This will be a rotating Portfolio of New Work

Found Object Still Lifes

Photographs of found objects have always been a favorite subject matter. I often try to find new ways of looking at familiar objects, seeking to capture colors, patterns shapes, repetitive motifs, and oddly juxtaposed things. Flea markets, antique festivals, junk shops, and tag sales are fertile grounds to find just the right objects. I would initially photograph objects as I found them, imagining some level of purity in happenstance. Eventually I became comfortable with rearranging and composing the items.

     This led to creating still lifes made from a growing accumulation of objects. What started as a fun project developed into a bit of an obsession. Photographing against a black background removes context and draws full attention to the objects. Many of the photographs are just about the aesthetics of the objects. Others are intended to tell a short story or relay a message. I hope they are all interesting and perhaps some of them thought provoking.

The still of the early morning is broken by a clanging bell, the hustle of crowds, and the humming of idling fishing boats. The daily fish auction in Jumunjin Korea is underway. What initially seems to be chaos eventually reveals a certain rhythm and order with well-defined roles for all the participants and established “rules”. Exotic fish and shellfish fill baskets and tanks, fishers, auctioneer, brokers, and bystanders fill the space, and fishing boats and fishing gear squeeze into every corner of the waterfront. As a visiting marine biologist and avid photographer I could not have stumbled onto a more exciting scene.

Building Character from the Keel Up

Racial disparity, socio-economic status, and geography can all present substantial barriers to success. In the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx only one third of students graduate high school. Over 90 percent of the participants in programs at Rocking the Boat, a youth development program on the Bronx River in the heart of Hunts Point, graduate high school. Additionally, 80 percent go onto to attend college. COVID-19 restrictions have added additional challenges to everyone at Rocking the Boat and in the larger community.

     Rocking the Boat is a multi-faceted, STEM-based program that provides “wrap-around” social services and uses boat building, sailing, and environmental science as tools of youth development. Over 200 students, and an impressive list of collaborators, are engaged in the program annually. The boat building program’s motto “Kids don’t just build boats, boats build kids” speaks volumes to the philosophy, actions, and aspirations of Rocking the Boat. The Boat Building Apprentice Program is an intensive program engaging students in all aspects of building a traditional wooden boat under the tutelage of mentors and with the support of social services.

     “These experiences are life changing for them… it is an opportunity for them to discover strengths within themselves and possibilities in the world around them they never knew existed.”, Adam Green, Rocking the Boat founder and Executive Director.

     We will meet, and get to know, three Boat Building Apprentices through a series of color photographs that will document a timeline and journey of personal growth and progress on building a traditional wood boat. In the process they are developing skills, gaining confidence and responsibility, emerging as integral members of a team, becoming leaders, gaining stewardship over something larger than themselves, and becoming adaptive and resilient in the face of the COVID-19 health crisis.

Marie Pampeon public beach on Curacao is a small yet bustling spot nestled between resorts. During multiple visits I watched water aerobics, met old men who swam daily, saw boxers working out and kids playing soccer, watched families picnic, and dined at a small fish restaurant owned by a fisherman who catches the menu. I also saw school-aged youngsters taking swim lessons, vital if you live on an island. These lessons were as much about self-esteem, understanding success and setbacks, and being part of a community, as they were about swimming. The commitment of the adult mentors to the young swimmers was exceptional. And the response of the students was equally remarkable.

The village of Polkovnik-Serafimovo has a deep and rich history that is closely tied to the broader history of Bulgaria. Historically agrarian, it is currently a village in transition. Several generations of flight to the cities have left an aging population clinging to a bye-gone way of life. While cell phones have become the favored form of communication, it is still common for cows to be milked by hand and yogurt to be homemade. As the village ages the women seem to be the lattice supporting much of the culture.

     Each poster announcing a death leaves another home abandoned and another lost link to a lifestyle nearing extinction. The occasional grandchild visiting on summer holiday and the few well-to-do foreigners rebuilding homes for vacations pump a margin of vitality into the village. But this new blood is also emblematic of, and even accelerating, the inevitable changes.

     The landscapes, buildings, stylistic details, and history of Polkovnik-Serafimovo tell a wonderful, but incomplete, story. To truly capture the soul of a village you need to know its people. The people living in the village at any given moment define its culture.

     I hope my images; “A Portrait of a Village”, offer an honest glimpse of a village truly straddling two worlds. Of course they are only a snapshot in time, and my impressions are biased by my own viewpoint and aesthetic.

     Many thanks to the Griffis/Orpheus Foundation,  everyone who made this project possible, and most importantly the people of Polkovnik-Serafimovo who have accepted me as one of their own.

Hephaestus

There is a critical moment when heated bronze turns to liquid of just the right temperature and viscosity to pour. That point can be measured with a pyrometer. With a life-time of experience, some knowledge about the science, and a bit of alchemy the moment can also be sensed. The proper viscosity, color, and sheen can be determined by sight. Medieval Chinese metallurgists called it “sun on ice”. Understanding the precise time to pour is the essential step in bronze sculpting. The magical step. The rest of the process, developing the concept, sculpting a wax or clay original, making a ceramic shell, gathering the raw materials, releasing the bronze, grinding, polishing, and applying patina are all for naught if the pour goes badly.

     Having the opportunity to photograph a master artisan during the bronze pouring process was exciting and rewarding. My goal was to capture the movement, attention to detail, and skill of the sculptor; while at the same time document the transformation of the material. My subject is Bill Shockley, a good friend, skilled artist, and conservator of tradition.