OUGD505: Photographer documenting the culture of Rollerena's

Bill Yate's documentary photography series, exploring the Sweetheart Roller Skating Rink,1972-1973. This was of particular interest as this is the same year Bowie's concert was hosted at a Rollerena in Leeds. Despite the cultural differences in Yates's photographs and the reality of West Yorkshire, his photographs are set in Six Mile Creek, Hillsborough County (Tampa) Florida.

His photographic series is hugely important in understanding the culture around the venue at the time, as well as the whole mood of the 1970's to best represent this in my print. As I have done some development at this point, I wonder if incorporating a photographic (screen printed) element would be a path to consider. The escence of his photographs have deep tonal qualities and convey a sense of realism towards youth rebellion and gender. The subjects in these photographs were possibly too young for Ziggy Stardust's target audience, but to the energy around these locations can effect everyone.

Yate's Sweetheart series was originally captured in his early days of photography. He wanted to capture the essence of youth, at the part the teens were transitioning from 'kids to adults'. His photo series was placed away in a drawer until the negatives were found many years later. Yates made a photo book showcasing his images, as well as curating an exhibition at the Ogden Museum.

Bill Yates used a combination of 35mm and medium format film for his images. The mixture of quality and gritty tones give this method of photography a slight edge in my opinion; furthermore, if these were not shot on analogue, its questionable if the raw files would still be available and accessible today.