in the limelight

julie blackmon

julie blackmon astonishes me with her design sense. she photographs her children in her body of work called 'domestic vacations'. the surreal quality of her images juxtaposes well the truth that centers around family life. in her artist statement, she compares her work to 'a jan steen household' which is a dutch proverb from the 17th century that refers to "a home in disarray, full of rowdy children an boisterous family gatherings" (julieblackmon.com). blackmon photographs the "stress, the chaos an the need to simultaneously escape and connect". Her images are incredibly visually engaging with close attention paid to figure in space and placement of props. she also incorporates photoshop manipulation to create a surrealism effect. her work really inspires me. 

 

.: solitude :.

 i am for some reason fascinated with dead flowers. there is something oddly beautiful about what happens to a flower once it dies. the mold takes over and spreads across the drooping petals like crystals. when the light hits the it a certain way, the flower transforms from and symbol of death to this object of color and mysticism. it is as if all flowers could look like this in another world and it would be considered beautiful. 

.: spirituallee :.

this is a dyptic of a friend of mine spiritualee. he is a musician who lives in my neighborhood, haight-ashbury in san francisco. he has a unique style, considers his fashion sense to the utmost degree, eats mostly organic food, has the most eclectic style in his bedroom of antiquities and the coolest mustache. we had a great time shooting together, and he is even a huge fan of radiohead. i knew we had some crazy connection. thats why we got along so well.

here i used a ring flash to create such a stark sense of lighting. the small hints of red in his outfit were intentional to contrast against the red wall. i am addicted to color photography and this is a prime example of why.

in the limelight

chelsea roudebush

this artist is necessary for my in the limelight section. her work inspires me every day. she is someone who i respect for her thought process and intelligence. her name is chelsea roudebush. she has the mountain spirit like me, and oh there is something about that mountain spirit. she studies anthropology, which shows in the human and animalistic figures in her work. she centers her style around this connection between art/humans/animals and the earth. the pieces i have chosen are paintings, mostly acrylic. chelsea paints more than anyone i know. it is pretty amazing. i love people who pursue art just for the sake of pursuing it. her walls are covered with her artwork. she is a true artist.