Two weeks worth of of blogging....
The following was written by Rene... "Last week Paul brought Bill Pyne of Richard Photo Lab as a guest of f8. His main presentation was the book printing that they do; lay-flat hard cover, 8 and 5 inch square perfect bound, wedding soft cover and hard cover books. All beautifully printed. Bill indicated that they are happy to discuss special requirements that anyone might have. He also invited us to visit them in Valencia, individually or as a group." Bill Pyne / Richard Photo Lab [email protected] www.richardphotolab.com Today it was an open session and the discussion was light... We discussed the current state of galleries here in LA and all over. How difficult it is for the owners to keep the doors open and the artists to earn their fair share. Kevin discussed his class at Art Center and the difficulty he encounters at his classes. Kevin also discussed Chris' visit to the Brett Weston exhibit at PMCA...not exciting. Howard will arrange some time with John Crosse...a Weston expert and friend. Hopefully we will settle on a date for him to visit. Paul chatted about the current state of archival inks and the work of Mark McCormack...more to follow. Next week we are dark at Jones...hopefully all will visit Photo Independent next weekend Two weeks we are dark at Jones...instead we will meet at Girdner Gallery 9AM...we are meeting with Frank Joel Tammariello.
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Today, Chris Kleine skillfully, nervously walked us throught the narrative surrounding the life and works of Brett Weston. Following the east coast photographers eg Steiglitz (291 Gallery) and Strand, "straight photography" migrated west with the likes of Ansel Adams and Edward Weston and the beginnings of the "West Coast Photography Movement." Straight photography was defined as: Sharp focus and Natural light....to distinguish photography from painting. The movement created workshops and salons eg "Friends of Photography" and the "f64 Group." Brett Weston clearly fell under the influence of his dad Edward as he was growing up...traveling with him to Mexico and other locales where he cam in contact with the artists and photographers of the day. He eventually matured into his own aesthetic and was a technical influence on his dad. By the age of 25 Brett already had his first major solo show at the de Young Museum. Initially using a view camera, he eventually switched to a smaller Rollei. He became intent on exploring scenes devoid of people, form, texture, shadow and light. His production focused on producing a set of 14 portfolios consisting of 10-20 pictures. His later years were spent in Hawaii where he died in 1993. More information can be found at : www.brettwestonarchive.com Also remember, the upcoming Brett Weston exhibit at Pasadena Museum of California Art. Brett Weston: Significant Details April 17, 2016–September 11, 2016 Steve Lewis returned from Detroit for a visit and commented on his reason for taking the job...his missive was longer than what I abstracted below...but you'll get the gist of his comments "From the start, an inherited sense of social consciousness melded with my love of architecture to make me the “citizen architect” that I consider myself to be today. My tireless advocacy for architects of color, along with a demonstrated commitment to cultivating the next generation by advancing the National Organization of Minority Architects’ (NOMA) “Project Pipeline” initiative, has led to my recent selection by the AIA as the 2016 Whitney M. Young, Jr. award recipient, and my elevation to Fellow. While the ride to get here was at times turbulent and uncertain, now that I have arrived, it appears in retrospect to have been a carefully constructed path intended to lead me to this opportunity at a magical moment in time for the City of Detroit. For a city rapidly awakening after decades of slumber, the goal is to develop a vision for Detroit’s future that is inclusive and respectful of all its residents. By insisting on a participatory process of public engagement – one that has transparency at its core – we shall seek to build public trust, understanding, partnership and ownership of a vision for Detroit’s present and future. We have been called to duty, to bring our very best to the fight, with the hope and expectation of turning this bold experiment into resounding success for all who proudly call Detroit home." Chris was back in the darkroom following his recent trip up north an showed a set of great prints from the trip...the picture above is just one. So, Chris did a great job of leading and showing today.
Thank you, Chris OUR 9TH ANNIVERSARY.... Today's meeting was followed by a trip to the Japanese American National Museum...and well start this blog with comments by Mark Myers. Our April 2nd f8 Pasadena excursion to the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo proved to be well worth while and is highly recommended to all. In attendance were Bill and Kathy, Mark, Jim, Rene and Charley. The museum is a wonderful resource and one should schedule enough time to enhance your experience with the guided tour. Two excellent photography exhibits are currently showing: Making Waves: Japanese American Photography 1920 to 1940 is a superb collection of the classic subjects of still life, nature, landscape, and portraiture, along with more adventurous forays into abstraction and formal experimentation. Many of these works will be familiar as they were exhibited and published internationally to considerable acclaim. The original silver gelatin prints are stunning in mood and detail. Kudos to Dennis Reed, the curator, artist, writer and collector who put together this excellent exhibition and the accompanying terrific catalog! One must hurry to see Two Views: Photographs by Ansel Adams and Robert Frank before this exhibit closes on the 24th of this month. The chance to see these photographs of the Manzanar Incarceration experience as captured by these master photographers in conjunction with the exhibits at the JANM is a rare opportunity which should not be missed. Thank you Mark for your comments ... We looked at a TED talk by photographer Angélica Dass. Her photography challenges how we think about skin color and ethnic identity. In this personal talk, hear about the inspiration behind her portrait project, Humanæ, and her pursuit to document humanity's true colors rather than the untrue white, red, black and yellow associated with race. You can search for her name on TED website Finally, we talked about the process of photography criticism. We had discussed this a year or two ago. To start the process and discussion again, Bill asked that everybody send him a picture (not their own)...he will re-distribute the pictures and include notes from our previous criticism discussions. Dates TBD
Great meeting and field trip |
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