ACC 1945 International

ADELAIDE CAMERA CLUB

FIRST INTERNATIONAL SALON

1945

August 1945 Page 364 - The Australasian Photo-Review

ADELAIDE CAMERA CLUB
FIRST INTERNATIONAL SALON
The Club’s First International Salon will be held in Adelaide from 19th August to 1st September, and judging from the standard of prints selected for hanging, the salon seems certain to be an outstanding success.

Prints accorded the honor of hanging were selected by a jury of five, the method of selection being by electrical indication. Each jury member was provided with an electric push-button, which recorded his vote at the recorder’s desk. No judge knew how any other judge was voting and before each print came into view the name of the author was covered by a strip of mounting card attached to a clip. A majority vote was needed to put a print into the salon (i.e., three or more votes out of five).

A.V. Clutterbuck and Keith Manning “manhandle” the biggest entry received
100 prints from the Miniature Camera Group, Sydney.
Incidentally, of fifty-three Australian entrants with accepted work,
twenty-nine were New South Welshmen.

White gloves were worn by all people handling prints.

The jury (who spent a total of 16 hours on their selection) viewed each print separately on a specially constructed three-sided turntable set in the center of a screen sufficiently wide to cut them off from the army of club members, whose activities might otherwise have proved distracting. While the jury was considering the print on view, two others were being made ready at the back of the turntable. The system worked well, thanks to the “back-room boys”, composed of a supervisor, recorder, scrutineer, two turntable men, six handlers and three packers, whose smooth organization enabled every print to receive careful and impartial consideration.

Each print was seen by the judges at least three times and every person handling prints wore white gloves. Judging was done under daylight closely approximating that of the salon gallery.

AWARDS

FIRST INTERNATIONAL ADELAIDE SALON

made by HANS HEYSEN, O.B.E.

SILVER MEDAL
Best Australian Print

“STEAM AND SUNSHINE”
Harold Cazneaux Hon. FRPS (Australia)

SILVER MEDAL
Best Overseas Print

“THE PEARL MOSQUE”
P. Bentley ARPS (Canada)

BRONZE PLAQUE (With Special Mention)

“FOR LUNCH”
J.O. Fitzgerald, Jr., M.D. (U.S.A.)

BRONZE PLAQUES

“ON THE NATAL COAST”
L. Bevis (South Africa)

“THE SCULPTOR, GEORGE LAMBERT”
Harold Cazneaux Hon. FRPS (Australia)

“BARON HOYNINGEN-HUENE”
Max Dupain (Australia)

“MIST ON MOLONGLO”
Keith McClure (Australia)

“SUNLIT ALLEY”
N.J. Nalawalla ARPS (India)

“B.F.B. STATION OFFICER”
J.N. Upwalla FRPS (India)

MERIT CERTIFICATES

“PARTHENOPE”
B. Vincent Abbott (U.S.A.)

“FIESTA”
Gordon C. Abbott ARPS, APSA (Mexico)

“HAROLD CAZNEAUX, Hon. F.R.P.S.”
Monte Luke FRPS (Australia)

“TWILIGHT”
Carl Mansfield (U.S.A.)

“TONIO”
Athol Shmith FRSA, FRPS (Australia)

“Dr. JULIAN SMITH, Hon. FRPS”
C. Stuart Tompkins ARPS (Australia)

In all, Australia, America, Canada, England, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa and Wales submitted 711 prints, from which 206 were selected for hanging. Out of the total 711 submitted, Australia rallied round magnificently with 479 prints, out of which 82 will be hung. Overseas entrants submitted 232 prints, 124 of them being selected.

We must confess to our disappointment at the comparatively small number of outstanding Australian prints submitted, as compared to those from overseas. However, when we consider the handicaps under which we in Australia have labored during the past few years in respect to old stocks and lack of materials, it explains to a great extent the indifferent print quality and technique that characterized many of the rejected prints.

In addition, although this is the First International conducted by the Adelaide Camera Club, it represents their 10th Annual and the normal rule was included that prints submitted to previous Adelaide Camera Club Annuals were not eligible. This was to ensure fresh work being displayed to the public, but it gave overseas entrants an advantage, inasmuch as they could submit their best prints of this and previous years.

Unpacking, sorting, checking and numbering entries at
Adelaide Camera Club‘s First International.
Reading from left to right:
H.L. Austin, K. Bruce, J.N. Tomlinson, Les. Fisher, Geo. Ziesing, W. Austin.

Every entrant was posted a result card within seven days showing the number of votes for or against his prints, and a well-produced catalogue will also go to every entrant.

For those with a fancy for statistics we supply the following figures. Of the 82 Australian prints selected for hanging;

0 entrants have 5 prints accepted . . 0
2 entrants have 4 prints accepted . . 8
5 entrants have 3 prints accepted . . 15
13 entrants have 2 prints accepted . . 26
33 entrants have 1 prints accepted . . 33
76 entrants have 0 prints accepted . . 0

129 Australian entrants .. .. . . 82

A.P.-R. stalwarts are well to the fore in the list of Australian acceptances. Out of the 53 exhibitors represented by the 82 accepted Australian prints, no less than 29 of them are A.P.-R. “regulars”.

The Back room Boys, presenting prints to the judges and recording the votes.
Left to right: W. Austin, R.L Packer, G.N. Mitchell, W. Malpas, K.D. Manning, Ian Monfries, H. L. Austin.

The Adelaide Camera Club considers this fact a significant tribute to the good work of this splendid Journal, which, by the encouragement and help given to many hundreds of workers, has raised the standard of Australian photography considerably.

The theme behind the salon is to raise the standard of work displayed from that of a semi-invitation exhibition, such as was held in previous years, to that of an International Salon and so provide Australian photographers with a future standard at which to aim, in a salon where to have a print hung represents a real honor and not just a courteous gesture.

In achieving this objective, the jury of selection, irrespective of whether the prints came from Australia or overseas, eliminated 73 per cent, of the prints submitted, and the Adelaide Camera Club, through The Australasian Photo-Review, extends its sincere thanks to all Australian and overseas photographers who supported the salon by submitting prints and hopes that those who did not do so well will not be too disappointed, but will accept it rather as a challenge for next year, when the Second International will be held on approximately the same date.

The salon as it stands is of an extremely high quality, and the Adelaide Camera Club only regret is that such an opportunity for self-education as they believe it represents cannot be viewed by every photographer in Australia.

The Jury of Selection at work. Left to right;
E. Robertson ARPS, F.A. White, F. Cole ARPS, J.B. Shearer, Ainslie Roberts.