ONLINE | PRE-RECORDED | BIMONTHLY
EXPERIMENTAL DARKROOM
CHEMISTRY AS A CREATIVE TOOL
WITH HALURO DE CLARA
THIS COURSE IS PART OF THE SECOND MODULE OF THE DIPLOMA IN EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY, A CREATIVE JOURNEY DESIGNED TO HELP YOU DEVELOP YOUR STYLE AND TAKE YOUR IMAGES TO THE NEXT LEVEL. HERE, WE EXPLORE IN DEPTH THE DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY. THE MOST ENRICHING EXPERIENCE IS TO TAKE IT AS PART OF THE COMPLETE DIPLOMA PROGRAM, CONNECTING YOUR LEARNING, BUILDING ON YOUR EXPERIENCES, AND GROWING STEP BY STEP. HOWEVER, IF YOU ONLY WANT TO FOCUS ON THIS SPECIALIZATION AT THIS TIME, YOU CAN ALSO ENROLL SEPARATELY FOR €150.
INTERVENE TO IMAGINE:
CREATE, BREAK, TRANSFORM
Throughout the course, we will explore color development processes, the possibilities of cross-processing, and organic developers, culminating in techniques that intervene, alter, and transform the image from within: bleach bypass, film soup in its three variations, and solarization. Each technique has its own chemical logic and its own aesthetic—learning to understand them is learning to use them intentionally.
THE GOAL IS NOT TO REPLICATE RESULTS, BUT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE PROCESS IN ORDER TO MAKE CREATIVE DECISIONS, ANTICIPATE VARIABLES AND OPEN ONESELF TO THE UNPREDICTABLE FROM A PLACE OF KNOWLEDGE.
TECHNIQUES
CONVENTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CROSS PROCESSING
ORGANIC DEVELOPERS
BLEACH BYPASS
FILM SOUP
SOLARIZATION/SABATTIER
CONTENT
6 SESSIONS
2 LIVE MEETINGS
4 WORKSHOPS
6 TECHNIQUES
1 CHAT
SIGN UP!
€150
2 MONTHS
PRE-RECORDED
COURSE CALENDAR
The course is offered four times during the academic year. Each edition follows the same pedagogical approach and combines pre-recorded classes with live sessions. The recorded classes can be viewed at your own pace and remain available with unlimited access.
LIVE MEETING SCHEDULES:
WEDNESDAYS FROM 5:00 PM TO 7:00 PM (SPAIN TIME) IN ENGLISH
WEDNESDAY 7:00 PM TO 9:00 PM (SPAIN TIME) IN SPANISH
CHOOSE THE EDITION THAT BEST SUITS YOUR CALENDAR.
PRESENTATION MEETING OF THE AGORA EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY:
EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY: CONCEPTS, DEBATES AND TECHNIQUES
WITH PABLO GIORI
A SOLID STARTING POINT FOR UNDERSTANDING WHAT REALLY HAPPENS INSIDE THE DEVELOPING TANK. BEFORE INTERVENING IN A PROCESS, YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND IT. STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM: LAYERS, EMULSION, AND SENSITIVITY. DEVELOPMENT THEORY AND CHEMISTRY: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN CHEMICALS COME INTO CONTACT WITH EXPOSED FILM. CHEMICAL PREPARATION: DILUTIONS, TEMPERATURES, TIMES, AND PROCESSING ORDER. WORKSPACE ORGANIZATION: MATERIALS, SAFETY, AND WORKFLOW. LOADING AND UNLOADING THE DEVELOPING TANK IN COMPLETE DARKNESS. INTRODUCTION TO STANDARD PROCESSES: B&W, C-41, E-6, AND ECN-2.
ENCUENTRO MENSUAL COMUNIDAD ÁGORA
TWO TECHNIQUES THAT MODIFY THE CHEMISTRY OF THE PROCESS TO RADICALLY TRANSFORM THE IMAGE. ONE THROUGH OMISSION, THE OTHER THROUGH SUBSTITUTION. THE LOGIC OF BLEACH BYPASS: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN BLEACHING IS OMITTED FROM THE COLOR PROCESS AND HOW THIS AFFECTS CONTRAST, SATURATION, AND GRAIN. ORGANIC DEVELOPERS: NATURAL ACTIVE INGREDIENTS, FORMULATION, AND BEHAVIOR WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF FILM. STEP-BY-STEP PROCEDURE FOR BOTH PROCESSES. ANALYSIS OF VARIABLES: TIMES, TEMPERATURES, AND CHOICE OF LIGHT-SENSITIVE MATERIAL. REFERENCES AND EXAMPLES OF EACH TECHNIQUE.
TWO VERY DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO EXPERIMENTAL INTERVENTION: ONE WORKS WITH LIGHT DURING DEVELOPMENT, THE OTHER WITH CHEMISTRY, BEFORE OR DURING THE PROCESS. BOTH SHARE THE SAME LOGIC: INTRODUCING AN UNEXPECTED VARIABLE TO OBTAIN RESULTS THAT NO CONVENTIONAL PROCESS CAN REPLICATE. HISTORY AND CONTEXT OF SOLARIZATION AND THE SABATTIER EFFECT IN ANALOG PHOTOGRAPHY: ORIGINS, CONCEPTUAL DIFFERENCES, AND THEIR EVOLUTION IN CONTEMPORARY EXPERIMENTAL PRACTICE. A PRACTICAL APPROACH TO SOLARIZATION: EXPERIMENTING WITH VARIABLES, MATERIALS, AND PROCESSING CONDITIONS. INTRODUCTION TO FILM SOUP: WHAT IT IS, WHAT HAPPENS CHEMICALLY WITHIN THE EMULSION, AND WHY RESULTS VARY ACCORDING TO THE MATERIAL AND INGREDIENTS. REFERENCES AND EXAMPLES OF BOTH TECHNIQUES.
A CLASS ENTIRELY DEDICATED TO FILM SOUP, ITS POSSIBILITIES, AND ITS INTERNAL LOGIC. BECAUSE THERE IS NO SINGLE WAY TO DO IT, AND UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCES CHANGES EVERYTHING. THE THREE FILM SOUP APPROACHES: SUBMERGED, IN THE DARKROOM, AND DURING THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS. TECHNICAL AND AESTHETIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EACH APPROACH. INGREDIENTS: ACIDS, SALTS, ALCOHOLS, ORGANIC SUBSTANCES, AND THEIR EFFECT ON THE EMULSION. PROCESS VARIABLES: CHEMICAL EXPOSURE TIMES, TEMPERATURES, AND FILM CHOICE. HOW TO DOCUMENT AND REPRODUCE RESULTS: RECORDING VARIABLES TO WORK INTENTIONALLY WITHIN THE UNPREDICTABLE. REFERENCES, EXAMPLES, AND Q&A.
PRESENTACIONES DE TRABAJOS DE LOS ESTUDIANTES, VISIONADO DE REFERENTES Y DINÁMICAS CON PREGUNTAS
YOUR TEACHER
HALURO DE CLARA
@halurodeclara
Clara Haluro (Buenos Aires, 1998) is a visual artist and teacher specializing in chemical and experimental photography. Her work explores the mycelial connection of everything.
It acts as a channel, integrating ancestral knowledge and practices such as meditation to make the metaphysical visible. To this end, it uses historical, alternative, and manual photographic processes, allowing it to investigate the constant dialogue between body, matter, and spirit, where the physical medium becomes a central axis.
Since 2018, she has worked as a lab technician, guide, and mentor, supporting creative processes and sharing technical knowledge. In 2022, she launched her own experimental film stock, 'Aurora'. Her publications include El Camino de Adentro (2024), a photobook of poems, and Aurora (2024), a collective photobook.
WITH IMAGES FROM THE EXPERIMENTAL FILM.
CLARA WAS AN ARTIST SELECTED AT THE EXPERIMENTAL PHOTO FESTIVAL (BARCELONA, 2024), EXHIBITED AT TACHA (BUENOS AIRES, 2025), OPEN BACH (PARIS, 2025) LOOSEN ART (ROME, 2023), EXP (BARCELONA, 2023) AND HER WORK WAS PUBLISHED IN LOMOGRAPHY MAGAZINE (2024, 2021) AND FLAMANTES 24TH EDITION (2022), AMONG OTHERS.
MORE DETAILS
ADDRESSED TO
THIS COURSE IS FOR PEOPLE WITH BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF ANALOG PHOTOGRAPHY WHO WANT TO DELVE DEEPER INTO DARKROOM AND EXPERIMENTAL DEVELOPING PROCESSES. NO PRIOR DARKROOM EXPERIENCE IS NECESSARY.
REQUIREMENTS
BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF ANALOG PHOTOGRAPHY.
GOALS
Let the laboratory cease to be a place of technical reproduction and become a space for visual research. Let every chemical decision also be a creative decision.
12 HOURS IN DURATION
APPROXIMATE WEEKLY TIME DEDICATION:
3-5 HOURS, EACH STUDENT MANAGES THEIR OWN TIME.
MODE
PRE-RECORDED ONLINE WITH 3 LIVE MEETINGS.
LANGUAGE
SPANISH.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
UNLIMITED LIFETIME ACCESS TO ALL CONTENT
OF THE LIVE AND PRE-RECORDED CLASSES, WORKSHOPS, CONFERENCES AND ADDITIONAL DOWNLOADABLE MATERIALS.
BEING A MEMBER OF THE AGORA COMMUNITY
PARTICIPATE FOR FREE IN OUR MONTHLY ONLINE MEETINGS (DECEMBER 3, JANUARY 21, FEBRUARY 4, FEBRUARY 25, MARCH 18, APRIL 8, APRIL 29 AND MAY 20) AND SHOWCASE YOUR WORK ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIA.
ACCESS THE EXCLUSIVE AGORA COMMUNITY GROUP ON WHATSAPP
WITH EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNTS, DIRECT ACCESS TO TEACHERS AND THE AGORA TEAM, MONTHLY INFORMATION, AND SPECIAL CONTENT.
MATERIALS NEEDED
EACH LESSON EXPLAINS THE NECESSARY MATERIALS. WE RECOMMEND WATCHING THE LESSON FIRST AND THEN DECIDING WHICH MATERIALS YOU WANT TO BUY. THIS LINK SHOWS WHERE TO BUY THE MATERIALS IN MANY CITIES AROUND THE WORLD.
HOW ARE THESE COURSES MANAGED?
THE ECONOMIC AND ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT OF THE AGORA IS HANDLED BY THE NON-PROFIT ASSOCIATION EXPERIMENTAL PHOTO FESTIVAL. ALL COURSES INCLUDE 21% VAT IN THE PRICE. DURING THE PAYMENT PROCESS, A PASSPORT NUMBER, NIE, NIF, OR CIF WILL BE REQUESTED SOLELY FOR ACCOUNTING AND TAX PURPOSES. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONSULT OUR FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY PAGE.