Land of Temptation

So as some may or may not know, Christina and I have a soft spot for locales that are heavy on escapism, and if not WDW, then what better place to go for a couple of days than Las Vegas. Now I am not sure if we will in fact get away, last time I took some time off for a trip I ended up spending it in lovely Towson, but if we do manage to get there we will be relaxing at the Golden Nugget. Now this will be a first for us, we have stayed at the Rio, and the Venetian, but never downtown so it should be pretty exciting. Now if we do indeed go, which will be for a Birthday Party, I will be taking along the Mamiya 7 so I can do a little shooting, while we wander around. Neither Christina or I have much of a taste for gaming, but we love the shopping (window), the food, and the overall ambiance of the city. So wish us some luck in getting out of town, and I will hopefully be able to share some new work from Vegas. Until then the hopes and dreams captured in WDW will have to hold us over. Keep your fingers crossed...

"Untitled" from 32380

Options and Motives

So yesterday I spoke with some of my classes about cameras, we discussed how we can talk about them, describe them, how and why cameras differ, and some of the corresponding strengths and weaknesses. In doing so I showed them my antique 8 x 10 field camera. This thing is a relic, it is over 100 years old at this point, but it still more or less works. Anyway when ever I share it the students find it rather interesting, and usually are curious as to whether or not it still works, and in fact it does. This is an image from "Interior Motives" that I am particularly fond of. It was shot using Fuji Crystal Archive color paper as the negative, which I rated at ISO 12.

"Untitled" from Interior Motives, a 8 x 10 contact print

Clowning Around

So it is spring beak and what better way to celebrate than going to the Circus. Initially we had planned on going to Texas to see Christina's folks, relax, have some Mexican food, watch Nicholas Cage save us from doom, but alas the flights did not look so good, thus with Cirque du Soleil being in town with Kooza, we thought...why not. For those who have not been to the Cirque shows, they are quite entertaining, there are wonderful costumes, amazing feats of strength and balance, music, and of course clowns. The first show we saw was La Nouba, it is a permanent show located in the Happiest Place on Earth, we saw another show when it visited Baltimore about 3 years ago and kooza makes my 3rd. Christina on the other hand I think has seen just about everyone they have, but she also has gone in conjunction with work, etc etc.

In addition to seeing Kooza this weekend, I hope to go and finish having framed a David Shrigley print that we have. We bought it about a year ago, we got got a frame made for it but we balked when it came to buying the glass. I am not sure why it has taken this long to go head and finish getting the thing done but I guess it is one of those things. Christina has mentioned wanting to take some time aside this weekend and finish/start some projects and taking care of The Human Body is one of the former. Well I guess that is about it for now, I plan on posting another drawing or two from Lineweight so check back soon, and I hope everyone is having a wonderful start to Spring!

"The Human Body" Limited Edition Screenprint by David Shrigley

Anonymous Letters...

So here are two more drawings
from Lineweight,
one of them has the thought that was being sent, which happens to be Letters of Resignation, the other drawing however, does not have the thought listed for it's title. Now typically I might be a bit hesitant to post a drawing without a thought attached, but I really liked this drawing so I have decided to do so anyway. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.


"Anonymous Thought" and "Letters of Resignation" Telepathy Drawings made by visitors of Lineweight at Truman State University.

Kelly Green

So while I was at Montgomery College today one of my colleagues mentioned to me that there was to be an opening tonight, which I sadly could not attend, for a print making show, highlighting many works found in the counties print collection. Among the various works, one could find pieces by Dine, Christainberry, but what struck my fancy was a Ellsworth Kelly lithograph of one his leaf drawings. It is relatively large, 28x36 in. (aprx) and truly striking. I have been a fan of these images for quite some time, ever since I saw the book of drawings comparing/contrasting Kelly's plant drawings with those of Matisse. Anywho it was really a treat to finally get to see one in person, and I must say it was quite extraordinary.

So in honor of that, and in relation to a NPR segment talking about deforestation in Africa, and the resulting rise in green house gasses, I thought I would go with a plant photograph this time. This image was taken in the Animal Kingdom, and was in the "Cambodia-ish" area, if I remember correctly. I snapped it right before we hitched a safari ride and saved a baby elephant from poachers, but that is a story for another time.

Great Wall of Japan

So as some of you may or may not know Christina and her brother Stevie were both born in Japan, so every time we go to EPCOT we must show the proper amount of respect to her birth land by spending an appropriate amount of time shopping in the Mitsukoshi Department Store. There you can buy everything from Sake and Bonsai Trees, to trying your luck finding a pearl in an oyster, ps I think that is rigged, everyone seems to be a winner.

Anyhow, it is one of our favorite stops when we go, we ussually check out the drums, and while Christina is looking at the dishes (she loves the dishes) I like to swing by the tin toy exhibit. Last time we were there, I got to show that to my Dad, and he got a real kick out of them.

Anyhow this is a shot going over the moat into the back of the store, I will add some more pictures eventually.

Staples from the Show

So here is another image from the Lineweight Show. The thought was Blue Stapler Stapling Paper.

I will post some more images soon. There were such a number of wonderful drawings that were made in Missouri, I wish I could post them all, but that would probably be a bit much.

Christina and I have had a lot of fun looking at all the work that was made during the show, and I really am digging this one, partly because it looks like an old style satellite, and of course being a David Bowie fan, satellites and changes, well what's not to like.

"Blue Stapler Stapling Paper" Telepathy Drawing made by visitors of Lineweight at Truman State University.