mosquito repellent

any sweetness i have is
unremarkable,
unmarketable,
lost on you.

state of the union

While I don't mean to make sweeping generalizations, it does seem to me that many young photographers of late fall into one of a few categories:


The Planar Landscapes

Mando Alvarez's work is a prime example of such straighforward, stark, empty landscapes which often incorporate quirky shrubbery, and frequently make use of eerie, probably-artificial light sources at night.




The Luminous Sentimentalists

I keep seeing photographs of light patterns cast on a wall (or on a disembodied hand), or, alternately, a rainbow reflection made by a prism.

Jennifer Su:



Serge Campo is a notable repeat-offender:



Alistair Dickinson:



Stefano Marchionini:



Karine Léger offers a black and white variation:


(Admittedly, I frequently find photographs of this ilk to be a tad trite or arduous, though I have seen some more successful efforts.)

The Faceless Portraitists

I am increasingly a fan of the understated expressiveness of the back of the subject's head.

Miranda Lehman's work frequently features such portraits:




One of my favorite images by Margaret Durow:



Keith Davis Young, out of his typical element:



Finally, we have

The Young Democrats

Two of my current favorite photographers, Keith Davis Young and Joseph Vavak, clearly disciples of Eggleston and Shore, make impeccably composed photographs of shards of humble Americana, whose meanings are buttressed by vivid tones and intriguing forms.

Young:





Vavak:

"The one who would accept the 'injustices' of communication, the one who would continue speaking lightly, tenderly, without being answered, would acquire a great mastery: the mastery of the Mother."

-Roland Barthes
A Lover's Discourse ("The Love Letter")

i would not punch someone in the face if i did not care about them immensely.

and now, i announce with unbridled enthusiasm

my intention to commence life as a Cat Lady, straightaway!

if i could meet one person, alive or dead or lost at sea, it would be, sans doute, B.J.A.

plate tectonics

you know how some streets are cut off at a point but resume after a few blocks, or how they often pick up in a discontinuous spot at an intersection with another street?

when i was little, i thought sure the explanation for such phenomena must be the movement of the earth's plates shifting the alignment of formerly continuous streets to disjointed, discontinuous ones.


i mean, it's probably true.

things that happened at the photo shoot with Carrie Mae Weems today:

-mastered the Hasselblad and the Rollei

-proceeded in a similar fashion with light kits

-photographically documented the shoot

-mingled with ladies in furs

-tea sandwiches

-pineapple coconut cake

-Nina Simone

-$100(?!...totally wasn't expecting pay.)

-possible future photo assistant prospects

art is the opposite of humanitarianism, and i am totally okay with that.

um, just so everyone knows

except perhaps in very special circumstances, underexposure does not make a photograph "good" or "cool" or "interesting."

exhibit A*:



exhibit B:



exhibit C:


the words that come more readily to mind, for me, are "incompetent" or "faulty."


the same rule applies for overly "soft" or, rather, "non-" focus, with no perceptible meaning or significance.



*okay, this is a polaroid, so it's not so much underexposure as it is expired film. same idea though. ugh.