Happy New Year

wishing you and yours a happy, healthy and peaceful 2013 filled with light and love

Life Update

"into each life some rain must fall"

a brief rain shower has begun falling upon Louie and i.  a few days before Thanksgiving we learned Louie has cancer.  the good news, it has not spread and is quite curable with radiation and chemotherapy treatments.  the not-so-good news, he must undergo daily treatment for 6 weeks.  we hope to start in the next week or two.

i will try to keep writing and photographing during this time, but i don't imagine i will be posting here with any regularity.  when the treatment is over, and Louie is on the road to recovery, i will be back.

this is a time of great anxiety, stress and fear.  it is also a time of intense joy, gratitude and love. the big life lessons have already begun.  actually, they were always there, i just was not paying attention to them.  i will try to accept them, and learn from them with each passing day.

i know each one of you reading this is sending us your love and good wishes.  thank you.  this means the world to us.  it is the love and strength and support of family and friends that will see us safely through this journey.

Self Contained~Online Gallery and Book

i received notification today that my work has been accepted for the exhibition Self Contained, curated by Philadelphia based photographer and writer Christopher Paquette.  Christopher is the creative force behind the excellent online magazine PHOTO/arts.

you can see the announcement here: www.photoartsmagazine.blogspot.com

Self Contained will open online in early November.  the exhibition is comprised of 68 images by 46 photographers from around the world.  the project will culminate in the publication of a photography book of the entire exhibition.

i am so honored and pleased to be a part of this exhibition.  more to come later...

Ekaterina Vasilyeva  Self Contained (2012)

Out Of My Comfort Zone

as you can tell, my post a day project bit the dust last week, but not for lack of trying.  last Friday, Lou and i headed to the shore, so he could officiate yet another wedding, and our wifi connection at the hotel was just awful, to say the least.  the weather was glorious, however, and i managed to spend two wonderful days photographing anything and everything that caught my eye.  absolute heaven.

then, i returned home Sunday to find my first ever artist/gallery talk at J&J staring me squarely in the face.  i went into complete panic mode.  i'm a terrible public speaker, consumed with anxiety, and i have never been very good at talking about myself or my art.  i'm a master at deflecting attention away from myself and on to others.  to have many sets of eyes staring at me, and lots of ears tuned to what i'm saying is one of my worst nightmares.

i'm happy to say my friends came out in force to support me... thank you all... and the talk went well, i think.  it's still a bit of a blur, not made any clearer by the stiff bourbon and ginger i popped once i arrived home from the talk.

as i told the folks who attended the talk, i'm glad i did it.  i learned so much about myself and my work by sitting quietly and analyzing what i do and why i do it.  i am usually so consumed with producing work... shooting, developing, printing, showing... that i  lose track of why i'm doing it all in the first place.  it felt good to take a deep breath, slow down and really look at my own images the way i look at the work of others.  it is good to honor your work in this way.  i discovered a lot, and i recommend that all you photographers out there take the time to do the same thing.  you'll be happy you did.

sacandaga light, 2012, oxidized gelatin silver print

A Good Night Picture

just have the time and the energy to post a picture before turning in for the night.  

sweet dreams.

watershed branch, 2012, oxidized gelatin silver print

Yesterday's Prints

busy, busy day today, so i just have time to post a couple images from yesterday's day in the darkroom, as promised.

these photographs were taken at a lovely watershed park off Saginaw Avenue in Lansing, MI.  i need to learn the official name of this park as i photograph there every chance i get.  a tiny oasis of natural beauty. 

i think the tree... surprise, surprise... is my favorite so far.

watershed tree, 2012, oxidized gelatin silver print

watershed Queen Anne's Lace, 2012, oxidized gelatin silver print

A Quick Update

i can't believe it!  the small image i had enlarged to 16"x20" looks fantastic.  i never thought i'd hear myself say i liked one of my images large.  i am such a devoted lover of small, intimate, hold-it-in-your-hands, get-up-close images.

in the modern world of contemporary art i think 16"x20" is still considered pretty small.  my amazing printer referred to it as "wallet size."  but it's gi-normous to me, and i love it.  i think i'll continue on with this project and try a few more sunflower images big.

sorry i can't show you here.  trust me, it looks sweet.

so... does this mean i now get to charge mega-bucks for my work?

on another front, the first few images i printed in the darkroom today from my old film developed in old developer turned out great.  as soon as they dry overnight i'll scan a couple and post them for you to see.

i'm so happy!  all and all, a smashing day of photographic play!