Courtney Pine Photograph

I am interested in the interelationship between the photographer, subject & viewer & recognise photography as a powerful means of communication capable of great social commentary. Whether caturing a simple observation or exploring complex & on occasions more challenging subjects, it is sometimes necessary to look beyond what is actually depicted, in order to discover the multifaceted & sometimes multi-dimensional nature of the subject itself. If there is anything to be captured at all, some of my images have been described as being emotive or even contentious & have produced a strong emotional response in viewers, resulting in some exhibited photographs to be banned, defaced or stolen. If any intention extists at all, it is to provoke thought, rather than to offend. I have been a photographer since the late 1980's. I work alone whether in the studio or on location, in the darkroom or digitally, undertaking every part of the image making process in order to maintain full control over the final image. My favoured process is silver based photography in which the prints can be enhanced by chemical toning & further enhanced by hand-tinting on fibre-based paper in order to produce fine-art archival prints. My work has been exhibited in group & solo exhibitions since 1990 in the UK as well as Germany & my photograhs have been published nationally & internationally. I work in portraiture, music photography & editorial as well as persuing my personal projects.