Another Walk About, After Dark
Intentionally or subconsciously…lately I’ve been shooting plenty of pairings. Often completely random – or random-ish – in compelling combinations. Friends, lovers, co-workers, but also people meeting for the first time. I’d like to do more of the latter. Another photo project to assign myself!
Are you listening, more or less?
Last week I had the pleasure of being in the presence of the legendary Genesis P-Orridge not once, but twice. Genesis (born Neil Andrew Megson) is known for pioneering industrial music with Throbbing Gristle, and later for performing with Psychic TV and Thee Majesty. In 1993 Genesis married Lady Jaye and they started their project to become Breyer P-Orridge, a single pandrogynous entity. Genesis Breyer P-Orridge continued this project after the death of Lady Jaye in 2007. Genesis was at the Walker Art Center with film maker Marie Losier for a screening of their movie The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye last Wednesday:
Pandrogyny is a very serious attempt by myself and Lady Jaye to push the boundaries of how people perceive humanity and the body in order to jump-start evolution. We came to the conclusion that this is a larval stage. The human body is not sacred. It doesn’t have to be male or female, that’s just an approximation that came out of primitive nature and we’ve got to a point where we can actually make decisions about how we evolve physically, mentally, spiritually and that’s what pandrogyny is all about.
The film and the Q&A afterward were interesting. I enjoy discussions surrounding different ways of being. Saturday night our local “Institute for the Advancement of Visual Culture” put together a private after party with a performance by Genesis with Thee Majesty. It was AMAZING. And so far beyond my expectations. One of the most memorable shows I’ve ever attended. Punctuated at the end of the performance by a super fan who grabbed the mic at the end to perform her own rendition of Throbbing Gristle’s Discipline. Naturally it turned out to be an old friend of mine.
9th Annual Fools Day Variety Show
Spring sprang and suddenly it’s April. Which means today is APRIL FOOLS DAY. A day I generally try to ignore (ever since my son learned about whoopee cushions) but this year we were invited to a backyard variety show. Billed as “a time for feeling foolish, and acting on those impulses for idiocy!” We only caught the middle part but that included an adorable duo with a guitar and an accordion, a man who sang a funny Irish song about itches in britches, several comedians, a poet, someone banging on pots and pans, and a guy performing yo-yo tricks (while wearing a Blade Runner hoodie).
Battle(s) of the Bands
In some ways, winter in Minnesota can yield more inspiration than our warm weather months can. More time to sit still and allow plans to form. Not that I’ve been sitting still much. With this winter being so very mild I’ve been going out more, instead of falling into the cozy trap of couch and cats and comforters. But even with, and maybe because of, my active social life the ideas for my new photo series have been coming together nicely. I’ve been talking it through with friends and acquaintances and hope to start shooting in early Spring. I’m excited! In the mean time, here are some photos from a few lovely shows I’ve attended so far in 2012.
American Cream / Jabberjosh / The Deaf / Seawhores at Kitty Cat Klub
Cadette, Oaks, Crimes at Memory Lanes
Ice Rod Chatroulette, with Littlefoot and NV
Girls Night Out at the Amsterdam with Hot Rash, Cadette and The Pinsch
Perish at the Kitty Cat Klub, with Bloode Folke and Blood & Sun
The Deaf’s Saturday night residency at Grumpy’s
A Not-Quite-Winter-Wonderland
We’ve had an usually mild winter, for Minnesota. Especially compared to last winter’s epic snowfalls and brutal cold snaps. Right now the poor ice sculptures are melting in Rice Park. They had been championing St Paul’s annual Winter Carnival but it’s more like St Paul slush right now, with temps in the 40s. But the outdoor temperatures didn’t affect what was going inside the RiverCentre last Sunday! It was the St Paul Winter Carnival’s annual Saintly City Cat Club’s Cat Show. And this year I learned my favorite judge was once an opera singer.
Art Sled Rally
I keep missing the U.S. Pond Hockey Championships, “an annual pond hockey event on Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Though an amateur tournament, the competition draws hockey enthusiasts from all over North America, many of whom have pro and college hockey experience.” But we did make it over to the annual Art Sled Rally in Powderhorn Park last Saturday. There was just enough snow on the ground for the sleds to work with. Not that all of them even made it down the hill. Some just tipped right over upon launch. But aerodynamics aren’t the point. Creativity is king (or queen). My son was so inspired he already has a plan for his own sled for the 2013 rally.
Art Shanty Projects
Last but not least, the Art Shanty Projects returned to Plymouth! They are now only happening every other year on Medicine Lake. This year the project was even featured on National Public Radio. We made it out the first weekend (this coming weekend is the last).
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of Year
Since I last posted here I’ve moved house, for the first time in over twelve years. I was so preoccupied with packing and unpacking that the holidays snuck right up on me. But we do have a tree in our new home. Decorated even, with a few gifts under it. And now I’ve got some holiday deals up in my etsy store! Postcards, framed prints and unframed prints. Want to get 50% off your purchase? You have not one, not two, but three ways to do so:
Hooray for social networking. Thanks friends!
In my previous post I mentioned holiday portrait mini sessions. That ship may have sailed but if you would still like to squeeze a session in before the holidays, or perhaps the week between Christmas and New Year’s, shoot me an email.
By the way, the below photos are outtakes from my session with The New Standards, for their holiday micro-site. Enjoy!
A Tale of Two Henrys
Fall is my favorite time of year. The changing of the leaves, the onset of sweater weather, and my most favorite of all holidays – Halloween! I love it all. And I was thrilled when asked to take outdoor portraits during this season for not one but two little boys named Henry. I photographed the first Henry on the day of his first birthday, in the Prospect Park neighborhood of Minneapolis.
The second Henry is double the age of the first. Not much of an age difference really, in the grand scheme of things – two years old versus one – but a huge difference in mobility! This Henry led us on a merry chase around Minnehaha Falls. Up and down stairs and across bridges and pointing out statues and throwing and kicking fallen leaves around.
My own son is just as enthusiastic about Fall and Halloween as I am. There are many spooktacular events coming up this weekend but we may go with an old-timey option, with the Old-Time Halloween at the Gibbs Farm Museum this Sunday, October 30, 2011 from noon – 4:00pm.
In the mid-1800s Europeans, especially Irish immigrants, brought their Halloween traditions to America. Trick-or-Treat at Jane Gibbs’ house; make popcorn balls in the Red Barn; find pennies in a haystack and enjoy a cup of cider!
Before you know it November will upon us and with it the holiday stretch from Thanksgiving to New Year’s. I plan to schedule a few days’ worth of mini sessions at locations around town, like Krueger’s Tree Farm and Pine Tree Apple Orchard. Stay tuned!
A September Wedding on Summit Avenue
Last year I took a walk around St. Paul’s Lowertown neighborhood with a lovely couple, shooting their engagement photos on an uber-hot August day. Fast forward a year and a month and they asked me back, to capture their big wedding day. The weather was much milder this go around but gloomy all morning with the threat of rain. Thankfully the clouds parted, clearing up just in time for the outdoor ceremony. And it was a lovely happening from start to finish.
The Great Minnesota Get Together, 2011
Life has been particularly hectic lately and I worried we might miss out on what has become an annual tradition – my son and I venturing out to the MN State Fair, just the two of us. Hoovering down our favorite food products while pausing now and again to go up in the Sky Ride and down the Big Slide and in and around the crop art and fine arts exhibits. Today was the very last day of the fair and somehow we managed to squeak in – with bonus free tickets, thanks to one friend, and free parking mere blocks away thanks to another. And then we just happened to bump into several other friends while out and about amongst the teeming masses. We had tentative plans to attend a BBQ afterward this evening but we’d had enough of both food and functions and opted to take it easy this Monday-night-that-feels-like-a-Sunday, the last night of summer break before school begins for the boy.
Such a Tease, Such a Flirt
Ahh, hazy lazy summer and too many half-formed drafts hanging out over here. Time to post something! July may have been unbearably hot and humid but it was also jam-packed with many lovely musical happenings. Here’s a sampling of what I enjoyed.
Rifflord at the Hack Factory’s Handmade Music Series – July 25th, 2011
FALSE tour kick-off at Memory Lanes – July 25th, 2011
The Machine Project / Music for Parking Garages curated by Chris Kallmyer at The Walker – July 21st, 2011
The Machine Project / Music for Parking Garages curated by Chris Kallmyer at The Walker – July 21st, 2011
Harvey Milk at Triple Rock Social Club – July 18th, 2011
Davu Seru at the Gartersnake – July 17th, 2011
Elaine Evans at the Gartersnake – July 17th, 2011
john zuma st.pelvyn at the Gartersnake – July 17th, 2011
Harvest at Triple Rock Social Club – July 16th, 2011
Disembodied at Triple Rock Social Club – July 16th, 2011
The Chambermaids at The Kitty Cat Klub – July 2nd, 2011
Grant Hart at Grumpy’s Downtown – July 2nd, 2011
Maledicere at the Turf Club – June 30th / July 1st, 2011
Blood Folke at The Turf Club – June 30th / July 1st, 2011
Grain Belt at The Turf Club – June 30th / July 1st, 2011
