The Gas Kiln Gods @ Creative Clay Studios

This weekend I visited the Creative Clay Studios located in Alexandria, VA with my friend and colleague, Terry deBardelaben. Terry had finished sculpting and bisque firing a rather large vessel and was taking her work to be glazed and fired at Creative Clay Studios. As stated on their web site, “Creative Clay Studios is Northern Virginia’s home for clay artists”. The space allows artists to use the space as they would their own studio while maintaining a larger inventory of all things clay than the average professional artist would be able to keep. Much like an open studio darkroom used to function back in the day. Creative Clay also is a place for artists at all levels, to learn different ceramic techniques and provides  a place of community for the ceramic artist working in the Washington DC metro area.

While I was there I met Ed Bull the founder of Creative Clay Studios. Ed loves fire! He is a Ceramic Fireman. While Terry and I were there, Ed was conducting a Valentine’s Couples Workshop. Pretty cool stuff! Couples taking the workshop create separate personal “gifts” for each other or work on a project together.  Anyway, Ed took great joy and pride  explaining how the Studio’s variety of kilns operate. He reminded me of the fact that there’s quite a lot of alchemy involved in the creation of ceramic art. The earth, water, assorted chemistry of color glazes all brought together through the magic elements of fire and timing. I really hadn’t heard that stuff since my days at University as an art student. It was fun to hear again. It was also cool to see Ed interacting with the professional artists that were in the studio. Conferring and interacting with them as colleagues and as Master Craftsman.

While at Creative Clay with Terry, I used the time to do impromptu documentation of her as she worked on this piece of artwork. I’ve been photographing and videoing her as she’s been working on her many projects. In fact, I was with her earlier that afternoon at her school were she provides Open Studio for her students at the St. Steven and St. Agnes Upper School. I was editing video I shot  at a workshop  she conducted about sustainability and making art. The Creative Clay Studio is a visually engaging  space. When she was finished working I told her I wanted to make a portrait of her in the space. Then Ed came back into the kiln room, and I asked him if I could photograph him too. I belive a got a couple of good environmental portraits of these two artists and I share them now with you.

Terry deBardelaben, Artist/Scholar @ The Creative Clay Studios. ©Jarvis Grant

Ed Bull, Artist & Fireman, Founder at Creative Clay Studios. ©Jarvis Grant

Nancy, ©Jarvis Grant

A few month ago, I launch a proposal on USA Projects. I was seeking funding for, Citizens We. At that time I was looking to get $5000 for an upgrade to a new 24 inch Epson printer. Well, I didn’t make my goal and the USA Projects aspect of the project folded. With USA Projects it’s an All or Nothing deal. The odd thing is that while I got nothing from the USA Projects part of it, Citizens We actually began to pick up speed and developed a life of its own. People in the community bought into it, and it started to develop a life of its own.

The strange thing about the “Crowd Funding”  model was that many of the people I actually knew, friends and family,  didn’t support the project. They all wanted to write me a check! But, that’s not how this model works.  With Crowd Funding, you “pledge” an amount to a 3rd party organization. Three folks I knew, my daughter, Maya, and two Howard University classmates, Clarissa Sligh and Dan Wade, along with a former student, which I believe was Chris Belcher (or Chris Smith) bought into the process. The rest were strangers! Now, as disheartening as this was, I came out of the experience feeling pretty good. A colleague  of mine Debra Weiss gave me a call from LA to let me know she believed in the project and would add her support for it to continue. That call was HUGE to my ego and my sense that the Citizens We was an important project to keep pushing forward.

Back in December of 2011 another friend and colleague, Joanne Henson, offered me an opportunity to setup an impromptu studio at her Holiday Craft Bazaar. This afforded me the change to setup the studio, and solicited people to be a part of the project.  Along with making the photographs was doing the paperwork for Citizens We. This would not have been accomplished without the help and encouragement of my friend and now Project Director, Terry deBardelaben. Terry was the one who gave me the idea of a community portrait project, and her support has been my most valuable asset. Photographers like to believe they can do everything by themselves. At least that’s what their PR hype will push forward. But now I see that all artists need someone to manage the details. Or if are not managing those details, to point them out to the photographer/artist,  so their attention and action can be addressed.

Here are a few of the portraits I made at Joanne’s Holiday Craft Bazaar. There are some exciting things happening with the project that I’ll be sharing once we are underway. So for all of you that supported the project when it was on USA Projects thanks so very much! New aspects of the project are proceeding, and I’ll be informing you of the progress. Thanks a lot for your continuing and renewed support for Citizens We.

The PHOTO PAPER premire Issue cover

A couple of weeks ago I got an email notice from the Black & White Spider Awards. I was informed that my photographs were being included in the premier issue of a new photography magazine out of London, UK called The PHOTO Paper. This new magazine, “…spotlights the world’s finest photography and shares with its reader intelligent insights from the photographers of the published collections.”  For their premiere issue they’ve showcase a amazing international black & white collection featuring 522 photographers from 46 countries. Hey that’s nice. Glad to be a part of it! The PHOTO Paper comes in two flavors, print edition and digital edition.  The print edition of The PHOTO Paper includes editorial, stories and interviews. The digital issues have more pages and images than the print editions. The digital issues do not include editorial or interviews.

This approach is an interesting one, in that here in the US, there is a publication, Lenswork, that has been around for almost 20 years. With Lenswork, they have the opposite approach with their publication. The print edition is smaller and the digital edition is larger in both “pages” and scope. The digital editions takes advantage of being able to to show Black & White and Color photographs. It also has video and audio interviews. Plus it maintains a an archive of the podcast produced by the publisher Brooks Jensen. The digital edition also comes in a few flavors. There’s an iPad/Pod version, the DVD edition and a newly created online Lenswork digital hub, Daily Lenswork. Brooks Jensen has been able to keep his baby going fired by his passion for photography and the creative process. A few years ago, he made a very brave and bold decision. He took his print magazine off newsstand and offered it only through his Lenswork Virtual Newsstand web site. He was thinking green. Both for the environment and his bank account! In fact the whole Lenswork concept came about in part, to his reaction to the Fine Art Gallery System.  Jensen believed this “System” was not in the best interest of the artist. Lenswork offered an alternative platform of expression for the artist photographer. It also provided an alternative for artist on how to think about how to control their careers. I also feel that Lenswork provided Jensen with the opportunity to make a substantial contribution to the photographic community/industry. Check him and his publication out.

Ok back to me! Well, when I downloaded the PHOTO Paper digital edition pdf, I was very surprised to se that I had a page for one photograph and a double spread for the other. Thanks The PHOTO Paper. What sensitivity and taste you folks have! But seriously, I’m honored to be part of the Photo Paper’s premier issue. Plus a special shout out to the Black & White Spider Awards for making it possible. Thanks guys.

A few years ago I heard a very interesting comment from a pro shooter. He said that, “All digital cameras are point & shoot.” The comment was referencing a statement made by another photographer about difference in “quality”  (and probably more so, price) between pro cameras and amateur ones. The down play of cheaper/amateur cameras was that , “They to everything for you, not like a real (pricey/pro) camera. With the statement that “all” digital cameras are point and shoot cameras, this means that if a photographer actually understands the concepts of the photograph’s relationship to exposure and the situation, they can “program” the pricey camera to simply perform to the needs of any given situation. This allows the photographer to concentrate on getting the most compelling image, without concerning themselves with mundane technicalities of f/stops and shutter speeds.

The point of this little rant is that, when the reviewer said the camera produced blurry or soft photos, he blamed the camera, not his  technique. Film cameras had no “Image stabilization”. That was your job as photographer. You had to practice handling your camera. What’s the slowest speed I can get away with and have a sharp image? How fast can my thumb advance the film? How quickly can I load the camera (with film!)? These were basic issues and skills, back in the day. You were carful, not carefree. You looked hard, immersed yourself in the scene or situation, and you took your time without wasting any. The innovations in digital photography addresses these issues by allowing you to perform these skills with greater ease. Hey it’s great to be able to carry the equivalent of a brick of film (20 rolls) in your pocket! Yet, when photographers do not address the basic elements of photography, then the cameras and Fotoshop are taking and making the pictures.

Here is the complete cast and crew lineup:

Artistic Team:
Elliott Forrest – director.
Arthur Yorinks – writer.
Fred Newman (Prairie Home Companion) – sound effects.
John Forster – composer/pianist.

Cast:
Narrator – John Schaefer.
Ebenezer Scrooge – F. Murray Abraham.
Bob Cratchit – Jeff Spurgeon.
Child – Jalen Robinson (11-year-old student).
Nephew – Jad Abumrad.
Gentleman – Richard Hake.
Marley – David Garland.
Mrs. Dilber – Naomi Lewin.
Christmas Past – Nimet Habachy.
Young Scrooge – Elliott Forrest.
Fan – Naomi Lewin.
Fezziwig – Brian Zumhagen.
Belle – Lorraine Mattox.
Adult Scrooge – Elliott Forrest.
Christmas Present – Robert Krulwich.
Mrs. Cratchit – Celeste Headlee.
Belinda – Naomi Lewin.
Martha – Lorraine Mattox.
Peter Cratchit – Jad Abumrad.
Tiny Tim – Jalen Robinson.
Nephew’s Wife – Lorraine Mattox.
Businessman 1 – Richard Hake.
Businessman 2 – David Garland.
Miss Eliza – Celeste Headlee.
Undertaker – Elliott Forrest.
Old Joe – Brian Zumhagen.
Boy – Jalen Robinson.

The gravestone prop of Ebenezer Scrooge used in the 1984 film "A Christmas Carol" was left in the graveyard of St. Chad's Church, Shrewsbury, where filming took place. ©Howard Lake

The Citizens We Project is a photographic portrait of the people in the neighborhoods of Adams Morgan & Mt. Pleasant in Washington, DC. The project consist of a collection of twenty to thirty 24 x 36 inch Black & White prints. These photographs will be exhibited throughout the neighborhood in storefronts and public places. They will also be exhibited as a collection of images in a traditional and online galleries. My project proposal request is for $5000.00. These funds will be used to acquire a 24 inch, wide format ink jet photographic printer and the exhibition support materials

The project is being hosted at United States Artist Projects website:

http://bit.ly/Citizens-We

The Citizens We Project goal of $5000 must be reached by January 9, 2012
Go there to learn more about the project and support the project by pledging a tax deductible donation in any amount. Also, for your pledge of support there are several wonderful gifts. They are my way of saying Thank You for supporting me and helping to keep art alive in our community. Your tax deductible contribution in support of Citizens We will go a long way in affirming the powerful role multiculturalism plays in fostering a stronger and more beneficial society for all its citizens.

Webinar: Image Rescue for Problem Files with Eddie Tapp! from X-Rite Photo on Vimeo.

Courtesy of Business Stationery

Zhan Chun Hong at the National Portrait Gallery, ©Terry deBardelaben

I was struck by Zhang Chun Hongs’ presence and what appeared, at the time to be, a woman in “command of her gallery”.  Tall, statuesque, stately, demure, and stunning. Words that I would use to describe Zhang Chun Hong. I happened upon Zhang Chun when she was being physically prepped- surrounded by technicians, for her 2:00PM presentation at the National Portrait Gallery’s Portraiture Now: Asian  American Portraits of Encounter exhibit.

After briefly speaking with the artist before strolling with her to her space I found Jhang to be friendly and very engaging.  She broke the ice by approaching us – Jarvis Grant and I.  At the beginning of her talk she began telling a very classical story of migration and change.  Information about how the artist gave birth to her renown symbolic portraits …streaming charcoal drawings mounted on white scrolls, which give her work a commanding and stately traditional presentation.

Zhang Chun Hong and Terry deBardelaben at the Smithsonian Institution National Portrait Gallery, ©Jarvis Grant

Zhang Chun Hong’s work, on the surface, appeared ultra feminine.  After all, hair— every girl’s nightmare, desire, obsession and preoccupation WAS the focal point.  Yet, while I gazed at the striking portraits…I began to think about the bombarding questions provoked by the –black streaming, long flowing meticulously presented hair. But also, I wondered about the artists’ hair-… (Zhang stands approximately six feet tall with hair reaching down to her thighs). The obvious questions pertaining to…hair maintenance, hair care, length of time it takes to grow hair that long, the process associated with washing  and drying extra long hair, etc. etc. And Oh, had she ever considered cutting her hair, do her sisters, mother and aunts have long hair?   I wondered why in some cultures hair is
“ associated with life force, sexual energy, growth, and beauty”.  Why people question the beauty of women with bald or shaven heads?   I found myself wondering whether or not Zhang Chun or Hong Zhang as she is known in the US was attempting to make some sort of feminist statement that went beyond the politics of hair.  Perhaps her motivation was more about the dominance of the physicality of hairs’ impact on culture, gender and tradition.  So-oo, when Hong Zhang began speaking, I hung on to her every utterance.

Her autobiographical work, visually communicated her story was yet conveyed in an extremely intimate setting conducive to the confines of the gallery space.  The portraits, wood flooring and small gathering lent itself well to creating an environ that complimented the artists words and story telling allure.  Hong Zhang was humorous- recanting funny vignettes about the impact of language and culture on her life.  She has a very interesting personal history about her artist DNA.  She and her twin were both painters, winners of art competitions and to some measure are predisposed to being artist since both parents are art professors.  Before she arrived in Atlanta from Beijing in 1996 with her twin sister, she attended boarding school. They ate their meals together and spent a considerable amount of time together. She is left-handed and her sister right.  Other boarders were always fascinated by how much they seemed like one person when they sat eating side by side – one using the left hand and the other the right.  It tied in perfectly with her triptych of herself, her twin and the older sister.  Mind you these sculpture like portraits exaggerate the length and flow of the dark illumination of the hair, which at times makes one feel as though they are in the presence of statues.  Statues with their backs turned only allowing the viewer to engage the posterior view of the hair –with the slightest suggestion of a head.  However the unmistakable visual dominance of the composition is the hair…each strand articulated with precise clean lines.

Hong spoke of her East/West triptych having both a Renaissance and Chinese presentation.  In traditional Chinese paintings Jhang said that his advisors always flank the emperor.  In Jhang Chuns’ triptych –her older sister has the center portrait, and like a traditional Chinese painting which depicts the military advisor to the emperors’ left she symbolically presented her hair twisted toward the because she often took on the role as the fighter-protecting and coming to the aid of her twin.

As Hong stood in front of each portrait she transformed the space with warmth and insight about her life.  The behind the scene story of her journey to this country and her constant reference to her work gave those in attendance a brief look at the artist as conveyed through her own lenses.

Terry deBardelaben,
Artist, Educator and Researcher

Jarvis Grant photographing Zhang Hong at the National Portrait Gallery, ©Terry deBardelaben

Zhang Chun Hong, Artist, ©Jarvis Grant

So why Agony & Ecstasy? Some of you may remember that 1965 big budget film The Agony & the Ecstasy with Charlton Heston as Michelangelo and Rex Harrison: Pope Julius II. In a nutshell, The Pope wants sculptor Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling, while Michelangelo wanted to sculpt the Pope’s tomb. So because the Pope had the power, he made a sculptor paint! And on his back 50 feet above the floor! It’s the same old story, corporate demands against designer vision, the marketing department’s messages against the design department’s voice. What’s all this got to do the Content Aware Fill? Adobe’s marketing department pushes feature sets to the weakest or newest users of their flagship product, Photoshop. Pushing fetures that “fix” apposed to features that “create”. This content aware feature is powerful when used as a creative tool. Here’s one way.

In this example, I’ll use Fig.1. Normally, we would use the, Content Aware Fill (CAF), to get rid of some out of place element, like the building to the right. Here I’ll use the couple walking on the sidewalk. First, I’ll use the Quick Selection Tool to select the couple. Just a Note: CAF does not “create” content, it replicates content found near the selection. I choose the walking couple because they were on the grassy plane. I didn’t choose the person in front of the bus top because Photoshop would not be able to Create the missing segments of the bus shop. For best results, after the selection is made go to Select/Modify/Expand and choose about 4-16 pixels. When this is done Photoshop will compare those pixels inside of the selections border with those near the outside of its selection border. It will take that information and guess at what should be on the inside. Once we have the selection hold Shift/F5 to bring up the CAF dialog box (Fig.3), and click OK, and like magic, the couple is gone. Now, there’s always a little Stamp (Clone) Tool cleanup, but 90% of the work is done (Fig.4).

This was looking pretty good, but something was missing. The story was almost there, this person walking in the clouds needed a destination or something, so I added a Moon. This planet was made in Photoshop using Flaming Pear’s LunaCell plug-in filter. LunaCell creates instant planets. Fractal, reality-based, or start from scratch to make strange new worlds. I got a couple of atmospheric moon already and just added one using the Blend Mode of Screen.

The final image with all of its new elements in place, ©Jarvis Grant

All images & rights. ©Jarvis Grant