if I had unlimited time and money, but I was on a strict schedule with no budget,” said Thoresen. “I had to dig deep through Internet communities and even newspaper articles to find fans who lived fairly close to me.”

The project involves photos of teenage and young adult fans who have followed My Chemical Romance from different areas of the band’s existence. Each subject is portrayed with something from the My Chemical Romance world that means a lot to them, everything from tattoos or the band’s designed clothes to their proud collections of records and special editions.

“It surprised me many times through it in terms of the visual direction it was taking and how the story was moving along. But to me it still feels like I’ve just been scratching the surface. I realized before I started that this would be a long-term project, and it’s one that I’m more than willing to pursue,” said Thoresen. “It’s a combination of both my biggest passions, photography and music, so I won’t stop until I can look at a finished project and feel that I’m proud of what I’ve created.”

You can see Ida Thoresen’s project “This is MCRmy” on www.idathoresen.tumblr.com and http://magazine.bildernordic.no/photographers/alumni-2013/ida-thoresen.aspx.

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Sebastian Farmborough is a photographer with a mission: To clear up misconceptions surrounding the Middle East. Armed with his camera and the belief that the Muslim world is severely misunderstood, Sebastian sets out on a photographic project to capture a subject that has been the topic of debates for as long as we can remember: the veil.

He was born and educated in England, but having lived in different countries around the world, Sebastian has bred a love for languages and diverse cultures. Here, he talks about one of his works, ‘An Emerging Mystery’. The photograph has gone viral with almost 20,000 hits from 133 different countries.

Toonari Post (TP): What inspired you to capture this portrait?

Sebastian Farmborough (SF): The image itself was inspired by one of my very first experiences in Saudi Arabia. I headed down to the Arabian Gulf for a dip and there, I became mesmerized by something black and obscure out at sea. It looked like a huge jellyfish. Then, as it approached, I realized that it was in fact a woman.

It was such an overwhelming experience that I just had to capture it for myself. It is entitled ‘An Emerging Mystery’ and I feel as though it is extremely symbolic of the Muslim women’s increasing prominence in the world.

TP: What was your main aim in producing the picture?

SF: Having lived in Saudi Arabia for 3 years and having had some wonderful experiences, I became really fed up of seeing the Saudi veil portrayed in such a degrading way in the Western media. I wanted to produce an image that would convey the beauty and dignity of their women, whilst at the same time respecting their cultural and religious beliefs.

TP: What do you think are some of the biggest misconceptions surrounding the veil?

SF: The largest Western misconception is that women are forced to wear it when in fact, most women choose to. With particular reference to Saudi Arabia, it is important to note that the young men are not used to seeing women exposing parts of their body, so should women do so, they run the risk of attracting an awful lot of unwanted attention. I think it is important for Westerners to realize that this is indeed a different world, one which cannot be easily compared to theirs.

Apparently, in the past, it was different. Women typically covered less as they lived in small communities, largely composed of their families. I can imagine that the rapid development and necessity to incorporate themselves into city life must have come as quite a shock. With this considered, it seems quite understandable that a conservative society would encourage greater precaution amongst their women.

TP: How do you intend for the photo to clear up these misconceptions?

SF: I hope that my image can intrigue and encourage Westerners to be more open-minded, while at the same time please those for whom it is both a natural and common occurrence. This is not the face of terrorism, this is a representation of Muslim women as a whole, strong and confident, emerging and progressing into this developed world.

TP: How has the reaction to ‘An Emerging Mystery’ been?

SF: I have received e-mails from women expressing how much the image means to them, and even a lovely e-mail from a Saudi princess. Some Saudi women have even used it as a background to their phones. This image was for them, so I find it enormously fulfilling that they identify with the lady in the water.

Having said this, not every reaction has been a positive one. Some people have become rather enraged, claiming that it is sexual in nature. Though that was never my intention, it is of course enormously difficult to please everyone, particularly where differing cultural perceptions are concerned.

TP: What is in store in the future for your photographic project?

SF: I would love to return to Saudi Arabia and produce a collection of photographs to illustrate the positive aspects of the kingdom. Only negative stories seem to get through in the Western media and I hope that in my lifetime I will be able to do something to redress the balance somewhat. In actual fact, there are many things that we Westerners could learn from Saudis and it would be a real pleasure to convey these to a Western public.

More of Sebastian Farmborough’s work can be found here.

Image Courtesy of Sebastian Farmborough

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The crisis in Spain has affected everything and everyone to some extent. Culture is especially suffering the lack of investment, not only from the government but also from citizens. However, on a small island located in the Atlantic ocean, there is a group of people still fighting for their beliefs, for culture as a recipe for the progress of society.

On Tenerife, one of the seven Canary Islands, there is a group of 10 photographers who have organized a cultural event, unique because of it originality. It is a free cultural week named “Diez fotógrafos, diez miradas, cien imágenes” (Ten photographers, ten views, one hundred images).

The event took place September 21 to 29 in the “Centre of Arts and Congress Magma” and there we have found live music, short films from more than 30 worldwide videographers,  and lectures from professional photographers and representatives of international brands, such as Canon, Lomography and GoPro  among other activities planned. Mark Fradley, the head of the group “Ten Diez Movement” agreed to talk with Toonari Post.

Toonari Post: How did “Ten Diez Movement” come about?

Mark Fradley: The idea behind the “Ten Diez Movement” came about after spending many years on-line and being constantly inspired by so much creativity out there from just regular people, from sites such as Flickr, 500px, blogs, Vimeo and other social media. Then came along Facebook where it became relatively easy to share ones artistic expression across a broad audience. This and a passion for art, live music and an embedded belief that working together as a collective is more practical and beneficial then working as an individual.

TP: What the event is all about? Who had the idea of carrying it out?

MF: When I started working on the project back in November 2011 my main concept behind the movement was a cultural one. It was to create a community of people that could work together on various levels & projects and not necessarily just for people based in the Canary Islands. “The event” is just our first step to where we would like to see ourselves in the next few years.

TP: What is the difference between this event and other cultural events?

MF: I think the ability to carry on the concept into other fields is possibly one of the main differences and not having it all boil down to how much money can be raked in from it. That and basing it on the people and being able to offer them a free of charge array of different and interesting activities.

TP: How is the public responding to the initiative?

MF: We are really stoked with the response from the public, local government and the islands’ media. They all seem to want to back the whole deal, it’s a bit overwhelming sometimes how we’ve received so many good critics in such a short space of time. The response has been great across the board and I can only thank everyone involved for we are at now just 10 months down the line.

TP: How are you funded?

MF: Privately. All the project’s funding has been generated entirely from local professional businesses, a small amount to cover general expenditures.

TP: Canon, Lomography or GoPro are helping you with the project. How did you attract the attention of these big enterprises?

MF: This basically comes down to a lot of hard work from the whole team. Myself and the movement’s partner Miguel Issa have spent hundreds of hours projecting different angles to deal with these corporations and successfully we finally got their attention. I would like to think we could put it down to our persistence and professionalism.

TP: The event is focused towards photography; how did photography come into your life?

MF: Yes this event is more focused towards photography. I started my journey at 14 because one of my art teachers was a photography enthusiast and ran a term course there, back in the day before digital cameras were on the scene. We had a darkroom for developing black & white film; I was fascinated.

TP: One of the more discussed economic cuts in Spain in the last months has been the Spanish cinema aids cuts, around 35%. What is your opinion about it?

MF: We don’t want to enter the project into politics, so no comment on that one.

TP:  What expectations do you have for the future? Are you going to organize the event next year?

MF: For sure we are going to be carrying on with project, we are currently at Magma Centro de Arte & Congresos, playa de las Américas, Tenerife and will be extending the exhibition for a month or two more but just as gallery type environment. After this event comes to a close on September 29, we have a couple more exhibitions that will piggy back each other both for local government (in town halls).

TP: The event is completely free, but did you think about charging admission now or in the next editions?

MF: Whilst we are able to offer a free public service we shall continue in that direction. Having said that, there are a few small projects we would like to run in the near future that simply aren’t possible to offer for free.

TP: Personally, what has this event meant to you?

MF: I’m grateful to the 200 plus people involved in the project and grateful for their time and trust. Also thank you for taking the time and I hope you have a little more knowledge about what’s going on, on our little island.

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East Hampton, U.S.A. — The Retreat, a non-profit organization serving victims of domestic violence for the past 25 years, is pleased to announce their 4th Annual Juried Art Show. In the previous three years of the Juried Art Show the Retreat has garnished both national and international attention by reaching artists who have submitted works for consideration as far as South Africa, San Paolo, Brazil, the Midwest, and the entire Eastern seaboard. The message is clear: artists from diverse backgrounds and cultures are showing they care and are coming together to try to end domestic violence.

The show benefits the Retreat’s Domestic Violence Services and is open to all artists with work in Photography, Painting, 2D, 3D, and Sculpture (no video art). The work cannot be larger than 24″ x 36″.

The deadline to enter is August 1, 2012 . Entry fee is $50 per entry, limit 3 entries (1 entry is $50, 2 is$100, and 3 is $150). Actual work will not be judged but have to be submitted in JPEG form. For complete rules and entry form, visit http://www.hamptonsjuriedartshow.com/.

This is a chance to have artwork judged by distinguished members of the art world. The jurors of this competition are:

• Kathryn Markel – Owner of art gallery Kathryn Markel Fine Arts with locations in Bridgehamptonand New York City
• Christina Mossaides Strassfield – Museum Director/ Chief Curator of Guild Hall Museum in East Hampton, NY

The top 25 entries, as decided by the jurors, will be in a group show at Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery in Sag Harbor, New York, opening October 27th – November 5, 2012. The best in show will be chosen after the show is hung by the jurors and will win a solo exhibition at the gallery, at a date to be determined by the gallery owner and winner, within one year of winning. The winner of the 1st Annual Juried Art Show is now represented by a major gallery in New York City.

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