Brady and Grant

A year or so ago I wrote a rather tragically maudlin post about passion and madness and showed a photograph of Charles Baudelaire that I'd always loved. You can find that post here. I was thinking about that photo again because I stumbled across another photo that I've loved all my life and can't tell you why.

I'm reading a book about writers and artists and dignitaries crossing paths in the past. The friendships that developed from a chance meeting or a business arrangement between two famous authors that is rarely known. An 8 year old Henry James sits for a portrait by Mathew Brady because his father wants a photo. A literary critic happens upon a lunch with Walt Whitman. And the current story is about the collaboration between Mathew Brady (photographer extraordinare) and Ulysses S. Grant. The first photo show is the one below. One of General Grant at his base camp.

From the Britannica 

I saw this image decades ago and instantly became fascinated with Grant. Perhaps it is Brady's skill as a photographer that made me want to know more about this man. Perhaps it's the dark but bold look on Grant's face. I've seen other pictures of the General, many of them by Brady, but none affect me the way this one does. I remember clearly looking at the picture and instantly having a gut reaction of fascination. I have a copy of Grant's autobiography waiting to be read. He was a deeply flawed individual but those often make the most interesting people. I've read accounts of his life but I've never read his own words. I know that he died days after finishing it. When his name was mentioned as a book lover my ears perked up. But before I knew all that, I was still fascinated. That one image was enough to make want to know more about a very unusual man. That says a lot about a photograph.

Keystone

I don't normally get political. But I spent part of the day today listening to a politician talk about why we should build the Keystone Pipeline. They threw out all the classic reasons: jobs, income for companies and people, national security. When asked about why the president would put of the decision on the gigantic pipeline, he said something about how the environmentalists has lobbied him into waiting. Normally I would ignore it. But I hear the same arguments day in and day out. How creating jobs is far more important than worrying about the environment. How income seems to trump wilderness. It's one of the reasons that I hand over a small piece of my soul every day. My job helps bring these projects to life.

I don't believe that money trumps environment. I don't believe that the short term benefit we get now, outweighs the long-term damage we do. Thankfully there are others who feel the same. The Sierra Club posted these pictures from Garth Lenz, an award winning Canadian conservationist and photographer, who took them in Canada right around the area where the tar sand will be mined.

Above is the area where the mining would take place.

Above is the nearby area where tar sand mining is already taking place.

That is my reason. No amount of money is worth that. No local source of oil is worth that. I respect our president for waiting. I'm sad that we're even having the discussion.

Just an Image

Mid Week Image

I'm still working on what to call my Wednesday habit of posting just a picture. So far you guys have mostly let me get away with it. I have almost no time on Wednesday but I figure I've been so irregular about posting that I'll post whenever I think about it. The title Mid Week Image works, at least this week.

This is Karl Lagerfeld's living room. For those of you who don't know, Lagerfeld was the head of the Chanel house of fashion until he started his own design firm. And in my opinion he has exquisite taste in decorating. Those are all books and magazines. That is exactly the kind of wall I want to have in my house. Gorgeous.

Trivia Fun

I don't have any time to write up a real post tonight (heading to knitting) so I thought I'd try something fun. Can you guess the actor above? This might be too easy. I found this picture a while ago and think he was just gorgeous when he was younger (he's still attractive IMO). Let me know in the comments who you think it is. I might even have to think up a prize for it. Good luck!

Just a Little Tilted

I've been talking about photography a lot at work lately. Our new IT guy shoots photography in his spare time and my boss has a business selling art photography and t-shirts (more on that later). One of my conversations today about photography turned interesting. While I was waiting for my computer to have some software installed this afternoon, I was talking with Jeff, our new desktop guy and he happened to mention making miniatures. The conversation went a little something like this.

Him: It's like creating miniatures in photo.

Me: You mean tilt-shift?

Him: Exactly, how do you know about tilt-shift?

Me: Are you kidding, I'm fascinated by that type of photography. What types of things have you done?

Him: I've taken a couple downtown shots. I just have fun with it.

Me: You'll have to bring them in to show me. I would love to see them. It's something I've always wanted to learn.

Him: It's actually really easy. I can show you how to create them.

At this point I'm salivating. Not only does he do tilt-shift work but he'd be willing to show me how to do it. Of the long list of things that I would like to learn, this is right there at the top. Of course now that means I'll have to actually take some real photos. And pick up photoshop.

arcticnomad

If you've forgotten, tilt-shift photography is taking photographs, blurring the edges and creating miniature scenes from real landscapes. It is taking what are often sweeping aerial views and making them look like models. I've posted some Olivo Barbieri images before but here are some other tilt shift images to get your imagination going.

mcsixth

I'll check with Jeff to see if I can post some of his images.

B Tal

Library Porn

This will be quick. My time is very short today but I did want to share something I'd found recently.

I once heard that images of beautiful libraries were like porn for librarians. Certain images aroused certain feelings in the heart of a librarian. And I certainly have drooled when looking at images of the new Alexandria library or the New York Reading Room. I've been known to furtively go scouting for library photos late at night. I own two beautiful books filled with pictures of libraries across the world which I flip through regularly: the aptly named "Most Beautiful Libraries in the World" and Candida Hofer's "Libraries". When Curious Expeditions provided images of the most beautiful libraries ever I swooned, then I bookmarked the site (all of the images here were on that list, along with hundreds more that are just as beautiful).

Library pictures just stir something in me. A longing to walk their quiet stacks and peruse the titles. A desire to reshelve books on their glorious bookcases. I truly want to walk into the picture and stand surrounded by books, breathing in that library smell.

What doesn't quite do it for me was this picture (below) that I found recently of a library in North Korea. This was on BBC News' Day In Pictures. This is the library at Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang, North Korea. This electronic library is just not drawing me in the same way that others do. This is the antithesis of library porn. It's the anti-library. And I'm sadly just not interested in it. I know that libraries are becoming more electronic, and honestly I'm fine with that. As long as there are still books, and stacks, and papers to browse. I'm not ready for a library without books, the same way I'm not ready for books without paper. Call me old fashioned that way.

Intermission

I'll try to get a real post up sometime this evening. Until then enjoy the visual madness that is a Gaudi building. He's my favorite architect although I'm pretty sure he was on some seriously good drugs. (Full name Antoni Gaudi, and no this is not where the word "gaudy" comes from, although it sometimes looks like it.)

Fun Photos that I Find

Hopefully this will be a regular thing. I love photos and particularly fun photos. And since I've been reading about farm animals I found these great pig pictures.

This is Pinto from Brookfield Zoo outside of Chicago. I've been to the zoo many times but never been to the Children's Zoo section. Well this pig has taken to painting. He does it independently, never with prodding. Pigs are very intelligent so the keepers try to find ways to keep them entertained. This one uses his hooves and his snout and other found objects to create his art.

Here is one of his paintings. I guess they are often sold on ebay. I might have to look into those. It's quite a bit better than some of the finger painting I can do. :-)

Both photos from the Associated Press.

Eagles

I've been wanting to post these pictures but hadn't had an excuse. Last year in January, Jeff and I went to Davenport for the weekend. We were tired of all the snow and cold and just needed a change of scenery. On Sunday morning we walked over the Rock Island Bridge to Rock Island Arsenal. The arsenal is a military owned island in between Illinois and Iowa. And it was covered with eagles. We spent the entire morning taking pictures and just watching them. It was amazing. Here are just a couple of the pictures in honor of my eagle this morning. In the picture below, the darker birds are immature bald eagles. Bald eagles have been removed from the endangered species list this last year since their numbers have finally returned. They are still protected.