'Art Has A Function Beyond Beauty' ... Shannon Galpin

I loved this!!

"The fruit of years of collaborative work between Afghan and Western photographers and photojournalists, Streets of Afghanistan chronicles one of the most captivating efforts to connect communities and cultures through our common humanity and the power of art."

You can read the rest of this over on the Youtube page.

Shannon Galpin, the woman who said on the video that 'art has a function beyond beauty', has her own website - Mountain2Mountain.  She is so very inspiring!

Crossroads - a documentary

I believe, very strongly, in informing myself.  I can't just read one newspaper or follow one news source via the various forms of media.  I don't believe in standing in one place, claiming I'm left or right-wing, or a particular religion.  I can't state that 'these are my beliefs and everything else is wrong'. 

I believe, very strongly, in Nature and the fact that we need to take care of it to survive.  But I see too, that there are fundamentalists and extremists everywhere.  There are fundamentalists in every political religious group, extremists any place you can imagine and I would be naieve if I thought otherwise.

I was intrigued by this documentary.  I haven't yet researched it properly but watching it here, I was thinking it's something to share ... leaving everyone who cares to watch it to make up their own minds. 

 

60 Andrássy Avenue, Budapest

60 Andrássy Avenue in Budapest, now knows as The House of Terror Museum, opened on 24th February, 2002 and is unique in its genre.  It is a monument to the memory of those of who were held captive, tortured and killed there.  The intention is to make people understand that the huge sacrifices made for freedom were not in vain. They hope point out that although they fought two of the cruellest systems of the 20th century, freedom and independence managed to emerge victorious.

A stark contrast to the colours and stories I usually post here but I thought it an important story.  I couldn't visit the museum.  It's not something I would explore willingly.  These photographs, hanging on the wall outside ... they haunted me.

Jim Haynes,and His Fabulous Sunday Dinners In Paris

Every week for the past 30 years, I've hosted a Sunday dinner in my home in Paris. People, including total strangers, call or e-mail to book a spot. I hold the salon in my atelier, which used to be a sculpture studio. The first 50 or 60 people who call may come, and twice that many when the weather is nice and we can overflow into the garden.
Every Sunday a different friend prepares a feast. Last week it was a philosophy student from Lisbon, and next week a dear friend from London will cook.

Jim Haynes, Paris Sunday Dinners.

I'm not sure I can even begin to give you a sense of how incredible tonight was ...

I met a magical man who invites complete strangers into his home, disarms them somehow, like a wizard who works his magic for good ... who invites total strangers to leave their egos, their barriers, their 'stuff' at the door, and simply get on with meeting whoever is there at that Sunday dinner.

If I had to sum it up, tonight, before the photographs have even been viewed ... I would write of a talk-fest that simply made my heart sing.  So ... once my camera card reader and I are reunited, there are stories to tell and photographs to post.

The photograph below ... unrelated and yet, it is all about a little bit of magic that happened in Berlin one day and therefore, it seems like an appropriate placeholder.

More to follow on the morrow.

 

Re-Entry ...

Sometimes, bouncing between worlds take more out of my soul than I expect.

Today I lay down after lunch and woke just before 5pm.  I am exhausted again.  There was France and another truly exquisite wedding.  A love so big that it melted my heart.

Then the Beautiful Truth workshop in Piedmont, where the people of Piedmont impressed me with their open-hearted welcome.  Their food.  And their wine.  I discovered Brachetto.  One of those discoveries of a lifetime ... or so is my story.

Then Genova, that city I love more than any other in the world.

And now I am home, doing the re-entry thing. It involves resting a lot, eating vegetables, resting some more.

There is a party to plan.  More travels perhaps.  My cousin.

It's like that.

And below, another image from the exquisite Ligurian weavers ... Cordani Velluti

The Rainbow Seat, Piedmont

Diana and Micha have created an extraordinary space here at their B&B in Piedmont.

It's a photographer's delight really.  Everywhere you look, there is some exquisite detail.  Yesterday, swimming in their pool, I would stop sometimes, lean on the side and just concentrate on how much beauty there was there in front of me.

And perhaps it seems like I'm exaggerating, or that I don't get out much, or I'm easily impressed but really, I'm almost sure that it's just about the fact that B&B Baur is beautiful.

Sardines ...

A high of 34 celsius is expected here in Antwerp today.  It started early and was already 29 when I biked to the supermarket at 9am.  It's lovely, I'm not going to complain ... It's just very. very. hot. for this crowded little city with the massive European highway passing through it.

Thunderstorms should crash over us tonight or tomorrow, and a 10 degree drop in temperature is expected.

It's summer.  It's like that.  Sometimes we have one.

When I have time, the search for exhibition photographs goes on ... and along the way I find shots like this one, taken in Istanbul.  It still makes me smile.  I called it sardines.

In Ancient Times ...

'It is also famous as one of the few ancient cities that can now be seen in almost its original splendour, because unlike Pompeii, its burial was deep enough to ensure the upper storeys of buildings remained intact, and the hotter ash preserved wooden household objects such as beds and doors and even food.

Moreover Herculaneum was a wealthier town than Pompeii with an extraordinary density of fine houses, and far more lavish use of coloured marble cladding. The discovery in recent years of some 300 skeletons along the sea shore came as a surprise since it was known that the town itself had been largely evacuated.

Source: Wikipedia.


I found myself fascinated by the ruins of Herculaneum.  Destroyed during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius back in 79 A.D, there is still so much that is as it was then.  I was only there for a few hours but it remains as a memory of immensity ... both in time and space. 

 

Today was a second day spent introducing a lovely woman to this Italian city I like so well.

We wandered the city with our cameras, chasing the light, searching out things we found beautiful and/or interesting, talking, walking ... an ideal way to spend time here in Genova.

At some point I looked up and spotted this dress overhead and loved how it looked out there on the line.

 

Fields of Gold, Bourgogne

You only are free when you realize you belong no place — you belong every place — no place at all. The price is high. The reward is great.

Maya Angelou.

I was looking for words to post with the photograph that follows and I was going to write something long about wandering in France, about finding fields of gold, about how I almost melted with joy when I found this field but maybe the photograph speaks for itself.

It's all about details too ...

One of the things that really struck me about Diana and Micha's B&B were the details ... exquisite details.

I felt concentrated, like a kid playing in mud, using flowers and twigs for decoration.  I had light and colour.  I was that lost during those moments when I played with my camera ... lost in the light, and the details.

This is an odd photograph and yet  I think I like it.  The light struck me but perhaps I saw the mosaic first.  I don't remember but it's like this.  You can spend hours in each room, outside, and in doorways, just noticing the details, one by one.

Francesca - Le Gramole, Genova

Each product, be it pasta, olive oil, pesto, cheese, sauces or wine, has been tasted by us. This is the only way we be sure of truly advising you. We travel around Italy searching for the local products that bring excellence to your table. This is our passion !!!!

Francesca, writing about the shop, Le Gramole.

I interviewed Francesca and Norma about their shop, located deep in the historical heart of old Genova, back in 2011. 

It's a special shop, in a special area of the city.  As for Francesca and Norma, they're really special too but I imagine you knew that was coming.

They welcome everyone into their shop.  They're happy to take the time to talk, to advise, to suggest.  I have heard them speak Italian, French, and English, and there are always smiles.

I really recommend you take the time to visit them when in Genova.  You won't regret it. 

Francesca was preparing for a one-on-one food tasting while I was there at the weekend ...

Cheese Burger Pizza ... extraordinary!

We were introduced to the concept of a cheeseburger pizza in Fox Glacier township, on the wild West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.

Oh my goodness.  I cannot tell you how delicious it was!

The people at Cafe Neve were fairly modest about it all but it was stunning.

Fast-forward and here we are, back in Belgium.  Gert decides to whip up a pizza base, wanting to recreate a cheeseburger pizza.

All his own work ... a cheeseburger pizza Belgian Bloke style.

 

The Problem with Mr Toad ...

He's a rebel.  He wants inside ... our Mr Toad.

Now the warmer days have finally arrived, I have the door to the garden open.  Well, I want to have the door to the garden open but picking up a toad and repeatedly carrying him back outside just isn't my idea of a good time. 

Nope nope nope!

So far, he has jumped all barricades placed in his path.  He's an Olympic toad. 

His goal is my kitchen.

I don't even want to know why.  He hides, he hops, he tries to evade capture.  I admire his tenacity but really, I prefer him outside.

I photographed these two the other day.  They tolerate me wanting to photograph them ... just.

 

Le Touquet-Paris-Plage ... and my bracelet.

Last weekend, Gert and I were wandering the wet streets of Le Touquet Paris Plage, about 200kms from Antwerp, playground of wealthy Parisians ... or so rumour goes.

He had booked us the Sunday night special in a rather marvellous hotel and it was really lovely.  But the weekend ended up being about more than that.   I have been searching, for a very long time, for a bracelet I could wear constantly, without it breaking and devastating me on a regular basis.  As has been the story so far ...

We were strolling along the rain-soaked streets, looking in shop windows and amusing ourselves before dinner when I spotted a beautiful silver bracelet.  I had to smile ... of course I was going to find a silver bracelet in the playground of wealthy Parisians.  Not being one myself.

Gert called me back as I walked on, pointing to the signs that said '70% discount' and 'closing down sale'. 

We knew it was impossible but we decided to wander in and ask anyway.  There's something rather nice about bracelets when you're a photographer.  Don't ask me why but I relate them to the whole practice of photography.

I tried it on, loved it, and asked how much.  He pointed to the 70% discount sign and did the maths for me.  I was stunned ... and delighted ... and feeling kind of guilty about picking up a beautiful silver bracelet at 70% off.

We walked out smiling, unable to believe how fortunate I had just been.

And the next day, before leaving, I saw this man on the beach and he seemed like a photograph.