New exhibition in France

'La Place de l'Etre' is one more of a series of exhibitions that Centrepoint Collective has been working on, this time in France. We hope people can make it to it but otherwise images will be posted so you can see how the inaugural day went on.

Posted by Pablo Allison

Up and Coming: Bella Wood

Berries on pavement, Saltaire, 2009

I carry my Olympus MJU II 35mm compact camera everywhere I go. I still love the feeling of ‘picking up my pictures’ from the film processors, not knowing exactly how they will have turned out or maybe forgetting I’ve taken certain ones. I’m not after technical perfection, preferring to capture a feeling, a moment or a place, rather than miss it or manipulate it later, altering reality. These photographs have been taken on my travels over the last year.

Boat, Keighley, 2009

Car repairs, Keighley, 2009

Snow, Skipton, 2009

Bypass embankment, Skipton, 2009

Reliant robin, Skipton, 2009

Works yard, Keighley, 2009

All images © Bella Wood

Isabella Wood was born in Otley, West Yorkshire, in 1973. After buying her first camera at a jumble sale, aged 8, her life-long passion for photography began. In 2002, Isabella graduated with a 1^st Class, BA (Hons) Degree in Photography, from Reading College of Arts & Design. She was also awarded ‘Student Photographer of the Year’, London and Home Counties Region, (Print Awards), 2002. Alongside her studies, she spent 3 years as Club Photographer for the Reading Evening Post, photographing clubbers and DJ’s. Her pictures appeared once a week in the ‘Reading Alive’ supplement. In the summer holidays she worked at the Garden Picture Library in London as an office assistant. After finishing her degree she was offered a position at Time Out, (Guides), London, where she worked for a year as Picture Desk Assistant. In August 2008, Isabella ran photographic workshops for 8 - 11 year olds, at ‘Play Away’ children’s play scheme, near Skipton. Her photographs have been published in the Chester Chronicle, Time Out, (Student Guides) and in promotional material for London 21 Sustainability Network, Women’s Design Service, London and Volunteer Centre, Craven.

In October 2008, Isabella was selected, by a competitive national open submission, to take part in 9 months of photographic workshops at Impressions Gallery, Bradford. Run by Manchester based photography network, ‘Redeye’, in association with Impressions, 13 photographers worked towards the ‘Lost in Transit’ exhibition, held at the Studio at Impressions Gallery in June 2009. This exhibition moved on to Vyner Street Gallery, Bethnal Green in October 2009, becoming part of the prestigious London ‘Photomonth’ festival. Isabella lives in Skipton, where she is Vice President of Skipton Camera Club and photographer for Volunteer Centre, Craven.

Centrepoint Collective Exhibition at SOAS ( School of Oriental and African Studies)

This is the invite for the exhibition which will be held at the SOAS University next Saturday.The work of Santiago Carrión, Virginie Hebert, Xtabay Alderete, Pablo Allison, Susana Sanroman and Roxana Allison will be accompanied by a series of conferences which will be touching on the topic of 'Latinamerican identity'. We hope to see you all there. Please refer to the pamphlet for more information.

Posted by Pablo Allison

Up and Coming : Hugo Feio Machado

'Requiem to a Dying Planet' is an ongoing project which is taking me to places in the World where sustainable forms of development still exist. I photograph them. My second approach, as begun in January 2010, is towards a new landscape, climate and geography. I want to achieve the minimum target of one work per location every year.

My love towards photography started at home, in Lisbon, with a manual of photography and my father’s hand-held camera. It was Newport, Gwent and my studies in Documentary Photography that gave me a greater insight about how I see and understand photography today.

I make photographs with my love and understanding for people, space, structure and narrative. I bring those elements into my photography, plus a consciousness of the power of images and strategies on producing visual documents.

Martha Rosler in her essay 'In ,around, and afterthoughts (on documentary photography)' states that the common acceptance of the idea that documentary precedes, supplants, transcends, or cures substantive social activism is an indicator that we do not have a real documentary.

I want to record and create a narrative that can be the spark or the catalyst that leads to forms of positive action either for the individual or for the collective.

Images taken from the series 'Requiem to a Dying Planet' © Hugo Feio Machado

Hugo Feio Machado recently graduated from the University of Wales, Newport, Gwent with a BA Hons in Documentary Photography. The first stage of his ongoing body of work 'Requiem to a Dying Planet' was produced in Merzouga, a small Berber settlement in the region of Er-rachidia on the Moroccan border with Algeria. His work was recently exhibited at the Candid Arts Gallery in London. He is currently based in England where he works as a Photographer.

Posted by Pablo Allison