Hello dear friend, and welcome back to The Spilled Milk Newsletter.
I’m still figuring out the ins and outs of sharing my work in a new format and it has my mind spinning with ideas for things to share and ways to share them. Your feedback on the first issue was heartwarming and inspired me to go for something a little out of left field for this second issue. As always, if you enjoy the newsletter, telling a friend or two - or recommending it on your social media - is a massive way to support my work and help me get the word out.
In this issue, I’ll be diving into the another body of work of work that I’ve long admired but never fully appreciated until this past week where I’ve been traveling in a part of the world I have never visited before, and in a way I’ve never traveled before, at least since I’ve started to photograph. Eager to get away from the cold, dark Scandinavian winter and experience a different culture and climate, I recently booked a last minute trip to visit Jordan with my dad.
I realized shortly after touching down in Amman that this was going to be one of those experiences that would require a specific mindset to enjoy and make the most of. Tossed into the whirlwind of tourists, travel agency chaos, tour guides, and monotonous buffets, I had to make a break for it and decide to do my own thing whenever possible.
Luckily, I was able to figure out the balance pretty quickly and I managed to spend most of my days walking the streets and meeting the locals, eating with them and seeing their homes. That, however, only solved half the problem as there was still transportation time and historical site visits scheduled that left us to walk around with the group.
During the first few hours of watching these people go about their vacation in one of the most historically and culturally rich places on earth, I was immediately reminded of Martin Parr’s photos, satirically documenting tourism, specifically in his series “Small World”. The book is still widely available, but to introduce you to the work or jog your memory, here’s a quick intro and some of the most iconic photos from the series.
Small World by Martin Parr
“Small World is a biting satire in which Parr observes global tourism and the search for authentic cultures the tourist’s quest has helped to destroy. It explores the difference between the reality and mythology of a tourist honey pot”
If you wish to dive in a bit deeper, you can do so here, but I also highly recommend that you visit Martin Parr’s website and explore more of his work if you’re not already familiar.
My Take
One of my favorite ways to expand my creative repertoire and try new things is to emulate other photographers, either in style, content, or look and while I absolutely love Parr’s choice of harsh color and direct composition, I knew that I was going to struggle to create a cohesive body of work as a side project to my travels this week, so I opted for short-form black and white video, filmed on my iPhone. The idea was simple enough: document tourists and the funny, strange, sometimes surprisingly aesthetic behavior and movements whenever opportunities presented themselves.
In no way are these clips meant to make fun of or judge the behavior; quite to the contrary. In filming and reviewing through the videos, I have come to appreciate just how much enjoyment and happiness I’ve captured. Not to mention, had someone been observing my dad and I, they would have probably been in for their fair share of comedy.
Anyhow, without further ado - here’s what I managed to come away with. Enjoy.
Hopefully that provided a little spark of satire and a smile - and a reminder not to take ourselves too seriously. If you have a favorite, I’d love to hear which one and why!
This was a fun little side project I was able to put together this week, and it brought me some joy in moments I would’ve otherwise not been sure how to handle besides shaking my head. I have half a mind to continue this little project in the future and see how crazy it can get - but we’ll see.
To end this week’s newsletter, I’d like to share with you an excerpt from a book I’m currently reading and would highly recommend.
“Photography’s abrupt rise also has to do, I suspect, with our distrust of language; the true outlines of wars and other barbarities have recently been obscured to an unusual degree by talk; maybe, we hope, we can find the Truth by just looking.”
- Robert Adams, Beauty in Photography, originally published in 1981
In light of what is going on Ukraine right now, there are many reasons for pause and reflection. It can be difficult, in the world of 24/7 news flow and social media to distinguish fact from opinion, truth from propaganda.
Regardless of political views and how they are talked about in the media, there is one undeniable truth we can gather from the work of the brave photojournalists in Ukraine and the surrounding area during the invasion:
Human lives are being lost, wasted, and wagered for personal and political gain, and we must each do what we are capable of to put that to an end.
I’m still figuring out how to personally navigate the situation, but silence is not an option. And with that, I’ll sign off for this week.
Take care of each other, be safe, and all the best until next week.
Sincerely,
Anders
Thanks for sharing! Enjoyed it a lot to read your newsletter - I'll definitely follow you on your journey.
Ps. My favorite is the second clip. 😉
Just caught up with your newsletter and this issue certainly speaks some of the things that have been in my mind in a while especially about how tourism kinda ruins or changes the culture of a certain places. Really love those clips you made and I wish to see more of them! My fav is certainly the clip #9