Central Group November 2025 meeting

Featured Image: © Jim Paterson

The November meeting had a good attendance of 19 with two new members. The theme was “Personal Projects,” where individuals showcased a rich mixture of work, inviting comments, suggestions, and positive criticism from the group.

Angelika Berndt had been on some “London walks”, wanting her images working “in a line”, as a sequence. High rise buildings sat alongside the Covid memorial wall and a railway concourse, with splashes of red; some images devoid of people, others full and bustling. Those attending the meeting saw a mixture of rigidity and fluidity, the large and the small scale, the impersonal and the intensely personal. Angelika had noticed that, during Covid, building construction continued and she felt that, post-Covid, London had changed and become harsher and more digital. She asked the question “what have we lost in the process?”.

Lizzie Brown’s images hark back to Covid, where neighbours who came out to clap for the NHS were nonetheless strangers. Suitably distanced, Lizzie photographed the residents of houses outside their front doors during Covid, and then again 5 years later. Children have been born, children have grown up, people have lodgers, adults have separated, and families have moved. Lizzie was wondering how to present this story of her street, a story of the front doors, and whether some form of oral or verbal explanation is required. Whatever she decides, Lizzie appreciates what her neighbourhood has gained in the process – a better sense of community, people actually saying “hello”!

Jim Paterson showed images he had submitted for the upcoming Light : Dark LIP exhibition. The shores of the islands, the rugged mountains of Torridon recede with photographs taken into the sun in the early evening. The group liked the dramatic, desaturated, painterly qualities of the images.

Eva Turrell visited London Zoo recently, for the first time in many years. She used to hate the idea of animals having their freedoms restricted, but was pleasantly surprised. She felt much closer to the animals, and felt “like a child of ten!”. All the animals (monkeys, hippos, penguins and a sloth) appeared happy and unstressed, as far as one can tell!

“Why are ugly people such ugly people?” Messages like this have appeared on pavements and walls in Janet Nabney’s neighbourhood, before being washed away in the storm – so Janet’s brief encounter memorialised them. Maybe these graffiti have something to do with the young, creative types who live in her area of West Hampstead?

Mark Friend presented images related to a controversial LionLink project which will bring a large electricity cable from the Netherlands ashore in Walberswick, leading to protests from the residents of this picturesque village on the Suffolk coast. A local artist paints a landscape including hedgerows that are to be removed as part of the work. While the developers claim that the cable will be buried below ground, and that there will be no long term visible impact, villagers remain anxious, certainly about the temporary impact. Mark’s project is in the early stages and the group suggested that it might be good to include more images of the local population in addition to the landscape and the construction activities.

Julian Sainsbury has been photographing redundant farm buildings, which are derelict, no longer serving any useful purpose, and now replaced by industrial sheds. Using digital manipulation, Julian has created linear abstract forms. The images are desaturated and monolithic but rich with detail and texture, reminiscent of the work of Andreas Gursky. One attendee was reminded of the book “The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses”.

Chris Burrows showed his book titled WET25 mainly showing images taken through windscreens in the rain. The water on glass has rendered the scenes as near abstracts. Some of the images contain intense saturated colours having been taken at dusk with reflections of lights. The glossy paper and perspex cover of the book serve to amplify the wetness. Chris recommends the book printer Saal Design.

On Wednesday, 10th December, the group will hold social event instead of a meeting i.e. a traditional Christmas pub dinner.