Hey! We're in the paper!!!
The local paper did a little heads up on the show this month. Stoked!!!
Hey! We're in the paper!!!
The local paper did a little heads up on the show this month. Stoked!!!
I had a shoot in Charlotte two weeks ago, which I drove to, expecting to take the scenic route on the way home. Stone Mountain State Park is an hour and a half north of Charlotte, and I've wanted to check it out for a while now.
Living out at the coast, I've sort of started to miss rocks and hills.
Here are a few from a quick drive by of the area...
THE BACK STORY:
This is one of my favorite serendipitous stories I like to tell of my travels. I left home early one morning to make a 6-hour drive up to Ocean City, Maryland for a shoot for Johns Hopkins, and passed this spot on the drive up. I don't usually carry my large format gear with me, but will take it along if I've got a long haul ahead of me.
Anyway...this particular day happened to be outrageously windy, a condition in which hoisting a bulky camera atop a tripod will guarantee blurry photos from the camera shuddering in the wind.
The shoot for Johns Hopkins went incredibly smoothly. So smoothly, in fact, that we shot for about 45 minutes, and I was on my way toward home again. I had intended on sleeping in the car (or ground) near the place I had seen these pound nets on the drive up, but made good time on the way back, and, when I got there, somehow the 30+ mph winds had stopped...completely.
I jumped out of the car, built the camera, and dashed to the shore. The scene before me couldn't have been more ideal. The summer heat had created a beautiful hazy backdrop behind the nets, and the water was reflecting the evening's twilight.
In just under an hour (about as long as my commissioned shoot that day), I made seven exposures, recording these delicate nets on a sheet of silver film. The pairing couldn't have been better...
If you're interested in seeing these pieces in person (they're breathtaking in person), you can view (and purchase) them in 20x24 inch silver gelatin prints at my gallery in Beaufort, NC, or at Rebekah Jacob Gallery in Charleston. I can also ship pieces, and guarantee satisfaction upon delivery.
Fresh off the walls of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, the show ELEMENTS is making its way home to Beaufort for the month of May.
The all black and white exhibit features beautiful coastal scenes from North Carolina to Maine, in silver prints ranging from 16x20 up to 40x50 mural.
A reception is being held Saturday, May 7th from 5-7PM at Mike Basher Gallery, 410 Front Street. Beaufort, NC
ELEMENTS will be on exhibit through the month of May.
Ok...so it's been a bit since I've had time to get to my film from my trip to Charleston a few weeks back. Yesterday, I processed it. Today, I bring you two of the three photographs I made on Folly Island, early one morning. What happened to the third one? Well...let's just say that I made a slight error in its exposure, and the image will just have to live on in my memory.
The joys of film...
Just wanted to chirp out a photo of the view out of the gallery windows. Even a rainy day looks good. Come on down!!!
410 Front St. Beaufort, NC 28516
My feature in the March 2016 artGuide is now online, if you'd like to take an in-depth read through it. Click the image above, or this handy little link.
I did some exploring early last Friday while in Charleston, and found this awesome jetty and the Morris Island Lighthouse just hanging out on a sand bar...barely clinging on to life. Pretty cool. Still need to process the film. Stay tuned for something hopefully better than this phone pic...
I was in town to drop off a few pieces with Rebekah Jacob Gallery, and talk shop. Got some good stuff on the horizon.
Speaking of horizons, here's a cool sunrise on one of the many awesome marshes in the Charleston area. Absolutely beautiful down in those parts. Gotta get down there again soon. Stay tuned for some real photos from the trip...
Update your address book...we've moved!!!
As sad as it was to hand over the keys to our beloved first gallery space, it was because we lucked out on a spot in downtown Beaufort RIGHT ON THE WATER!!!
We're still tweaking the space, and need to get more photos of it, but here's a rough teaser...and the new address: 410 Front Street Beaufort, NC 28516 (inside Handscapes)
Come by and check it out. Hours are 10-6, 7 days a week.
It's alive!!!
Last Friday, we had the pleasure to open my new show ELEMENTS at North Carolina's Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh, and I couldn't be happier. Met some lovely folks, and had some great conversations about a bunch of the pieces...
Below is a little video tour of the exhibit. Check it out...and if you're in the area, stop by and check it out in person! The show is running through the 27th of March.
Thanks to everyone who made this show possible, especially the kind folks at the Nature Art Gallery.
I just went to the mailbox, when what to my wondering eye should appear, but my monthly artGuide. Thomas, the publisher had reached out to me last month, looking to do a feature on my "unique style" of photography. We corresponded a bit, and the magazine went to print.
Well...not only was there a gorgeous write up about the work of yours truly, but to quote Cate Blanchette in The Life Aquatic, it was the EFFING COVAH!!! I'm beyond words.
Here is a link to the newest magazine on issuu: artGuide March 2016.
Check it out. If you're into the arts, artGuide is a tremendous resource for collectors and enthusiasts in the Southeastern US.
The Composition Craven show is wrapping up this weekend, and I gotta say...what an honor to have had the opportunity to contribute what I could to it. Some heavy photographs and stories from our community here in Eastern Carolina.
My collection of portraits for the show focuses on powerful images of four local high school students who are very involved in their community, and are working hard for bright futures.
Here's a little behind the scenes video of me working on it with Kayla Murphy, who was kind enough to stand in to show the process. All of these portraits were shot on a four by five inch sheet of film. The four portraits on the wall behind me are one of three different exposures of each subject. Working this closely to them with large format, you're not left with a lot of error with focus, so I tend to shoot an extra sheet for good measure.
The show is running through the 29th. If you haven't been able to, please go check it out. Not to look at my stuff, but to read the stories of Anytown USA. Humbling.
A HUGE thanks to the Craven County Arts Council for asking me to contribute my take on these portraits to this show, and Elizabeth Ellis for making it happen.
We're beyond excited to announce our teaming up with Rebekah Jacob Gallery. Rebekah is one of the foremost experts in fine art photography in the American Southeast, and a worldwide source for photography acquisitions.
Based in beautiful Charleston, South Carolina, Rebekah and her team have curated a lovely collection of photographers and their works.
Check out: rebekahjacobgallery for more info.
Pound Net I, VI and III were entered into the Arts Council of Carteret County's annual judged show Art From The Heart as a triptych, and the series has won an Award of Excellence!
Last June, while driving north to Ocean City, Maryland for a commercial shoot for Johns Hopkins, I passed an area on the Chesapeake that had some of the most gorgeous pound net frames set up. I had to hustle to get to my shoot that afternoon, so I couldn't photograph the net frames. I'd have to wait until later. Timing aside, the harsh mid-day light and winds gusting to about 30 weren't exactly ideal conditions for working with a big and bulky large format camera.
The commissioned portrait for Johns Hopkins went quickly, and within an hour, I was back on the road headed south for home.
Initially, I had intended on camping in my car along the road on my drive home, parked near some location I had spotted on my drive up. The six hour drive each way with a photo shoot tossed in was probably going to be a tall order. As I turned toward home, this area on the Chesapeake was at the top of my list. I would rise before dawn, and photograph these pound net frames before the contrasty summer sunlight illuminated them, and the scene around them.
As luck would have it, I caught every stop light green, and arrived at my spot just as the sun was vanishing behind the horizon. Even better news was that the 30+ gusts had retired for the evening, and it was dead calm. Perfect.
The atmosphere before me as I set up my camera was one like I'd never seen before. The sticky summer evening had caused a haze so heavy, it was nearly impossible to differentiate the sea from the sky. Over the next hour, I made seven exposures of these pound net frames, creating delicate compositions of them in their stark environment. Working quickly, I captured my last composition as darkness set in, ending the long day.
A few months ago, I happened to drive past this area again, and upon looking at it, quickly realized that my hour one June evening after a very long day of travel and another photo shoot, was a special moment in time.
AWESOMEAWESOMEAWESOME reception last friday for the show alongside Scott Taylor at Beaufort Art Market. Nothing beats a packed house, and great conversation.
Thanks so much for all who made it out. If you missed it, the show is running through February 27th.
For hours and more information, please check out Beaufort Art Market's site.
The month of February, Scott Taylor and I are sharing a show at Beaufort Art Market. It's gonna be all photography, all the time. Scott will be exhibiting his thesis show, and I've got a bunch of black and white photographs up my sleeve, all of coastal scenes. Friday, February 5th is the party. I think it's gonna be a good one!!!
For more info, check out beaufortartmarket.com
I've got four portraits joining an exhibit at Bank of the Arts in New Bern, NC during the month of February. Really looking forward to this portrait show, which will be featuring some great content from a wide array of photographers and walks of life.
My work focuses (pun intended) on four local high school students, all of whom are very involved in school and community activities. All have bright futures, and were incredibly refreshing to work with. Each portrait is simple, but very empowering.
The show runs the entire month of February, and a reception is being held on the 12th from 5-8. If you have a chance, check it out. I think the stories and photographs of people in Eastern North Carolina are going to be incredible.
For more info, check out Bank of the Arts.
I'm a firm believer that every kid is an artist until they're told they aren't. Like any kid, mine are always up to something, whether it's building a village for their train set out of Legos, drawing dinosaurs, or taking the occasional photograph. For them, I think everything is an exploration into their own little world. It's awesome to watch, and I think it's important. I mean...what's life without an imagination?
When Holden (our oldest) was a year old, one of my good friends bought him his first camera: a little digital camera shrouded in rubber. It was basically indestructible, and what he captured with is was always entertaining. Life from three feet.
When he turned two, I gave him a 35mm camera to mess around with (since he had been using a camera half of his life). I had inherited it from somewhere, and felt it would be fun to have him tag along with me and try to get him thinking about taking only the good ones, as he only has 36 opportunities per roll, and Dad wasn't going to feed his camera too often.
While it's not as accessible as a blank sheet of paper and a pencil, photography's inherent limitations need a strategy, which build thought processes for preparing kids for whatever lies ahead...
During the month of February, Scott Taylor and I will be sharing a show at Beaufort Art Market. Scott will be unveiling his graduate thesis show, titled "The Off Season - East of the Bridge", which focuses on the current state of the ten or so tiny, rural fishing towns in the far eastern stretches of North Carolina.
I will be showing existing and new work, all black and white scenes...from cobbles in the Maine surf to outdoor still life studies to grand, sweeping seascapes.
For more info, contact Beaufort Art Market.
It's here...the end of the year. Crazy. Time flies. Makes me think of the drive Char and I did from Southern California back home to Colorado two days after Christmas in 2009. We had our dog George in-tow, and were kidless. Well, sort of. Our first-born was due in just two months, and he kept nice and cozy while we explored a corner of the Southwest we had never visited.
We awoke at 4am in our Grand Canyon hotel room, and eased out into the darkness, driving toward the rim of the canyon, not sure what we were in for. We found a parking spot in the cold abyss, and our headlights hit nothing. We were there, I guess.
Creeping out of the car into one of the coldest mornings I can remember, I grabbed my camera, and we walked toward signs pointing toward Yavapai Point Overlook. Seemed like a good idea.
As the landscape slowly illuminated in front of us, I'll never forget the sense of scale of the canyon. It almost put out its own sound waves. It is deafeningly quiet.
The snow that had fallen the day before gave the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley great depth. Couldn't have asked for better conditions.
Our rest of the drive home to Colorado took us up and over some incredible terrain that evening, and we arrived home 21 hours after we had awoken that morning.