Wemego, KS. The Oz Museum (behind the curtain)

For a while now I have had a fascination with internal and artificial landscapes. It is a theme which has threaded it's way through much of the work I have made so far in the USA and whenever I am lucky enough to see and be in one, I always feel strongly compelled to photograph them.

I am interested in the illusion and the fantasy these places attempt to create and sometimes (in terms of my Cage series) their grim reality too. I love the theatre and suspension of disbelief which goes with standing in a themed museum for example. I always find that these artificial landscapes jar heavily with my own dreams, ideals and experiences and they are always, ultimately, strange, floored and sadly human.

These artificial and internal landscapes often force me to consider my own real life experience of landscapes which I have stood or lived in and questions what I have done with them myself, psychically. I think we are all filled with a lifetime - a history of landscapes, which have themselves, in turn, become a part of who we are as individuals. They become part of our own mental geography, full of archetypes, symbols and markers - integrating themselves inside, with special and personal significance. I always find it interesting and amazing, for example, when a landscape I have recently (or not recently) experienced suddenly becomes the location of a dream I have had. Why has this particular landscape or place been chosen to play out the drama of this dreams events at this time? It is something I find endlessly fascinating..

These photographs were made last weekend in Wemego, Kansas at the excellent and well worth visiting 'Wizard of OZ' museum and marked my three year anniversary since moving to the United States.

Here is what their website says about it:

"What words could be more appropriate when describing the dream of a small community that literally built a museum out of a rainbow's notion? It took the brains of a small group of leaders, the heart for what L. Frank Baum began in 1900 as a simple children's book and the courage to take on the task of constructing a home for over 2,000 artifacts dating from 1900 to today.

The OZ museum was built with a major grant from the State of Kansas and the generosity of the people of this small community, who also provided thousands of hours of volunteer time. The museum houses more than just memorabilia from the famous 1939 MGM musical starring Judy Garland! It encompasses earlier silent films, one of which starred none other than Oliver Hardy (Laurel and Hardy fame) as the Tin Man as well as "The Wiz" starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson.

The OZ Museum offers everything imaginable from the earliest Baum books and OZ Parker Brothers board games to today's collectibles that can be purchased in Auntie Em's Gift Shop. The OZ Museum is dedicated to ALL things OZ. It is a treasure trove of delight and wonder and thrills visitors young and "young at heart."

http://www.ozmuseum.com/about/default.htm

Of course I did make lots of photographs of the actual exhibits and artifacts on display and I may post some of them here at a later date.

Aubade Magazine Issue 1

Great news today. Just heard I have two photographs published in issue 1 of Aubade Magazine. I have just seen the preview and it looks wonderful. I am in great company there too with some really talented photographers, writers, poets and artists. Many thanks to the Editor and designer Christopher C Turner for his hard work and dedication to what looks like a fabulous new publication.

"Aubade Magazine is for those whose work-a-day lives seem to throb with infinity. Photography, Poetry, Prose, Art, Drawing, Pen Portrait. Sublime."

Follow this link to see a preview or order a copy: http://www.magcloud.com/browse/Issue/143882

President (II)

These images are a continuation of my series about the United States Presidents.

Each United States President has become a kind of historical marker, defining a time, both historically and culturally. As an outsider, I have found it deeply compelling to see these powerful leading figures surface again from history, often unexpectedly and juxtaposed against the chaotic mosaic of present day life. In my continuing search to orientate myself within American culture, I have felt when photographing these sudden Presidential appearances, like I am somehow retrieving the memories from an Amnesiac. My intention with this new series is to eventually have a record photographically of every American president and giving myself a psychic history lesson in the process. I will post on this blog further encounters as they occur and a part one of this series can be found here:

http://simonkossoff.blogspot.com/2010/02/president.html

Truth Magazine - Issue.5 (Victim series)

Truth Magazine - issue.5, originally uploaded by fotorich.com.

I found out this morning that my Victims series has been published in issue 5 of Truth Magazine. So far I have only viewed the preview and the editor Richard Payne and Curator for this issue Dave Carswell have done an excellent job putting it together. For me this is a pleasant surprise, as I'd submitted the images a few months ago and had long forgotten about it. A nice start to this new year. Thank you guys.

Blurb about this issue:

"In a no-bullshit kind of way, Truth seems to be just the outlet to explore the various depths of human interaction and emotion. Even when we try to shield ourselves we do a fairly clumsy job of masking what’s behind the front. Contributors to the magazine come from a variety of cultural backgrounds and in spite of their unique styles there seemed to be an underlying current of ‘truthfulness’ about their submissions. We are blessed to have the philosophical musings of Salvatore Sale peppered throughout this issue. A fitting interlude to the bold statements our image makers are creating. I hope you enjoy this collection as much as I have enjoyed putting it together."

To view a preview of This issue of Truth or to buy a copy please follow this link:

http://www.magcloud.com/browse/Issue/150764

See a slideshow of the 'Victim' series here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonpaulkossoff/sets/72157622427197877/show/

Please see the link below to see the contents of the entire issue:

Remains To Be Seen (image slideshow)

Some notes on a work in process.

This slideshow contains all the photographic images which will make up the final project which I have titled: 'Remains to be Seen'. Presently I am also in the process of editing a small collection of personal 'snap-shots' and carefully selecting some poetry and other writings I have made, which I recently discovered on some floppy disks and in some loose leaf folders, which have laid neglected since I left England three years ago (but were written apx 7 years ago). It's exciting (and also painful) to discover these texts, but I am hoping that the edit of this work will be a relatively objective one, because so much time has passed since the words were written and also read and I am hoping perspective will be on my side. Eventually, when these texts are finally edited, scanned and then sequenced with these images, I would like to include them in what will be my first book of photographs and writings together. A kind of new years resolution, for me..