Fallen Leaves

Today, I tried to take advantage of the beautiful weather here in Germany. It's late October and it's sunny and 16C (55F). Perfect weather for making plates.

I pulled out a new piece of black plastic (acrylic) and went to work. I mounted my Hermagis lens and stopped it down to a number six (6) Waterhouse stop. I'm going to make an educated guess here and say that would be about an f/30. Why? It's a 15" lens and the stop #6 is about .5"  - do the math.

Anyway, I decided I wanted to work on some kind of still life/landscape image. I chose to use the stopped down lens to show infinite (or close to it) depth and detail.

I chose to photograph our cherry tree. Cherry trees symbolize death, rebirth and new awakenings (among many other things including food and ornamental uses). Our cherry tree only produces fruit every other year. This year it didn't and I missed those delicious cherries (Kirschen).

Ever since I visited the Jewish Museum in Berlin, fallen leaves remind me of the faces in the piece called, "Fallen Leaves" - I did a 20 second video while I was walking on the "faces" - it was, loud and disconcerting.

 

I wanted to explore this idea of "fallen leaves" and yet show something resilient and strong (the tree trunk). So I setup this shot.

First, I took a jug of water and I poured it on the tree trunk. I knew it would help define the "texture/scars" on the trunk and make it dark. Water, or wet things, has/have an interesting relationship with Collodion. I really like the effect of something wet or something steel with Collodion (I think it's the reflection or sheen).

Next, I made a test exposure. It was way underexposed at 8 seconds. The next exposure, I went 16 seconds, still under and finally, after three plates, made this at 40 seconds.

"Fallen Leaves" - Cherry Tree, Viernheim, Germany

It's an 8x10 "Acrylotype" (made on a piece of black plastic). I'm happy with it. I love the light. It was early enough that this portion of my yard was still in the shade. I love how the leaves are the things that pickup, and reflect, the new morning light... and the trunk, standing tall and strong. It's surrounded with darkness and "things" coming out, or even reaching out, of that darkness. It's symbolic for me.

Homecoming 2008

Summer had a very eventful and busy weekend. She and her friends, Natasha (Nads, left), and Jaqueline (Joc, right), went to Homecoming at Mannheim High School last night. Before they took off, I snapped this shot of them. Beautiful young ladies, aren't they?

The Homecoming Girls

I picked Summer up this morning from Nad's house. She said they had fun, "the best homecoming ever." I said, "What's homecoming?" She replied, "I don't know, it has something to do with football. They're crazy about football."

Jesus Was A Jew

My goal in 2009 is to really concentrate on getting my project completed. By the winter of 2009, I want to be editing images for a book. That's my goal. In order to do that, I'm going to cut back on workshops (maybe do two next year) and get my technical writing and DVD material completed this year (in the next couple of months).

It was a good day today. Sunday and Germany equals no one bothering you about "what you're doing". Any other day, or any other time, I would have never been able make this image.

I find this image both ironic and symbolic. Ironic in the sense that Jesus was a Jew. Symbolic in the sense that Jesus was a Jew (and that He represents salvation and love). I find it kind of kitschy too - that's why I made it on a piece of plastic (black acrylic, I call it an "Acrylotype"). I made the image with an old Derogy lens. It's not big enough to cover the plate (8"x10") edge to edge, so it gives it that vignette. Vignettes make me feel like I'm looking through a keyhole or seeing something I'm not supposed to be seeing. I like the effect it gives of saying (visually), "LOOK HERE".  Images of Jesus on the cross always remind me of Serrano's work too. He made an image called, "Piss Christ" that everyone took out of context and misunderstood. I'll never forget it.

You'll see these kinds of statues in a lot of the Catholic states/counties in Germany. You'll also see a lot of crosses. And every village has a Catholic church in its center with its steeple stretching toward heaven.

Jesus Was A Jew

Living An "Authentic Life"?

What does it mean to live an "authentic life"? What does "authentic" even mean? For me, it's a word that describes, or defines, your ability to be you. Whatever or whoever you are. In other words, not counterfeit or copied. It sounds easy, right? It isn't.

Quinn stylin' a Chin Curtain. Henry David Thoreau said, "All men live quiet lives of desperation." I don't think that's as bleak as it sounds. Desperation, in this case, could be defined as not being authentic. Most people, especially Americans, tend to follow trends and other people. Their lives are copies of what is popular or accepted. A lot of television and the mass media teaches them who to be. In other words, their identity is closely connected to what is popular in thought, fashion, lifestyle, etc. at any given time. They tend to be "spectators" rather than "players" in the game of life.

Why do people live like this? I believe it's for acceptance. We all want to be accepted. I wrote in my graduate thesis that we are in a dilemma (as human beings). We want to be accepted and fit in, but we want to be individuals/unique at the same time. That's impossible to do. You're either in touch with who you are, however you are, or you're a knock-off of your culture's latest style, thought, craze, or trend. You can't have it both ways.

There are times I ask myself, "Are you really, truly being honest with yourself about who you are?" I've felt tremendous pressure to lose weight, cut my hair, shave my face, dress a certain way and to be easy on ignorant people (I can be loud and opinionated) so that I can fit in and please people. I'm told quite often, most of the time in very subtle ways, that I'm not acceptable the way I am - that I need to change my appearance and my philosophy toward people and life.

I'm sure people think they're doing me a favor by telling me that I don't fit in. It begs the question about authenticity. What if I'm truly supposed to be the way I am? What if the way I look, dress and think is authentic? What if the masses are wrong about me?

Why do so many people feel the need to tell people who are different to change? Isn't this what's caused wars and has been at the heart of most of the evil in the world? I can't help but think about where I live and how it applies to these ideas of difference and authenticity. Difference, for the most part, is not accepted here.

Just because you might not look or think like the masses, or the popular majority, doesn't mean that you're wrong or need to be changed. If we could all start living authentic lives, maybe we could find peace and acceptance with ourselves and with others.

Art Is The Enemy Of The Routine

"Adoph Hitler Strasse" - Viernheim, Germany In my (ongoing and lifelong) pursuit of defining the meaning and  purpose of art, I've come across a lot of insightful and powerful quotes. Simon Schama said something so simple and brilliant that I felt compelled to share it with you here. He said, ""Art is the enemy of the routine, the mechanical and the hum drum. It stops us in our tracks with a high voltage jolt of disturbance; it reminds us of what humanity can do beyond the daily grind. It takes us places we had never dreamed of going; it makes us look again at what we had taken for granted."

Of course, this isn't definitive (in defining art), but for me, it defines an aspect of what good art can do and some of the purpose involved in making art.

There is something to be said for being "present" in your daily life. Present to the good and to the not so good. I believe artists are highly perceptive and extremely "present" in their daily lives (sometimes too present as they go mad or sink into depression). The subtle, unnoticed details are what tell the story. Artists are very good at picking up on those and sharing their opinions or views about them. If you think about all of the mundane and superficial information we are subjected to on a daily basis, few things are really valuable. Artists have an important voice in the world, I wish more people listened.

The Netherlands Workshop

I just returned from The Netherlands (some call it Holland). I did a two day workshop there at the Pieter Brueghel Art and Culture School. Jeroen de Wijs set it up and made it happen (thanks Jeroen!). He was a great host and the people at the school were wonderful too.

There were six attendees/students and we got to spend all day Saturday making 4x5 black glass Ambrotypes and Alumitypes. I don't do these workshops for money, and even if it were profitable, there's a far more important and rewarding motive to do these. To see people eager to learn a new way to express themselves and then for them to get their hands on the material and make something within a few hours of learning about it is amazing to me.

It doesn't matter if the images are perfect or the subject matter is interesting, the process and the interaction between people is the part that's most important to me now. I think I may be maturing in a new way - I feel less and less anxiety about the work and more and more desire to connect with the people. When was the last time you had the chance to be involved with a group of people sharing experiences, ideas, art, food, coffee and culture? I'm very blessed!

Thank you Summer and Jean for helping make these things possible. Summer assisted me Saturday and shot most of these images.

The Dutch Collodionista Group - 8"x10" Black Glass Ambrotype - Veghel, The Netherlands 
"Francie" - a demonstration portrait.
Quinn talks about "salted Collodion" - the introduction to chemistry.
Quinn lectures on the fundamentals of the Wet Plate Collodion process.
Let's talk about lenses - Petzvals, Rapid Rectilinear, and everything in between. 
The students getting started - let the Collodion flow!
Geert-Jan pulls Jereon from the cyanide! 
Cor's self-portrait.

Quinn looking for help from above!

Francie's portrait of Quinn - the Thinker (and very approachable)

Coming through the veil -

Heating and varnishing plates.

One of the most interesting plates of the workshop - Geert-Jan waited a bit too long before droping this plate in the silver bath.
The Thinker gets a coat of varnish. 
All setup to open "the Show" Friday night.  
Having a coffee in the breakroom. 
Draining varnish from "The Thinker" -  
Some photographs from Rudd, a workshop student.
"Let's talk about this plate". 
Using God's light making portraits.
This was the view from our room. The hotel we stayed in was amazing! It was in a little village called, Boerdonk, The Netherlands. The owners were very friendly and had a wonderful little dog called Lennon, as in John Lennon.
The hotel was very nice!

Photokina 2008 - Cologne, Germany

Minox Girl at Photokina 2008, Cologne, Germany
I have mixed emotions about Photokina 2008. On one hand, it's interesting and kind of fun, and on the other hand, it's disgusting and nauseating. 

Overall, it's an exercise in greed, consumption, overindulgence, etc. all of things people say that I'm (and most Americans) an expert in. Seriously, it was disturbing to be there as the economy (Wall Street) in America was tanking, not to mention the ongoing suffering and hunger throughout the world. It's just hard to reconcile all of it looking at $5,000 (USD) cameras and $10,000 (USD) printers. Mostly, it was middle-aged men drooling over phalic toys they couldn't afford. C'mon, nothing is that important! Maybe I'm just getting old and soft (I can validate the "soft", it's true).

My main bitch is that it was €21 Euros to get into the place (that's $32 U.S. dollars today). Are we paying to get into a place to see what we want to buy? We're paying people to advertise to us!! Wow!! Wrap your head around that one!

My praises: There were some pretty interesting advancements in technology. The printers were unbelievable. All of them cranking out huge (8' x 12') color digital prints (if it's big, it's important)! They called it the "fine art printing section." The underwater cameras were pretty cool too. Not that I would ever need any of this stuff, but you know, it was kind of fun to see.

Billy Cargile, my new co-worker went with me. We didn't really want too stay long. We just wanted to hit some of the highlights and head back south. It was a 3.5 hour drive back because of traffic jam (Stau) just outside of Cologne. It's always fun to wrap a day of consumption around a 4 hour traffic jam. Yummy!

I suppose it was a good excuse to get out of the studio take a long drive and bum around Cologne again (it's a great city). As a side note, Cologne (Köln) is a very progressive and art centered city. I've been to a couple of art shows in Köln that I really enjoyed. The people are great too.

Back to Photokina... am I going to Photokina 2010.. ? No - been there done that and got the Minox ad to prove it.

Billy Cargile at Photokina - September, 2008

Montmartre am Main

Every once in a while, when you stop trying so hard to do something, it just shows up without you doing anything. I'm sure the gurus have a name for this kind of thing, I just call it ironic.

For many months, maybe I can even say years now (2 years plus), I've been sending our queries to German Kunstgalerie (Art Galleries) and various German artists that seemed to be interested in photography. All I've ever wanted is to find some kind of community and share/show my work with the German public. Until yesterday, nothing had happened in Germany for me.

Here's the backstory. Two weeks ago, I received an email from a very nice lady named Kathy. Kathy is an American artist that has been living and working Germany for many years. She, through many trials of her own, organized a group of artists to meet in Höscht, Germany to share and show work and mingle with the public. She asked me if I would be interested in attending and making some plates (do a demo/make some work). This was what I had been looking for through all my queries and begging for community - there it was, and she was contacting me. I had put an ad seeking Germans to sit for me for portraits in thelocal.de - Kathy saw the ad and emailed. I'm very thankful she did.

She said, "It's a totally open gathering of artists painting en plein aire along the riverside where a lot of Sunday strollers and bicyclers pass by. The artists attract a lot of attention and feedback." Her idea is brilliant and I want to support it as much as I can. I found this on a Frankfurt blog about Montmarte am Main:
The first "artspace" was probably back when Montmartre in Paris became the place for mostly unrecognized artists. Both Montmartre and Hyde Park were destined to symbolize the free artist together a group of like-minded but at the time, scorned artists. Now, Kathleen Schaefer is trying to start the premise of those two places in Germany where such a tradition was never tried out. It´s for all artists, especially the ones who are barred from galleries but who have earned through their talent the right to have their art be seen in public. At the same time an appeal is made to those "arrived" artists to support, by their presence at Montmartre am Main, the idea that the work of all artists the right to be seen. And, let's not forget the 99% of the population that does not feel comfortable entering an art gallery in the first place - they also have the right to see art in a natural and casual manner - just like at Montmartre am Main!

I totally agree. Here's her website.

Trudy, an artist set up next to me, did a wonderful sketch of me, I'll post it when can scan it. It was just a lot of fun to meet people, talk about art and make photographs.

Update: Here's the sketch she made of me - wonderful!

Quinn at Montmarre am Main - Frankfurt, Germany

Here are some of the portraits I made yesterday. I will use some of them in my project.

Helmut, a German painter.

 Karin, a German painter.
Sandra, from Frankfurt, GermanyTrudy, a German artist.Gabi, from Frankfurt, Germany

My Teaching Philosophy: It’s About Questions, Not Answers

I'm reminded daily of how much I don't know. Or, I question daily what I think I do know. I’ve often thought about doing some in-depth studying on epistemology. I think it’s a fascinating topic. Knowledge, how we know what we know, shapes our world view and accordingly dictates how we act and live.

These ideas seem to put a lot of responsibility on people who have a lot of influence. People like teachers, preachers, politicians and even pop-stars. I’m constantly being swayed by the power and potential "difference-making" of teaching, maybe even preaching. It’s something in me, and I’m not sure what it is. Maybe it’s just my ego, my need for attention, but I doubt it. It feels much more powerful than that. Sometimes, it feels like the same emotion of warning people of danger. Urgency comes to mind. Other times, it’s like the knowledge of revelation. Knowing something that needs to be said or taught and passing it on. In other words, it feels like I’m a participant in life, not a spectator. And I’m trying to do my part in the chain of human progression, one tiny word (or idea, thought, action) at a time to pull people off of the bleachers and into the game.

We talk a lot about the “what” in life but rarely the "why". The greatest gift education gave me was to question. Not the kind of questioning that you may relate to authority. Questioning like, “What is my purpose for taking space and sucking oxygen?” and one that has been rolling around in my head for a couple of years now, “Why did the Holocaust happen?” There aren’t any answers to these questions, not definitive anyway. However, I think people need to talk about these kinds of things - you know get ideas and philosophies out there for people to think about. We are in wars and have all kinds of problems because we don't ask or offer questions, we always think we know the answers.

I was fortunate to recently meet, and quickly befriend Elke. She is a cleaning lady in my building where I work. She asked if I would make her portrait. I gladly said, "Ja, Klar". She spent a couple of hours with us today making photographs, drinking espresso and talking about our lives. Although I'll use her image in my series about the German past (and she knows this), she is a very kind and loving person. I don't meet many Germans like Elke. Vielen dank für alles Elke.

Elke Wössner Putzfrau - Viernheim, Deutschland 23.08.08

Time Goes So Fast… Make It Count!

Well, here we are beginning our third (read: 3rd) year in Germany. I can't believe it. Where does the time go? It must have something to do with the knowledge that our time is finite here. Wouldn't that apply to all human beings in relation to life? I digress.

Summer and I have been working hard on my video series called, "The Wet Plate Collodion Workshop DVD Series". I'm excited by all of this. I'll close this chapter of my life out with two new books, two DVDs, and a new web site. I'm going to try to launch, publish, produce all of those by the end of the year.  All of the proceeds from the sales of these books and DVDs will go into an account for Summer. She will be in college in a couple of years and we thought this would be a great way to get her some additional cash/tuition/car/etc. money. She is doing all of the editing on the DVDs and proof-reading/editing the books for me. She's working hard and earning her money.

I have two workshops planned for September and October. One in Vienna, Austria and another in The Netherlands. Those are confirmed.  I also have one tentative for Berlin in September and one hanging in October for Mallorca, Spain (an island west of Barcelona).  A lot of stuff and a lot of fun! That's how I like to roll ;-)  here's a frame exported from the video:

A screenshot from one of the videos in the series.

Next year, 2009, will be devoted completely to my personal work (other than a possible workshop in Finland). I'll be finished with all of the writing, teaching, and video making and will devote myself completely to my project. I still spend a fair amount of time working on my "Kristallnacht" project. It's difficult here and things move very, very slow.  I do have four images of the project showing in San Francisco right now. They are in a show called, "Into the Ether: Contemporary Collodion Work" at RayKo Gallery. I hear the crowd was large and impressed by the work. That makes me happy. However, the German people are the ones that need to see this work. And, moreover, think about it. I'm working on it.