blue skies
I went to a lecture this afternoon by the two photographers showing at
Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, OR...Tony Mendoza and Brad Temkin.
Brad
discussed his photos from Relics, a body of black and white images he'd
taken in Northern Europe. He captures "manuments" on stark landscapes;
man-made relics left for dead in forgotten fields, freeway corridors,
cow pastures... They take on a life of their own, especially in their
large (approx. 40x60) format!
What struck me most about Brad
was his propensity for people. He spoke casually but effectively. He
engaged a room full of strangers. He shared stories of his encounters
with humans in all of his other bodies of work. But there we were,
looking at piles of rocks, rusted re-bar, old tires...there were no
people. Not even a trace of human activity. Or so it seemed...
I wondered if his affinity for socializing had something to do with the success of his pictures. It was as if the culmination of time and his activated curiosity for human stories produced in him, the ability to know what we want; to know that we will be drawn into expansive landscapes and larger-than-life relics.
Predicting the future...on a limb...one photograph at a time.
More about Tony on our next encounter...
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Ani's Photo Blog
I had a crazy professor in college
that published books...lots of books, and refused to capitalize any
letters. She felt it was one of the many internalized
processes of "othering" that were practiced by educated human
beings. Exclusion and isolation led to power, discrimination and division.
The final paper I wrote for that class was published. I'll let you draw
your own conclusions.
The best way to describe my relationship with photography at that time was true, blinding love. I had confidence
that I could blur the lines of duality with a single photographic experience;
assurance that I would join the ranks of photographers who change how
people see. In short, I was going to revolutionize communication...and
I would drive it with the power of love. So it stands to reason
that this final paper would extract a small photographic property and
make it explode with purpose.
It is the human propensity for monochromatic
thinking that waters the roots of "othering".
Boy, I was really proud of that conclusion. I guess things like this lose a bit of their University flare when they're not tucked safely inside university walls. The point is, as my contextual knowledge of photographs grew, I developed a strong affinity for joining the non-joinable in all manner of subjects. Do non-sequiturs really hold water?! Don't our brains have a mind of their own? If you aren't convinced, hang out with a toddler for the day and you will know this as fact.
Photographs are a secret passage into all kinds of relationships. They are nostalgic and prophetic at the same time and I think that is so cool.
I like vacationing here. Maybe you will too...
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