9: "Littlehampton's Lobsters" (Tuesday, July 14)
"Littlehampton's Lobsters" explores the work of internationally renowned Bauhaus artist Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, who was inspired by Littlehampton’s blooming lobster fishing industry and stunning historic boatyards during his visit to the town in the 1930s. During his two-year stay he created the first known underwater film, capturing the fascinating natural habitat of the lobsters, with the Burtenshaw family playing a starring role as one of the many local fishermen’s families featured.
Local people are encouraged to participate with an open call to examine and explore their personal archives relating to the 1930s in Littlehampton, images of or by Moholy-Nagy himself, and the lobster fishing industry in the 1930s. All of the information and artefacts that are unearthed throughout the project will be displayed and interpreted in a major temporary exhibition in spring 2010. A multimedia catalogue will also be produced and distributed locally, featuring the collections gathered from the public, the research into Moholy-Nagy’s groundbreaking underwater study, and the wider impact of his achievement.
The photo trails were held over the Easter holidays in conjunction with the RNLI, who provided the groups with special access to the Coastguard’s Tower which featured in Laszlo Moholy-Nagy’s iconic film.
The two-hour sessions began at Littlehampton Museum, with a private screening of the Lobsters film, before departing towards the Harbour on foot, where a tour of the movie hot spots was conducted by Lead Artist to the project Stephanie Bolt. Participants were given especially commissioned ‘pocket books’, which acted both as simple viewfinders as well as guides to the scenes/stops along the way. Any photographs and completed pocket books will feature in the major temporary exhibition at Littlehampton Museum in Spring 2010.
The trails were well attended by camera enthusiasts as well as young families enjoying the FREE workshops which were held during the Easter School holidays. Due to the success of the photo trails, a further series of sessions is planned for the summer holidays in 2009.
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To find out more about "Littlehampton's Lobsters," click here: http://www.littlehampton-tc.gov.uk/cgi-bin/buildpage.pl?mysql=78.
To watch a preview of Moholy-Nagy's film "Lobsters" (1936), click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9tLdFaEbgk.
To find out more about the Moholy-Nagy Foundation, click here: http://www.moholy-nagy.org/.
