It All Comes Back Around (a picture from a picture)

Today I received an email from a man named Rob with this picture attached. This is the image that was made on February 27, 2007 and that is featured on my Garbage Can Project. It turns out that he works in the neighborhood and was out for a walk when he encountered the carts. In his words, "I guess everyone is watching everyone these days." I couldn't have said it better myself.

Attention All Photography Students . . .

I always find it so difficult to explain to my photo 1 students how to light a photograph . . . until now. Thank god for Tyra, this woman can do everything! Click here for Tyra Banks photo lecture 101 (warning to all photographers: this clip might make you throw up in your mouth).

NYUKI (Sleep Conversation, 9/17/07)

My wife has this incredibly evil habit of talking to me when I'm asleep to see if she can get me to enter into a nonsensical conversation with her. When it works, she writes it down. Here is our conversation from last night:

Robin: I love you
Me: I love your mom
Robin: You love my mom?
Me: Yeah
Robin: What about me?
Me: You're ok too
Robin: What's so great about my mom?
Me: Nyuki
Robin: What's Nyuki?
Me: It's what's so great about your mom
Robin: What is Nyuki?
Me: New and delicious human snacks

Memories of Munich

Brian and Matt and I returned from Munich last Sunday and after a few days of playing catch up, I finally have a moment to sit down and write a little something about the trip. I think the plans for this show really started a few years ago when we met Nicole (the director of the gallery) at Review Santa Fe.



The four of us hit it off incredibly well, met up in Miami this past winter and began talking about doing a show.


After arriving on Sunday morning, Brian and Nicole and I took a train to the Austrian Alps. Went to a small hilltop where George's parents live (George is Nicole's boyfriend and is hilarious) and spent two days eating, drinking amazing Austrian wine, hiking in the alps and sleeping / snoring off the jetlag. You can view some pictures from Austria by clicking HERE.


The following few days were spent working on installing the show, wandering around the streets of Munich and of course drinking a ton of beer. One of the best parts of installation was becoming friends with the lovely Ms. Florence Baur Pictured here juggling a coffee, a pretzel and a copy of my book Social Studies:






















I have posted a number of installation shots and they can be seen by clicking HERE.


On thursday, Matt and Brian and I took the subway out to the Octoberfest grounds. Octoberfest actually starts this week but it was really fun and interesting to watch everything being built. I had no idea what to expect and was thrilled to find what was more or less a huge carnival with gigantic empty beer halls. It isn't that often that I shoot a lot of pictures just for fun but I found myself inspired and started snapping away (so if anyone has any editorial work for me in the future- wink wink, nudge nudge). My photographs from Octoberfest are posted HERE.


Last friday was the big opening night. It was the opening of the Munich Art Season so every gallery in town was open and the streets were pretty mobbed. Talk, drink, talk, drink, if you've been to a few openings you've been to them all. A great time, I have a few photos posted HERE


The night of the opening, we all went back to George's apartment where we talked and drank and had a great time until about five in the morning. Needless to say, we all woke up a bit groggy the next day at about noon. Hangovers in tow, we went down to the gallery where Nicole and Florence had prepared a large traditional breakfast. There was a long table in the middle of the gallery filled with meat and pretzels and of course some more beer. Eat Drink Laugh, Eat Drink Laugh. At one point in the midst of all of this, a local Art Historian came in with a large tour group and began to discuss our work. It was a completely surreal experience, hilarious and unforgettable. To view photos of our hangover brunch click HERE.


After brunch, Matt and Brian and I went out to buy some goodies for our wives / girlfriends / fiancees. George was determined that before returning to the states, it was mandatory that we go sailing on his boat (One hour south of Munich). So Brian, Nicole, George, their friend Mark and I all loaded into a car (Matt was at dinner with his aunt and uncle) and headed out. There was absolutely no wind on the lake and the motor was dead but we had a great time drifting none the less. It was the perfect way to end the trip, one of those moments when you know that you are in the midst of future memory (look at me, I'm so deep...). To see the photos from our sailing excursion, click HERE


The next morning Brian and I left for the airport at 6am. I was so excited to see Robin and also pretty sad to say goodbye to my friends in Germany. It's hard to have people who you care about living so far away but we'll see each other again soon. And now to cap off my story, I got caught by US customs trying to smuggle some sausage into the country. Those Bastards!

For a random sampling of additional photos click HERE

Von Ulrich im Munchen

Live from Austria

Munich or Bust

In dem Haus!

Eat Your Heart Out Gary Winnogrand / Diane Arbus / Lee Friedlander / John Szarkowski / etc...

As summer comes to a close, I've begun to archive the Gitelson family photographs. When my grandmother Esther died in 1997, I inherited her archive of family photographs (being the photographer of the family). After many years, I've finally begun to scan all of the images, many of which are starting to decay. The above picture is of my grandmother Esther Gitelson. This one goes out to Minneagrapher Colleen Mullins.

Hey Hot Shot

I just received word that a selection from my series "Dream Job" will be featured in the show "Hey Hot Shot" at Jen Bekman Gallery this September 13 - 16. If you find yourself in NYC during those days, swing by the gallery and check out the show.

If It Were Left Up To Me

When I returned from Guatemala in 1997, I was really confused about what to do with myself. That being the case, I drove up to Boston to visit my friend Cable. Cable has been one of my best friends ever since the sixth grade. We met in gym class where our lockers were next to each other due to the proximity of our last names in the alphabet. We both had Led Zeppelin patches on the back of our jean jackets and have been friends ever since.

During my visit, Cable tried to convince me to move up to Boston so that we could spend time together and work on our art (Cable's always been one of my biggest influences). On my way out of town the following week, my head was still cloudy about what I should do.

Somewhere on the Mass Pike I popped in a cassette (yes, a cassette) that I had dubbed off of Cable and the song "If It Were Left Up To Me" by Sly and the Family Stone came on the stereo. It was one of those weird experiences when you hear a song at exactly the right moment and something clicks in your brain. By the songs end, I had made up my mind to move to Boston where I was to live for the next four years and develop my ever lasting loyalty to my beloved Boston Redsox. This one goes out to Cable, hoping to do the same for you as you once did for me.

In A Land Far Far Away ...

Next month, fellow Chicagraphers Brian Ulrich, Matt Siber and I are flying to Munich where we will be exhibiting our work at Galerie f5,6. The three of us met the director Nicole a few years back in Santa Fe and have been working on putting the show together ever since. The above image is the postcard that I created for the show. If in Munich . . .

The Visitation of Papa Git

Chocolate Lover

I was looking through some old hard drives today and came across this video that I made in 2003 back in Grad School. At the time I was really interested in found materials and when I stumbled across a torn piece of manuscript, making this movie seemed like the obvious thing to do. Because the sheet of text was torn, sentences were abruptly cut off. Chocolate lover features me (as the man on the stairs), Donna Rickles as Kendra Ann, Dustin Mertz as Cameron and Jen Davis as Sharon. I'll be posting more lost videos as I unearth them in days to come.

Radi-O-Go!

Each morning I have to sit for roughly three hours in order to watch all of the surveillance video from the previous day. That being said, I'm always looking for new things to listen to in order to pass the time. Three of my favorite radio programs are This American Life (this weeks edition is about the dark side of the art world . . . spooky!), Radio Lab (find out if Ghengis Khan's your daddy) and Sound Opinions. Check them out free on line . . .

Blast Off!

This morning I launched my newest project: The Garbage Can Project.

Stolen, Damaged or Burned?

You Are Beautiful

You Are Beautiful, my favorite Chicago art coop (?). Believe it or not, I actually always feel better about things when I see these pieces in the public spaces around my neighborhood. What art should be, I encourage you to check out the site, You Are Beautiful. The best of the Chi.

Fabrication

As mentioned in previous blog entries, I am currently working on a public art commission for the CTA (transit authority) here in Chicago. This is a first for me in that I have to rely on an outside company to fabricate the piece which will consist of glass and mosaic panels. Last friday I drove up to Evanston with Joanna from the Cultural Center and Amy from the CTA to look at the first of the fabricated pieces and it was just amazing to see! The piece consists of 42 glass photographic panels as posted above. I was worried that the quality might be shotty since they are being produced in Atlanta and the shipped up here to Illinois but the images looked AMAZING!!!! As good as any photographic print. The studio also created a life sized drawing of the wall for us to examine (10 feet tall by 45 feet wide). The two shots above are of the grout lines which when viewed from a distance are a street map of the neighborhood surrounding the station. So phase one being complete, I'm sure there will be many more CTA related posts to follow. Cheers.

Tit Muncher

When I arrived home this afternoon, this sticker was on the gate of our driveway. Apparently someone thinks that I'm a Tit Muncher Puffy Nipple. Yum?

Rambla On

For anyone who has never been to Barcelona, there are tons of street performers who line the sidewalks of La Rambla. This is my interpretation of this man's interpretation of a tree, camera work by Robin.