I make music

I am not the best at keeping this blog thing going but I do have an excuse...  I have been playing music and moving to the other side of the world. 

Most of you would know that I am a photographer... but you may not know that I am a musician also. 

I have entered a comp with one of my songs and would love it if you could have a little listen and then vote for me.... if you go here.... or follow the link below you will find my entry, please vote and share too if you like. 

http://www.talenthouse.com/creativeinvites/preview/ad7d831e38401eb2cc17a8b7f4c9378d/900


x Ula 

Fragments Interview

Well the interview was played on Radio Adelaide on Saturday and if you missed it you can now have a listen online. Head here if you want to hear more about the show, which opens at the Reading Room on Wednesday night this week :) 6pm. I love the name Jennie from Streetcast gave the interview.

A fragment of Time With Ula Blocksage 

Ohhh and here is the listing for the show on the Reading Room blog. 

Hope you can all come along.

Radio Interview, Exhibition, Masters

This year is literally flying past, I have been back in Adelaide now for a time which seems like forever, but let me just say that it has been a good time. With less than 2 months left of my Masters at University the pressure is beginning to set in... however, I feel as though I am doing alright. I had my mid semester assessment yesterday which went well, I also did an interview with the lovely Jennie at Street Cast – Radio Adelaide 101.5FM yesterday afternoon. It was loads of fun... being in a sound proof room, head phones on, mic before me... just like recording music... yet there was no guitar in my lap and I was rambling about my art instead of singing out my memories. I had a brilliant time. The interview will air tomorrow (Saturday) between 12-1.30pm... You can listen to the station on the internet, so if some of you out there are not living in my neck of the woods, you can still tune in. Head here for the official website of Street Cast.



If you live in Adelaide city you may have seen these flyers floating around the place.

Head here to the facebook event for my exhibition ‘Fragments’ which will open at the Reading Room on Hindley Street, Adelaide, 5000 on Wednesday 3rd of October at 6pm. Do pop past and have gander if you fancy looking upon some dreaming, melancholic memories.
Better get going now... I’m off to read some articles on Wet Plate Collodion Printing and New Romanticism.

X Ula

Im a PX3 Photographer

She, by Ula Blocksage

Just a little post to mention some exciting news, I was recently awarded bronze for my image She in the portraiture section of the PX3 de la Photographie Awards in Paris. I will subsequently be appearing in the 2012 PX3 photobook which shall be available for purchase at some point later this year from the website here.

I wrote a little about it on my website here... do pop past and have a look at my work if you have not done so already.  

Hope your all having a lovely day 

December in Pictures - Instagram

 

I am an analogue girl when it comes to my cameras...  so I never imagined that I would get into  instagram... Having finally got myself an iphone a couple of months back... I must admit I am a little bit in love... More and more recently I have begun to appreciated and embrace the digital wonders that our contemporary society is presenting to us... And although I would have hated to admit this 6 months ago... I can proudly say that my lovely EOS has become a best friend to me recently with my commercial work.

Paris on Film

Its all falling into place…  I have a job that I love and somewhere to live that I can finally call my own, no more sleeping on couches and fold out beds… apart from the night here and there at some friends places after a big night out! I now call Camden Town home! The next few months are going to be crazy… crazy fun! My mum and Dad arrive for a trip from Australia on Sunday and then a lovely friend of mine is arriving from Australia to come and stay early Jan and then another friend mid Jan!!! Then Paris to see the Black Keys and then a trip around the England, Scotland, Ireland and Whales!!!  WOW!

I have also managed to get a few little things lined up here and there in Paris and the UK so it is rather exciting… all falling into place… will update you more soon.

I finally have my scanner set up in my new place too... wooo finally... I have been scanning away happily in between working and discovering london, so I will leave you here to today with a few images taken in Paris a few months ago of a photographer friend of mine that I made whilst there in July… We wend out on a couple of shoots together… photographers photographing photographers… rather fun actually!!!

X U

Fragments

All I have are fragments, memories of times now past. Fleeting moments, which linger in my mind, wrestle inside me, isolate me, yet complete me. I did not and will not try to name you, though you will not let me be… There will come a time when you will disappear, and despite my better judgment, consumed with the need of your torment, I will go on searching for another you. 

From a window... I can see the light!

It is very easy as an artist to feel as though the end of the tunnel is really far, and although in many ways I know I still have so much further to go, it is always nice when you get a little surprise reminding you that you are on the art radar!!!


I have had a lot of publicity recently as mentioned here, here and here... but one other little surprise came my way last week. 


One of my assignments at Univeristy this semester required me to look into ways I may fund a certain project I have in the works... (more on the project later)... and to my surprise I was extremely honoured to find that the Helpmann Academy have listed me on their "Artists you should know about" page... Thanks guys I am very happy to be thought of!!! Don't worry ... I will not disappoint you =)

Hope you all had a flipping great weekend!!! 

Just a little self promotion... en français

Here is a little article written about my show in France... Lovely word! There have been talks of another newspaper being interested in interviewing me about my work too... I will keep you posted :) 

Parlez-vous français

Saturday was the opening of my first solo show in Europe. It is being held in the city of Rouen at Le Rêve de l’escalier for the month of October… so if you are in the area please do pop past to say bonjour Michel (the lovely owner) and have a look at the show.

On Saturday Michel informed me that the Paris Normandy Newspaper had heard about my exhibition and was requesting to interview me for the paper. I ofcourse said yes, what an honour. Michel later informed me that Philippe (the journalist) did not speak English… Uh oh… with no translator available aka ma soeur, I went along today with the hope of explaining my artistic practice with my rather basic French vocabulary.

Luckily it turned out that Philippe could speak English so we managed to understand one another very well. He was very impressed with my French… and he said so too, in-between a few chuckles here and there. We had a coffee, (moi un café au lange et il un cafe grandes crème) and talked about photographers, influences, shows, cameras, photographs etc. We then headed back to the space to have another look at the show and so Philippe could take my photograph for the paper eeek!

What a wonderful day!

Now… I'll ask again, parlez-vous français???

Here is my artist statement en français… but if you cheat and use google translate it will ofcourse make no sense… goodluck!

J’ai toujours eu le désir de revenir en arrière, aux grandes époques du passé que me semblent mieux correspondre à ma personnalité et ma mentalité. Depuis mon enfance, le romantisme de ces époques a toujours occupé mon imaginaire. Ma pratique de la photographie me permet de visualiser et d'explorer les sentiments associés au désir, la perte, l’isolation (physique et temporelle) et la mélancolie. Mes travaux sont des métaphores symboliques et des narrations romantiques qui communiquent la beauté, la douleur, le silence et l’immobilité des souvenirs. Ma recherche sur les procédés alternatifs de la photographie, comme les techniques utilisées au 19eme siècle ou le Polaroid, renforce l’influence du passé sur mes œuvres et je l'utilise comme un véhicule pour explorer les rapports sujet/photographe. Il s'agit pour moi d'une relation d’égalité, je vois le sujet au lieu de le regarder comme un objet; je cherche à m’identifier à lui, à le comprendre, le mettre à l’aise. Cela me permet de capturer intuitivement des moments éphémères ou une beauté qui autrement resteraient cachés. Mes œuvres sont des miroirs, des réflexions de la mémoire, des façons de voir.

New Frame

Just a quick post to share something new. 


I would have to say one of the hardest things I have found so far about moving to the other side of the world would have to be, not having all of my photography equipment with me. I must say thank you to all the lovely people out there helping me find places I may buy film from and get rolls processed. I am especially lucky to know a lovely man allowing me to borrow his scanner whilst I wait of a box of my photographic goodies to be sent over from Australia... scanner included (sigh)!


Here is a frame from a body of work I have been working on... I do love the results I am getting, I really feel as though my work is evolving, I am very pleased with the direction it is going in. 


Here is a frame from a recent photoshoot conducted in Paris last month - Please excuse the dust marks. 

New Website

I have finally updated my website, check it out here

 www.ulablocksage.com

hold my hand, forever in the cold

A few digital frames taken as tests for a shoot I conducted just before I left Australia... looking forward to getting the rolls processed. I think it was the freezing cold weather that caused us to act a little silly... What a funny afternoon...

Thankyou to my brave model... it was absolutely freezing that late afternoon in winter! 


Oh my do I have alot to fill you in on... much has happened these past few weeks in Paris, what a wonderful city. Will write about my adventure soon... 

Artist Page

I have created a facebook artist page for my work

Have a look if you like: Ula Blocksage Photographic Artist

I will try and update it regularly with what I am up to and what I am creating

x Ula