Monday Musings

Several people we met in Cuba are returning soon to attend the opening of Peter Turnley's retrospective exhibit in Havana.  I would love to join their company, but, alas, we are headed out on our own for a week.  I find that as their trip gets closer, I am becoming quite nostalgic about my time in Cuba.  And missing my friends, who are an exceptional group of people.

Eight months have passed since our trip, and I am still processing the experience.  We saw so much, learned to improve our craft, practice our Spanish speaking skills, met lovely locals every day who seem to care about us and celebrated that we were visiting their country.  A gracious population, for sure.  They didn't laugh at my broken Spanish.  Being an Abuela (grandmother), I found common ground with all the Abuelas that I met, and an instant bond was formed.  Nuestros nietos (our grandchildren), we could go on and on about them.  They are our pride and joy.  They are the future.

Someday we hope to return to Cuba, to explore some of the other ancient towns, and the countryside.  If you haven't seen the slideshow of photos taken from the air in Cuba, you must.  Spectacular landscapes.

from "Unseen Cuba"

Vaya con Dios, mis amigos.

TGIF

Hello everybody.  I had hoped to have some parade photos for you -- our local High School's homecoming.  But we were late for the spectacle and, alas, what's done is done.  We did get to visit with our friends and drink cold beverages.  And A. cut some gorgeous Zinnia's from his garden.  Steve was eyeing the pepper crop as well, so A. harvest several for Steve.  I love peppers, my insides do not.

I have just begun to use our new Leica Q digital camera, and I have a lot to learn in terms of what it can do and what I can do with it.  So far, however, I love the incredible sharpness of the 28 mm lens.

Our protege is loving the Cannon Rebel XT with 15mm - 80mm lens we loaned him. Hope to get together with him soon to look at some of his work.  I'll probably end up giving him the camera, since I don't use it at all anymore and could hardly get anything for it if I sold it.  I'll pass it along to him with instructions to pass it along to someone else when he upgrades to a better camera (and I bet he will).  The Canon is not a bad camera, it was great for me for many years.  But as my work improved, I knew I needed better equipment to achieve my goals.

My daughter is upgrading to a better camera as well, and we're helping her buy a Fujifilm XE 1 body.  This is a mirror-less camera that delivers superior image quality.  Steve is giving her a lens to go with it, and she got teary eyed when we told her.  She's someone who also has a lot of talent, and will take it to the next level with better equipment.  I am so pleased that Steve and I are in a position to help 2 young photographers.  The art of it has brought us many years of extreme satisfaction, good friends along the way, and peak moments of inspiration and exhalation.  And, let's not forget, it was our love of photography that brought Steve and me together!

Every place we go offers new photographic experiences:  Cuba was a highlight.  Next month we go to Kauai.  In December we go to a (hopefully) snow covered Yosemite Valley.  And next year, France and Spain.  The travel in and of itself is exciting, and the prospect of capturing some lovely images is thrilling as well. 

Photographer Burk Uzzle, (1938) was the youngest documentary photographer to be hired by Life Magazine.  He said “Photography is a love affair with life.”


I couldn't agree more.

Have a great weekend! 

Wordless Wednesday

TGIF

Happy Friday, peeps.  If all goes well, I'll be giving blood today.  Last week my hemoglobin was too low and so I was advised to take iron for a week and return.

It's been a good week -- albeit terribly hot outside.  But as I watch wildfires rage in Southern California, I count my lucky stars.  I used to live in San Diego.  I remember those Santa Ana winds that drove fires like a little red Corvette.  My grandmother lived in Rancho Bernardo the last years of her life.  RB is currently on fire.  Seriously.

Speaking of my grandmother, Nadine Alice Tilley Robinson, I dug up an old family photo for FB Throwback Thursday.  Here it is:

If I've got this right, my great grandmother is on the right, and her sister Ada Lou Goodale Bigelow is on the left.  This was probably made around 1900.  My grandmother was born in 1912.  Folks on FB really liked the photo, and I love to tell the story of my independent and talented great great aunt.  Family lore has it that she was, at the tender age of 17, working as an assistant to photographer Roland Reed, who asked her father permission to take her along on a trip to photograph Blackfoot Indians.  Their association was a long one, and he eventually sold his studio in Coronado to her after 1915.

Have a great weekend!

P.S. My hemoglobin count was actually DOWN by two points.  Now I have to wait 12 weeks and test again.  Somebody infuse me with some iron, please.

Art Saves Souls

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." ~ Pablo Picasso. I urge you to take a few minutes and watch this video. Look at these smiling kid faces, see the love and joy that a safe space and creative expression gives them. Help them get their new Art House.

You'll feel great. Promise.



Every neighborhood should have an Art House for kids! What a different world this would be. See this: Art Saves.

TGIF

Two movies to recommend this Friday:  Ponette and Blue is the Warmest Color.  Both extraordinary movies, French with English subtitles, both award winners.  The acting is flawless, and in Ponette, the main characters are very young children.  How the heck did the director get such fine acting out of such young people?  Doesn't look or feel like acting at all...in either movie.  They feel as if you are a fly on the wall, observing the scenes of real life.  Blue is a 2013 winner at Cannes.   And available to downstream on Netflix.  Ponette is available on DVD from Netflix or you can purchase on Amazon (at a hefty price of $97).

Both intensely personal, emotionally shattering, compelling in both the storyline and the acting.

Rarely have I been so moved by a film(s).

Thank Gawd It's Friday, you have a whole weekend to watch.



Out in theaters, I recently watched Tim's Veermer.  A documentary on one man's vision and labors to unravel the mystery of the Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer, known and loved for his extraordinary use of light in his work.  It's mostly showing in small art houses, so if it's in your town you'd better get a hustle in your bustle before it's gone.

These movies are all an antidote to big Hollywood blockbusters.  These are movies with real heart, real characters and the stuff of real life.  No fantasy action stuff here.  No siree.

Have a great weekend!

Tragique et Sublim

 

 

S.O.S. of a Man in Distress

Why do I live, why do I die?
Why do I live, why do I cry?
Here is the SOS of a man in distress
I've never had both feet upon the ground
I'd rather be a bird
I don't fit into this skin
I'd like to see the world turned upside down
If ever it were beautiful
It's lovelier from above, from above
I've always confused life
with the comic strips
Even wished I could transform
I feel something
That draws me
That draws me
That draws me up
Into the great lotto of the universe
I don't have the right numbers
I don't fit into this skin
I don't want to be a robot
Eating, working, sleeping
Why do I live, why do I die
Why do I live, why do I cry
I think I'm catching waves
From another world
I've never had both feet upon the ground
I'd rather be a bird
I'd like to see the world turned upside down
I'd rather be a bird
Sleep, child, sleep

This song is ever more poignant because the young man died in 2007, at 23 years of age, from cystic fibrosis. I have never heard of him before, but heard him this morning on a playlist of a friend. His story emerged, and I have watched several videos of his work on You Tube. How sad his passing, how grand that he lived on earth and shared his love and talent. Tragic and sublime.

TGIF

A friend of mine just started a new job, after being unemployed for nine months.  She's on cloud 9, and states that she is grateful for the routine again.  Her dogs, and her golf clubs, are feeling lonesome, but she is juiced up and ready for the challenge of her new adventure.  I am happy for her, but a little sad because I know she is going to be consumed by her work (very high level, very professional) and I am not going to get to see her as often.  Sigh.  The lament of the retired.

As an old hand at retirement, I know that I have to keep a routine.  I just operate better that way.  It's not a strict regiment but a structure nonetheless.  One of the things that is keeping me busy and stimulated is my photography class -- I am really visually and mentally juiced up once again and I think it shows in my work.  On the advice of my teacher, I purchased a new camera, which has really stepped up my game tremendously.  The images are so clear and sharp.  It's a small class, just 15 of us, and it's been quite the education, even for this old hand at photography.  We'll be publishing a book of our best work in the spring.  When it's on-line, I'll provide a link.

Happy Friday to you all, and here's hoping you are doing something that gets your blood pumping!

Formalism

Formalism by t.crowley

When in a photography class, everything becomes grist for the mill.  We have recently been studying Formalism.    Formalism, in a nut shell, is when a photograph reveals balance and classic composition.  Formalism doesn't tell a story, it is the story.  However, there are many instances where a so-called documentary photograph which tells a story is also deeply formalistic, certainly in the case of Walker Evans' work.  Much of the history of art is about transforming the mundane into something of importance.  Think of cave paintings of the animal hunt.  Think of Vermeer's work.  Look at this scene.

Pretty mundane stuff transformed by an artist.  After all, what is there around us but the mundane?  It is the stuff of life.  We have a need to observe and elevate, to see the sublime in shape, form, color, light, arrangement of the subject.

Now, my photos above, are arguably pretty normal, even ugly in their depiction of my kitchen sink on a Sunday morning.  But something about the arrangement caught my imagination.  In the color version, the blue of the spoon is particularly satisfying.  I think I like the color version better, but the black and white version has it's own elements arguing for it.  Blurring the edges also brings the focus to the shapes in the middle of the frame.

This is where my mind goes.

Oh, and our class is going to publish a book at the end of next semester.  I'm thrilled.  Problem is I have to select only 2 photos to be included.  That's going to be the trick.  I don't think this sink photo is going to make the cut.

Of Cars and Cameras

Well, the Prius is being towed to the dealer because it is deader than the proverbial doornail. Who knows what's wrong, but I'm hoping it's an easy fix that doesn't require that I sell my firstborn to pay for it. She'd probably have a problem with that.

On the sunny side of life, I've connected with a small, new art gallery in Ashland Oregon and they are interested in representing some of my work.  Of all the art galleries in all the world, I happened to get turned onto one in Ashland.  Love that town.

I've had wood framed canvas prints made out of a couple of my images, and I think for some photos this method of display will work nicely, like this one.  12 x 12 and ready to hang.

I've been walking my new neighborhood a lot, and will be posting photos on my Wordless Wednesday posts.  Great old houses, fun Halloween decorations (this town knows how to do Halloween) and lots of tree shots, of course, in the City of Trees.  Having a ton of fun!

Project Complete!

Eve has done it! The project is complete, and I can't wait to receive my cd. I donated to her fundraising campaign because her music inspires me and I believe in financially support creatives and artists. Indiegogo was the fundraising tool. I love that this digital age allows us to collaborate and contribute to each other in many ways.

Speaking of things creative, I've been working this weekend on setting up my own shop on the retail site Etsy. It's called "conLuz" (with light, because, you know, photography is all about light) and features my photography. I am hoping to generate some interest and sell some images! See the Etsy badge on my side bar and go have a look. I was inspired to start this shop because of the other photographers using this site to sell their work. Many have hundreds of followers and produce some very lovely work.

I also recently purchased a great hand-made back pack on Etsy and I LOVE it. It's a paisley print and very 1960s retro.   Go to LauraHoweDesigns to see more of her work.

Happy shopping.

Adventures in Filmmkaing

Shout out to Laine Causey!  Laine is a filmmaker who is embarking on a project called A Trilogy: 3 films that speak to the epidemic of violence against women.  I've known Laine for awhile now, through blogging, Facebook, Skype and phone calls.  Next year I will be joining Laine on a road trip to do filming for various projects and I will be assisting with sound and other tasks.  Like keeping us both healthy on the road, if that is possible.  I'll take my tiny portable blender and whip us up some kale protein shakes.

My qualifications?  I was the sound tech for a documentary a gazillion years ago, and I used to be in radio.  That's it.  Laine has faith in me, so I have faith in myself.  She swears the sound technology now is super easy.  It better be.

I couldn't be more excited.  This combines three great loves of mine:  travel, friendship, and creative expression.  And you know I'll be photo documenting the whole danged thang.  True Dat, right Laine?

If you're a Facebooker, go to Laine's page and "Like" the project.  It'll keep you up to date on the goings on.

2014 Calendar

| Start your own Photo Books | Create custom Christmas Cards

I've had another inquiry about my photo calendar.  Here it is if you want to take a look.  They sell for $25 and I did promise a video of me doing a happy dance if I got an order.  Well, I have, and now I owe y'all a video.

Get. My. Art.

My 2014 calendars are in.  The photos are my favorites, taken with my iPhone camera.  I had them printed early because I got a great deal on a time-limited offer.

If you'd like to order, just let me know.  They aint cheap -- $25 plus shipping, but they are a great way to have some fabulous art hanging in your home for a fraction of the cost of a sofa-sized photograph!  (As if.)

I can also make greeting cards out of any of the images, if you still send cards via snail mail.  I do.  I love getting mail, handwritten letters and note cards.  It's so 20th century.  So quaint, really.

If you're looking for original art, and believe in supporting artists, you've come to the right spot.  I eagerly anticipate your patronage.  I will post a video of me doing the Happy Dance if I get some orders.  Really.  You don't want to miss this.