News
News of Adriaan van Heerden Photography
23 March 2015
It’s been all hands to the pump since my last newsletter: joining exhibitions, preparing for my artist residency, setting up photography weekends and safaris, submitting pictures to competitions, being featured in Time & Leisure Magazine, becoming a featured artist on Rise Art, joining The Best of Epsom & Ewell, having my work displayed to thousands of airline travellers in American airports, etc. etc. … Never a dull moment!
Jurassic Coast
We had a fantastic visit to the Jurassic Coast last weekend — this place never ceases to amaze and delight. Getting up at 4.30 am and climbing the equivalent of 17 flights of stairs in the cold and pitch dark to position yourself in time for sunrise isn’t everyone’s idea of fun, but there are immense rewards when all the elements occasionally conspire in your favour. You can see some pictures of the recent Jurassic Coast trip on my blog and booking is now open for the next Jurassic Coast trip in January.
Kyoto
Kyoto is fast becoming a reality: my flight is on Saturday morning, although what with changing flights in Paris and having to find a shuttle in Osaka I am only due to arrive at the gallery in Kyoto around Sunday lunchtime!
We had a very helpful briefing with the organisers and our fellow artists a few weeks ago where they gave us valuable information about carrying money, accessing wifi, events that the gallery is organising for us (including visiting a kimono factory), etc. We also had a basic Japanese lesson, so I’m now able to say “Nice to meet you, I’m Adriaan. I’m a photographer and taking landscape, portrait and fashion etc. pictures” in Japanese.
I’ve also been studying my Japanese phrasebook, although I must say that some phrases (“shashin o tottemo i deska” — can I take photographs) are likely to be of more use than others (“moninguaftapiru o onegai shimas” — I need the morning-after pill).
Fantastic news is that there is now going to be an exhibition of our work in the Jarfo Gallery at the end of our residency, from 14-18 April. Who knows, I might be big in Japan!
I will be running a regular Twitter feed for my Kyoto trip so you can follow our goings-on throughout the three weeks of the residency.
Exhibitions
In my last newsletter I mentioned that I will be joining the AppArt Easter Exhibition in April. The exhibition will be open daily from 4-18 April, 10 am–4 pm, at the Prior’s Field School in Godalming. You can view the exhibition poster on my blog.
I will also be participating in the Tadworth Spring Art Exhibition from 17-19 April at Tadworth Court. The exhibition is organised by the Friends of The Children’s Trust to raise money for the Charity. The three-day Exhibition is open from 6-9 pm on Friday, from 10 am-5 pm on Saturday and from 10 am-3 pm on Sunday. The Exhibition will be officially opened at 7 pm on Friday 17th April. Admission is free.
So you will notice from the above that for the first time I will be exhibiting in three different places AT THE SAME TIME! That’s right, yours truly has perfected the art of time travel in parallel universes.
Time & Leisure Magazine Feature
I am very pleased to be featured in the current (March) issue of Time & Leisure Magazine (Surrey). I am particularly grateful to the editor — Chris Wood — for his support and thoughtful text in the article.
Featured Artist on Rise Art
I was also very pleased to have been selected to be a Featured Artist on the premium art website Rise Art!
Only 3-5% of artists are selected to be Featured Artists, which means that my work has been rated as amongst the best on the site.
Featured Artists are recognized for their work. Their profiles and artwork are prominently displayed on the website and endorsed and promoted by Rise Art. Featured Artists have access to extended website features, their own channel page, and are included in editorial coverage across the site. Featured Artists’ work is also the amongst the only artwork sold on the Rise Art website.
I am currently working on a special series for the site called “Elemental”. You can view my profile and follow my updates on the site by clicking through my blog.
Best of Epsom & Ewell
In February I joined the Best of Epsom & Ewell: recognition that my business is one of the best in the local area. I’m looking forward to working with Nigel Stickland and the Best Of team to promote my forthcoming events to the local community. Although, to recall the great Groucho Marx, I’m slightly nervous about joining a club that would have me as a member …
Embler Art Gallery
In January I learned that I was a runner-up in the Embler Art Gallery’s international art competition to showcase works of art in several first class lounges in American airports (including JFK). Although I missed out on having my actual work displayed in the lounges I did make it to the catalogue, which means that my work will be promoted to thousands of international travellers. You can view the catalogue online: my works are on pages 4-5.
Lindow Common, Cheshire
Last month we visited family in Cheshire and I managed to drag myself out early for some atmospheric pictures around Lindow Common. You can see some of my favourite pictures from the trip in my blog. We also visited Dunham Massey and Martin Mere Wetland Centre and I will be posting some pictures from those visits in future blogs.
Photography Experiences
I have made a great deal of progress in terms of arranging some fantastic photography weekend experiences: the North Norfolk Coast, Lake District, Northumberland and next Jurassic Coast weekends are now open for booking.
The highlight of the Lake District trip will be photographing the best supermoon of the year over Buttermere (weather permitting, of course), so that’s one not to be missed!
I’ve also fixed dates with the British Wildlife Centre to run two wildlife experience days there this year, one in September and one in December. There are also trips planned to Dungeness (for classic and miniature landscapes) and Richmond Park (to see how the deer are getting on).
You can view the current schedule of all the experiences on my website. Places are always limited so please do book early if you’d like to join one or more of these adventures.
African Safaris in 2016
I’m making slow progress in finalising arrangements for my two planned safaris to Africa next year. At the moment it looks like it’s going to be the Maasai Mara for about a week in April and South Africa for just over two weeks in August. Please let me know as soon as possible if you’d like to join me for one of these fantastic trips so that I can start getting an idea of numbers.
Photography Experience Days at Denbies Wine Estate
In case you missed it last time I have arranged four dates for photography experience days at Denbies Wine Estate near Dorking:
- Sunday 10 May
- Sunday 5 July
- Sunday 6 September
- Sunday 18 October
The format of the experience days will be as follows:
- 11:00 Tea & coffee on arrival; photography briefing
- 11:30 Photography workshop on the grounds of the Estate
- 14:00 Two-course lunch with wine & coffee in the Gallery Restaurant
The cost will be £90 per person.
Corporate packages are also available and can be tailored to your requirements; please contact me if you would like to join us on one of the above-mentioned dates or if you’d like to arrange a special event for your team/company.
Wild Beauty eBook
My Wild Beauty eBook is now available to download on my website. In his Foreword to the book, David Noton (one of the top landscape photographers in the world) writes that:
“Images with such impact and resonance do not come about by accident, they are the product of a unique vision coupled with resolute commitment, sound technique, bucket loads of persistence and fierce determination. Clearly Adriaan has exceptional reserves of all of these qualities.”
Come and experience Wild Beauty for yourself and see what you can expect if you come with me on safari to Kenya and South Africa!
Special Offers
From now until the end of April I am offering a 10% discount for bookings on my North Norfolk Coast weekend. Use code “NEWS10” at the checkout.
I am also offering a 15% discount for group bookings of four or more people for any of my weekend photography experiences — please contact me for details.
Final Word
Last month I gave Nigel (see above) one of my Funny Bones calendars and shortly afterwards I had the following message from Maggie Gannon (who works with Nigel at Best of Epsom & Ewell): “I hope you don’t mind me saying I find it — so unusual — quirky and witty — I love it!”
Thanks Maggie! And no, I don’t mind; I don’t mind at all …
As they say in Japanese: tomodachi ni susumemas (I’ll recommend it to my friends).
Until next time …
27 January 2015
Barcelona
December was a busy month, mainly centred around preparations for the Barcelona International Art Fair. The Fair itself — which took place in Casa Batlló by Gaudí — was a good opportunity to meet fellow artists from around the world, make some new friends, see what is trending in the artworld at the moment, and do an initial recce of the city. And, of course, it was gratifying to receive some heart-warming appreciation for my work. Read my report on the Fair.
Photography Experience Days at Denbies Wine Estate
Christmas was spent with family near Manchester and immediately after we got back to Surrey I was asked by Denbies Wine Estate to judge their Autumn Harvest Photography Competition, which I was very honoured and pleased to do. I have now arranged four dates for what promises to be brilliant “photography experience days” at Denbies:
- Sunday 10 May
- Sunday 5 July
- Sunday 6 September
- Sunday 18 October
The format of the experience days will be as follows:
- 11:00 Tea & coffee on arrival; photography briefing
- 11:30 Photography workshop on the grounds of the Estate
- 14:00 Two-course lunch with wine & coffee in the Gallery Restaurant
The cost will be £90 per person.
Corporate packages will also be available; please contact me if you would like to join us on one of the above-mentioned dates or if you’d like to arrange a special event for your team/company.
Photography Workshops
January got off to a great start with a spectacular deer photography workshop in Richmond Park on Sunday the 4th. It took us two hours to find the deer (!) but when we did we had the most extraordinary display of sparring I’ve ever seen. And it all took place right in front of us, only a few feet away! I’ve posted some pictures from the day on my Blog.
Simon Wellsted, who runs Unity Body MOT (based in Banstead), said afterwards that “It was most definitely an amazing and unique experience. Thanks for a fantastic day. I can heartily recommend this workshop experience.”
The next deer photography workshop will be on Sunday the 8th of February so join me then if you can.
My next landscape photography workshop will be in Dungeness on 3 May. This will be a great opportunity to stretch your creative imagination with some “miniature landscapes” and atmospheric “big landscape” sunset photography.
I’m also planning a number of other landscape and wildlife workshops over the coming months, so please keep an eye on my Workshops page for updates.
Photography Weekends
On my photography weekends my aim is to help you improve your camera skills and techniques AND to help you develop your creative vision. At the end of each weekend you should see a marked improvement in both these aspects of your creative photographic practice. My photography weekends either run for 3 days/2 nights or 4 days/3 nights and places are limited to eight participants. The schedule is quite intensive as we typically do shoots around sunrise and sunset, with one or two additional tuition sessions during the day. There are also opportunities for picture reviews and, of course, for asking questions. Accommodation is in comfortable self-catering cottages or good quality bed and breakfast facilities. Single supplements are usually available. All bookings are made in conjunction with Peter Goodwin of Travel Counsellors Ltd (a doubly-bonded company), which means that your money is fully protected in the unlikely event that anything goes wrong.
I currently have the following weekends planned for 2015:
- 20-22 March: Jurassic Coast
- 12-15 June: North Norfolk Coast
- 14-17 August: Northumberland
- 25-28 September: Lake District
- 20-23 November: Peak District
Prices start from only £600 per person sharing. Please see the Weekends page on my website for further details. You can see some pictures of most of the weekend locations in my FREE eBook UK Landscape Photography: 5 Favourite Places which is available to download from my online Shop (just select “Free Checkout” at the Checkout).
Please let me know as soon as possible if you’d like to attend one of these weekends so that I can get an idea of numbers and finalise arrangements.
African Safaris
I am planning to run two safaris to Africa in 2016: a week in the Maasai Mara (Kenya) in January and two weeks in South Africa in August. Although the main focus of the South African safari will be on photographing big cats (lions, leopards and cheetahs) there will also be some great landscape photography opportunities as we will be visiting some stunning waterfalls and one of the best places for seeing the annual display of Cape wildflowers. And if that wasn’t enough we will also spend a couple of days photographing whales in Hermanus!
I’m still in the process of finalising details with my Travel Councillor partners and I should have updates for you in the next newsletter.
Exhibitions
It seems that exhibitions are like London buses: suddenly three turn up at once! From having a clean diary at the beginning of January I went to three exhibitions by June and all within a few days.
(1) My first group exhibition of the year opened today at Cranleigh Arts Centre in Surrey. The Private View is this Thursday (29th) from 6-8 pm so please let them know if you’d like to attend.
(2) I was delighted to be selected by AppArt to join their Easter Exhibition at the Prior’s Field School in Godalming. The exhibition will be open daily from 4-18 April, 10 am–4 pm. I will be sending reminders in future newsletters.
(3) And then in June I will again be joining AppArt in Haslemere to exhibit with them as part of Surrey Artists Open Studios. This will be my first time exhibiting under the SAOS umbrella and I’m really looking forward to it! SAOS runs from 6-21 June and I will be sending more details closer to the time, but in the meantime you can read about Open Studios on the official website.
Online Portfolio
I’ve taken some advice from a gallery owner in New York and reconceptualised my online galleries. Essentially, my new approach involves a kind of fusion of photography and poetry. I have just published the first project (The Bleak Midwinter) and I’ll be adding some more projects in the coming weeks. I’d welcome your comments on the new format so please get in touch (or leave a comment on the website) and let me know what you think.
2015 Calendars
There are a few calendars available in all four of my 2015 calendar designs, so if you still have a yawning open space on your kitchen wall where a calendar should be then now is a good time to close the gap!
Three versions are available from my website for only £8 each with free UK shipping: “Landscapes of England and Wales”, “Nowhere Like Northumberland”, and “Funny Bones”. These are all A4 (210 x 297 mm; 8.3 x 11.7 in) size wall calendars in portrait format. My “Wildlife Around The World” calendar was published by Calvendo Verlag and is available on Amazon; this is a beautiful A3 (297 x 420 mm; 11.7 x 16.5 in) size landscape format calendar featuring animals from Africa, Cuba and the UK.
I had the following comment on my “Funny Bones” calendar from Maggie Gannon who helps to run the Best Of Epsom and Ewell: “thank you for the wonderful calendar, I hope you don’t mind me saying I find it – so unusual – quirky and witty – I love it.” Thanks Maggie!
Kyoto
And last, but by no means least, Kyoto is approaching rapidly! If you haven’t yet heard, I was selected to be one of four artists in residence at the Jarfo Gallery from 28 March to 18 April. I was really pleased to make contact with the three artists who did the residency last year, and by all accounts it’s an absolutely fantastic opportunity and experience. I’ve got my Japanese phrasebook, some guidebooks, and the super recent book by John Einarsen with photographs of the city for inspiration. Can’t wait!
And so, as they say in Japanese: arigatō (thank you) and sayōnara (goodbye)!
30 November 2014
2014 has turned out to be a very eventful year with success in eight international competitions, three exhibitions, two art fairs and one Artist in Residence award! I’m very excited about the prospect of visiting Kyoto in April next year (as one of four Artists in Residence at the Jarfo Gallery): I’ve never been to Asia so it’s going to be an exciting challenge to capture the land of Hokusai and Moriyama in some evocative images.
After starting to do photography full time in July it has been all hands to the pump to get myself organised in terms of my website, networking, marketing etc. I am very excited about having made arrangements with Surrey Wildlife Trust, London Wildlife Trust and London Wetland Centre to run photography workshops on their reserves. I am also teaming up with Denbies Wine Estate to provide photography experience days on the Estate; these will be absolutely brilliant events as there is a lot of wildlife on the Estate (in addition to the lovely scenery and of course the prize-winning wines!).
This year I have really enjoyed photographing the red deer rut in Richmond Park and will shortly be writing an article on the rut for a European nature magazine. In fact Richmond Park is an absolutely amazing place for photography in general as the early morning mist makes for some really memorable and evocative imagery. My next deer photography workshop will be on the 4th of January. Other workshop dates and locations will be announced throughout the new year so please keep an eye on the current schedule and sign up for my newsletter.
I am currently in discussions with photography colleagues, tour operators and travel agents to finalise the details of my safari programme for 2016. Please sign up for my newsletter if you’d like to be the first to know about the new dates.
As always I am interested in your feedback, and in particular how I can help to add some buzz and beauty to your life, so please get in touch and let me know if there’s anything I can do differently or in addition to what I am at the moment.
Oh yes, and I’ll be at the Barcelona International Art Fair on 12-13 December so do come along and say hello if you’re in the area. The art fair is a showcase of modern and contemporary art in the beautiful setting of the city’s famous “Casa Batlló” by Gaudi!
Somehow I can’t think of Barcelona without Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé:
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