Over the Thanksgiving weekend we were down in Dallas visiting our daughter, Caitlin. We went to see the Dallas Cowboys play on Thursday, had Thanksgiving dinner after that and then spent the rest of the weekend just enjoying ourselves. On Friday Linda and Caitlin went shopping and I went to one of my favorite museums, the Dallas Museum of Art. I’ve been there 3 times now I think. It’s a large museum with an extensive permanent collection in all the major areas of art. It also has rotating exhibitions, usually at least 3-4 at a time. This time the major show was ‘Bouquets’. That means it was paintings of flowers. Not my favorite genre. It could even be my least favorite genre actually.
I knew this in advance and was thinking of going to the outdoor Sculpture Museum across the street instead but for some reason I forget now, maybe it was cold or rainy, I opted to go to the Museum anyway. I had my camera with me and figured at least I would be able to work on my ongoing ‘Museum Compositions’ series. I also knew that the exhibition had at least one Matisse painting in it so it couldn’t be all bad.
One of the good things about the DMA is they allow photography (without flash) everywhere, even special exhibitions. Most museums allow photography but not in the temporary exhibitions. Some, like the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, don’t allow any photography at all. So, I went traipsing around the museum and took some photos.
Drawing
I also did a drawing while I was there. It wasn’t in my sketchbook but rather in a gallery in the Bouquet’ exhibition where they had an actual bouquet of flowers for people to draw. They had paper and pencils and places to sit. I had a pen with me, the type I use in my sketchbook, so I used that on one of their pieces of paper to capture the scene. There was a place to put up your art work once you were finished but I didn’t want to let go of mine. I rolled it up and brought it home thinking I might color it later on. It got hidden in a bag I brought home and I didn’t find it again until last week right before my road trip to Virginia.
One of my goals for 2015 is to follow through on more of my artwork so I figured I needed to scan the drawing and put it out there before it got forgotten.
A drawing of someone drawing flowers in an exhibition of paintings of flowers at the Dallas Museum of Art.
Photographs
I didn’t capture many shots I liked but here are two I think stood out.
Museum Composition – Bouquet #1
This is one of the favorite ‘Museum Compositions’ images I’ve taken. The pose this woman unconsciously struck as she looked at the painting was exquisite and I quickly got off 3-4 photos of her standing there. I later went up to her and asked her if she was a dancer since the pose looks so much like one a dancer would strike. She said she wasn’t and I told her she sure had the posture of one. She took it as a very nice compliment and I was happy about that.
Museum Composition – Bouquet #2
I like the color combinations in this one and I especially like the interaction between the two people.
Earlier during my cemetery walkabout, right as the sun went down, I happened upon a lone superhero starting her overnight vigil overlooking the city. She was strong and disciplined. I asked her how she got to be a superhero. She said she always wanted to be one and found that the local university had it as a major. She graduated in 3 years with a major in SuperHero Studies and a minor in Civil Engineering. Her day job is with the Army Corp of Engineers.
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The Zombie Pirate Queen
During my cemetery visit I also met the Zombie Pirate Queen. She was desperately looking for something more to eat. I pointed her in the direction of downtown, telling her the bar scene was hopping there and she should find someone to her liking. She thanked me and ran off, but not before giving me her business card, telling me to let my wife know she sold Avon on the side and could give her a free makeover.
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The Night Ninja
I was taking a leisurely midnight stroll around the cemetery when I saw Jack and the Night Ninja doing a bit of competitive grave robbing. I told them they could get a lot more work done if they worked cooperatively instead, which they did. In the end they made their deadline and planned to meet later at IHOP for breakfast.
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The Night Ninja skulked around me for a while after she was done grave robbing. She wanted to know why I was taking photographs and if I worked for the NSA. I told her no, but I was lying. I finally got her off my back when I gave her a coupon I had to Ulta and told her they had a 50% off sale on eyeliner.
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Unfortunately for the Night Ninja she never did get to have breakfast at IHOP with Jack. She instead met her demise at the hands of the Corpse bride who, in spite of being all in white, surprised the Night Ninja while she was checking her Snapchat. The Bride had just been left at the alter and hadn’t eaten all day so Night Ninja had an unfortunate end.
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Sally and Jack
I met Sally in a corner of the cemetery where she was waiting for her blind date. She had been set up by her Sorority sister, Drusilla, with her younger brother. She was quite scared of being alone in the cemetery and was happy to know there were others around. When her date, Jack, showed up out of the dark, hand first, she got so scared she peed a little.
Later in the evening I saw Sally and Jack enjoying a romantic moment sitting on a tomb. Jack had a big smile but Sally was worried about finding a bathroom.
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The Lady in Black
When I arrived at the cemetery she was the first person I came across. But she said nothing, she just looked watched me as I passed. Wherever I went, she was nearby, ever silent, ever watching. After the night was over I finally got up the nerve to talk to her. I asked her what she was doing in the cemetery. She stared at me intently, never blinking and said, “I am your eternal witness that these events were real.”
People tend to put professional photography into a very serious box. It’s used to show the worst of humanity and nature, a very serious thing. It is also used to show the highlights of both, which ironically is usually just as serious. It is true that in recent years, with the advent of the cell phone camera and the internet, everyday snapshots of very funny events and juxtapositions have proliferated. But in professional photography, seriousness still is given the top shelf on which to reside. It’s not that different than in cinema. Funny movies and comedic actors just don’t get the same level of respect and reward as do those that are serious.
But, in spite of that, we still have great comedic movies and actors. We also have some very funny photographers. Foremost among them in my mind is Elliot Erwitt. He is one of my all time favorite photographers. He spent 50+ years as one of the preeminent photographers photographing the world. He was a founding member of Magnum, the elite photography agency started by Robert Capa mid-twentieth century. He eventually became its president. He took some of the most iconic and important political and social photographs of that century. He was a VERY serious photographer. At the same time he was the least serious photographer you will ever find.
The perspective of Erwitt is not to be purposely funny. It’s to record a world that has interesting juxtapositions that can sometimes be very funny. They can also be poignant and stark in their irony and pathos as they reveal the human condition.
Dogs and other animals
No one has ever been better at capturing the humanity of the Dog and other animals.
I have been drawing and photographing the nude figure since I was 17 years old in High School. As I matured, one of my goals in doing the nude has been to juxtapose the inherent sensuality of the nude with something that offsets it. It can be humor, a unique visual perspective or something disturbing. I want there to be an element that draws people away from the sensuality just enough to make them stop and think about it. I was inspired in that direction in no small part due to Erwitt and other photographers ability to do that so successfully.
I have focused only on what I think are his humorous pieces. He took photos of some of the worlds most important leaders and entertainers as well as some of the iconic national moments in America. If you like what you see here, do an information or image search of Elliot Erwitt. There are fantastic collections of his work out there as well as revealing articles and histories of his place in 20th century photography. He’s well worth exploring further.
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You can see and read the entire ‘Artists I love’ series here or by going through the list below.
Recently I did a fitness photo shoot at Chandler Park here in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I was using the shoot as a scouting trip for a larger shoot I am planning with my PHOTOG group I help lead here in town.
I was originally thinking of the shoot as being runners and cyclists but then decided Yoga would be best in an environment of rocks, cliffs and tree roots.
I knew A friend of mine, BR, who had modeled for me before, was doing Yoga regularly and asked her if, once again, she would model for me. She was more than up for it and these photos are the result of our collaboration.
It was fun, but it was not an easy shoot. The landscape was rocky, with fallen trees, sheer rock faces and trails that went up and down at steep angles. In addition it was a hot and steamy morning that had us sweating from the git go. While I had to carry a camera and a few bags and that took some effort, BR did the bulk of the hard work, posing in intense yoga poses, climbing up and down high stone monoliths, balancing on very small spaces very high up. She’s a fantastic muse who inspires me with her courage, creativity, intelligence, beauty and fitness.
Hidden Yoga
Around this same time I gave a lecture at my photo group called ‘The Photo Essay’ in which I explained some details of what constitutes a photo essay and what gave examples from photographers past and present.
I chose a small group of images from my Yoga shoot that I felt held together as an essay on the idea of the yoga practitioner being hidden in the landscape.
Yoga on the Rocks
There were a number of other photos where BR was not so well hidden. That group is titled ‘Yoga on the Rocks’. Here is a selection.
Through it all BR kept a smile (except when I asked her not to) and a great attitude!
There had to be a million or so people around the globe watching and photographing the Bloodmoon last night. I was one of them.
My friends on Facebook seemed very happy when I posted these. I wouldn’t be surprised if many of you, the Napkin Kin, also are happy that I posted here. Of course, they, and you, could go to a thousand other better photographers’ websites or social media sites and see much better photos of the moon. Why did they respond with comments like “Marty: Thank you for capturing this. Now I am happy. I was sad, that I missed it.”? I think it’s because relationship connections are what it’s about. Evette, who posted that comment, knows me. She knows I posted this to share with her and my friends. That means something to her. I am not a magazine, I am not a photo agency, I am not removed from her. I am connected.
It’s no different than when a friend of mine gets to go to a special event. If I see photos they took of it or read their description and feelings about the event, I feel connected. I am happy and grateful they shared it with me. I am experiencing it with them and through them. It’s not the same as just any old photo of the event by a stranger.
Linda mentioned as we were looking at the moon how many others on the planet were looking at the same thing at the same time. It’s an amazing thought. What takes that thought to the land of happy wonder for me is how many of my friends around the globe either saw it or felt connected by seeing my photos of it.
I think we live on a pretty cool orb. I love that we have been blessed to be conscious of it and intelligent enough to explore it, and the universe beyond, together. Knowing there is friendship and love at that heart of it all gives all that wonder and awareness the greatest meaning and value in my book.
As I’ve mentioned, I spent almost a week down in Austin, TX at SXSW (South By Southwest) Interactive at the beginning of March. I had my DSLR camera with me but I actually took a lot more photos with my iPhone and iPad mini than I did with my larger camera.
Workshop Portraits
I led a 2 1/2 hour workshop on the first day titled ‘The Compelling Image in the Age of Social Media’. A lot of the hands on activities I had the participants do were related to portraiture and to composition using a simple cell phone. I also participated some in taking pics and below are examples of what I was teaching them.
Portrait Model for my Workshop at SXSW
Portrait with Eyebrow at SXSW
A simple front lit portrait is a great way to get a good photo without much work. Including the environment around the model helps identify her in an actual place, filling out her identity and giving a mood or feel to the image.
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Partial Portrait Model for my Workshop at SXSW
Partial Portrait Model for my Workshop at SXSW
Heels and Guitar Shadow at SXSW
Portraits of people with just part of their face, or without any part of their face, showing is one of my favorite ways to emphasize character and style and place. I had them work on that idea of ‘partial portrait’ and also taught them how to take photos of strangers. I practiced what I preached in the middle photo, asking a volunteer at the conference center if I could take a photo of her necklace and earrings.
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Conference Portraits
Gaming Glasses at SXSW
She was modeling and selling ‘gaming glasses’ at the Gaming Expo of SXSW. I had no idea what they were at first, I thought it was just a sunglass company selling their wares. But she explained that the glasses helped reduce glare, blue light and eye strain for gamers who are at the monitor or TV for hours at a time. That interested me because my daughter Rebekah the Neuroscientist (yes I am bragging) is also a fierce gamer. I took this woman’s pic and messaged it to Beka at the time to show her the glasses.
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Subway Lounge
Woman with One Eye Open at SXSW
I was at the outdoor Subway lounge charging my iPhone and struck up a conversation with one of the Subway hostesses/models. She wasn’t in a costume at the time but she told how she had been earlier and how cool it was. The costume was designed by a hot and upcoming fashion designer in Austin who used nothing but Subway material for the costume. I really wanted to see it but that promotion was done for the day.
The lounge had this very odd plant block with flowers on top in the middle of it and I found myself trying to figure out how to place it in an image. I asked her to model for me with it in the background and she was open to the idea. If you’ve ever seen my photo-collages you know I do a lot of ‘one eye open, one eye closed’ images and I had her pose both ways. I later collaged the two images to get this one.
I went back the next day and lo and behold there were two models in the costume she had mentioned. I asked them if I could take photos of their backs (another part I take a lot of photos of) and after initially wondering ‘uh?’ said ok. I posed them on either side of the bizarre plant block. That combined with the symmetrical trashcans made for a pretty interesting image I thought.
Subway Models at SXSW
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Kat
While I was in Austin I wanted to finally meet a long time Flickr friend, Kat. We have known each other via our photos for 6 years or so but have never met in person. She came and picked me up one morning and took me to a cool coffee spot in Austin not far from the convention center. We then took a short side trip around back where there were some brightly colored building so we could have a mini-shoot.
I took most of the pics with my DSLR camera but I took one with my iPhone so I could use them as a new example in my presentation about the capabilities and power of the camera in your pocket. Here are the pics, can you guess which one is from the cell phone?
Kat #1
Kat #2
Kat #3
Kat #4
Put your guess in the comments and I will let you know in a day or two which one is right.
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SXSW at Night
At night the conference spilled out onto 6th street, the main entertainment drag in Austin. I wasn’t with anyone so I just wandered around looking for interesting scenes. Here are a few I caught.
Street Scene at SXSW
Robot Love at SXSW
Performers at SXSW
Grumpy Cat at SXSW
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Rain
Two Reds on a Gray Day at SXSW
Rain dominated the weather for a few days of the conference. As I walked from the bus stop to the convention center early one morning I saw this woman in bright red pants brighten up what was otherwise a completely gray/brown landscape. When I turned after passing her I noticed the red sign in the distance and loved the balance of the two. I originally posted it on Instagram, that’s the reason behind the square format.
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Street Mystery
Composition with Mystery at SXSW
And of course in taking street photos you often don’t know what you are going to get. Here I captured a moment right between two people walking by. I was paying attention to the person all in purple but I caught a sweet spot right between that person and the cape leading the way. It’s an arrow and a mystery.
I really was focused on learning and networking and didn’t take nearly as many interesting photos as I usually do. Next year I will take more!
Over the 4th of July long weekend Linda and I went to visit our daughter, Caitlin, in Dallas, Texas. We had a lot of things planned for the week, including some time I reserved for myself to go museum hopping. I was planning to drive over to Fort Worth and see the Amon Carter Museum of American Art which I had never seen before, but time constraints directed my choice to the Dallas Museum of Art which I also had never seen before and was much closer to Caitlin’s apartment.
The fact that the museum was free all summer helped in that decision, as did the special exhibition, ‘The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece’. There had recently been an exhibition at my hometown Tulsa’s Philbrook Museum of Art on the same general topic which I loved, so I thought I would continue my education in that area by taking in this exhibition as well.
Two Structures – Museum Muse #1
The Museum as Muse
I have been doing a series for many years now called Museum Compositions. I also photograph people quite often and frequently refer to the person I am photographing as my muse. I realized while putting together the images this morning for this post that one of my most compelling muses of all is the museum. Not a specific museum, but all museums. No wonder of course since they aren’t called museums by accident. They house the muses. And to me the house it self is a muse. I am compelled to explore, discover, reach for, secretly find, the perfect composition within the walls of the museum.
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‘Two Dark Muses’ – Museum Muses #2
Finding the formal and the casual creates a perfect moment for me.
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‘Muse and Design’ – Museum Muses #3
The people within the museum are also my muse. It is the relationship of the living to the historic, the flesh to the stone, the real to the ideal, the moving to the static, that excites me.
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‘Phallus and Look’ – Museum Muses #4
And sometimes the relationship between human and object is found within the art itself.
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‘Muse and Vortex’ – Museum Muses #5
You know how a wildlife photographer will tell you he or she has to wait for a long time to get the perfect shot of that animal looking just the right way? It’s the same for me in a museum. I am looking for the location, the juxtaposition of elements in space, of content in relationship to each other. But I am also waiting for the moment the living muse passes by. The moment when they are in perfect relationship to the space and art. I love that moment. I am a hunter of that.
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‘Muse, Man and Boy’ – Museum Muses #6
Compositionally I look for the highest level of formality. I am driven to find the perfect division. In half often, sometimes in thirds. I am looking for a rigorous balance of visual weight.
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‘Muses in Red and Green’ – Museum Muses #7
The mystery of the Museum Muse is that they inspire but they are not known.
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‘Muse at Work’ – Museum Muses #8
Splitting images exactly in half, either vertically, horizontally or both, allows me to fragment and unify the image at the same time. I love the simplicity of the compositional device, and the discipline it takes to find the the composition keeps me pure in focus.
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‘Beautifully Filled Space’ – Museum Muses #9
This quote embodies the root idea behind my compositional efforts.
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‘Dream and Image’ – Museum Muses #10
Contemplation that is embodied in the composition of the image and in the people in the images attracts me.
‘Muse and Waterfall’ – Museum Muses #11
The adrenaline of having to explain myself pumps at moments like these.
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‘Muse on Muse’ – Museum Muses #12
This moment of seeing the living and created muse so blended was sublime. I felt she was taking a photo of herself.
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‘Yellow Muse’ – Museum Muses #13
He split the scene in two and at the same time brought the two sides together. I love when that visual moment occurs.
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‘Ancient Greek And Muses’ – Museum Muse #14
One of my favorite things about museums is how you can see through from one space to another. I like finding the formal composition while seeing through to new spaces.
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‘Formal Muse’ – Museum Muses #15
Sometimes for me the image can be devoid of a human and still be filled with humanity. I found the formality of this visual composition so strong I didn’t think any living thing would enhance it.
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‘Wall Piece and Muse’ – Museum Muses #16
I like when images defy gravity and sense, much like life.
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‘Sleeping Muse’ – Museum Muses #17
Storytelling with art, people and no words is a recurring phenomenon in a Museum.
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‘Male and Female Muses’ – Museum Muses #18
I loved finding the refined and the rough together. As well as the real life muses partially seen, as if in a De Chirico painting.
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Muse with Red Purse – Museum Muses #19
The anonymous woman, reserved but stylish, silhouetted against the grey, was as beautiful as the artwork. Finding them together made both more beautiful to me.
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Muses Coming and Going – Museum Muses #20
Everyone in a museum is a Muse. Everyone and everything is art.
In 2011 I did a Sunday series on my photography (you can see them in the drop down series menu on the right under ‘Photographic Sunday’). I have created a lot of new images since then so I thought I would do a few more editions of ‘Photographic Sunday’ for you.
Museum Compositions
I LOVE to go to museums. In the past year I have gone to:
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, New York)
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (San Francisco, California)
William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum (Little Rock, Arkansas)
Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum (Independence, Missouri)
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art (Bentonville, Arkansas)
21c Museum (Bentonville, Arkansas)
Philbrook Museum of Art (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
Perot Museum of Nature and Science (Dallas, Texas)
Six of those visits came when I planned in an entire extra day on a trip I was on just to see the Museum, that’s how important it is to me. One of the reasons I love museums is because of the incredibly diverse interior and exterior spaces that I find. Add to that the range of people and their juxtaposition with the art and each other and it is always ripe for what I think are pretty compelling compositions. Let me know what you think.
Museum Composition with Two Women
Museum Composition Inside Out
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
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Museum Composition with Race 1
Museum Composition with Race 2
Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum
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Museum Composition with Humans and Dinosaur Tail
Museum Composition With Orange and Depth
Perot Museum of Nature and Science
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Museum Composition with Bridge and Guard
Museum Composition with Pants
William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum
Welcome back Napkin Kin to part 2 of my portraits of 2012. Yesterday I covered the Second half of 2012, July-December. Today I am showing the first half with a bit of overlap, January to July.
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Niece, San Diego, CA, 7/12Niece Jumping at Sunset, Del Mar, CA, 7/12
My drive down from Northern California in July ended with me at my sister’s house in San Diego. I took advantage of the opportunity to do a photo shoot of my young niece. She was quite the natural and loved posing in the backyard and on the beach where I grew up. My sister Jackie of course did a little stage mom thing, hovering, directing, etc. But my niece was a natural and didn’t need much help. She looks a lot like our late mother and that was an extra blessing of being able to photograph her.
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Julia Wade, New York City, NY, 6/12
I went to New York City in June to speak and attend Blog World. I met up with a dear friend whom I worked with back in the 80s and 90s at Eulipia Restaurant in San Jose, CA. Then Julia was a struggling student focusing on opera. I did a number of drawings of her back then in various opera costumes for a huge drawing (I never finished). Now she is now a very well known international recording artist of inspirational/spiritual music. We found some time to walk and talk early one morning before our days started. This was taken at a park right on the edge of the Hudson River. She has a blog called ‘Inspiratus‘. Check out the interview she did with me back in 2009 and then click on home to see her latest entries about her new CD.
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Meredith Wood in Blue, Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York City, 6/12
While I was at the Blog World conference I, of course, needed to eat. Not knowing any good places around the convention center I did what any good social media person would do, I tweeted ‘who wants to go to dinner?’ using the Blog World hashtag. I got a number of responses and ended up going to dinner with Meredith and 2 others. Meredith is from NYC and knew exactly where to go for the best meal, which it was.
Her eyes are almost as brilliant blue as my wife Linda’s and when we returned to the conference I realized her and her eyes would stand out fantastic against the blue that was everywhere in the brightly lit lobby. The next day we found an extra 10 minutes to take some quick shots. I was up on a bench to make sure I got the best blue background.
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Michelle Linn, Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK 6/12Michelle Relaxing, Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK 6/12
I have been doing a photo-collage series for a number of years now called IN Public/Private. It is of reporters and anchors in the Tulsa area. When my napkins started getting attention and reporters came over to interview me I basically told them, ‘You can interview me if I can take pictures of you’ and that is how it started. In many cases I offered to take some ‘normal’ photos (my version of normal at least) in exchange for them posing for my collage image idea. I also asked them to publicize my project to their co-workers to see if they also might be interested in collaborating.
Michelle was very excited about the idea and we met for the very first time at Philbrook to take the photos. Here are a few of the portraits I took of her. She was an enthusiastic delight and has since become a wonderful friend.
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Renaissance Faire Kiss, Muskogee, OK, 5/12Renaissance Faire Gossip, Muskogee, OK, 5/12
In May I led a group of photographers at an outing to the Renaissance Faire. The theme of the shoot was ‘stranger portraits’ and I spent some time before hand explaining to the group how to go about asking strangers to pose for you. Of course, at a venue like the Renaissance Faire, it really isn’t all that necessary to ask since all the participants already know they are going to be photographed and most of the visitors are dressed up and want to be as well. But it is good to know anyway because you often might have to ask them to move from where they are standing or sitting to get a good shot. Here are 2 double portraits I took while I was there.
My step-daughter Caitlin (whose portraits can be seen in part 1 yesterday) was an Apparel Design major at Baylor University. She had her senior collection show in April of 2012 and I was lucky enough to do the photo shoot for the collection. We found one of the most beautiful cemeteries I have ever seen to do the shoot, less than a mile from Caitlin’s house. Here are two of the photos from the shoot.
We also were incredibly lucky to have our first choice of model to bail on us. It freaked Caitlin out a bit of course but the result was we got Rebekah Campbell as our model instead. She had never done a real fashion shoot before and Caitlin was a bit worried about that. Luckily we had nothing to worry about. She was fantastic in her poses, facial expressions, taking directions and overall professional demeanor.
In addition it turns out she is an fine art major focusing on painting so we had an instant connection creatively. I am encouraging her to pursue both modeling and painting as best she can, I have no doubt she will be successful in both.
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Portrait in Black and White, Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK, 2/12Woman in a Museum, Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, OK 2/12
In February I took that same photo group I mentioned above to Philbrook Museum of Art. This time the focus was on Black and White. We weren’t only going to have the finished result in BW but actually set the camera to BW so they could see what they were getting from the outset.
One of the photographers had his wife along with him but she was not doing any photography. I persuaded her, in spite of her initial shyness, that she would be a fantastic model for those of us who wanted a person in our images. She eventually got into it and it made for some great images as a result.
