the fire burns against the water
the fire burns against the sea.
I wake in hills surrounded by kindling
I wake in california breeze.
the fire
in photography, poetry
Salvation
in weird world, explore
Salvation Mountain, deep in the California desert, is what’s known as a “visionary environment” or an extensive art installation intended to express the intense personal experience of its creator. This monument, built & maintained by Leonard Knight until his death in 2014, is built of adobe, straw, & literally thousands of gallons of lead-free paint.
The philosophy of the site hinges on the Sinner’s Prayer, an evangelical Christian term referring to a prayer of repentance. In creating the mountain, Knight felt he had been called by God to share His love.
The site is now maintained by a rag-tag collection of volunteers, most of whom live in the surrounding desert area known as “Slab City”.
Details: Mont Saint Michel
At low tide you can walk all the way around the island of Le Mont Saint Michel in the sticky silt. There are tiny details, from chains & pipes to dead creatures revealed only when the sea is out.
Whitewater, CA
in weird world, explore
A census-delegated place in California’s Riverside county, Whitewater began as a watering stop for travelers on the Bradshaw Trail between San Bernadino & the Arizona Territory in 1862. Still home to a small population, Whitewater is now known for its trout farm in the Whitewater river canyon.
Due to the effects of recent wildfires, the popular swimming hole in Whitewater river along interstate 10 is closed to the public. But the signs warning of imminent flash flood danger & high penalty fines don’t stop intrepid visitors from jumping in for a refreshing dip.
Exploring - DTLA Arts District
in explore
the arts district is a once gritty neighbourhood on the eastern edge of LA’s downtown. formerly an industrial area with buildings that date to the early 20th century, the arts district is now home to art spaces & cafes, as well as repurposed factory & warehouse buildings.
the transformation of the area began in the mid 70’s when a group of california based artists saw potential in the empty industrial buildings & began converting them into studios & commercial spaces. by the 1980’s the city of LA created a special “artist in residence” zoning variation to regulate the often unsafe conditions of the repurposed buildings.
because much of the area was originally abandoned its rise doesn’t qualify as traditional “gentrification”, though the area’s popularity is increasing right alongside the rents on the live/work spaces it is known for. by 2014 the average annual income of arts district residents was $120,000.
Exploring - Mecca, California
in explore
a collection of photographs from my recent trip to mecca, california; an unicorporated community on the northern shore of the salton sea.
All Signs Point to Mecca
mecca california is an unincorporated community along the north shore of the salton sea in southern california's colorado desert. the sea & the surrounding settlements are almost directly on top of the famed san andreas fault.
the area surrounding the salton sea had a short life as a resort town in the 1950's, but the ever-increasing pollution of the lake all but ended tourism in the area. the sea is now surrounded by the sun bleached corpses of fish & water birds poisoned by its toxic waters, as well as the remains of shops, resorts, & motels either totally abandoned or repurposed by the community's handful of current residents.
Notebook: When Photographs are Poems
in diary
In my self-directed photography studies I find much overlap between photographic concepts & poetic concepts. I make notes as I read:
Photographer Robert Frank said that when people looked at his photographs he wanted them “to feel the way they do when they read a line of a poem twice”. I think there must be some fundamental link between photography & poetry. After all they are both a type of image making.
The etymological meaning of the word poetry is “something fashioned or made” which seems to me to be exactly what a photograph is as well. Richard Avedon said; “All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth.”
When you freeze a moment, either in words or pictures, you make it into something unto itself. It’s not life but it’s also not not life. A simulacrum of being?
Perhaps poetry was the first kind of photography—before the camera existed. Suspending moments in blank air.
We make a poem to understand what words can do. We make a picture for the same reason. “I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed.” - Garry Winogrand.
“I see poetry as the medium most similar to photography… or at least the photography I pursue. Like poetry, photography is rarely successful with narrative. What is essential is the ‘voice’ (or ‘eye’) & the way this voice pieces together fragments to make something tenuously whole & beautiful.” - Alec Soth
Reading: The Documentary Impulse by Stuart Franklin.
Photos are from my recent photo essay, Jardin du Souvenir.
Dreaming in the Tall Grass
in explore
travel diary:
I imagine myself laying in the waist deep grass of the normandy marshlands. it rolls out in every direction until it simply ends on the coast with the creeping high tide. the end is not the hard line the map makes it out to be, but rather it is a place where greenyellow blurs into slowly rolling grey. I watch as my boots slough mud on the trampled blades.
Details - Lock It Up
a love lock is a padlock which lovers attach to a bridge, gate, fence or other monument to symbolize their love. paris' pont des arts bridge is perhaps one of the most famous locations for these locks, though the practice has spread to virtually all of the 12 bridges crossing paris' seine river.
I had always thought the love lock tradition began in paris, but this is incorrect. the practice was happening earlier in asia & eastern european countries & only moved to the city of light in roughly 2008.
attaching these locks to public structures is considered vandalism in most countries & the locks are periodically removed by local governments. but you'll still find them en masse on the bridges of paris.
Details - Brocante Market, Paris
travel diary:
I can't remember the location of the market, only that we had highlighted its general vicinity on our folded map. first we found an enclosed space, like the pike place market I had visited as a child, most of its stalls shuttered for the day or for the summer vacation. disappointed, we walked around back & into a bustling square where vendors had laid out their cornucopia of wares on well worn tables.
we wander between the rows of books, knick knacks, antiques, & clothes. I buy a small silver box, tarnished to a dark grey. priced at 15 euro, but I only pay 10. past the square a street is transformed into a fruit market, bees flocking to sliced watermelon & split open pomegranate.
+++
Brocante is colloquial french for flea market. the formal form is marché aux puces (literally "walk of fleas").
Harpa
in explore
travel diary:
walking through the grey of a reykjavík summer day, harpa rises up along the coast like a futuristic glass barnacle.
I wander inside to escape the cold. everything is blue hued. the sail boats in the harbour perfectly still.
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holding its first concert in 2011, the harpa concert hall replicates the basalt landscape of iceland using sculpted & coloured glass. construction began in 2007 but was halted during the 2008 icelandic financial crisis until the government decided to complete the project. because of the crisis, for several years harpa was the only construction project occurring in iceland. it is now the home of the iceland symphony orchestra & the icelandic opera.
Preservation of Mourning
in weird world, explore
travel diary:
a tuesday morning strolling among the monuments to the dead in père lachaise. I have since discovered that the cemetery was opened exactly 184 years before my birth on 21 may 1804 (I come along on the same day in 1988).
the altars to the dead in père lachaise are spectacular. many topped with elaborate sculptures, stained glass windows, & miniature gothic cathedrals. this was not a place meant to be left abandoned. the dead would be expecting their survivors to stop by for a visit.
“Be silent in that solitude,
Which is not loneliness — for then
The spirits of the dead, who stood
In life before thee, are again
In death around thee, and their will
Shall overshadow thee; be still.”
père lachaise cemetery is the largest of its kind within paris' city limits. it is the final resting place of a long list of celebrated luminaries including oscar wilde, edith piaf, marcel proust, & jim morrison. receiving more than three million visitors per year, père lachaise is the most visited cemetery in the world.
Only at High Tide
I first learned of this cool sometimes island as a teenager, but never really imagined I'd find myself one day standing on the marshy shoals on the north western coast of france looking at it live & in person.
the mont is awe-inspiring to look at up close. rising out of the water like some kind of science fiction fantasy city. it's said to be the inspiration for minas tirith in the lord of the rings movies. it also has a long & fascinating weird history, including spending some time as an offshore prison.
Details - French Cats
wherever I go, I find the cats.
slightly terrifying parisian brocante market cat paraphernalia. the french are known to love their dogs, but it isn't dog figurines lining the tables of street markets in the city.
Paris Street
in photography, explore
travel diary:
in the summer sun, people are out on the streets of paris. not just tourists, but locals who, for whatever reason, didn't leave the city for the nationwide august holidays. the markets & cafes are busy despite the heat & the otherwise empty city chatters with french, english, italian, german, & spanish.
Colours - Reykjavik
in explore
spent a day walking around reykjavik. iceland is never particularly warm or sunny, even during their summer months, but instead of succumbing to the grey the residents of reykjavik paint their houses & shops bright colours. the whole city feels cheerful despite its weather.
La Ville de Rêve de Ma Jeunesse
in explore
when I was 15 years old I went to paris. I had been obsessed with france for several years, so when a school trip appeared I begged my mother to max out a credit card so I could go. I had traveled a small amount before, but this trip launched me into becoming a person who loves being somewhere totally new. though I've returned to europe on occasion, I've never gone back to france.
tomorrow I head back to paris for the first time in over a decade, stopping over for a day in reykjavik along the way. this time, I've been dreaming of iceland & walking paris' streets testing out the travel photography tips I've been reading about in books.
& also eating a lot of bread.
-N
paris, age 15.
Red Sun + Midnight Sky
in photography, explore
diary:
sitting on the manicured sand of balboa beach in orange country, watching the fat red sun sink behind palm trees & multi-million dollar homes. a lone lifeguard stand sits empty, dusk crawling in around it.
Recycling
in photography
My friend Megan made this amazing dress out of tossed away items from her recycling bin. On Saturday we set off to downtown LA to stage a fashion photoshoot to capture the dress in all its glory. We explored some of dtla's coolest locations, from the Biltmore Hotel to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
Megan's dress is made of paper shopping bags, old CDs, binder clips, plastic bags, a vegetable tie, & a scrap of wrapping paper.