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This morning I attended the first meeting of George Parrino’s students since he died. It lasted for over 2 hours and was the best tribute to how amazing of a person he was. There was not a dry eye in the room, and every person had a story to tell about how George changed their lives. It was an incredible thing that I’ll never forget. His teaching style, ability to penetrate through all the bullshit and his general lust for life has changed all of us who studied under him. We all fear the gingerbread man, one liners and the sucker punch.

Knox Martin was my advisor George Parrino’s mentor at Yale.

We finally got to MOMA to see the Marina Abramovic show, and I was quite pleasantly surprised. I’d normally say that I don’t enjoy performance art very much, and have rarely maintained interest at museum retrospectives of performance artists. The mix of video, photo and live performance makes the show easily accessible and pretty enjoyable.

In the main hall there is Abromovic sitting in a chair opposite a member of the general public. Apparently some people end up in tears - marinaabramovicmademecry.tumblr.com. In the main exhibit, I was surprised by how powerful it was walking through a doorway with naked strangers either side. Although the space is wider than the original performance and the nude models were more like models than the general public, it was still uncomfortable squeezing through two completely naked bodies.

I was helping my old thesis advisor clean out some of his studio today. It mainly consisted of throwing away boxes of old baby clothes (his son is now 27) and sorting through paperwork. It reminded me of what an amazing person and artist he is…

The painting on the left is a portrait of him done by one of his more recent students. The painting on the right is his most recent work.

This is my favorite piece by him, done many years ago I suspect. Unfortunately the stretchers have started to warp.

“If you see the Buddha, hit him with a stick” he would often tell in class.

I was reading this (abbreviated below) today on how to be a good critic on photography. The only one I REALLY disagree with is the final point. I don’t think it is the critics job to make a suggestion on how to improve the work. It’s the artists job to take all of the comments and work on how their own perception along with the criticism received (valid or not!) will improve or affect their work. Often criticism is taken as a way of reworking already created pieces, when I think it should also be seen as another mode of thought or perception of the work. Otherwise these are 4 good rules to start with when being critical about photography. (I also disagree partially with the final part of the third point, I don’t think every person pours their heart and soul out when making work! It’s this assumption that can lead to weaker critical thought or the ‘cotton wool’ affect.)

1) One must respect the artist whose work one is criticising. That doesn’t mean that one has to like everything but rather that one must try and understand the creator’s motives and approach.

2) It is beholden on the critic to be knowledgeable about photography – not in some narrow, parochial way but in a deep and broad way.

3) The judge should be humble. The critics’ role should be to serve the photographers whose work they are appraising. He or she must bear in mind that whatever they feel about the image presented to them the person whose vision it is has no doubt poured their heart and soul into its making.

4) The critic must supply a reasoned argument for their opinion. It simply isn’t good enough to say that one doesn’t like something without backing up that opinion with reasons and examples to support one’s viewpoint.

5) The critic should make suggestions on how to improve a work. If they don’t have any suggestions they have no business being critical!

We had breakfast at “egg” and then went to PS1 today and saw the 1969 and Between Spaces show with Alexis. Our favorite work was the swimming pool that you can step into by Leandro Erlich. I’m gonna try and squeeze in the MOMA contemporary photography show that closes tomorrow.

More importantly we came home via the Irish markets on McLean Ave, where we were inspired to make our own Battenburg cake. We followed this recipe here.

It’s my New Years resolution to take more pictures while I’m not working. It’s been a year since I graduated from Pratt and I’ve turned my focus on earning a living as an event photographer. So here is my first image of 2010…

The curators announcing the artists are – Francesco Bonami, 53, an Italian-born curator with an international reputation, and Gary Carrion-Murayari, 28, a senior curatorial assistant. I always attend the biennial and often wonder why, every time there are a few great moments so hopefully this coming year there will be several. February 25 – May 30th, 2010.

I’ve always liked Larry Sultan’s work as an honest look into his family and the dynamic that lies between his parents and then how they interact with their son ‘the photographer.’ I’m sure that in the 60’s and 70’s it was not the profession of choice for a wealthy families son. He seems to often be talked about alongside Tina Barney, but I find their work pretty different. Barney’s work seems to be as much about the environment or the ’set’ than about the people. These two images are the ones that were often used to illustrate the photographer, and I’ve always been confused by Barney’s image. Hers seems confused and awkward (and not in a positive or useful way), whereas Sultan’s image uses that awkwardness to his advantage and makes it the subject.

Of all the photographers whose work I was introduced to while at Pratt, Mitch Epstein is still one of my favorites. We saw a selection of prints from this body of work “American Power” a couple of years ago. They were printed pretty huge (larger than 40″x60″) allowing some of the images to really stand out, but also swamping others. I’ve stopped buying photography books since I graduated as I don’t have the same kind of finances or the time to read them, but I may invest in this one.

Reading the introduction to his book “Work” helped me a great deal when composing my thesis statement. He says:

“I didn’t want to lose the magic I felt when I spontaneously opened up to a situation I hadn’t see coming. Along with the fear of deadening the creative process, I feared killing a picture with intent.”

This is an elaborate (and more intelligent) way of saying how I feel about shooting, where I’d rather just walk around taking pictures, than planning situations or creating images that represent my inner struggle. Not that personal issues can’t be in the final content of my work, I find that preconceiving the image flattens the final images or just doesn’t fit. This way of shooting means I need to create a lot, and the editing and sequencing becomes critical. None of which is happening right now as I’m completely consumed by my event photography (translate as – “making money”)

Book Signing: American Power - Presented by The Strand, New York. – Thursday, October 22, 2009. 7-8pm.

I can’t quite determine who this god or goddess is, I think it could be Shiva based on the trident in it’s right hand. Whoever it is, you have to respect a culture that worships a God who cut off their own head and drink the blood squirting from their neck. I took this picture in a museum in Nepal in 2003 and have never seen anything quite like it. The simplicity of the line work and the single color are what made this stand out and make it unlike all the other thangka’s I’ve seen.

It must have sucked for Erin Lucas to have been on the receiving end of my flash malfunction. It’s gotta be annoying enough to have strobes blasting at you all day, but then to have one on full power must make it even worse. I had to disconnect all cords from my 580EXII and remove the batteries, thankfully it reset itself and hasn’t repeated the incident. I should submit these to Iheartphotography.com blog!