Before the Main Idea

This project was really conceived mid 2007 when I discovered Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, who had created a series of photographs in old picture theaters. Sugimoto would approach old picture theaters which were still in use and ask them to show a film while he photographed the inside of the theater.
By leaving his shutter open while the film was running, he was able to perfectly expose the inside of the theater and the screen would expose as white. I liked this idea and decided that I could use it in the context of empty music venues.


Hiroshi Sugimoto

Without really thinking about the idea I set off with a Pentax K1000 SLR and a roll of T-Max 400 bnw pushed to 3200 and began asking venues for permission to shoot inside. I didn't have a tripod and the main aim wasn't necessarily to see if it would work but if the venues would let me in, in the first place.

This is an example of the first shoot I did of The Corner Hotel in Richmond, Melbourne Australia. As you can see it is very dark and you can't see much of the detail inside the venue.




The Corner Hotel