Book cover

I worked all day yesterday on this image (well it is actually a composite of 3 images) for a book cover for my friend Sybil's upcoming short story collection Talismans. She is a wonderful writer and the book is about growing up, longing, traveling and finding love.
Go to www.sybilbaker.com for more info.

Here is the final product, which will be available in December.

My cat sleeps 22 hours a day

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things that escape those who dream only at night." Edgar Allen Poe

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras was just a full fledged fun-filled four days. What a celebration and what a gorgeous city. We stayed in the most amazing house thanks to our friends Ben and Dina.

Art Afternoon

I gave up my seat for a free roundtrip ticket and had a wonderful afternoon at the Art Institute and in downtown Chicago. It was snowing and cold, but the Renzo Piano new wing was beautiful. Had a nice extra evening with old friends and tried ostrich meat for the first time. It was actually pretty good.

Flying

I didn't fly for many years. I think it started in high school. Somewhere around my 16th birthday and reading The World According to Garp, I became deathly afraid a plane would crash into my house. We lived on the 4th floor and I frequently heard the planes going into Logan Airport in Boston in the middle of the night. I think it might have had something to do with the fact that I was home alone that summer and my parents were in Europe. In any case, after that, I became deathly afraid of getting on planes. So for about 10 years I just stopped flying. I took a lot of long car trips and trains (once took the train from Chicago to San Francisco - which despite taking 4 days was spectacular). Now with the miracle of xanax, I fly again a lot. I still don't love it, but it is no longer as painful. And I do always marvel when we get above the clouds, that this is a view our ancestors never saw. And I do love going places too.

Hipstamatic

Another photographer showed me this ap on her phone and I love it.

I just love the poem HOWL. I found it a few years ago read it for the first time. It is hard to imagine that it was written in the late 50's.

"angelheaded hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly
connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night,
who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high sat
up smoking in the supernatural darkness of
cold-water flats floating across the tops of cities
contemplating jazz, "

I can't say why I am drawn to it, but something about the wild use of language and the raw emotion are just incredibly seductive. Also, the fact that it was written at a time when things were so much less permissive and people didn't talk about getting high and crazy gods.

Sometimes I think we are all burning for an ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo and sitting in the supernatural darkness of life? Well, at least I am.

Ragdale

I am back at Ragdale again for one week, which already feels way too short. As I get older, I realize I am less eager to leave home, but when I travel I always want to stay longer, to really dig in and get into the rhythms of wherever I am.

But it is always so fun to be here and I am with a really lively group of residents. My own project about the Ragdale house is interesting in that I am confined to a certain space, and even when I feel I can't get another shot in a room, I try to push further and find some small thing I have overlooked. In truth, the Ragdale house is so beautiful and full of such interesting objects that it is almost hard to find a new way to approach them. My challenge is to get the emotional feel of the house too.

Flashback

My parents had one of these when I was born. My brother and I often sat in the "well" behind the passenger seats.

I just took this yesterday with my iphone in the grocery store parking lot. Amazing car!

New Years Eve Madonna and Child

Last week of my show

It has been so amazing getting e-mails from the Loyola Museum of Art about the various places my show has cropped up - like this website, 10best in Chicago. I am # 193, but I'll take it!

Tattered Tibetan peace flags. Shot with my Holga.

Malibu again.

New Years resolutions

One of my resolutions is to post a photo a day on my blog. Guess I better get going...

The photos won't necessarily all be new ones, as I am scanning some old film at the moment and looking at that too.

This first one was taken on the beach in Malibu with my some good friends. The people in the background are looking out at the dolphins we spotted. The woman in the foreground is carrying her 3 mos. old baby.

Happy New Year

More and more goodness!

So, China was a wonderful experience and I will post more pictures soon, but I flew from China to the opening of my first museum exhibition at the Loyola Unversity Museum of Art. There is a great exhibition of creches from around the world in the main area of the museum, which is well worth seeing! I had no idea they could be so interesting as art objects. Also, as a treat, the "Off The Streets Club Children's Choir" sang Christmas carols and other songs.




My show got reviewed, which was totally unexpected and so kind. You can read it here:

Anyhow, if I don't post again, have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Beautiful Kwanza or enjoyable three day weekend!

Peace,
Sarah

More China photos

China

I will start with China, which was an incredible experience. I don't think I had any idea what it would be like, so it was a bit like Alice going down the rabbit hole. I was up for the adventure, but also a little daunted by what I'd read beforehand about the difficulties of getting around, but it turned out to be a lot easier than I imagined.

I arrived in Shanghai (and yes, 13 hours is a long time on a plane) on Thanksgiving night and thanks to the kindness of friends of friends, I was picked up by a driver and taken to a Thanksgiving meal with about 8 mostly American ex-pats. Dinner was delicious and conversation about life in Shanghai very interesting.

Woke the next morning and took some shots of the sun rising over the sky scrapers.

Life is beautiful

Life has been spinning so fast, but suddenly I have two weeks of breathing space and I am enjoying myself. Filter Photo, the portfolio review I organized in Chicago, was a success and I met so many inspiring and eager photographers and the reviewers were all spectacular. We are planning even a bigger event for next year, but thankfully have plenty of time to plan it all.

I also delivered all my prints to the Loyola University Museum of Art for the show which opens December 3rd, and I am so immensely proud and excited for that to take place.

Now, I am getting ready for China which will be an incredible adventure. I am part of the Lishui International Photography Festival along with 40 other American photographers.

I am trying to just relax and take it all in. Trying to accept that I am on the right path and that things will unfold and that life is beautiful.