Subjective Truth in Documentary Photography

The representation of today’s worldThe representation of today’s world with Olivier Culmann

Develop a distinctive and relevant approach to our societies

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GOAL

To develop an eye for the “normal,” for social subjects, for the “non-spectacular”, and by identifying the unique cultural codes producing an interesting viewpoint. Furthermore, this workshop will encourage each photographer to develop a relevant and unique approach, as a social observer of the everyday and the trivial. This approach will be learned and presented through a specific and consistent serial project.

BIOGRAPHY

Olivier Culmann was born in Paris in 1970. Photographer since 1992, he is a member of the Tendance Floue collective.

“Free will and social conditioning are core questions in Olivier Culmann’s work. During the nineteen-nineties, for his book « Les Mondes de l’école », he visited several countries to research traces of insubordinations and submissions palpable in the educational institutions.
Set at the frontier of absurd and derisory his art stands as a permanent interrogation of our lives. By confronting two distinct reports – one on the French army final draft opposite to another about industrial chicken slaughterhouses – «Une vie de poulet » openly puts forth this combination of narrative and sheer humor.

In the early 2000 his switch to medium format illustrates his will to change angle and alter distance. In the wake of September 11th events, he decides to focus on the witnesses of an aftermath with the selection « Autour, New York 2001-2002 ». The faces of the spectators around Ground Zero – were they American or simple tourists visiting the ruined site – are like mirrors of our own bewilderment.
He then began the « Watching TV» series; a collection of tv viewers met in various places in the world he dwelled, reaching a new dimension in terms of the reflexivity of his work as a photographer. A crude investigation on the state of bodies and souls drowned in echoes of a world that’s filtered by the screen. Since 2010, he’s opened himself to a new mode of surveying the individual: his fiery curiosity for clichés in the public scene led him to use his own image as a tool to explore social fantasies and the questions of self and otherness.” Cécile Cazenave, journalist

1993 to 1999 – Launches (with the photographer Mat Jacob) the project of Les Mondes de l’école, recipient of the 1997 Villa Médicis Hors Les Murs grant

2001 – Les Mondes de l’école published by Marval editions
– Une vie de poulet published by Filigranes editions

2003 – Wins Scam Roger Pic Prize for the selection Autour, New York 2001 – 2002

2004 – Intouchables published by éditions Atlantica

2004 to 2006 – Lives in Morocco, India and the USA to work on the project Watching TV

2006 – Watching TV is shown at the Rencontres internationales de la photographie in Arles, France

2008 – Les Mondes de l’école is presented on the Tour Eiffel in Paris
– 3rd Prize World Press for Watching TV (Category : Contemporary Issues stories)

2009 to 2011 – Lives in India to work on the project The Others

2011 – Shows Watchers at the Carré de Baudouin Pavilion in Paris, along with the release of Watching TV published by Textuel editions
Curator for India in the biennial Photoquai organised by the Museum of Quai Branly in Paris

2014 – Shows The Others and Diversions in the festival Images in Vevey, Switzerland

2015 – Shows The Others in the Museum Nicéphore Niépce in Chalon-sur-Saône, France. The Others published by Xavier Barral editions.

If you want to be kept informed of Olivier Culmann’s news, you can visit his Facebook page or add Eyes in Progress’s Facebook page to your list of interests.

Olivier Culmann is a member of Tendance Floue agency. www.tendancefloue.net.

Program

This will be a hands on workshop with shooting sessions, individual assignments, daily group discussion and editing sessions.

You’ll be expected to fully immerse yourself, take risks and push your boundaries in order to move forward into another level in your photography.

Day 1:
Masterclass – Projections
Olivier Culmann will spend time talking about his own work and the different projects he has worked on. He will share his photographic references with the group and talk about the different steps of his photographic path. He will show us the books he has published.

Portfolios reviews and projects definition
Each participant will receive and in-depth critique of their work which will also be used as a jumping board for workshop projects. Participants are highly encouraged to come to the workshop with defined ideas on the subject they want to photograph during the workshop. However, a session will be devoted to refining each participant’s story and a list of suggestions of projects in Paris will be provided by Eyes in Progress a few weeks before the workshop.

Days 2 & 3:
Shooting sessions
Each participant goes shoot his own project. Help with directions, contacts and translation in Paris will be provided by the workshop team if needed. Participants are encouraged to come back as often as they can to the studio so they can show their photographs and get the feedback and improvement suggestions from Olivier Culmann.

Back to the studio
Through the selection and discussion of the best images of the day, the participants will work towards developing their own photographic style and hopefully, see their overall approach improve.

Editing sessions
Shooting session is not mandatory, if a photographer prefers to work on an existing series he has already started to work on, he will be able to. In that case, the participant will have to bring a certain number of photographs so he can work with Olivier Culmann on the approach, the editing and the sequence.

Day 4:
Final portfolio editing
Each participant will work on a large edit of his images, then they are printed and laid down on a table (10×15 format). The final editing and sequencing is made during a one-to-one session with Olivier Culmann, participants are encouraged to attend the sessions of each other. Once the final edit is done, the participants may work on the post-process and captions. They are then to write a personal statement on the work and on themselves, which will be send to the photography expert of their choice.

Final projections.

Teaching language: English.

Workshop hours: 9h30-17h30.

Previous Workshops

2016

Oct 18 - Oct 21, 2017
4 days in Paris - 1050 €

Early Bird 980 €
before Jul. 26th

APPLY

Conditions

- Only 9 students will be admitted for each session. Students will be granted admission to the workshop based on a review of a selection of 10 of their photographs.

- The 1050€ fee does not include transport, accommodation nor on the ground expenses. For participants coming from outside the European Union, please be aware that there is a bank fee when making the payments via bank transfer.

- In order to confirm your application, an advance payment of €100 is advised. Once the application is completed, we will send an email via PayPal to the participant in order to settle the payment. If the candidate is accepted, this amount will be deducted from the overall cost of the workshop.

- In case the participation is not confirmed, he will get a full pay back of the 100€ fee.

- If accepted, the participant will receive a course contract confirming the success of his application by email.

- To confirm registration, the participant must return this contract to us, signed, within ten days, along with payment of 30% of the cost of the workshop.

- The rest of the fee must be paid by the first day of the workshop at the latest. The participant will then receive a receipt.

- A dossier in order to get prepared for the workshop will be sent to the participant at least two weeks before the course begins.

- If you're willing to participate in more than one workshop, we do offer a 10% discount on the following workshops' price.

Pre-requisite

- Successful candidates will be expected to arrive comfortable with their equipment and ready to photograph.

- Participants working digitally should bring their own laptops, and everything needed for digital editing.

- Participants working on film can use external laboratories services to develop their films but at their own expense and within the given time. Eyes in Progress will provide a list of laboratories and prices and the workshop team will be able, whenever possible, to bring the films to the lab and back once they're developed.

- Participants are required to find their own accommodation in Paris. However Eyes in Progress will provide you with a list of affordable places.

Education material

- Photo books

- Projector and screen

- 1 MAC with photo editing software

- Professional A3 printer

- Negative scanner

- Photo paper

A technical assistant will be present during the workshop.

After the workshop

- The portfolios produced by each participant will be published on the site of Eyes in Progress.

- An evaluation committee comprised of professional photo editors, journalists, creative directors and gallery curators will then critique these portfolios. It will be published on the student's page on Eyes in Progress.

- In case the participant does not want a portfolio review after the workshop, the workshop price will be reduced of 70€.

- Video interviews in which the students discuss their work, their motivation as photographers, as well as what they learned during the masterclass will also be posted on the site. In case the participant is not willing to have his video online, we won't publish it, however, we do encourage to record the video anyways as a practical exercise on how to orally express himself as a photographer.

- Social media modules will be available in order to share the page with friends and contacts.

- Each participant will be awarded a certificate of completion of the course.

- The participants will be required to evaluate the course when it has been completed, to show their level of overall satisfaction and the extent of their acquisition of new skills. These evaluations will help us to improve our courses.

- If the participant is not willing to have his profile online (portfolio, review, video), we will of course respect his decision and will not publish it.

Deadlines

- There will be two rounds of applications review:

> If you apply before August 23rd 2017: successful applicants will be informed via email by August 25th 2017.

> If you apply after August 23rd 2017: successful applicants will be informed via email by September 22nd 2017.

It is possible that the workshop is completed with the first round of applications, in that case, the second round of applications will not be processed.

Applications will be open until September 20th 2017.

- In case the participant comes from far away and needs to make early travel arrangements regarding the workshop's date, we will study his request to review his application ahead of the official deadlines.

- Eyes in Progress reserves the right to cancel groups with less than 7 participants. Students will be given either a full refund or offered a place with an alternative photographer. In the event of a cancellation, students will be given at least 3 weeks advance notice. Eyes in Progress reserves the right to change or alter the program advertised.

- If a participant decides to cancel for whatever reason, this must be confirmed in writing:

. Eyes in Progress will reimburse all the registration costs except for the €100 administrative fee, if the participant informs Eyes in Progress of cancellation at least 3 weeks before the first day of the workshop. Beyond this time limit, Eyes in Progress will charge the following:

. 50% of the cost if cancelled between 6 and 20 days before the workshop commences.

. 100% of the cost if cancelled less than 5 days before the workshop commences.

. All workshops that are commenced but not completed through the fault of the participant need to be paid in full.

- Eyes in Progress is not responsible for reimbursement of travel expenses in case a workshop is cancelled. We recommend that you buy refundable air tickets and/or travel insurance.

SPECIAL NEED ACCESS

Eyes in Progress is committed to using all possible means to enable beneficiaries with disabilities to participate in the workshops. For this, the director of Eyes in Progress will assess all required adaptations and implement them.