I contacted the photographer Rut Blees Luxemburg, whose work I admire due to her style of taking photographs in London at night, using long exposures and ambient light. I was hoping she may agree to come to the college in Rochester where I teach and speak to my A-level Photography students. To my surprise she replied at once, saying she would be unable to come but why don‘t we meet her in London where she had an exhibition at the Museum of London.
The exhibition was small, but Luxemburg’s photographs are the kind that you want to stare at for a while.
The exhibition was small, but Luxemburg’s photographs are the kind that you want to stare at for a while.
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| Photos: Dominik Klimowski at the Museum of London |
This particular exhibition centred on the juxtaposition between advertising hoardings featuring slick computerised visions of the city of London and it‘s gritty, crappy reality at street level. From a technical point of view their sharpness and detail complement the minimalist compositions. Luxemburg described her methods and techniques, using a large format film camera with a slow shutter in order to use only the light available from the streets at night. I was particularly interested to discover that she sometimes changed and manipulated what was in front of her for aesthetic purposes, while still maintaining a natural ‘found’ look.
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| from London Dust (2015) Rut Blees Luxemburg |
She talked about feminism, how her work meant she would go out on her own after dark. Also about the importance of titles, and how they provide further meaning and a backstory to her work and can give her pieces more grounding.
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| Towering Inferno (1995) Rut Blees Luxemburg |
Towering Inferno (above) has made a lasting impression on me. It is almost like an 'urban dolls house', and I intend to use this effect in my work.
Luxemburg, R. B. (2016) London Dust. Museum of London.
