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Robert Burns - Photographer with a specialist interest in black and white printing.
Jazz exhibitions in Glasgow
Exhibited in Poland, Spain, France and USA.
COLLECTIONS
Many prints made for other Scottish photographers in the collection of the Scottish Natuional Prtrait gallery/
The Navigator foundation of Boston.
Private Collections in UK, Paris,Tokyo, New York and Nigeria.
biography:
Born Glasgow 4.4.44
Studied Ceramics at the Glasgow School of Art 1962-66
Became interested in photography at this time, in spite of the fact that photography was frowned on at GSA, so he was largely self taught.
Thereafter he worked for a spell in advertising photography working for whisky companies, other drinks companies like Carlsberg and all the major financial institutions in Scotland.
Associated with the Glasgow Group since the 60's when he made photographs of artists, a project which he has continued to the present.
In 1970 became an art teacher and continued studying and making photographs in his spare time with a particular interest in archival black and white printing and eventually studying the 19th century processes of salt printing , albumen printing and kallitypes.
Throughout the 80's made images of Scottish painters and writers and started exhibiting as an invited artist with the Glasgow Group.
A life long long interest in music and jazz in particular led to him being commissioned in 1969 to document a year in the life of the Scottish National Orchestra for their 21st anniversary publication. Then the documented work of the RSAMD, the Royal Academy of Music and Drama, for a publication about their last year in the old Atheneum building before moving to the new purpose built campus.
In the 80's he documented the Scottish International Piano Competition photographing the rehearsals, concerts and young pianists practising in the homes throughout the city where they were billeted.
Throughout the 90's became the official photographer for the Glasgow International Jazz Festival building a massive archive of images of the visiting musicians which led to three jazz exhibitions in the city during the festival. He continues to photograph at the Appleby Jazz Festival, the Brecon Jazz Festival and the Southport "Jazz on a Winter's Weekend".
In the 80's became a consultant to Murray Forbes of the Navigator Foundation of Boston in advising the purchase of a large collection of Scottish photography of the past and present which became a large exhibition "Scotland Calling" which has been exhibited in Boston and France but has yet to find a venue in Scotland.
In the 90's he was invited to become the first photographer member of the Glasgow Group and is at present the secretary of the group helping to organise exhibitions.
His reputation as a high quality black and white printer resulted in him being asked to make
exhibition prints for other Scottish photographers notably Pat MacDonald the foremost Scottish aerial photographer. His close friendship and encouragement of a young photographer David Eustace, now an international photographer (Coca Cola Annual Report 2006), led to an association with Fabrizio Gianni of Milan one of the worlds leading fashion photographers. When Eustace was his assistant he asked who had taught him to print and as Fabrizio had decided to live in Scotland with his Scottish wife and children he then asked to him to be his printer. He processed and printed all his black and film for about ten years before his retiral and the onslaught of digital photography when his skills were rarely in demand. He printed for all the major fashion magazines in Milan,Paris and Munich including Italian Elle. He printed for fashion clients like 35RPM Studio in Tokyo, Krizia in New York, La Perla in Bologna and Armani.
In 2003 he retired from teaching to concentrate on personal projects and the Glasgow Group.
A chance meeting with a family from Kiev on holiday in 2006 led to him spending January 2007 in Kiev, documenting his first impressions of the city and its people. Meeting artists, some of who he will invite to exhibit in Scotland with the Glasgow Group. This project is his major project at present and although this work is still in the editing process he is already planning to return and document all the major figures in the arts in Kiev.
Seven of the Kiev images are in the 49th annual exhibition of the Glasgow Group in the Royal Glasgow Concert Hall from 11th June to 11th July when it goes to the Bridge View Gallery in Aberdeen until the end of August.
additional information:
Specialist interest in jazz photography. Due to using traditional fibre paper and self made chemistry no two prints can be identical.
