Snow of his young life explores the
manipulation of imagery within the media, particularly tabloid newspapers, this
exhibition questions the use of wrought imagery to accommodate a different view
point, and the theatrical nature of journalism.
The relationship wasn't going anywhere until one thing tied it all together, acetate, paint, wood, 2013
The
starting point for this project came about from a personal experience which
happened over 20 years ago. On a
very snowy February 9th 1991, when Laurie Storey was seven and his
brother Ben two, his mother walked them from their house to the local shops in
extremely cold conditions. Ben cried all the way. During the journey a man
claiming to be a news photographer asked if he could take a picture of Ben
crying on his sled. Their mother, although slightly confused and finding the
situation unusual, obliged, and thought no more about it. The following morning
Laurie's mother received a phone call from their slightly panicked Grandmother.
It appeared that the image of Ben crying in the snow had been published on the
front page of the Daily Mail Newspaper. The photographer had cleverly snapped a
shot of Ben at such a moment, that the stretched grimace on the child's face
actually looked like a smile. The caption which accompanied the image said,
'Three year old Ben Story, enjoying the first snow of his young life.' This
information was incorrect, Ben was actually two, his name was spelt wrongly, he
was not enjoying himself, and the previous year he and his family had spent the
winter in Colorado, USA, where it snowed every day.
Original news story from 1991
The
adjustment of innocent subject matter masks a much darker practice in
contemporary journalism. Dates, facts, figures as well as personal testimony
are often tweaked and adjusted to make news articles more spectacular. 'Snow of
his young life' questions this use of imagery to enhance or convey opinion in
the media by creating a selection of sardonic alternative endings or
perspectives. The death of Colonel Gaddafi and the murder trial of Amanda Knox
were both sensationalised stories, although very different, they both represent
theatrical notions of death and power. Specific images taken from newspaper
articles are worked into, manipulated and printed onto acetate. In order to
expose and influence the images, the acetate is presented in layers to portray
the build-up of a story, thus forming a satirical narrative highlighting the
absurdity of imagery manipulation.
Snow of his young life runs until Monday 10th June open from 12-7pm
