I am a photographer living in south-west England.
I studied documentary photography at Brigwater College to City and Guilds level, being particularly inspired by the teaching of Terryl Bacon who introduced the class to the American large format photographers whose work I came to love.
6 years ago I made the jump into digital capture previously using a range of formats from 35mm to 10×8 sheet film. I enjoyed working in a darkroom and still maintain a fully working darkroom equipped with 5×4 and 7×5 De Vere enlargers.
I now use Nikon and Sony for image capture and Canon for digital printing.
I can be contacted on geoffreybillett@gmail.com
Exhibitions
2002 Balanced Like Scales Brewhouse Theatre and Art Centre
This project involved organising several workshops for people who had lived most of their lives in institutions but had recently moved into community living. I supported people in taking portraits of each other using a Bronical 6×6 camera and professional lighting equipment. Analogue monochrome capture.
2005 White Graves Yeovil Arts Centre
This project involved driving from north to south Spain over All Souls Weekend, stopping at pre-planned cemeteries to photograph activities throughout the weekend. I began in Comillas and finished at Tarifa, visiting cemeteries including Burgos, Salamanca, Caceres, Montefrio, and Cordoba. Analogue monochrome capture.
2006 Romeria de el Rocio Bridgwater Arts Centre
This project involved joining the Sevilla Hermandad ( Brotherhood ) on a 5 day walk from Seville to el Rocio in the Donana national park, photographing religious activity and the physical effects of strenuous pilgrimage on participants. Analogue monochrome capture.
2013 Gateway to Nirvana Art Tea Zen Cafe Langport
The photographer spent 8 days at the Kumbh Mela, India, building a portfolio of beautiful photographs which portray something of the devotion, colour and fervour of Hindu faith. He spent time with the mysterious Sadhus and walked by day and by night through crowds of devotees bathing and undertaking riverside arti fire rituals, making photographs under the artificial sodium lamps of the Mela and as the sun rose over the sacred Ganges. These are photographs of a multitude of people at prayer within a country often described as the most religious on Earth. Digital capture.
Publications
2006 From Earth to Air
This is a book featuring monochrome documentary images of tradition and culture throughout Andalucia, focusing predominantly on gypsy culture, flamenco, the Spanish pre-occupation with death and Semana Santa activities. It is complemented by poetry written by Federico Garcia Lorca including traditional lyrics of cante jondo songs and siguiriyas he adapted. The book will be available for sale soon .
2013 Gateway to Nirvana
The Maha Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, India, has been described as the greatest religious gathering in the history of the world. On its holiest day, Mauni Amavasya, in early February 2013, an estimated 30 million people came to bath in the holy water of the river Ganges. Bathing continued throughout the day and the night as pilgrims hoped to achieve liberation from the hardships of re-incarnation.
The photographer spent 8 days at the Mela where he stayed with the mysterious Juna Akhara, a group of sadhus who are the most mysterious and enigmatic of all the Akharas, building a portfolio of beautiful photographs which portray something of the devotion, colour and fervour of their faith. He also walked by day and by night through crowds of devotees bathing and undertaking riverside arti fire rituals, making photographs under the artificial sodium lamps of the Mela and as the sun rose over the sacred Ganges.
These are photographs of a multitude of people at prayer within a country often described as the most religious on Earth.
Current Projects
- To document Civil War Sites throughout Spain, concentrating mostly on Atrocity Sites, Concentration Camp Sites and interesting/significant battle sites. My ongoing website for this is www.spanishcivilwarphotography.co.uk. The ultimate aim is to have an exhibition both in the UK and Spain, and to produce a book of the images. The medium is digital capture.
- To document significant religious sites and occasions on the River Ganges, India. I have attended the Kumbh Mela 2013 at Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India in February. In September/October 2013 I wish to document Durga Puja in Kolkata, incorporating Ganga Sagar at the Bay of Bengal, where the Ganges reaches the sea. The aim of this project is to have an exhibition in the UK and to produce a book of the images. The images and image galleries are contained within this web site. The medium is digital capture.
- To document cultural aspects of North Africa, principally Morocco, including Muslim festivals.
- To continue documenting aspects of traditional British custom , custom and historical landscape.