Lathams is delighted to be sponsoring FORMAT 2011, the UK’s leading international festival of contemporary photography which takes place at venues around Derby from 4th March to 3rd April.
With the theme of Right here, Right Now: Exposures from the public realm, the festival explores the resurgence of street photography – put simply, photographs taken in public places. Together the events will form the most comprehensive survey of street photography ever seen, with more than 3,000 works by over 300 artists of international significance.
Lathams’ director Jon Phipps said: “As one of the few regional architectural practices with a strong landscape and urban design focus, Lathams has a natural interest and involvement in the design and delivery of quality public spaces in our towns and cities.
“Format11 promises to be a unique insight into those spaces and the way people interact and react within them, so we are delighted to be involved as a sponsor.
“It is particularly pleasing to welcome such an outstanding roll call of international artists to our own city of Derby.”
The Festival will show curated exhibitions and new commissions by leading international artists within the practice of street photography. In a unique commission for FORMAT11, esteemed Magnum Photographer Bruce Gilden turned his lens on the people of Derby, creating a fascinating portrait of the city’s people in Head On 2010, which will be shown at Derby Museum & Art Gallery.
Outside in Derby Marketplace, Magnum Photos and FORMAT in association with Photography Archive, Birmingham Library and Archive Services, will present Take to the Streets – a major outdoor survey show of 140 large-scale street photos by seven leading Magnum photographers working around the world: Constantine Manos, Richard Kalvar, Raymond Depardon, Chris SteelePerkins, Bruno Barbey, Trent Parke and Alex Webb.
QUAD Gallery will present Right Here, Right Now, an extensive survey of contemporary street photography showcasing leading practitioners alongside new artists from around the world. The Festival will also present the work of some of the most talented and active photography collectives, celebrating and promoting this emerging culture. Street photography collective InPublic will showcase a dynamic collection of 60 works by their top photographers at Derby Museum & Art Gallery, alongside a film by InPublic founder Nick Turpin investigating the divergent approaches to street photography employed by their various members. Collectives Encounter will feature the work of six leading international collectives, including Rawiya, an all female photo collective from the Middle East.
The premier exhibition strand also includes Mob FORMAT - an international Mass submission online project in association with Flickr. Submissions will be shown on mobile screens around Derby, while a Hype-style gallery in a central pop-up location will print and display the best submissions daily in a constantly-evolving exhibition.
The exhibition programme will be accompanied by an extensive series of events, which includes the Festival conference Right Here Right Now – featuring John Maloof, Bruce Gilden and Sophie Howarth; portfolio reviews with reviewers from around the world; and workshops by leading international artists and practitioners, including street-photo workshops with Magnum members.
In addition, the Festival will feature talks including Joel Meyerowitz speaking about his extensive career in street photography and Bystander - The Next Chapter, as well as a photo-blogging panel discussion.
FORMAT is curated by Louise Clements and organised by QUAD in partnership with Derby City Council, Derby University, Derby Museums and supported by Arts Council of England, Magnum, Troika Editions, Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, Blurb, Foto8, Shoot Experience, New Art Exchange, Aicon, In-Public, Birmingham Photo Archive, Photo-Festivals, British Journal of Photography and John E. Wright.
