DIY Photography Exhibition at 71a

Grown Man Business is a photography zine and exhibition launching at our gallery 71a in London next Thursday, April 3, which features the work of five photographers – James Whineray, Callum Paul, Lloyd Stubber, Pani Paul and Lola Paprocka – who all share a similar curious aesthetic and independent approach.

Curated by one of the photographers Lola Paprocka, GMB is a collection of people, places, objects and moments that most people pass by. Most of the photographers are skaters and they have an eye for capturing subcultures, and sometimes plain weird cultures, inspired by their time travelling and searching out new experiences.

Pani Paul is an Australian photographer, based in London, who shoots a variety of subjects – from studio-based high fashion to skate rats in London and the backwaters of rural Ukraine – with a unique ability to capture the eccentricity in his characters. We caught up with him to find out more about the project ahead of the launch on Thursday.

How did you start shooting photos?
I had a few really cool teachers when I was in high school that pushed me to try as many different creative media as I could while I was there. I started with making short videos of my friends surfing and skating and generally being idiots. I was also taking some photos at the time and just ended up enjoying the darkroom much more than sitting in front of the computer editing. So I went to as many pawnbrokers as I could in my area and finally picked up an old Pentax k-1000 for $50 and it stuck with me.

What subject matter are you drawn to?
I am drawn to the character of people and places. I couldn’t narrow it down to one thing.

Whose photography inspires you?
There are far too many from so many different eras, from early 1900s work by Paul Strand, Walker Evans August Sander and Dorothea Lange all the way through to William Eggleston’s colours and Stephen Shore’s landscapes. I like Alex Webb for his graphic colourful compositions but these days it’s motivated people that inspire me. It requires a lot of motivation to be good at anything and it can also be one of the hardest things to have.

Why do you think printed zines continue to be relevant in the tumblr age?
People’s attention spans are being shortened by the ‘tumblr age’ everyday but I still believe that print is so much more engaging than a computer screen. The internet is amazing and has provided a way to get everyone’s work out there but this also leads to a lot less people bothering to print their work which is far superior to anything you can see on a screen.

Can you tell us a bit about the images you have featured in Grown Man Business?
The pictures of mine that were used in GMB were quite varied but mostly just random off-moments of people or details I found interesting from travelling last year to Ukraine tracing some old family heritage.

What are your thoughts of the other photographers featured?
All the photographers are great in their own respective way, Lola Paprocka’s work is totally honest .She sees things that most people wouldn’t ever notice, it makes you to look twice and appreciate them. Lloyd Stubber’s work makes you just want to go travelling, he captures great real-life moments with a little something extra. James Whineray’s work can be graphic and informative, but also very subtle and minimal. It’s very nice to look at. Callum Paul’s work it’s just raw and upfront, from the grain, the subjects and the locations. He’s keeping it pretty real.

What ties all your work altogether?
It was Lola Paprocka’s idea, she asked us to send her some work with in the theme of travel and adventure. She curated all the images and Mike Bartz designed the book. I guess it ties together well as we all have different styles but share a similar approach with everything shot on film and pretty DIY.

Are you working on many other photography projects at the moment?
I have a quite a few projects going on at the moment. I am working on a project from a village in Ukraine that will hopefully be a small book in the future. I have a continuous project that is based around rural skateparks and the kids that hang out there. Also working on a split book project with Lola Paprocka. I have a few trips planned around Europe for summer so will have new work printed later this year.

Visit the Grown Man Business Eventbrite to add your name to the guestlist.