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Posts Tagged ‘photos’
Horizon at Kalø Slot
This is the only picture I took over a 2 week trip to Danmark this December. Not very representative, as the winters in Denmark are cold, dark, colder, and darker, with only about 6 hours of daylight and rain that drives at you from the top the side AND the bottom. This wonderful walk to visit Kalø Slot was a slice of reprieve, and probably another fraction adding to the mythic allure of Denmark as the country of smiles and peace.
Fictive Reality by Gregory Crewdson
While in Danmark over the holidays I visited the National Library in Copenhagen to see a photography exhibit by Gregory Crewdson. The library is nicknamed “The Black Diamond” after its 1999 addition of black marble that juts over the water. Split up the center of the coal structure are undulating balconies that connect the inside of the library to the outside harbor seamlessly. Moving back through the library is like peeling back the skin of an onion, as the more historic section of the library is fully intact and like stepping through a time warp to a century ago.
Photos of the library by Jan Lykke.
Outside view of the library at night.
Looking into the library and up the channel that connects the new addition to the old building.
I was vaguely familiar with Crewdson’s work beforehand, knowing that his signature was to create elaborately produced photos. The exhibit was a great mix of showing the process he uses to set up his scenes (much like filming a movie with constructed sets, fake snow and fog machines) and a wide range of his work (from photos of Americana to ghost towns to fireflies). While I personally subscribe more closely to a “keep it real” policy, Crewdson’s ability to finely tune the details of a scene to the nth degree is exquisite. While these hyper-realistic scenes are entirely staged fiction, the talent to envision these photos is nothing but real. Here are a few photos from the exhibit that made me shiver, aptly named “In A Lonely Place”.
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The Phoenix is Closer than it Appears
One of the exhibits I saw this summer at Ålborg’s art museum, Kunsten, is a piece by Thilo Frank called “The Phoenix is Closer than it Appears”. Frank focuses on creating collaboration between the artist’s work and the public.
This piece is a giant glass cube with a swing inside. One person is allowed inside at a time, creating a strange feeling of isolation while being surrounded by a gajillion mirror images of yourself.
What you see on the outside...
What you see on the inside...
Euro Textures
Here are a few photos from my annual pilgrimage to visit the rest of my brethren in Europe. I’ve done my tourist job well and captured the requisite cross-sampling of vintage typography samples, old meets new, royal wallpaper and a decorative plate.
Elephant Summer
This summer in Danmark elephants were everywhere. First off, I stayed with my cousin in Frederiksberg in an old Carlsberg beer silo that had been renovated into apartments. The view from the apartment looked out onto the old Carlsberg brewery, whose elephant mascots grace the entryway to the old factory as well as marketing materials and their Elephant Beer.
Welcome to Carlsberg.
What a happy elephant. Looks like he has had one too many...
One of the main art attractions while we were in Copenhagen was the Elephant Parade. Over 100 five-foot elephants were placed throughout the city, each individually designed by famous and upcoming artists. The goal was to contribute to the conservation of Asian elephants and raise general public awareness about the elephants’ dwindling numbers. As a souvenir, I bought a small figurine of Lars Pugholm’s entry.
Elephant #17: Poetry by Lars Pugholm
The Royal Copenhagen elephant out in the city. (photo from tokyorevive.com)
Lastly, during a scenic drive on the east coast of Jutland we spotted a REAL, LIVE elephant outside SuperBrugsen. It was there to promote the visiting circus, which we only learned about later. In the US, this would be like seeing an elephant outside your local Safeway.
As an ode to this summer theme of pachyderms, I decided to make my own elephant portrait.
Lego Logo Wall
While in Copenhagen this summer I stopped into a Lego store to browse, and was rewarded with a little designer treat – a giant wall of Lego’s logo history, surrounded by an even more giant lego dragon hovering ominously over a replica of the fuzzy-hatted Danish soldiers that guard the royal palace.
Guidebook Launch Party
Last night, my friend Jen hosted a long-awaited launch party at Olympic Provisions NW for her guidebook Portland’s 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces. For the past year+, Jen, Shellie and I have been working on this as a side project, and it is so exciting to have the finished book in our hands.
Thanks to my landlord and photographer Steve Bloch, who is a staunch Face Stuffer supporter and took the party pics below.
Olympic Provisions NW provided a great space for the party, with appetizers and bubbly.
Lisa of Jacob's Creamery gives a toast in celebration of Jen's finished guidebook.
Jeff, myself, and Darin - we were there from the start, and we were there at the end.
The belle of the ball.
We did it!
A Ligature
Only a few letters go together well enough to create a ligature, but when they find each other it’s beautiful. Thanks to Wikipedia for this fi letterpress ligature (or as Michael accurately commented below, an si ligature).
Central Oregon Shroud
I see settlement.
Agency plains between Warm Springs and Madras.
Home again, home again: all of Madras, Oregon.
Strammer Max and Warrior Cats
In Northern Europe there is a constant movement of spendthrifts who go to other countries to buy goods with lower taxes applied. The Swedes sail to Danmark for the “cheap” beer, while the Danes go to Germany for the “cheaper” beer. It’s pretty much a family tradition once or twice a year to pile into the car and drive to Germany to buy inexpensive things.
This year was no exception, and we all made an outing to Flensborg for some shopping and strammer max, which after reading the wikipedia description, clears up why my cousins thought it was so funny that my grandfather kept declaring he wanted his strammer max.
My cousin bought a leopard print shirt for $1, my dad bought some tennis balls, my grandpa bought some alcohol and my uncle Henrik calculated the savings made on each item in his head. I didn’t buy anything, but I did see this book series entitled Warrior Cats. Uh, awesome?
More proof that I really don't understand German taste.
Hamburger Kunsthalle
While in Hamburg this summer I went to the art museum there. It was GIANT, and the only reason I made it through the whole thing in one day was because there were no English captions to increase viewing time, and I stopped for lunch during the middle of the visit. Here are a few of my favorite close-ups.
Fish Bonanza, Now We’re Talking
When I saw this painting at the Hamburg Art Museum, I felt like I had met a kindred spirit. After seeing about 200 paintings about crucifixion, I was finally among artists who understood my obsessions. A two-month long binge on tuna melt sandwiches – YES! Mackerel in tomato sauce – YES! Pickled herring by the pound – YES! Fried and breaded fish – YES! Octopus rings – YES! (Well, technically there aren’t any octopus in the picture, but a girl can dream).
Large Still Life with Fish, 1927, by Max Beckmann.
Potato Contraption. It’s Art.
I guess I’ll chalk this one up to modern art where the amusement factor overshadowed everything else. Seen in the Hamburg Art Museum.
Device which allows one potato to revolve around another potato, 1969, by Sigmar Polke. The signs were very emphatic that you should not touch this display. So I took a picture from afar.
I Went to Europe and Then I Came Back.
Here are some photo selects from my travels through Hornbæk, Gilleleje, København, Arhus, Skødshoved, Ålborg, Sønder Hostrup, Flensberg, Aabenraa, Vrå, Jegind Ø, Hamberg and Amsterdam. Yeah I know, try saying Vrå ten times and you’ll end up with a sprained tongue.
Summer house in Hornbæk.
The crown above the name indicates royalty uses this house.
A family portrait. Not mine.
Happy Dog Pictures Make People Happy
Dogs make a sound that is considered laughing in the canine world…studies have shown that hearing this sound makes other dogs happy as well. When Lucy got her new squeaky newspaper, her laugh was immediate, and I think you can tell.
A Night at the Drive-In
Now that summer is firmly in place we decided to take a road trip and enjoy a movie at the drive-in with a few friends. Even though we arrived over an hour early (and on a Sunday, no less), the lot was nearly full when we got there.
Letterpress at the IPRC
Every month or so I teach beginning letterpress at the IPRC, a non-profit center for self-publishers and printers. Now that I finally have a camera I was able to take a few photos. This class was especially unique because a couple from Australia had signed up for the class during their 4 day visit to Portland.
A Trip by Model T on the Oregon Trunk Railway
For my birthday my Dad bought tickets for a Model T tour of Central Oregon’s Trunk Railway. The Jefferson County Historical Society organizes a Model T trip each year as a fundraiser and this year it was led by Jerry Ramsey. June is a tempestuous time in Central Oregon weather, but luckily there were clear skies and minimal Model T breakdowns during our daylong adventure.
Man sitting on the rails on the Oregon Trunk Railway running beside the Deschutes River near Warm Springs, 1915. From the Oregon State Archives.
I had gotten a new camera for my birthday earlier that morning, so I took lots of pictures…
Gravy Gone Bad
Microwave mishaps don’t always involve a stack of CD’s, a ball of tinfoil, or a cow stuck in the stairwell. Sometimes they just involve a vintage pyrex dish and some over-ambitious gravy. Hey, it’s Monday and my mind is in a pork-induced haze from my mother force feeding me pork ribs all weekend long.
Who knew that 0:45 was 0:15 too much for a small bowl of liquid pork fat?
Remember When We Ran Through Sprinklers?
Eighty-Five was a good year for sprinklers. The kind that go back and forth and form tunnels for dashing through, the kind that spray wildly in every direction, and the kind at the park that can be a hit or miss depending on how fast you run. Summer, where are you?
Diagrammed: Mustache on a Finger on a Stick
Check out the full process of raising my hip factor via a mustache-on-a-finger-on-a-stick.
A Unicycle Family
It’s not often that you find something that surprises you (in a good way) while searching for stock photos. So when I came across this picture of a family unicycling together, I couldn’t keep it to myself.
Getty Images #tlp918722
Canary Clay Finds His Wings
This weekend I stopped by the Stumptown Comics Fest to see my friends Graham, Stumptown Underground and of course the IPRC. As I was making my way through the participants I came across Atrox Comics and Beastlies, who make comics using 3D sculpted figures of the monstrously cute kind.
I bought one of the smallest figurines, dubbed him Canary Clay, and promptly took him on a walk around his new neighborhood.
Canary Clay surveys his new 'hood in appropriate protective tree-climbing headwear.
The neighbor's bird bath got some use.
Canary Clay makes a new friend, Rhonda the Flamingo. He invited her back to the bird bath but she would have none of it.
Canary Clay rests in some foliage and wonders how Mini Cooper got a hold of his proprietary color.
