‘Process and Proof’

TASI Darkroom Friends exhibition coincides with Houston’s FotoFest

The Darkroom Friends opens the exhibit “Process and Proof” March 3, in what will be the group’s third exhibition in five years for the community darkroom at The Studio.

This year’s event is extra special because it is held in conjunction with the Fotofest Biennual held in Houston, March 10-April 22, and The Studio is included as one of more than 120 participating spaces for 2018.

Fotofest International bills itself as “a platform for art and ideas” in the development of what was the first, and is now the longest-running, international biennial of photography and new media art in the United States since the organization’s 1983 founding in Houston.

“The center of the photography world comes to Houston, and everyone who’s anyone comes to network, show portfolios, meet with curators and gallery directors from around the world,” John Fulbright, co-founding member of the Darkroom Friends, said. “Many photographers have started or made their career through this event simply because of who they met at an event there.”

Fulbright, a current TASI board member and past board chairperson, said that The Studio is a part of a large regional arts area and to be included as a participating space presents an opportunity for it to be represented to a larger audience.

“The Darkroom Friends is a young organization, but individually, we’ve had a long association with FotoFest,” he said. “We’re honored to be a part of FotoFest and appreciative of being recognized as a destination for art in Texas and the world.”

Joe Winston, TASI’s current chairperson and Darkroom Friends co-founder, said that he and Fulbright have been to FotoFest exhibits since the event’s inception.

“FotoFest is just one part of what the group does,” Winston said. “Our opportunity to be associated with them recognizes the talents of artists at The Studio and in our community. We have a network of Darkroom Friends, and it is important to be a part of this that allows us to have a reach far beyond this area. We are the only community darkroom within a 400-mile radius outside of Houston — and Houston only has one community darkroom.”

Winston said photography and Darkroom Friends emphasize craft, and a sense of control from beginning to end is what makes the community group special.

“What we do and encourage others to do as part of the Darkroom Friends is the craftwork of photography — using film, chemistry and light to create one-of-a-kind prints that will last for decades,” he said.

“I have family photos from the 1890s, and you can see details in the prints that are special because they show so many fine details that really define that specific point in time.”

Paisley Polk is a 16-year-old apprentice for Darkroom Friends and has worked with the group since its beginnings.

“I like photography because it’s interesting,” Polk said. “You can show how you see the world and show how you see things. My favorite part is putting film on the reels. It’s tense. It has action. If feels really good to complete that.”

Fulbright, Winston and Polk all emphasize that the darkroom process is what is so unique and attracts photographers to the group.

“I have always liked the element of surprise, the creativity and creative space that is the darkroom,” Fulbright said. “You go into the darkroom with one thing in mind and by some happy accident you come out with something you didn’t expect.

He likened the darkroom to a jazz method and technique — it’s improvisational, but also creative in the sense there can be pattern or rhythm to a process.

Winston added that since digital photography has become a mainstay of photography, darkroom craft for fine art has had a resurgence because it is such an individualistic process.

“I enjoy the peacefulness of slowing things down and the anticipation of waiting for the fixer to complete an image. To me, that is rewarding,” Winston said. “Every photo session is new. I always learn something new. You have the satisfaction of creating something handmade that is all its own.”

Polk, who also is a TASI summer ArtSkool instructor, said that photography is attractive to younger people for self-expression, but darkroom work takes some effort and time to get used to.

“I know with some of my friends, they like the result of what can happen in the darkroom with film and chemicals,” she said. “Their biggest challenge is patience. They don’t always like to wait or not know what’s going to come out.”

For anyone who has ever worked with photography or in the darkroom, both are always great conversation starters, Fulbright said.

“Everyone shares the same experiences to some extent and everyone goes through the same processes and likes to share their experiences,” he said.

Winston said that since the upsurge in digital photography, the commercial burden of the darkroom has diminished.

“The art of photography and printmaking is alive and well,” Winston said. “The darkroom is now really centered on artful expression more than commercial applications. The photo equipment companies are returning to making chemistry and materials support this.”

Winston said there is a shortage of brick-and-mortar retailers, but Darkroom Friends can recommend reputable online outlets.

“Houston used to have half a dozen retailers, and they have closed one by one, and there is only one left. Our local retailer suffered damage during Hurricane Harvey and decided not to reopen,” he said.

Darkroom Friends exists to give guidance or direction for the darkroom. For example, Fulbright and Winston said that oftentimes someone who has previous photography experience will come in with film to develop or maybe with negatives wanting to make prints, but they need a refresher on darkroom procedures.

“We’ll do a refresher course about the chemistry and educate them on the nuances of our equipment,” Winston said. “Some things may have changed a little since they were last in a darkroom, and we share with them what works best here and how to do it.”

The Studio has an eclectic mix of equipment, including some enlargers that are close to 30 years old that need a little tweaking to make them work.

“I tend to work more with the adults and older folks, while Joe tends to work with the younger folks and kids that come in,” Fulbright said. “We’re always happy to have a session with someone any time. If someone is rusty we’ll help them get set up with chemistry and have a session where they are able to create prints they are happy with and also point them in the right directions for matting, framing and archival techniques so they have their prints a long time.”

Winston said the group has about 10 photographers working on a regular basis and another 10 less frequently. Sessions go on all year long with classes taught in the TASI Summer ArtSkool program and seasonally with demand.

Cost to join Darkroom Friends is $35 a month which includes membership to The Art Studio, Inc. Users must provide their own paper and chemistry and can use the darkroom as often as they like.

“We want people to continue to support TASI, come to openings, make TASI a regular stop in your life,” Fulbright said. “We’re a community of people and not all of us are necessarily artists. We’re patrons or simply just people who appreciate art. It’s a visceral experience. TASI is fun. Darkroom Friends is fun. People need fun in their lives, and communities need to have fun spaces.”

For more information about Darkroom Friends call 409-838-5393. For more information about FotoFest visit. www.fotofest.org.

Stephan Malick, ISSUE staff writer