A Multi-Post: Photos from Chandler Exhibit, Book Launch Announcement, and New Work: Scannography

The "Art of Place" exhibit at the Chandler Center for the Arts, 71-73 Main Street in Randolph, Vermont, continues until March 8. If you haven't seen it, it is worth the trip.  The art is truly varied and thought provoking and includes hanging art, sculpture, and even a bedroom scene.  Unfortunately the hours of the exhibit are limited to Friday 3-6 PM;  Saturday & Sunday Noon-3 PM .
The art center is also open during the Chandler's frequent performance acts. You can check the Chandler website for information about when they have performances scheduled.

Here are a few photos from the show.

BOOK LAUNCH

Many of you may not know that I was contracted to take black & white photos for a book by Adlerian psychologist and musician, Ron Thompson.  His book, On Cue, Managing Anxiety, Inviting Excellence, covers the management of anxiety, the importance of skill mastery, and the cultivation of loving attitudes towards one's performance. Ron inserts personal stories within the chapters in order to illustrate the concepts, and to add humor. This is where my photos come in.  He and I met regularly at La Brioche Bakery (always indulging in a pastry, of course) to discuss upcoming photo ideas to go along with the stories and occasionally we went on photo shoots together. Although he knew what he had in mind for each photo, he granted me considerable creative leeway in producing them. This was a very different and fun photography project for me, and working with Ron was a joy!

I was also very pleased that Ron chose my photo, Autumn in Black & White for the cover art.

The launch party for the book is Sunday, February 22 from 4-5 PM at Montpelier City Hall, Montpelier, Vermont.  Everyone is welcome!

NEW WORK: THE ART OF SCANNOGRAPHY

I am so excited to be learning a new form of photography called Scannography which uses a high resolution flat bed scanner as a camera. The exquisite images that can be produced often look like they have been taken by large format film cameras. Joanne Urban is considered to be one of the experts in this art form.
She emphasizes the need for patience and a sense of composition to be successful. Her website displays the beauty as well as some haunting effects that can be achieved.  
The flat bed scanner has minimal depth of field so only those objects lying on the glass of the scanner will be be in complete focus. This can create challenges as well as benefits to the finished image.  Here are  my first images.

I started my process with organic, natural objects that I already had around my house and that I find so very beautiful in their simplicity. I now have many, many ideas for future concrete images, and I am formulating thoughts about creating scannography art that displays more ethereal concepts such as identity.

Art Opening: Chandler Center for the Arts

The Chandler Center for the Arts in Randolph ,VT will host the Art of Place from its opening reception on January 17 until March 8, 2015. I am pleased to say that two of my silhouette photographs have been accepted into the show.

Death

Starynka

 

 

 

The call to artists was for art that depicted a sense of place and space without suggesting a literal translation of the words but as a starting point for inspiration and creation. The work of 20 artists will be at the show.

My sense of place was the past, remembering and honoring my father and my paternal grandmother as well as my childhood in an ethnic Slovak community. 

These two pieces came about when a silhouette photography class I was taking coincided with the sixth anniversary of my father's death. Although I didn't consciously work to achieve a feeling of loss, what I created in "Death" clearly depicts the loneliness I feel when thinking of never seeing my dad again.

"Starynka"  holds more nostalgia than sadness though here, too, there is a touch of wistfulness.  My grandmother Buchta was the typical starynka in that she wore babuskas and loose dresses, believed strongly in her catholic faith, baked the traditional kolachki and zazvorniki from her home country, Slovakia.  She holds a special place in my heart, for she took care of me as a baby when my mother and two brothers visited my dad who was stationed away from home in the Navy shortly after World War II.

I will be at the reception at the Chandler on Saturday, January 17.  Here are the details of the show.

Chandler Center for the Arts

71 - 73 Main Street, Randolph, VT  05060

Office phone:  802 728-9878

   

Art of Place

January 17  6 - 9  opening reception with food, music and cash bar

January 18  11am moderated artist panel discussion 

March 8 closing

Gallery Hours: 

Fridays 3 - 5,  Saturdays and Sundays  12 - 2, open during performances