INSTAGRAM: HUGDEON
‘Extraordinary Ordinary’
After graduating in Information Design, I spent the next twenty years as an Art Director in in Johannesburg, Singapore, Hong Kong and London.
Surrounded by tourists and their ‘been-there’ snapshots in these and other great cities, I became more and more drawn to the less predictable & mundane aspects of city life. I felt like I needed a fresh perspective on the travel camera clichés: – the exotic markets, the Tai chi park-grannies, and those damn yellow taxi cabs…
My big break came during a New York snowstorm in 2013, when I discovered an entire inverted Manhattan reflected at my cold feet, rippling and shape shifting in wind-blown, melt-water puddles.
The large format prints that followed, marked the beginning of my ongoing quest to take extraordinary photos of ordinary things. All in multi-layered, single camera exposures through rain, or reflected in water, metal and glass.
Those big apple shots became my first solo exhibition in London called ‘Looking down at the Sky’, an exhibition that has since been shown in New York, Munich and Cape Town.
The ‘extraordinary ordinary’ challenge has sustained me through 40 countries so far, with, more to come now lockdown is behind us.
Here’s some work that made it into galleries. And in the Archive, there’s a scrape-up from the Lost Years.
Instagram username: hugdeon
* LUERZERS ARCHIVE top 200 photographers worldwide 2014/15 *
—
NEW YORK:
LOOKING DOWN AT THE SKY
Probably the most photogenic city on earth, but also challenging with almost every street-corner an Instagram cliché. The yellow cabs, the steam on the streets, the subway graffiti and the wise-guy lookalikes – 50 years of cinema made sure we’d seen it all before. Then I walked out into a snowstorm in March 2013…
SHOWN AT:
- LONDON: @JAGUARSHOES, SHOREDITCH. NOVEMBER 2013 / FEB 2014
- CAPE TOWN: @EVERARD READ GALLERY, V&A WATERFRONT, APRIL 2017
- ARTROOM 9 MUNICH – OCTOBER 2018
- THE STUDIO GALLERY – CAPE TOWN – OCTOBER 2021-23
—————–
ASIA MONSOON EXHIBITION:
After New York, I started wondering what the rest of the planet looked like from under a brolly. This Asian collection was shot on a similar theme throughout the summer of 2014. There are ± 6 images each from Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Bangkok in a further exploration of the reflection theme in the New York snow-show – just on the other side of the planet. They are all single, in-camera exposures with some colour adjustment for continuity.
- JAN ROYCE GALLERY Cape Town – Dec 2015
—
JOBURG PREVIEW
I crawled away from Joburg with a bloody smile and a bruised ego. Everything yet nothing has changed since I lived there 20 years ago.
- JAN ROYCE GALLERY Cape Town – Dec 2015
MÜNICH PREVIEW
Sooo much rain…first time I wished it would go away for a bit. Not a good place to give up smoking. (Along with Vienna the two least photogenic cities on earth! 🙂
- JAN ROYCE GALLERY Cape Town – Dec 2015
- ARTROOM 9 – Munich October 2018
CAPE TOWN
Almost all these shots were taken on one amazing bright stormy day after 4 months of waiting.
*UPDATE* Soon to be fleshed out with some drizzled beauties from the wettest winter in 47 years!
- JAN ROYCE GALLERY Cape Town – Dec 2015
- OPEN STUDIOS KOMMETJIE – Cape Town – Dec 2023
LONDON
Funky, old and proud.
Most recent series – mixed media on hardboard, various sizes. Journey from Brockley to Holburn.
- @JAGUARSHOES, SHOREDITCH. FEB 2014
- STUDIO Gallery Cape town 2022/23
- Current mixed media show on the brew… OSK 2023
VIETNAM
Favourite country, favourite people along with Thailand. Ultra modern yet steeped in history. So jealous as a South African, finding only peace and giggles here after all they’ve been through. Import free market communism to Africa? Why not? …just make sure we steal their soup and noodles too…
- Covid has it’s sanitised paws all over this work. Shot in 2019, the plan is to exhibit in Hanoi 2024. Watch this space 🙂
MORE ON INSTAGRAM: @HUGDEON