PHOTOGRAPHY has long struggled to win the same support as painting, according to Piazza Fremantle creative director Sam Bloor, who believes collectors’ attitudes have left the medium fighting for recognition despite the depth of talent in Fremantle.

The issue is one reason behind a new photography prize that will see 65 works exhibited throughout the Piazza precinct this month after more than 250 entries were submitted from across WA.

Mr Bloor said the idea came not from him but from Piazza owner Bronwyn Owen who was looking at other ways to extend the medium into the community.

He believes part of the problem lies in the commercial realities of the art market.

• Fremantle has a wealth of talented photographers, but turning a buck can be a challenge these days, which is one of the motivations behind a new photography prize launched at PIAZZA this month. Images like Sean Palmer’s one featured here, can also document a changing city.

“Commercial galleries haven’t traditionally been huge on photography because it’s harder for collectors to understand if something’s not a unique state,” Mr Bloor said.

“So if there’s not just one of them, sometimes collectors don’t want to spend money on purchasing photographs, which then makes it less sustainable in the commercial galleries.”

Ironically, he said photography often flourished during difficult economic times, partly because of its low overheads.

“It’s interesting seeing some collections starting now to get a bit more photography. 

“That could be coincidental with a few other things, but it does tend to go with economic downturn.”

He said it was hard for arts-based photographers to find larger chunks of income, which made the Piazza competition significant given its $3000 first prize and smaller amounts for runners-up, youth and the people’s choice.”

“It’s really nice to have someone properly backing photography and there’s so much talent to celebrate in Fremantle,” he said

The competition was open to WA photographers for images taken within the state with the broad theme of “local places, faces, and spaces”.

• South Beach by Alida Turton

“We really wanted to encourage all sorts of photography, so it wasn’t just portraits, it wasn’t just landscapes,” Mr Bloor said.

“So we’ve actually got portraits, landscapes, we’ve got people’s pets, we’ve got wildlife photography, we’ve got street photography.”

A respected snapper himself, Mr Bloor finds the appeal of photography lies less in grand spectacles than in fleeting everyday moments.

“I am interested in these little slips of reality,” he said.

“I guess in an artsy term, it might be called documentary surrealism.”

“I guess it’s finding the mundane moments in life and being able to cast a light or a way of looking at them that makes them feel unique and odd and special; photography is almost a meditative coming back to being present.”

He believes those everyday moments often gain significance with time.

“For sure, and that’s what’s really nice having some of the Fremantle iconography, is how that is going to change over time,” he said.

“We’ve we’ve got a photo of two kids jumping off the old traffic bridge. 

“That immediately feels poignant and relevant and charged, and it’s already a space that just in our last few years has shifted, and that photo then becomes part nostalgia, part documentary, part relic.”

The exhibition kicks off today, (Friday July 11) and runs to July 26; winners announced July 24.

by STEVE GRANT