Tag : Art
One of the most interesting, rewarding things an artist can ever do is to display his or her work. Of course, nothing but I mean nothing will ever take away from the cheer act of creating. It is after all the very drive of creating what makes us do what we do.
However being able to share the fruits of our labour with others, with the world can and should be an enjoyable, humbling and educational experience. This is the very reason why I wanted to have another opportunity to do so… and to serve as an excuse to meet friends, family and new faces alike. Who am I to say ‘no’ to a welcoming excuse for a toast?
Projecto Italia is a photography collection driven by a love of Italian architecture, its history and unique panoramas. A modern country still strongly rooted in an old world cradle that are it’s buildings, towns, monuments and values. I was inspired to go there, as it happens sometimes in life, by the dreams of someone else. After hearing her stories and being swept by her passionate enthusiasm, I felt compelled to travel 7000 kilometres and attempt to capture some of those very moments through my lenses. It was a great experience.
From the symmetry of the spiral stairs of the Vatican, immense tombs in Florence or the nostalgic canals of Venice, please join me at Insomnia Lounge for Projecto Italia: A Photography Reception. Select pieces from Project Italia will be on display at the front lounge on Wednesday, 7:30pm, July 24th, 2013.
Hope to see you there!
A relaxing Sunday walk through Toronto’s parks can yield awesome photography. Running dogs, scared wildlife, refreshingly luscious & large botany. At the same time, a tiny little bulb. Stretching into the sky, just waiting for more sun to bloom, can give tell a story all its own. Simple photography can be as interesting as major world events if caught at the right moment. Just as loud, flashy subjects can be as entertaining and share a moment of our lives as small, solemn things.
I am a fan of simplicity as generally it seems that we tend to like complexity while at the same time complain about how complex our lives are. Failing to take stock on the fact that we push ourselves into that corner.
This was taken in Cabbage Town at the Riverdale farm. Using a Nokia D700 and a simple 50mm 1.8 lense.
Sometimes, a shot, an idea comes to you just like that. Something occurs in front of your lenses, simply screaming to be captured. Will it come out right? Will it blow your mind once you see it on print? Many times, you already know even before you press the shutter.
However there are always subtle moments happening all around us. Muted and simple. Not fast nor intense. Not high-speed nor self-indulgent. They are just there. Like these simple drops falling on a random car’s windshield during a heavy rain. They are just there, Rainin’
Rewind to 
a few years ago…
Okay. So while sipping green tea in my lonely apartment, a friend of mine rang me out of the blue and asked ‘So, what are you bringing to the birthday party?’ Surprised by such forwardness, I answered the only way I could, with a heartfelt, ‘Who the hell is this?’ Tsk, tsk. A few awkward moments later, and having established the person in the other end to be in fact my friend Kristina, who in fact had a birthday party coming up that evening and who in fact I had no gift to give to. I decided to perform gift surgery in a hurry.
‘How long do I have?!” To which she replied that I was expected at her apartment along with everyone else in under three hours. Now, at this point I lived too far from a round trip shopping excursion and the closest places of business where my legal tender was accepted was a McDonald’s and the corner convenience store. Both not high in the gift carrying department hierarchy. I was totally fried.
Kristina had been a good friend, listening to my stories of woes and wine and she was was going through a bad spot after breaking up with her boyfriend and I thought a nice gift would cheer her spirits. Sadly, I was pretty broke and had no clue about what to get her.
Suddenly, I remembered some wise word I probably made up or hear someone else said: ‘If you cannot buy a gift, then MAKE a gift! AHA! Eureka! Problem solved! Then I sat down and sipped on some more green tea in the jubilee of an idea well thought. 5 Minutes went by. Shit. No idea of a gift yet.
Making a gift is hard, you see. If you are talentless, if idea can explode in your face and not only you look cheap but also tactless. Specially when you have no idea where to start. So then, I thought of doing a drawing, yeah, that’s it, some painting! It made sense, it would unique and worldly. Yes! A painting, that sounded like a great idea. I had done some drawings & sketches while a kid, however I had to deal with the stern issue that I sucked. But hey, it’s the intention that matters right? Right.
So I found some water paint, took some white cardboard –yeah, I didn’t even have a canvas at the time– and searched my vicinity for a subject…. Uh… Nothing in living room… The kitchen? God, I needed to clean the kitchen back then. It looked as if a war-zone had walked in, seen the mess and thrown up in there. Geesh, still nothing. Nothing. NOTHING!
‘Mmmm…’ perhaps my idea had not been as idiot proof as expected. Then, I looked out my north exposure window from my 11th floor apartment and there it was: A sun was setting. ‘That’s nice…’ Eureka! Paint the silly sunset! Damn, how come I didn’t see it before?! Guess you had to wait for it, no? And so I did.
Mashed paint on of that cardboard of mine like a mad man who is expected shortly at a birthday party and even finished on record time too! Just under an hour. On my way, Ridding The Rocket™, I ended fanning the painting, hoping it to dry on the short subway hop. Guess what! It did! She loved that tiny 10x 7 painting so much she place it dead center on her mantel! I was quite proud of it, if I say so myself.
Until a week later when a book the size of a encyclopedia felt on top if it and crushed it. Still, it was a nice story. The end.