Not as gruesome as you might think....

This is a photograph made at St. Roch in New Orleans this past spring while teaching a Photo Essay class down there....

About the saint himself: A french nobleman who gave up his wealth at a young age to look after the sick, specifically those affected by the plague. The story goes that he himself came down with the plague, went to the forest to die, and met a dog. Apparently the dog brought him food, and nursed him back to health.

Upon recovery he returned to his home town of Montpellier and was promptly arrested for spying. He was jailed and died in prison five years later.

He is known as the patron saint of invalids, and dogs...

The Monster

I remember a photograph made by Dan Estabrook of his studio in the late 90's. It was the most frightening shot of a view camera I had ever seen. Dan explained to me the feeling of immobility in the face of trying to create in his studio. At the time I was incredulous at the fact...I thought if you have your own studio, everything must be great. Today I get it.

I made a similar photograph at Cranbrook in 2003...it has poignancy for me today as i strive to create new work. Everything you may want, or may be afraid of lie under that dark cloth, in that space that has been carved for light.

Seven Years and a day ago...view from my apt. rooftop in Brooklyn

Google Search: Disingenuous

Disingenuous

adj.

1. Not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating: “an ambitious, disingenuous, philistine, and hypocritical operator, who … exemplified … the most disagreeable traits of his time” (David Cannadine).
2. Pretending to be unaware or unsophisticated; faux-naïf.
3. Usage Problem. Unaware or uninformed; naive.

Recent, Upcoming and Current Events

Last Saturday I took part in the MCP Portfolio Review along with gallerist and photographer Kathleen Day Coen. This was a great opportunity to see the work of several photographers with different bodies of work and give feedback. I would encourage anyone looking for some outside perspective to what they are doing to give this a try. Two peoples work who I was not familiar with but enjoyed....Michael McGraw and Aaron Bommarito.

Today I am a visiting artist at Bethel University and will be sharing my experiences from Cranbrook and the Fulbright with undergraduate students in the photography program under the charge of Lex Thompson.

Friday...Colleen Mullins will have a lecture and opening at 9th Street Gallery in lowertown St. Paul. The lecture is at 6pm with the opening to follow. In addition there are all sorts of photography shows going on right now in the Twin Cities...

Paul Shambroom at the Weisman Museum, August Sander at Weinstein Gallery, The Populated Landscape at Flanders Contemporary Art, JoAnne Verburg and Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscape at the Walker Art Center.

Also...don't forget to see Mica Lee Anders work in the group show Soul on Ice at the Soap Factory!

More Cuts

Fontana at work

Photographed by Ugo Mulas