PhotoForum 50th Anniversary Set of Books (2024)
PhotoForum #101: This Blasted Heath - Caroline McQuarrie
PhotoForum #102: The Doghouse - Christopher Matthews
PhotoForum #103: Terra Obscura - Clayton Morgan
PhotoForum #104: Slow Light - Jenny Tomlin

Co-published by the individual photographers': Caroline McQuarrie; Christopher Matthews; Clayton Morgan; Jenny Tomlin and PhotoForum and designated as PhotoForum #101 – #104

Gate-fold covers

Digitally printed by SCG
150 × 220 mm, 28 pages

Graphic Design by Jonty Valentine

ISSN 0111-0411
July 2024
Edition of 220

2024 marks the 50th anniversary of PhotoForum. We are proud to continue a strong tradition of showcasing photography by established and emerging artists in Aotearoa New Zealand as well as providing an archive of important, historical photographic work. To celebrate the occasion we have published a set of four books that represent a significant cross-section of styles and approaches to making photographic work in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Caroline McQuarrie
This Blasted Heath depicts small, overlooked sites in northern and western Te Waipounamu South Island, Aotearoa New Zealand.

When Pākehā colonial settler gold miners spread across the area in the 1860s they situated themselves in this new, wild, and strange land by re-naming hills, rivers, forests and creeks. These sites are unusual in being named by ordinary individuals during the chaos of the gold rush rather than by officials. Little effort was made to learn and incorporate existing Māori names which were descriptive of the land and the surrounding area. Many of the settler names might have been meaningful to the individuals who chose them at the time; some were named for a place of origin, others for something they might find on the site, some in an effort to provide information, and others still for something a little more desperate. However, with the passing of time they now feel out of place and lost in their environment.

Christopher Matthews
The Doghouse sold hotdogs. In the winter of 1978, when these photographs were made, it was the only place in Christchurch’s Cathedral Square to stay open 24/7. One side of the premises sold American fast-foods, still a novelty before the arrival of McDonald’s and KFC, while the other was a pinball and video gaming room, a novelty in its own right. That winter, The Doghouse was the place to go in town: a place to hang out, a place to meet up with your mates, dance even. Disco was still king—just. Friendships were intense; so were the rivalries. Shows of affection were frequently matched with outbursts of violence. Some of its regulars were living rough on the streets. Estranged from distant whanau, often on the edges of petty crime, they were tough yet vulnerable. Street kids.

The Doghouse was owned by Zenith Applied Philosophy, or ZAP. ZAP was a homegrown Christchurch cult that mixed eastern mysticism with right wing politics and hard-nosed capitalism. The painted imagery on the walls depicted a post-apocalyptic, sci-fi ruin: remnants of Americana being overrun by rampant vegetation. It was strangely appropriate.

At night on the edges of the square, The Doghouse was a noisy satellite of food and warmth, and sometimes safety.

Clayton Morgan
As we come to understand this changing world, we are compelled to confront the interconnectedness between humanity and the natural world as one entangled web. Landscapes altered by industry and technology offer a paradox; they are both a cause of, and a potential solution to the environmental challenges we face. It is within our ability to replicate and manipulate the planet’s processes, but what kinds of control are now needed, and how far should we go?

Jenny Tomlin
Pinhole is subversive and magical. Sliding somewhere between precision, chance, intuition and patience. A nearly infinite depth of field reveals unexpected relationships between near and far, odd things happen over time. One can also break the rules.