Excited to share the news about the release of my new zine. It is the result of a whirlwind week in Paris. I took to the streets, with a camera in one hand, and a “secret weapon” in the other. Voilà! Here is a teaser video to get you excited. You can order the new zine now via my BigCartel shop, click on the button below.
PLEASE NOTE: These will not ship in time for Christmas arrival, but consider it instead for
a New Year / 2024 gift for yourself or someone you know who loves Paris.
I often struggle with boredom, as noted numerous times in this blog. When boredom sticks around too long, it’s dark sibling depression is not far behind. I could put it more poetically, and say that melancholia and ennui are frequent visitors to my life; part of an ever growing segment of humanity, I know, I know. In any event, the only thing that keeps the wolves at bay, it seems, is activity. Idle hands are the devil’s playground, no joke. I’m grateful to have my little art studio where I can keep my hands and my mind occupied when not much else is going on. No need for grand artistic statements; sometimes it’s just doing “the work” that is its own reward. It’s the process, not the product, after all. Case in point, I started making little, mini zines this week. One sheet of paper, folded a few times, then bound in some scrap test prints. Voila, instant art. Oh, yeah, these things are small. See battery photo above for scale. No matter, it’s a great little exercise in assembly, sequencing and focus. Not sure what I’m going to do with these. They accumulate quickly. Most likely I’ll distribute them freely, most likely anonymously. Small visual haikus for the universe. A small ray of light from the darkness.
Most of my time, I toil on my work alone, isolated in my studio, headphones on, in my own little world. This is not unique to artists or photographers, of course. The pandemic has only exacerbated this isolation. On the plus side, it has proved very productive for me, but I do find the urge to reach out and connect (both literally and figuratively) with other people, other creatives, other photographers.
To that end, I reached out to my frequent collaborator Fábio Miguel Roque in Portugal, and asked him to connect me with one of his frequent collaborators, Peter Oey in the Netherlands. My hope was to work together on “something.” What that was I had no idea. Both of these artists are prolific and create unique photographic work, mostly in book form.
After numerous exchanges over WhatsApp, we devised a plan to collaborate on a set of self-published books. We combined a pool of photos from which we each would pull from, and then design a book in our own chosen manner. The images were loosely based on a common theme (explained in detail at the end of this post) but the final choice and layout was at the discretion of each artist. To further the uniqueness of each book, hand assembly and / or binding techniques were employed. We each produced 14 books in total, 11 to sell, and 3 artist’s proofs…one for each of us.
The entire process took a bit over one month to complete. Quick yes, but also liberating and at the same time, connecting me with two other creative friends, albeit thousands of miles apart. I am proud of this project, and hope you will consider purchasing one at my online shop. But even more important than sales is the satisfaction of forging connections as a panacea for the isolation of the past few years.
IDUARE (old Latin) or IDES refers to the middle day of each month in the Roman calendar. Every month has an Ides, with the Ides of March being the 15th.
The word I des comes from the old Latin verb, iduare, which means to divide. This day became well known as the date of the assassination of Julius Caesar, which made the Ides of March a turning point in Roman history. Julius Caesar heard and ignored the warnings about the Ides of March. That day has since become associated with doomsday.
Doomsday and ignoring warnings of visual signs is our theme for this trinity of books. Each is born out of brainstorming discussions between the three artists.
Each book takes on a unique format, decided upon by each artist; created from a pool of photographs each had submitted for this work, expressing diverse viewpoints on the theme. What unifies each book, beyond the recurrence of images, is a spirit of creative opposition in the face of the complicated, often dangerous world we live in.
Are we soothsayers? Ignore at your own peril.
If you know me, you know that I love to see my photos in print. That extends into photo books, photo zines and everything else related to self-publishing. I also try support other creative people in their pursuit of getting their work into print. To that end I decided to take a big step forward in the interest of community building and sharing each other’s vision. Inspired by conversations with fellow photographers and witnessing the proliferation of little free library‘s all over my hometown, I decided to create my own spin on this concept by creating a photo zine / book exchange.
Thanks to an inside scoop from a friend, I was able to get my hands on an old Albuquerque Journal newspaper distribution box. I cleaned it up and emblazoned it with custom graphics and now this box acts as a public, free, zine exchange. Special thanks to the good folks at Little Bear Coffee on Central Avenue in Nob Hill, Albuquerque for allowing me to place the scene box right out in front of their coffee shop.
I have stocked the box with zines from my personal collection that I have accumulated over the years, mostly from exchanges with other photographers and artists. I have also included some of my own zines just to get the ball rolling. Since it launched a couple of weeks ago it has been exciting to see people participate and even leave their own zines in the box. If you create your own photo zines or art zines or photo books, and would like to take part in this project, please send me a direct message and we can make arrangements for you to send your work. No strings attached, no money exchanged; just sharing the things that we create. Because, isn’t that what art is all about?
Excited to share the details of my newest publication with you. Undertow is a photographic meditation on the majesty, immensity and dark power of the ocean. I had the good fortune of shooting extensively on the Atlantic coast this past summer, and I was so pleased with the experience of shooting in the water, that this zine came together quite quickly and very much to my liking. I am happy to offer the zine to you now.
A sneak peek at the work.
The zine is 30 pages, spiral bound 8.5” x 11 “. The edition is limited to 50 copies, and all are signed and numbered. Cost is $20 plus shipping. I hope you order one today. I am proud of this body of work.
If you have been a frequent visitor to my site, you know that my primary outlet for my work is via self-published zines and books. I am proud to announce the release of three new publications, and offer them to you for pre-sale today.
As 2020 drew to its conclusion, and the new year kicked off in inauspicious fashion, I hunkered down in my studio, focussing on several projects that were in various stages of completion. Social isolation has proven an ideal scenario for me to wrap up these three new publications, and I thought "why not release them all at once?" Though the subject matter definitely has some commonality, each publication has its own unique look and feel. Each is a limited edition, signed and numbered. I am now taking pre-order for a late March shipment.
Collateral Damage: A big step outside my comfort zone. A continuation of the destructive path started with my "Sacrosanct" series. These photo collages are the result of burning, bleaching, melting, cutting, gluing and taping original photo prints to create unique new pieces of art. The oversized format allows the viewer to take a deep dive into the work, exploring textures and colors that deserve to be seen in person. Web galleries pale in comparison. I'm very proud to share this new body of work in this large format zine.
Twelve Kinds of Silence: A zine that took me over a year to produce. Twelve monthly visits to the bosque along the Rio Grande in New Mexico, with a half-frame film camera. One day a month, one roll of film shot each visit. A study in time and change in a location near and dear to me.
Sacrosanct: Based on an earlier publication from the "Flaunt" series, this new zine is an expanded exploration of the film destruction I started in the middle of 2020. Featuring a larger size, more pages, new writing and lots of new imagery.
For the keen-eyed visitor, you will also notice that my website has been updated to include galleries of all three bodies of new work. Viewing online is obviously not the same experience as holding a real object in your hands, but I hope seeing the various images will whet your appetite to make a purchase. So…take a look and if you are willing and able, click the button below to pre-order your copies today. I am extremely grateful and humbled by your ongoing interest and your support. Ars longa, vita brevis.
I apologize if this message is a duplicate of an earlier email from me. I respect your privacy and your patience.
Issue #5 is out now
I’m excited to share my newest self-published project with the world. I created my zine series “Flaunt The Imperfections” a few years ago, when I dove deeply back into film photography. I wanted an outlet for the work I created using my old cameras, all shot on film, showing the grain, contrast and the roughness that I love so much about non-digital image-making. I also wanted to make a strong commitment to the rejection of perfection. I had (and continue to have) a gnawing disdain for the flawlessness of a digitally captured and manipulated photograph. The use of film in old cameras allows for the introduction of happenstance, surprise, and yes, shortcomings and what some might deem as “failure.” The denial of these challenges can so easily be done when you can simply “delete” an image from your camera. Instead, I found these were attributes to exploit, and even celebrate.
The current issue of my zine is a radical step for me creatively. As many of us have felt through the past year…or four years… or even more… I have been afraid, insecure, worried, and angry about the state of the world, and the state of the union. The pandemic has of course weighed heavy on my mind, but so too have other pressing political and environmental issues. The world literally has been on fire. My artistic output has reflected this upheaval. And as I wandered through the remaining “burn scar” in the Rio Grande bosque earlier this summer, I had an abrupt realization that this damage I was witnessing could be reflected in my photography. I somehow decided that the subject matter, nature in general, and the forest and trees in particular, would be a platform for me to explore an intentional destruction and degradation of the film negatives I was creating. I started slowly, experimenting with different film stocks and sources of flame and heat. Then I went further, scraping, piercing, sanding, and then, finally stepping on the strips of film. The metaphors are obvious and need no further explanation.
As is my usual approach, I moved quickly to bring this body of work to publication. I had time to focus on the production (and destruction) of the work, and I worked on the final layout with little hesitation. As such, there are probably elements of the final piece that I might have changed or adjusted, but again, the purpose of this zine series is a celebration of imperfections. It’s all there on the page, like it or not.
I have started taking orders for the zine, and will ship in early November. I you’d like to order a copy, please click the link below. I am proud of this work, and hope to share it with as many of you as possible.
This series of photographs is the result of my reaction to the stay at home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic. I found myself experiencing a wide range of reactions to the situation. in order to help ease my mind, I started taking sunrise walks in my neighborhood here in Albuquerque, New Mexico. i would put in my earbuds and listen to a wonderful album i had stumbled upon, Hiroshi Yoshimura’s “Music For Nine Postcards.” The music is very much in the ambient style and dates from 1982. I found that the music had a calming effect on me, and it also helped me to relax my eyes as I surveyed the morning light, the flora just coming to life, the shadows cast and the brightness of the rising sun. The final set of images in the series are the result of these morning walks. I hope you can find the album on the streaming platform of your choice, and I would also suggest searching on youtube, as someone has posted the entire album there as well. I wish you good health and a still mind as we navigate this new reality.
I hope everyone is dealing as best they can while we ride this thing out. Working from home for the past six weeks has been a rollercoaster of emotions for me. I am grateful to have a job and a paycheck, and a house to work from. But the downside has been a slowly creeping ennui as each day seems to blend with the next, and the charm of not showering and working in sweats has long lost its luster.
Thankfully I’ve still been motivated enough to drag my butt outside most mornings, sometimes for a run, sometimes for a walk. Sometimes with a camera in hand, sometimes with just my phone. I have been careful to listen to my inner voice, and not feel that I need to stay creatively productive during this lockdown. I know many artists and musicians, and I have seen a plethora of reactions to this situation. Some folks have been very publicly sharing their personal process, some folks have shut down completely. There is no correct way for artists to deal with a pandemic. To put unrealistic pressure on ourselves to create some kind of masterpiece during all of this is an exercise in self-flagellation. At the same time, I personally have realized that my photography is something that brings my life meaning. More than my career, currently.
So it was with this mindset that I worked on two zine projects this week. They both happened organically. One arose when I was literally staring at the junk accumulated on my desk. The other was the result of a meditative walk, listening to “Music For Nine Postcards” (mentioned in my post last week.) I sat at my desk, beer in hand, Car Seat Headrest in my headphones, and over two work sessions I pounded out the layouts. Thanks to a discount sale at Magcloud, I was able to print one copy of each zine for a grand total of 12 dollars. Just one copy each. Not sure if there will be more, or if these two will be for my eyes only. A record of these times that will sit on my bookshelf for years to come.
Whatever way you are dealing with the crisis is the right way. There is no judgement, no productivity shaming, no advice, no wrong way. There is only your way. Be OK with it. And stay safe.
Very excited to share a sneak peek at my next project. A collaboration with my friend and fellow Latent Image Collective photographer, Francesco di Marco. The next issue of my film-based zine; this time ALL instant photographs. More details and pre-sale information coming soon.
