diptych # 137 ~ the circle is complete

art maker and his art ~ here and there • click to embiggen

On very cold day in late November 2013, I was roaming the streets of Pittsburgh, PA making pictures. While doing so, I came upon a person painting / making a picture so I made a picture of the the scene. A scene which struck me (amongst other things) as an exercise in extreme dedication to craft/art.

Now, fast forward to yesterday evening when, at the dinner table, grad school-girl - formerly coma-girl - soon to be attorney-girl, presented the wife and I with a to-be-shared his-and-her's birthdays gift of a book, PITTSBURGH ~ 90 Neighborhoods. Lo and behold, the paintings were made by Ron Donoughe, none other than the earnest and dedicated painter pictured in my picture.

Nice book, nice gift with a seemingly random connection.

what is a photograph? (V2) # 17-18 ~ a new barrier

what is a photograph? # • click to embiggen
what is a photograph? # • click to embiggen

While in NYC recently, I made some pictures that some would label "street photography". In the process thereof I also made a new construction site barrier picture for use in my what is a photograph? series which continues to be a work in progress. The question now becomes, how many different construction site barriers do I need for the series?

The possible answer to that question floating around in my head is that, with the goal of creating a 20 picture body of work, I should use 5 separate construction site barriers and insert 4 square picture variations for each separate wall - essentially making 5 different yet thematically and visually similar "mini" series within the total body of work.

When it comes to picturing construction site barriers, the epicenter of those barriers is NYC where construction / renovations projects never end. While this suggests that another trip to NYC is in my near-term future, I will most likely have to only walk around a few city blocks to make more than enough barrier pictures.

FYI, see some of the barrier V1 pictures HERE

diptych # 136 / civilized ku # 2904 ~ New York, New York

desktop - NYC collection ~ Au Sable Forks, NY _ in the Adirondack PARK
garbage day ~ East Village / New York, New York • click to embiggen
NYC sunrise / sunset (your choice) ~ Chelsea / New York, New York • click to embiggen
No Photography ~ Governors Island / New York, New York • click to embiggen

Back home in the desktop once again - processing 50+ pictures made during my NYC visit - albeit only a very brief reprieve inasmuch as the Summer hockey tournament travel continues today. The NYC visit was very productive, picture making wise. I made more than enough "serious" pictures to last for more than a month of posting / entries. Although, I'll probably post more than one picture per entry since there a few diptych pairings in the group as well as a spate of referent-related pictures. And, I think that there's also a book in it.

wood camera (iPhone app) # 6-7 ~ escape from New York

NYC ~ seashellsNYC single woman-ish

Heading over to Brooklyn to pick up the wife who, along with assorted family members, attended a Who concert last evening. Then it's off to the North Country. This entry is the last of the NYC tourist pictures. Next up, some "serious" NYC pictures.

civilized ku # 2903 / Polamatic # 12-15 ~ old blue eyes / he did it his way

NYC ~ pastry and a cigaretteNYC ~ Wall Street neighborhood /eating dinnerNYC ~ cheeseNYC ~ Flatiron buildingNYC ~ lower Manhatten from Govenors Island

When in NYC, one expects to see some strange and unusual things. However, I can not remember ever seeing anything as strange the picture of Frank Sinatra we saw hanging in a pastry shop / eatery.

IMO, that's one seriously weird / almost surreal picture.

FYI, I am still in NYC and am posting Polamatic pictures because I have arrived at a point where I have decided that, in addition to my normal / "serious" picture making when traveling, I will make pictures with the iPhone Polamatic app because - despite my eye for exquisite seeing and the arranging of elements on the 2D surface of a print - they look like typical tourist travel pictures. While this picture making M.O. is not the next thing, it will, in fact, constitute the beginnings of a new thing / body of work.

And, BTW, after I return home on Wednesday I will set about processing - and subsequently posting - my "serious" pictures made during my NYC visit.

Polamatic # 8-11 ~ we're all here because we're not all there

NYC ~ Sophie's (bar) • East VillageNYC ~ E4th window view / treeNYC ~ cactusNYC ~ kitchen trashSaturday night and Sunday morning in NYC. More Sunday + Monday and Tuesday to follow.

diptych # 135 ~ connections

connection ~ the place doesn't matter • click to embiggen

I can't write with any authority that in my quest for what's next that it will be diptychs. Nor, if that is what's next, the thematic diptych referent will be antique collectibles. However, I can write that the combination of the 2 - process + referent - is very attractive.

The making of diptychs has always held a particular fascination for me. I can't write exactly why that is so other than to write that the idea of 2 connected pictures working together within the same frame(work) has always been of interest to me - visually and, dare I write, intellectually.

And, as the wife can attest, I have a life-long attraction to old things. Things which some would label "collectibles", ranging from old photographs (tintype, ambro-type, daguerreotype, and vintage panoramic / banquet camera pictures of large groups) to an incredibly unique antique clock*, amongst many other disparate items.

clocks ~ also notice antique mantel clock above fireplace• click to embiggen
the museum / peopled panos ~ as the wife calls it• click to embiggen

I am drawn to acquiring old things, in part because they are a connection to the past- not my past, but a past - and in large part because I am almost preternaturally attracted to patina-ed objects / things. Things like dead flowers and rotting food, to mention just a couple.

In any event and all of that written, the idea of making pictures which connect to the patina-ed past and which are also are connected within the framework of a diptych has, to my eye and sensibilities, some merit worth considering.

*Inscription on clock reads: With those hours that drag, be patient. With those hours that are enjoyable, be alert.

oddly exalted - diptych # 134 (viewmatic # 4 • civilized ku # 2900) ~ a sharp stick in the eye

TLR pencil sharpener ~ Au Sable Forks, NY - in the Adirondack PARK • click to embiggen