A Positive View, which is taking place at Somerset House from 10 March to 5 April, will bring together more than 100 rare and signed vintage works across almost a century of photography; classic and contemporary works will cross a variety of genres, from still-life, fashion, landscape, portraiture and reportage. It will also include other works by Jeff Hubbard and members of the photography group at Crisis and be followed by a reception and auction at Christie’s where the diptych and other works will be auctioned in aid of Crisis.
Crisis is the national charity for homeless people in Britain and is releasing a diptych that comprises of a photograph of Prince William placed with a photograph of the photographer. The interesting aspect of this diptych is that the photograph of the Prince has been taken by a homeless person, Jeff Hubbard, and is the 1st time a Royal has been photographed by an ordinary member of the public.
Jeff said: “Creating the diptych with Prince William was a little nerve-wracking at first but I soon relaxed. After all how often do you get the chance to photograph a Prince? Working with Rankin in the run-up to the shoot really helped me develop my skills and confidence as a photographer, which was a real privilege. The end result is unique. Auctioning the image will raise vital funds for Crisis – and I know from personal experience just how important the work they do is.”
‘A Positive View’ 2010 promises to be a landmark exhibition and the proceeds will help Crisis to expand its services across the UK. This is the third edition of A Positive View, a photography exhibition and auction founded by Andrew Page. A Positive View was first held in London during 1994, sponsored by Vogue. The exhibition was held at the Saatchi Gallery and the auction was hosted by Sotheby’s. The event raised nearly £250k, benefiting the Chicken Shed Theatre Company. The Princess of Wales was Patron.
For the first time, A Positive View will also feature work from contemporary artists whose creative practice incorporates photography, with geographically diverse representations from Korea, China, Japan and West Africa. With signature works by Seydou Keita, Yum Joongho, Koo Bohn-Chang and Weng Fen among others, A Positive View will provide an unusual and interesting opportunity to consider how practitioners beyond Europe and America are working with photography. In another departure, the 2010 edition of A Positive View will also include works by unknown photographers who have been studying photography at the Crisis’ education, training and employment centres in London and Newcastle.
Neil Batho
