The Special Photographer's Archive
The Art of the Photograph
The Special Photographer's Archive grew out of the worldwide movement in photography in the late 20th Century which rebelled against the sterile perfection that photography had become. Masters degree students in photography at the most prestigious art colleges were exposed to all kinds of manipulative techniques and processes to create pictures that evoke fantasy and escape, and most of the contributors here are the graduates of that time.
Ewan Fraser is one such student who was encouraged to experiment, traveling to Italy and Greece to see ancient murals and frescos firsthand and using different media within his work. He found that a more artistic abstract approach was needed as the rigidity of traditional photography seemed unfulfilling.
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"We began to break the rules using the wrong chemistry, film stocks, even the wrong lighting, layering negatives together, using positives and negatives and producing huge prints of incredibly long exposures."
These techniques were considered controversial but worked to create a resulting effect that looked archaic and frail, reminiscent of very early photography, ancient frescos and murals.
"Nothing was sacred. We painted on bleached, scratched and burnt negatives and prints. By combining found textures and studio portraits I could bring more feeling and atmosphere to my work." Ewan Fraser
The Special Photographer’s Archive is comprised of over 2,000 images from a range of photographers encompassing every theme and subject imaginable. What unites the images is an artistic vision, blurring the boundaries between reality and fantasy to engage the heart, mind and soul as well as the eye.