Summers Officially Here | From The Archive

Summer has officially hit us. I read a news article yesterday that "Australia is far too hot!"
It was in the British press mind you, anything above or below room temperature and the complaints start flying.
I do love a good British summer as much as anyone though and to celebrate all things summer,
here is a photograph from the archive, taken in 2001 somewhere on the south coast of England.

Simon Hewson©2014

IMAGE OF THE WEEK #56

We all live in hope of a better something, be it a better tomorrow or material desire.

When is enough enough?

When do we stop to take stock of who we are, what we have amassed or what we have become?

Simon Hewson©2014

2013 CCP Salon presented by Leica and Ilford

I've just got some fantastic news. I have received the overall prize at the Leica & Ilford 2013 CCP Salon in Melbourne.

I'm so very proud to have been given this award. The quality of the work in the Salon is always very high, so I'm over the moon!

Here is my photograph that won.

The show opens tonight and runs until the 14th of December. Get along and have a nose if you can.

http://www.ccp.org.au/exhibitions.php?f=Gallery_1

Simon Hewson©2013

IMAGE OF THE WEEK #55

A lone house sits in the late afternoon sun. The gentle warm wind makes a faint whistle, as it blows through the holes made by the wrecking ball. A home half intact and half forgotten. As I look closer I see the wallpaper of a kids bedroom, whats left of it adorns elk and pine trees.
This house has its memories laid bare, the sounds of laughter absorbed and the tears shed are both evident. Who knows if this house still stands, or if the very next day the wrecking ball swung once more to lay its final blow? Houses are more than structures, they are warmth, light, safety and most importantly they are happiness.

Simon Hewson©2013

IMAGE OF THE WEEK #54

Whilst en-route to the city of sin, or luck, depending on how you look at it, we stopped at the small ghost town of Calico. A mixture of the bizarre and unsurprising. I found it a little saddening that these kind of attractions are no longer attracting passers by in the way they were intended.
A dry and dusty 38 degree heat blew as we roamed the town. We stumbled into one of the stores and I found candy cigarettes, taking me straight back to my childhood. I bought 3 packs in an instant. The lady that served us was dressed in full gold rush attire. She wouldn't have looked out of place in an episode of 'Deadwood'. We got talking and she told us it had been hot up on the hill and things were dry. The horses had all but died in the heat, "They hadn't been looked after real good" she said with hint of anger. "They took em someplace else, someplace undercover where they get fed." She followed with a resigned "They put that sign up. But they ain't coming back. God hoping they don't."

SImon Hewson©2013

How to make a difference, whilst picking up dog poo and making dinner.

Walking to catch a train a few days ago, I had an overwhelming feeling that I'm not making a difference. Now that may sound negative and not big picture thinking, but we all set our own values and hold ourselves to individual standards. This thought may have been sparked by too much time on Facebook looking at Quotes like "If you don't create your dream, people will pay you to create theirs" and "If you had to write your own obituary today what would it say?".

I quite often feel like I should try to make a difference in this world. I make token gestures like turning off lights, not accelerating and braking too hard and picking up litter on the beach. But really these things are almost not worth doing... Or are they? Well, I wouldn't do them if I didn't think that in some tiny way they didn't have effect. But really I want to make an actual difference not just go through the motions.

Once I had boarded the train I had a look around me, many glum faces, mostly glued to iPhones or some other device. Surely this is not living in the moment? Or making the most of every opportunity?
As the train passed over the Harbour Bridge, I looked up at the beautiful structure and out to the sparkling water below. Amazing, this was someones vision, it got built, it makes a difference to peoples lives every single day and will continue too for a very long time. Now I'm not suggesting that I will ever create anything that will even come close, but it would be nice to leave this earth having at least tried to do something.

So I came to the conclusion once again that, the best way for me to make a difference is through my photography. I have to (excuse the pun) re-focus, be more inspired and inspiring, dream with drive and get shit done. I have literally thousands of photographs that only I have seen, they need to be shared. I have bodies of work that I feel will resonate. So I'm making a promise to myself to get my next book and exhibition under way, and hopefully,  make a few people stop and think in the way that a walk to catch a train did for me.

IMAGE OF THE WEEK #53

Arshel's. A place to get a hearty feed and a genuine smile.
As we sit, I ponder on how many folk stop by, weary from the road and craving some kind of interaction, however fleeting this may be.
I order the home made soup to start, it's pretty bloody good and I tell them so, in return I get an assured "We thought so!" Next is Fried Chicken, also great. Once my plate of food has been devoured I start to wonder why we are the only two eating there? Is it the wrong time of day? Is there someplace else to eat? Is everyone staying home as it's a Sunday night? On reflection, I came to the conclusion that, in places like this people don't go out for dinner, unless there is something to celebrate. I have a strong sense that these four walls have seen their fair share of celebration over the years, sadly, just not in recent times.

Simon Hewson ©2013