Making of Gallery 13, 10th August 2002 at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery 2003
Background
Jonathan Shaw is currently Associate Head of the Media & Communication department within the School of Art & Design at Coventry University. Over the years, he has developed a fascination with the representation of time and movement in, and through, photography. His work can be seen as part of a long tradition of experimentation whereby the camera becomes both an instrument of scientific record and a tool for aesthetic exploration. Like that of his predecessors, Étienne-Jules Marey and Eadweard Muybridge, Shaw’s practice draws on a wide range of knowledge and skills. In addition to displaying the creativity and application of an artist, Shaw makes use of science, technology and engineering, frequently designing, building and customising camera equipment to more fully explore representations of space, time and movement.
Shaw studied photography, graphic design and computer graphics at the University of the West of England between 1990 and 1996 and then completed a Masters degree at the University of Central England in 1997. After graduating he pursued these interests in his work both as a commercial photographer and photographic artist. His work has been used in advertising, commercial design, exhibitions, installations, interactive film, public art and publications.
In 2003 Time|Motion published by Dewi Lewis placed Shaw’s work alongside the photographic pioneers Eadweard Muybridge and Harold Edgerton. Then in 2004 he was nominated for prestigious Paul Hamlyn Award.
Shaw’s work can be found in the collections of Arts Council of England, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and Birmingham Central Library Photographic Archive, as well as various private collections.
Commissioned work includes:
Pieces for Volkswagen UK, the Manhattan Loft Corporation, and Nigel Coates’ book Guide to Ecstacity published by Laurence King Publishing. His work has been shown at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, Penny School Gallery as part of the Muybridge Centenary celebrations in Kingston upon Thames, Lanchester Gallery (Coventry), F-Stop Media (Bath) and at the Howard Gardens Gallery as part of the the International Festival of Contemporary Time Based Arts, Cardiff.
Recent Work:
Shaw has moved on from mechanical cameras to create work with new media platforms. However, even here he has been forced to adapt and customise existing software to enable him to push his work forward. Whilst the central issues of his work have remained constant, he continues to find new and fruitful ways of creating distinctive and fascinating images.