I was struck by the first rendition of Tom Petty’s “Free Falling” by a gentleman in his early 40’s on a side street between two houses. He was genuinely talented but nothing special stuck out with his oversized amp and a backup guitarist that came in sporadically when the moment inspired. It was a nice warm up for the ears. Backyard jams seemingly bringing out the festival feel and openness of the community.

Moving through the crowd, we’re trying to get to the main stage to see the ever-lost-in-the-90’s-band Cowboy Mouth. Known mainly for their song “Jenny Says,” that was all I was hoping to hear. Yes, going to hear one song may be odd but at a free-for-all open air festival, you can get away with it. With raspy vocals after years of touring (1993 was a while ago, ladies and gentlemen), the boys looked tired but did seem to be enjoying themselves and the Red Stripe boosted atmosphere. Unfortunately there was no Jenny to be found and we were left empty eared.

Call it courage. Call it peer pressure. Call it naivety. However you explain it, it takes an unreal amount of confidence to get up during one of the biggest street festivals in the Virginia Highlands of Atlanta and perform a solo… as a 13 year old. Perched on a residential corner of Virginia Avenue, the boy’s 1.5ft amplifier produced just enough volume to grab the attention of those admiring various booth art and bring those passively walking by to a shocking halt.

His family sat on the steps behind him, singing along, cheering, and admiring the gusto of the young rock star. Whispers were passing through the crowd. “He’s got serious balls.” “Would you have done that at his age?” “If he keeps this up, he’s gonna get major play.” The intoxicated cheers increased his confidence and little grins unfolded as he played for the crowd.

Even though I know I’m not going to push myself out of my comfort zone this second, his impromptu performance provided inspiration to many to look for a moment to jump out and forget your inhibitions in front of total strangers.

Cheers, VaHi Summerfest Rock Star.

I had a chance to make it to the opening of the Notorious Art Show featuring Craig Henderson and his urban, vibrant, and expressive depictions of Brooklyn and the rappers that emerged from the streets. The art is great. It could be up (and will be!) in modern galleries or in fashion-forward living rooms. I must admit, the pictures above were modified from sub par low light photography and you should really check out Craig's Portfolio for better pictures and information about obtaining prints.
Other than the Notorious series, there is a Obama group, Jazz series, and a cubistic look into African American culture.

The show also included at the show was a photo-realistic painter named Ben Allen. His talent is uncanny to portray the emotion while keeping with photo-esque painting. Below is a picture of Ben explaining his art and the process to an admirer. The openness of the event was incredible. From Henderson to the gallery owner, Mr. Daso, all in the room were open to talking art and easily approachable.

The next few pictures include Craig (the last picture) presenting his work. Enjoy!





Also, a quick plug for an event that opens today (Super Bowl Sunday) at GA. Ltd Gallery. The women of color event will be a great display to start Black History Month in Atlanta and a must see for any art enthusiast. See you there!

Paul's display at The Contemporary was my first photography exhibition and it left me wanting more. More insight from the artist. More pictures. More time to stand in awe.

Mr. Shambroom is an interesting fellow (listen to the forum and Q & A here). His jokes, rather dry. His subject interests float from one subject to the next like a curious youth. And his commitment to finishing a project is incredible.

(Shambroom, far right)

Throughout the exhibit there were three projects that Shambroom brought for his tour.

1) Special Ops:

This first theme was just bazaar (photo above). In the forum the audience and the panel discussed the similarities to these figures and men in medieval portraits with armor on or how they were incredibly similar to a department or sporting good catalog, glorifying the weapons and machinery. Though digital editing was addressed, the exact degree was left unexplained by Shambroom. Surely, intentional but frustrating for a growing photographer. One thing I loved was the pride that the photo shoots brought each of the military/ police groups. It was a way to showcase what they did and how they did it. However, Shambroom indicated that was not exactly the intention

2) Simply Nuclear:

The name sums it up. The big thing discussed was the need for 6-18 months of preparation and work on clearance to get the ball moving and gain access to the facilities.

3) Board Rooms:

The most intriguing part of this series was the comfort and candidness that each photo displayed. The photo above was by far my favorite. The five women in the council meeting and skepticism ranging from "are you serious" to "oh, well that's may be a valid point but..." to "oh hell nah..." and an absent member, the chair, a man of undetermined background. Surely interesting to try to come up with stories. Any ideas?

Thoroughly impressed by each of his pieces and the use of canvas instead of fine photo paper again gave the impression of a portrait instead of a daily photograph. If you're in the ATL check out the exhibit at the contemporary until November 30th, I highly suggest it.

Mark this as the first time after moving to atlanta a week ago that i ventured out and explored atlanta on my own.  the small summer shade festival  in grant park created a lovely atmosphere to roam from booth to booth as visual art in all of its forms spilled onto the pathways.  sure there was music, we'll get there in a second but boy were there characters.  i met some good fellows saving the trees in grant park.  this felt odd because i thought i had read that grant park was a nature conservancy.  perhaps my definition of conservancy was a bit off.  anywho, i met tree climbers, radio dj's, photographers, a masseur, and countless painters.  thus brings me to the lovely picture that brings back memories that most early twenty some-things hold dear to their hearts.  unfortunately i did not meet ms. frizzle myself but i did hear a tale of a special man out of my home state, north carolina. 

once there was this unique man who lived on a hill.  this hill had a chapel and a famous well.  this well had many visitors like hamm, jordan, carter, and worthy, but it had a special visitor that did not often venture far from his modest home.  instead he dreamt of the simple things.  he saw the possibilities that could be and decided he would express his visions with what he saw around him.  literally, he found things around his house and created a yard full of critters.  clyde jones built a wooden zoo, created his dream car, and a bit of a following.  he not only has a following, he has disciples.  his disciples take this dream car and share his message and hopes for peace and joy.  though i did not get to meet the fellow, i did feel like i got a glimpse at the legend

the musicians, ahh the musicians.  i will rarely give a bad review and this will not be one of those days because in all fairness i was a bit distracted and it was free.  here we go.  i only got the opportunity to see two lovely ladies perform.  first, we had a duo of bongo and singer/songwriter.  the bongo player was not listed but the singer was stephanie scarlet and she had a great talent for song writing.  the young art star-er in the making was sitting five feet from me musing to the lyrics.  we'll leave it at that. 

the second singer was also unique in her own right.  lindsay appel who is "currently recording her first album" yay! was the first blonde female that i had seen sing an incredibly downer song.  but a pretty voice and pretty good at tickling the plastic ivories.  here's a slightly altered shot of lindsay.  good luck ladies in you pursuit of your musical dreams.

finally we have ms. mariella owens. a wonderful potter from mableton by way of ohio and a long journey.  we bonded over a falling leaf that scared the jeebies out of her and then a fallen bug that go squished on my neck (the greenest little guy i had ever seen).  i have been in the market for a "masculine" piece (whatever that means) and asked her what she would suggest.  she quickly offered a custom piece with a fat handle, big lip and etched personalizations on the walls.  a fair price was offered, business cards were exchanged and jokes were made.  in this quick 15 minute conversation, i knew i had met a special lady.  when i asked if i could have a picture of her and her booth, she said "surely... hold on let me take off my hat and show off all of my hair."

atlanta:  sherman burned it down (9/11/1864-wikipedia-who knew it was 9/11?), ludacris, pastor troy, and ted turner built it up.  atl hoe.   well that is a bit of a stretch and a solid 120 year gap of 'splainin but what has come out of the ashes should be acknowledged.  besides becoming the commercial mecca of the south, its arts districts are spread from the highlands to buckhead with small galleries dispersed throughout.  here begins my story. 

following an interview in buckhead, i had about 2 hours on my hands and no idea what to do.  thankful for my newly purchased garmin, i located a baskin robbins and then set off to find some quality art in the atl.  what i found was a wonderful lady who professed her allegiance to the republican party despite her misleading name, clinton kennedy, and gorgeous art in a hole in the wall gallery. after asking permission to take pictures and mrs. kennedy respectfully asking she not be included in any of the shots, i started my field day of pictures.  this is what followed.

on display was a combination of paintings and mixed media by barbara olsen titled "bits and pieces, snippets and scraps." thoroughly intriguing with hints of humor and overarching empowerment.  green baby below just made my smile.  that has been a saying in my household for years and thought it was only appropriate.  i figure that the artist wasn't too southern otherwise it would have read "ain't no one happy." the glory of the word that ain't in the dictionary and a double negative. collective sigh. 

anywho, the painting on the left took me a second and it really moved me in what was beyond my full comprehension.  never having anyone close to me go through the full cancer treatment and witnessing the suffering does not give me a complete understanding of what each person and their loved ones go through but olsen's ability to honor the courage they must have and her inspiring women must have had, is a beautiful thing in itself.

lesson one in painting photography: don't use a flash.  duh. guess who did? this guy.  but like a good student, I quickly learned.  and adjusted.

lesson two in photography of: just get close. there's no reason to back up and zoom in. if you know of a reason, I'm all ears. it limits the sensitivity to your movement and ultimately gets a clearer picture. 

there's not much explaining to this next photo.  the reason it made it on the blog was personal.  may it be my enjoyment of the shadows, the simple painted over white walls or possibly just the symbolic fun of finding this off the beaten path gallery much like the art was hidden behind other art.  either way, it was a special photo and a special day.

next we have what i call: "the rooster that shat sunshine." descriptive, playful and gorgeous.  i was really happy with how the photo turned out and how it is, for all intents and purposes, completely random.

finally a lovely mishmash of frames, art and separators. i thoroughly enjoyed taking this picture knowing that it wasn't going to change my perception of galleries nor would it capture the randomness of the day.  however, it did hold something special that brought a smile to my face even in its trivial nature.  mark this as the moment where i realized that photography was not about taking pictures to sell or brag about, rather, it is to make me happy. 

that's my story for the day. if you're ever in an art gallery in buckhead and meet a wonderful lady with two presidents names; sit down, chat, and take a few pictures.