Charis Wilson, 1914-2009

Charis Wilson, Lake Ediza 1937
by Edward Weston

Paul Strand

Mr. Bennett, Vermont
1944 Paul Strand



Open Sea, Cape Split, Maine
1946 Paul Strand



Side Porch
1946 Paul Strand


I reread a Robert Adam's essay about Paul Strand last night from his collection of essays in Why People Photograph.

He writes mainly about the strength, intimacy and universality of Strand's work from New England. He goes on to say, for a variety of reasons, that Strand never achieved the same intensity or intimacy of views in Europe where he worked next.

I don't know... some of the images from the Hebrides are pretty amazing, and there's one portrait from France, Young Boy, Gondeville, Charente France that always knocks my socks off. But I'll will grant you... Strand hit it out of the ballpark with the New England work with the breadth of it... subtle landscapes and seascapes, intimate architectural details of the classic white churches, and some amazing portraits: the salt of the earth. And have you ever noticed the importance of buttons in his pictures?

Snaps

So, I broke down and bought a better P&S in the Canon G11. It's a nifty little toy, and so far, the quality of the pictures seems to far surpass the little Canon A540 I was using for such pictures.

And this one makes self-portraits a blast!! I'm going to have to get my digital chops a bit more up to speed, because if I ever get something worth making a big print, I should have the data for it with this camera. The last camera was good for 4"x6"s, and that was it.

But it can't hold a candle to a 6x7 negative, in my humble opinion, but it there is a time and place for everything, and sometimes a small camera with the benefit of instant gratification is just what's needed.

Corn

A little parental gushing and indulgence for this Friday, if I may. We just got back from seeing my younger son's third grade Thanksgiving play in which he was given the role of a stalk of corn. He had a great scene with the turkeys. Performing in his crowded classroom was not easy for him, and it pleases me no end that he rose to the task.

And somehow, corn has taken on a deeper meaning for me, as well as the picture I made of him running in the corn maze. So, here's a nice excuse to share it again. Hmmm... I think I'll make cornbread next week for Thanksgiving. And maybe it's time to ask for a better snapshot camera for the upcoming holidays. This little point and shoot I have sucks.


Running in Corn
Copyright 2008 Suzanne Révy

Roger Ballen

Accomplice
Copyright 2006 Roger Ballen

Ballen spoke last night in Boston, and I wasn't able to go. Bummer... as I've heard he's a compelling speaker. His pictures are quite compelling, too. I recently bought a book of his work, Boarding House, and one thing struck me... many of his images work well as presented, but also upside down or on their side.

He really has an interesting command of the square format*, and he makes provocative abstract and surreal images. If anyone was their, I'd love to hear what he had to say.

*I scanned the above image from his book which is wider than my scanner, so the scan is too rectangular. Apologies. Get the book.

I've edited this post to add a link to Ellen's comments on his talk... thanks, Ellen! I'm pleased you went, and appreciate your insights. You can see her post here.

The Project Conundrum

Angler
Copyright 2007 Suzanne Révy

This body of work that I have built, Small Wonders, began simply enough. I wanted to make artful black and white pictures of my children at play, asleep, eating, on the way to school... their lives to hang on my walls. Then somewhere along the line it morphed into a more defined project. I selected the pictures that were made outside in certain light with no adults present, organized it into a portfolio, and assigned it a title. Then I started to think more directly about how to build onto the portfolio... the types of pictures I wanted to see and make, and whether I am repeating myself.

On the one hand, I have a goal: to create a cohesive body of work with the narrative implications that will take a viewer from the beginning to the middle to the end. Yet, I want to work like a diarist, recording images of the small moments and events that fill our daily lives without thought to how it might work within a portfolio. I am at odds with myself, but I suppose the most important goal is to remember... I am making the pictures to give to my children when they have grown, and the portfolio will likely work itself out in the end.

Damn the conondrum, and just carry on...

Little Creatures

Crawfish
Copyright 2009 Suzanne Révy


Pond Frog
Copyright 2009 Suzanne Révy

One big difference between my childhood, and my kids' is their willingness to pick up small creatures that give me the creepy crawlies. I won't pick up a toad or frog, a worm or a crawfish. Yick... gives me the willies. I find it hard, however, to resist making a few pictures of their catch. The way they hold their little prey, curl their fingers around them, look and study them. Inevitably they are released back to their habitat to the disappointment of the kids, but we always seem to find more. In fact, we've seen several snakes around here, so perhaps, someday, I'll be able to add a snake image to this growing menagerie of pictures.

Back to photography, however, the challenge, it seems, is to approach the same subject with fresh eyes each time. With a long term project like this, when one revisits the same subjects again and again each year, it can be difficult to make new and different pictures. I don't always succeed which can be downright discouraging. In fact, I think the second picture above feels all too familiar to my Backyard Toad picture. Still, it's hard to resist an opportunity to photograph kids catching toads, even if I don't break down that "new and different" photographic barrier every time I revisit a subject.