the words
the artist
Brian Larkman is a photographer, writer and digital artist, especially interested in our relationship to the landscape. His digital illustrations, articles, reviews and tutorials have appeared regularly in computer and design publications. He was for three years photographer in residence at Temple Works a semi-derelict 19th century flax mill in Leeds. Previously he was principal course leader of the Creative Technology masters degrees at Leeds Metropolitan University where he was researching the use of photographic technologies to appraise heritage landscapes.
biography
Metallurgy Degree at Brunel University 1969-73
Researcher at Tube Investments Labs, Cambridge 1972
Met Jim Ede at Kettles Yard Gallery, Cambridge 1972
Fine Art Degree at Leeds Polytechnic 1974-77
Land Art Walks 1975-76
Edinburgh Arts ’76 with Richard Demarco 1976
Prehistoric Cornwall fieldwork and photography with John Barnatt 1979-81
illustrator and writer for computer graphics publications 1985-96
Contributing Editor Future Publishing - freelance 1987-96
Heritage landscape visualisation: Harewood Estate 1999-01
TimeScapes : digital installation Harewood Terrace Gallery 2001
Taught computer graphics and digital imaging at Teesside University 1996-01
Principal Course Leader of Creative Technologies Masters at Leeds Beckett University 2001-13
Photographer in Residence at Temple Works 2014-16
artist: backstory
Photography has always been important to me; my father and uncle were keen amateurs and I was given a used Agiflash at about 6 years old, and at 14 a Pentax Spotmatic. Our bathroom was converted to a darkroom smelling as often of chemicals as soap. Around that time I discovered turning overlapping photos into panoramas; I still have some of the negatives. For some reason I never associated my photography with art, loving the chemistry and physics of the process, and my father being a car and aircraft engineer I was more interested in car mechanics, engineering and science.
My first real cultural experience of art was in the summer of 1972 during a placement from my science degree at a research laboratory near Cambridge. I lodged with an enthusiastic humanities lecturer in Cambridge and had frequent inspirational conversations about visual arts,modern music and literature; I met a girl who had been to art college and encouraged me to consider developing my visual art skills there; and most influential, I met Jim Ede. I was recommended to visit Kettles Yard and from the moment I rang the ‘cork on a rope’ bell in the alley between the cottages, my future was set. Jim welcomed me in and - as with scores of young people before and after - he gave me a tour of the magical wonderland that was/is his house/gallery. Scores of artworks by Gaudier-Brzeska, Barbara Hepworth, BenNicholson, Alfred Wallis and many others of course, but also a spiral of perfectly matched progressively sized pebbles, a burnt stump angel/hooded monk and many other objects given the status of art in his casual seeming but perfectly curated space. The end of my science degree, a year of art foundation and 3 years at Leeds College of Art in its prime followed in quick succession.
Brian Larkman
March 2022