Springtime! Finally! Isn't it pretty?

Diane Arbus in Edinburgh

I had a 2 hours chat with my ill friend today, she is holding strong and looks very confident so now, after sending her lots of love and positive energy for tonight, I am able to concetrate on something else:

Edinburgh is home to a collection of 70 prints by Diane Arbus, one of my favourite American photographers of the 60s and 70s (the others being Lee Friedlander and Robert Frank).

It is nice to see her work in the gallery environment when you can have a look at real 50x50 cm prints instead of flicking through a book (last time it was 'Revelations'). We also went to a lecture by Robin Gillanders who took a more personal view to her work (from a point of view of a working photographer) but from what he mentioned about style of work by Arbus, I seem to be kinder and more compassionate to my subject...or at least I think I am.

As this is the main problem with Arbus' work to me: is she feeling any emapthy towards her subjects at all or she just sees the image and goes for it trodding over the people in front of her camera to get her imaginary result? This is a very tricky subject for me - where are the boundaries of being a genius photographer and exploiting one's subjects? (Well, her good friend Richard Avedon somehow managed to escape that route).

There was also an interesting mention of DA being ASHAMED of her family fortune and coming from a rich, 5th Av family - this was what stopped me in my tracks after reading Patricia Bosworth's bio of the photographer - that her family never helped her financially. Now I think it might be a reason why but somehow I am not convinced.

Dedication

All good energy goes to Monica!

My dear friend is seriously ill, but I know that we will yet be making jokes about it!

I cannot think about anything else right now. Somehow, deep inside, I think everything is going to be all right.
Speak to you tomorrow, my dear girl!

Sylwia goes to Italy - Margaux tells how it REALLY is:

http://margauxmotin.typepad.fr/margaux_motin/2008/11/quoi-je-mentraine-cest-tout.html

Catastrophe

A day of shock for Poles, the Sunday Times published a picture of borthers K. as Jacek & Placek duet and I am posting some images taken at Greyfriars' cemetary couple of days ago. How appropriate.

The cemetary is known in Edinburgh as one of the most haunted places so I ventured towards it's inner wall only in a bright daylight. In 16th century there was a prison for religious rebels Convenats located within the walls of the cemetary - thousands of people were kept there for months in this makeshift conentration camp, hundreds of them died. Some of the tombs are seriously spooky looking. Look oot for them as they would say in Edinburgh.

United K

Learning

I am still managing to get the car on the wrong side of the road somehow...

Nie

I was hoping to get to Arles portfolio review this summer but when a opened their website, I do agree - 24 hours after the submission had started ALL, literally ALL the featured reviewers were FULLY booked up. A massive disappointment. So we will not have a nice working holiday in the South of France with portfolio viewing face to face. Instead we will have sending out a dozen of blurbbooks and lugging the portfolio amongs bored chaps in wet and expensive London. Just my luck.