Sergio Muscat Photography

It is finally here. We have been discussing this exhibition for more than two years, and now it dawns on me that we are only two months away. Scary, when I think of how much work still needs to be done! But I know we’ll get there.

To start off, here is the flier of the exhibition. In the following weeks, I will be posting some snippets of information about the event. This is quite a big thing for all of us – the first exhibition as a family and the result of two years’ worth of hard work. We look forward to seeing you there!

One Father | Two Sons | Three Spirits

By the way, a small note to thank our sponsors, the Malta Arts Fund, the MTA, Avantech Ltd, and Dical House. Hopefully we’ll add a few more until October.

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The Joshua Redman Double Trio images are now published within the Jazz Festival Day 2 set. Enjoy!

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The last two acts of Day 3 of the Malta Jazz Festival 2010, Ari Hoenig Punk Bop Trio featuring Gilad Hekselman & Orlando Lefleming and Richard Bona. That’s all folks! (or maybe not).

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It does take a toll… Three days of fun, meeting friends and good music. Time to catch up on sleep, but before that, here are some pictures from the first act of day 3 – Charles “City” Gatt Quartet. The rest tomorrow… assuming I wake up, that is!

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It is four o’clock in the morning. I’ve dozed off a couple of times, I’m sure of that – but it was worth it. Enjoy the images from the Malta Jazz Festival 2010, Day 2, featuring Esperanza Spalding and Joshua Redman Double Trio. The latter will be published as soon as I get the go ahead.

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Event Art, artist, Esperanza Spalding, Event, Joshua Redman Double Trio, Malta Jazz Festival, Photography, Ta Liesse, Valletta

This year I have once again been honoured with a photography pass to the Malta International Jazz Festival. It is now 20 years since the inception of this event, and it has become an institution both locally and overseas. Last night’s performance was fantastic – three very different styles, each impeccable and thoroughly enjoyable. The performers from last evening were Francesca Galea and Leonardo Montana, The Bad Plus, and Mike Stern. I must say that I personally enjoyed Mike Stern most, with his fusion of Jazz and Rock. Brilliant!

So, without further ado, here are some photos from last night’s performance.

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P.S. See the photos published also on the Malta Jazz Festival official blog here and here.

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After almost a month, Tektika Tango is now over. I am very happy with the feedback, and the sales were encouraging. This project was very much at heart to me, since it was one which gave me the incentive and opportunity to push the boundaries and experiment beyond the realms of “straight photography”.

When I took up this project, it scared me initially. With projects such as these, it is very easy to fall into cliches and create mediocre work, and I was very much conscious of this. With photography, this is even more valid, due to the obvious restrictions and the practical aspect.

My intention from the onset was to create a sense of movement and energy. The concept eventually evolved throughout the various sessions, however in its essence, it remained the same. The four images which I exhibited represent in a way the evolution in time, moving from a more physical presence to something which is more abstract. At the editing stage, I wanted to add a classic, painterly look to the images, in order to create a contrast between the energy and movement, and the sensuality of Tango. I am quite happy with the results, and I will certainly keep working on further images to add to the collection, as well as the concept and technique itself.

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It has been over a year in the making. Finally, the tango exhibition is here, and I am very excited to be participating in a collective exhibition after quite a while. There is a reason why I have stopped participating in collective exhibitions, and this is because I feel that the general public, unfortunately, still struggles to view photography as an artform. By being selective about the work I exhibit, I can concentrate on creating the work which gives me most pleasure, and I do not regret this decision.

This exhibition, however, is different. It is the result of a long and leisurely project which I have thoroughly enjoyed working on. No work is staged, and all is the result of images captured live during a number of milonga sessions. It gave me the opportunity to learn and appreciate the culture of Tango, and the time to digest it and develop the images over several months.

The exhibition will feature 7 artists using different media, and although I have as yet seen very few of the works, I am confident that some very interesting concepts have evolved during this period.

Below is the banner for the event. If you would like to attend the opening, feel free to contact me to request an invite.

Tektika Tango Exhibition Banner (Click to view in full)

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It dawned on me, a few weeks ago. I had heard it before, I think, but it had never hit me so clearly. The questions and attempted answers which followed have kept me thinking since then, and I very much suspect that they will keep me occupied for a very long time to come.

We all know what reality is, or do we? In reality (no pun intended) it is very much not what we think it is. Or actually, it is what we think, not what it is. Reset for a moment. Let us think. In actual fact, we don’t know what is out there. We only know what we perceive as being out there. For all we know, the guy next to us might be perceiving something entirely different. The reality remains the same. The perception is subjective.

This is what makes everything so interesting – as a photographer, that is. While we are capturing the same reality, we know that what we see is not what others see, or at least, we don’t know what others see – we just know what we see (and even that is debatable). What results from this is an exciting barage of opportunity for interpretation. As artists using the medium of photography as an interpretative medium, it is our duty to ‘document’ reality as we see it, and present it to others to see, interpret and distort into whatever their own reality is. It very much feels like a machine which takes something, and through various stages of processing produces something totally different. We don’t know what will be produced, and since the last stage of processing is through the eyes of the viewer, the end result is always different. That is exciting.

So what do we make out of all this? What I personally think is that when viewed from this perspective, photography becomes a very powerful medium of interpretation. No wonder it was the medium of choice for many surrealists. If we look at the greatest artists, particularly from the last century, it is clear that they have all realised this, and spent their lifetime exploring the concept in their own way. The identification and development of this and other concepts is one of those things which I believe demarcate the distinction between a photographer and an artist.

By all means, this concept is nothing new. There just seem to be moments in a person’s life when certain things just become clear – those important moments of realisation, which help us evolve and better ourselves.

So that’s another tick on the list.

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LONDON – Photographer Sergio Muscat was presented with the 5th Annual Black and White Spider Awards Nominee title in the category of Photojournalism at a prestigious Nomination & Winners Photo Show attended by 35,000 online viewers who logged on live from 154 countries to see the climax of the industry’s most important event for black and white photography.

Thousands of images were received from 68 countries worldwide. The awards international Jury included captains of the industry from Magnum Photos, The Armory Show, Fratelli Alinari, Contrasto to Tate and Hamiltons in London who honored Spider Fellows with 84 coveted title awards in 28 categories. The judges reviewed the entries online for eight weeks before making their final nominations and Sergio’s “Just One Coin,” an exceptional image entered in the Photojournalism category, received a high percentage of votes overall.

“The Spider Awards celebrates photographers who operate at the highest levels of their craft,” said Basil O’Brien, the awards Creative Director. “Sergio’s work represents black and white photography at its finest, and we’re pleased to present him with the title of Nominee.”

You can view the 5th Annual Winners Gallery at http://bit.ly/aHUOUS

More black and white images may be viewed at http://bit.ly/cMTlGY

BLACK AND WHITE SPIDER AWARDS is the leading international award honouring excellence in black and white photography. This celebrated event shines a spotlight on the best professional and amateur photographers worldwide and honours the finest images with the highest achievements in black and white photography.

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