In These Hard Times
Photographs by C.H.Paquette (2009-2010)

Hand made book of ten images from the series In These Hard Times.
Archival pigment prints on heavy stock matte paper.
These are the images included in the book...


El Dorado Motel


Blockbuster


Atomic Tire


Value City



Rainbow Bar


No


Popeye's


Goodwill


1675



Chain Link Paradise


Limited to an edition of 50.... Buy it here

Bucks County, Pa. 2010

In These Hard Times
Photographs by C.H.Paquette (2009-2010)



5 1/2" x 8 1/2" Hand made Photo Book
Ten Images from In These Hard Times Series
Archival Pigment prints on Matte paper
Edition of 50
Signed, numbered and dated
$20 + $3.25 shipping

I just finished posting the final verse of the Tao te Ching onto Wabi Blogi and this is a big step in moving forward with the Tao Project, a book that will combine meditative photography with the 81 chapters of the Tao.

The next step involves editing and selecting the images for the book. If you would like to contribute photographs for consideration please post them on the Flickr group Tao Project. A link is provided below.

This project was conceived almost two years ago on a small island in the Minnesota wilderness during a canoe trip. I would guess that the final selection of images for the intended book is still several years away, but the intention is to work through a very meditative and contemplative process so that the final result is something far beyond the typical photo book.

The Tao Project on Flickr

Wabi Blogi

At last, the final answer to this design test.



The left side illustrates how value contrast may be used to emphasize one line and direction. Unity is thus produced by dominance of the straight, right oblique line. The left is also more interesting than the right because of variation in the lengths of the lines and because of a greater variety of value.

Jazzy

A one word comment left by Jeana Marie in response to the triptych I posted yesterday... Jazzy. It immediately struck me as ironic because I had been listening to Jazz music the entire morning prior to assembling those images as a post. I had initially contemplated writing an apology for continuing to post combinations of old images together with newer ones. I figured that people get tired of seeing the same images pop up again and again. But this is part of the process I use to work things out visually. The best way for me to see how images work together is to post them on this blog. Relationships between images I am not always aware of begin to reveal themselves during these exercises.

Which brings me back to the Jazz reference. I have been a Jazz music lover for decades, and it has influenced my art and creativity in many ways. Not in a musical sense. I have no musical abilities at all. Can't carry a tune to save my life. The influence works it's way through in other ways. Subconscious ways. I can see the process of working with multiple images as being very similar to the composing of music. I've often equated it to poetry, but music makes just as much sense. I've written many times about the importance of sequence and series in my style of photography. It is the essence of my work. Maybe each photograph becomes a note in a composed song. I'm on a continuous search for the individual notes to piece together into an arrangement. Poet, Composer, Photographer.... one and the same.

I am offering this group as a limited edition triptych of 8 x 10 prints. Each of the above images will be printed with archival pigment inks on 300 gsm cotton rag ultra smooth paper. Each set of three prints will be signed, numbered and dated. I will limit this triptych group to an edition of ten.
$180 plus $9.95 shipping

kitchen showroom. feasterville, pa. 2010

Still from The Krazy House. by Rineke Dijkstra

Rineke Dijkstra

Marian Goodman Gallery
24 West 57th Street
New York, NY
thru August 21st

Summer. by Stephen M. Gray

Another perennial favorite, Austin, Texas photographer Stephen M. Gray has an outstanding eye for simple minimalist design. Virtually every photograph he makes is well thought out and crafted with precise detail.

Sorry to drag these out. Here is the fourth answer to the design test.


4.

The top design illustrates how unity is created by dominance of shape, measure, value, and space interval. These are contrasting shapes, with the triangles dominant. One of the triangles is also dominant in size. There is opposition of value, with the white predominating. The top design is, therefore, unified. The top is more interesting than the bottom design because of the variety produced by the unequal space intervals between the units of the top design.

Yulia

I'm in a bit of a dry spell, photographically speaking. These things come and go. I have found myself in the past couple weeks forcing the images to happen instead of allowing them to happen. I'm just not seeing anything. It's hot out. Record setting heat spells of 100 plus degree days here in the Mid-Atlantic. Not exactly creativity inducing weather. So it's time to hunker down in the shade and read some good books. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has been sitting on my bedside table for months, and I have finally gotten around to it.

And in the meantime I'll post up some links to my consistently favorite photographers from Flickr. People I have followed for several years, and who continually catch my eye with their style. First up is Yulia, a photographer from Israel who shoots primarily self portraits. I love this image she posted this morning.

Jessica Hilltout for the New York Times

Here is a fantastic and inspiring photo study of grassroots soccer from Africa. Clearly one of the reasons soccer is such a universally played competitive sport is the lack of extensive equipment required. Even the one essential element, the soccer ball, can be fashioned from the most rudimentary salvaged materials, as documented so brilliantly by Belgian photographer Jessica Hilltout.

For those with nothing, soccer is everything

Mt. Casino 2010

Eyesore of the Month

Here's the third answer to this design test...

3.

The right side is the better design. Straight lines are opposed to curved line, vertical contrasts with horizontal, thick line to thin line, and black opposes white. Straight, thin lines, vertical direction, and black value dominate and create unity.