Atomic Ed signing in London
This Saturday 18th of May you can join me at The Photographers Gallery in London for the presentation of Atomic Ed. We will be having a brunch event in the Bookshop from 12 to 2pm and there will be time for discussing the work.
In the evening I will be signing copies at Off Print Book Fair at Tate Modern. You can find me at Editorial RM at 5pm.
Review in 1000 Words Magazine
Alice Zoo evaluates Janire Nájera’s book Atomic Ed – the remarkable story of Ed Grothus, from his time at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, where he helped to develop and refine the atomic bomb, to becoming a lifelong agitator against its uses, consequences, and the brutal decisions made by those in power.
Read full review here.
Book signing at Photoeye, NM
On Saturday 11th May from 4 to 6pm I will be presenting Atomic Ed at Photoeye, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I will be signing copies and informally discussing the work.
Comprising a rich mix of visual material: archival and personal photographs, government documents, objects from The Black Hole’s final liquidation sale, the book presents Grothus’ fascinating journey from working at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to becoming an outspoken antinuclear activist.
Immersive performances in the CULTVR dome
As part of this year’s festival we presented our most recent immersive shows at the CULTVR Dome. Video trailer here.
Commissioned by Ffotogallery to premiere at Diffusion 2019, Juniper explores how sound and moving image merge within live performance. This unique show sees Slowly Rolling Camera perform their critically acclaimed third album Juniper in its entirety, accompanied by a visual score created by 4Pi. Audiences will be enveloped by the expansive jazz grooves, trip-hop and cinematic soundscapes of Juniper whilst transported to barren and busy environments within the UK, Norway and Finland.
Liminality is a live immersive contemporary dance piece developed as part of the UK India Year of Culture and made possible in collaboration with Society for Arts and Technology in Montréal (SAT). Dancers move from industrial landscapes to coastal environments in Wales and India, highlighting the similarities these two countries share, and their changing relationship.
Fusing contemporary dance, music and innovative 360º filmmaking into a collision of cultures and technology, Liminality is a snapshot into the constant cycle of transition and change.This project is a co-production between 4Pi Productions and Society of Arts and Technology and is supported by Coreo Cymru, Danceworx, British Council Wales and Wales Arts International.
Atomic Ed at Diffusion Festival
I presented my most recent project Atomic Ed as part of ‘A Woman’s Work’ at Diffusion Festival 2019. The symposium took place at the CULTVR Dome at the Wales Millennium Centre where I shared a panel with Diffusion artist Alina Kisina and Cherie Federico from Aesthetica.
Diffusion is a month long festival of exhibitions, discussions, screenings, performances, events and celebrations in both physical and virtual spaces and places celebrated in Cardiff, Wales.
Kickstarter launched to publish Atomic Ed
Discover the journey of Ed Grothus, from working in Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico to becoming an outspoken antinuclear activist. Archival documents, past and recent photographs and a selection of letters from over 50 years of correspondence between Ed Grothus and politicians, scientists, the media and his family take us back and forth through the nuclear history of the USA.
Atomic Ed has already been designed and is ready to go to press. This Kickstarter campaign aims to raise the funds to cover the production costs and shipping expenses of this photobook so I need to pre-sell around 400 copies to make it possible. You can visit the kickstarter campaign by clicking on the image below or this link.
Hope you can help me spread the word or pre-order a copy, your suport will go a long way!
Moving forward, looking back
Moving Forward, Looking Back is a documentary project focused on identity, based on memory and inspired by travel.
I travelled across the states of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and California to explore the Spanish cultural legacy still present in the USA. I followed the route of the Old Spanish Trail, tracing the footsteps of trader Antonio Armijo, who in 1829-30 linked the Spanish colonial outposts of New Mexico and California. In an RV from 1984 and with Armijo’s brief diary in hand I traversed what it became the first recorded roundtrip across the Southwest.
The early pioneers travelled this trail mainly to trade goods. Yet my intentions for this journey were not to exchange blankets and serapes for mules and horses, but to engage with Spanish descendants in order to share their stories and reveal the intangible heritage that still evokes Spanish culture in New Mexico and California. I was able to gain a clearer understanding of how the traditions of the first settlers have merged with local cultures and have influenced the creation and identity of today’s pueblos and modern cities.
Many more journeys, some of them more metaphorical, have emerged during this trip; the journey across history, before and after the Spanish got to the Americas, the journey of the lives of the people I met during my travels, and also a journey of self-discovery through the perceptions of many people who feel proud of their heritage.
Not in service
Hong Kong, October 2019
Thousands of protesters took the streets in Hong Kong to mark the 5th anniversary of the Umbrella Movement and the 70th anniversary of the National Day of the People’s Republic of China (that commemorates the formal establishment of China on the 1st of October 1949.)
Hong Kong has been celebrating this event for the last two decades, but lots has changed in recent times. Protests have been declared illegal and state celebrations have been cancelled but thousands of people ventured into the streets to voice their concerns once more.
3D Tour of recent exhibition in NM
You can now experience in VR the exhibition ‘Moving forward, looking back’ hosted at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico between March and September 2016.
Click on the photograph below to access the tour. Use your mobile device, desktop computer or VR headset to immerse yourself within the project.
Click on the image to access the tour.
Book Review & Where to get it
“Along the way, Nájera captures in lush, sun-washed detail the blue open skies, the cowboys, the abandoned cars, the empty gas stations and the rear view mirrors reflecting views disappearing into the horizon. Inevitably, the imagery echoes the familiar visual vernacular of the American road trip – Robert Frank and Jack Kerouac whisper in the dry dust along the way”. Riikka Kuittinen
You can read the full review by Riikka Kuittinen for Photomonitor on this link.
WHERE TO PURCHASE THE BOOK
In the UK, I still have 5 copies left. You can purchase it here.
In the USA you can buy the book via Spain arts & culture.
In SPAIN you can purchase the book from Casa del Libro.
In MEXICO you can get it at Editorial RM.
