Contact
I’m going through my history and as a result came across this contact sheet.
I remember this occasion, I was at St.Aubyn’s Street, Devonport Auckland.
The image that I chose 22 years ago was the top right hand one.
Now, I think I would have chosen the frame from the bottom left corner.
The more open one as below.
Three Crosses
These Russian Yak sports planes were flying over my home on Sunday afternoon. Luckily for me three of these planes are based in New Plymouth.
When in the 90’s, latter part, I was visiting Sydney from New Zealand, on a regular basis, I took this photo.
On one of my trips, I went to a maritime museum in Sydney Harbour. On view was a Russian submarine that had been bought by someone with good taste after the collapse of Communism, although I don’t know who. I could be wildly wrong here but I think that they were for sale for $US250,000. My understanding was that it was one of fleet kept in Vladivostok, and used to patrol the Pacific. I went on a detailed tour of the Sydney one and I recommend it to anyone.
Again Im relying on my memory here, but my current understanding is that there were 17 of these submarines based there, and that were used to patrol the Pacific. There were rumours that they went through Cook Strait, although I know no facts.
MusicRecently, on my 65th birthday, I decided that it was time for me to begin learning the piano. Living on my own and quite a distance from my nearest neighbours is a big help.
It means that I can practise pretty much whenever I want, and while I may be lacking in skill I make up for in motivation.
A bonus for me is that I have quite a lot of written music in the house. I find it an inspiration just to look at it even if I am years away from being able to play much of it.
I love the look of music and above have posted one of my favourites. It is some Bach. There is something about the arrangement of notes that thrills me. What it sounds like I don’t know, unless I resort to a CD. (click on the image to make it bigger.)
The second photo is one I made perhaps 20 years ago. I even called it Zoo Music.
At the same time as Zoo Music, I was obsessed with the idea of photographing mathematical calculations in particular those of Albert Einstein who died in 1955. In a biography I saw some of the pages that contained his last calculations. They looked so interesting, purely from a visual point of view, even though I am reasonable at maths I couldn’t follow them in the least. The papers were, I think, in an archive at Princeton Unversity, and I remember at the time being keen to go to Princeton to make a photo. Unfortunately it is a long way away and I didn’t make it.
The closest that I got to Einstein was to visit Lawrence, Kansas, where until the late 90’s his brain resided. It was then sent to Princeton.
Stick Insect.
About 20 years ago I took this photo of a stick insect. I sold the only print that I made to the Auckland Art Gallery and since then I have not been able to find the negative, thereby making it a very rare image. To my knowledge it has never been reproduced. The Auckland Art Gallery is possibly unique among New Zealand public galleries in that it has its collection on-line. Here is a link to the opening page, although it does require you to click a box saying that you accept the conditions of browsing through it.
When I took this photo I was particularly interested in camouflage.
When in Wellington, I went to a very convivial post-opening party, at the Southern Cross Hotel.
I noticed these candles sitting on a shelf over a big fireplace. I left the party, walked back to my accomodation, picked up my camphone which foolishly I hadn’t taken with me in the first place, walked back to the bar, and took this little picture. (incidentally, click on image above and it will come up bigger).
Meanwhile, it got me thinking about the similarities between this candle photo and one that I took of an et al sculpture, shown here at the Govett-Brewster, in New Plymouth, a couple of years ago.
I can see how there are certain visual similarities between the two subjects. I must have been photographing the et al, primarily because of the shapes within it.
On returning home I was welcomed by this weta clinging to my backdoor. For overseas
visitors to my site, these are native cricket-like insects that have, in the absence of land mammals here in New Zealand, taken over the ecological niche usually occupied by rats & mice. Flightless, they prefer to forage at night.
This weta is welcome, because its presence is a sign to me that the biodiversity of this 1/4 acre is improving.
Neil Dawson‘s Ferns 1998
In Civic Square, outside the Wellington City Gallery. I was there along with
several hundred others over the weekend because Telecom Prospect 2007, opened on Saturday evening. Of the 43 artists in the show (not me) 35 were in attendance.
Here is the City Gallery itself. Originally it was a library. The library
is now in the blue building on the left.
I will write something about the Prospect exhibition. I’m thinking about what I want to say, and how I’m going to say it.