Like haiku...

The Art of Mystery: Kyoto in its Season

Robert will be traveling to Kyoto this November to capture the autumn maple viewing season. This, his second trip, will be followed up with two other visits to capture both the seasons of summer and winter and complete the current work in progress on Kyoto. Below is the theme in which the series is based:

"Like haiku the photographs in this series reflect a connotation of season. They explore the love of nature's change and celebrate it as both an aesthetic and the true marking of time; all the while the spirit can be found lying just beneath, shrouded in mystery."

Art is life

It is the small details that matter, this is true in art, this is true in people, this is true in life. Details like the petal of a flower, the focused drop of dew, the suspended half-note or the simple turn of the head can make a work of art.

The viewer sees the overall outcome and is dazzled, but the artist sees this and the detail which brought it all together, the final stroke which completed the piece.

This too is true in life. People read newspapers and become startled at increases in crime or violence. When crime goes up people wonder why someone doesn’t just do what was done before – when crime was low. But no one is looking to the details, the individual people, the one-on-one’s with individuals to turn their lives around. It is the compounded accumulation of one-on-one’s that bring about the overall desired outcome of decline in crime.

One must be willing to confront details, the individuals, without reference to statistics and numbers, headlines and bylines. Only then can one step back and look at the entire scene as an idyllic work of beauty and grace, and give off a wondrous sigh of satisfaction.

Just like a master photograph or painting, a community can be a sight to behold, a work of art, a peaceful place to stroll and enjoy the diversity that is life.

Artists dream and make life so.

A Boston Wedding

Boston is a beautiful location for a wedding celebration. The culture, beautiful grounds, great historical buildings and churches all add to the perfect day. However it does present certain challenges to guests and photographers, namely traffic and getting around. Knowing the most up to date changes in road service (think Big Dig), and planning ahead of time is a must. I like to park the car and forget about it for the day. If the the wedding is in several places, using public transportation or a dedicated wedding trolley is the best. Also if you are planning on taking your formal portraits in the Boston Garden remember that a permit is necessary. Although you will probably not be asked for it, it is smart to ensure one is gotten so that the day runs smoothly. The city of Boston provides all of the details on the acquisition of a permit on their City of Boston website.

Isolation and the Aesthetic

Isolation is a factor of choice. You choose what to separate from the world and capture on a two dimensional plane. With photography one is practicing the art of isolation. First by placing the borders of his viewfinder upon the world at large, one determines what he wants others to see. Then by using photographic technique such as selective focus or smaller aperture as way of example, he determines what depth within that frame is visible. His entire technical process of photography can be summed up with the concept of isolation and how to accomplish this.

But let’s take this concept of isolation and apply it to a broader scale, less technical but of much more importance. I propose that photography be performed in an isolated state. Now before you get all shaken up by this proposition let me explain. This does not mean that one is not part of the world in which he or she is photographing. No, I think it is imperative that one not separate from the world, after all seeing and interacting is a part of life and a most important component of photography. But one should isolate himself from all other endeavors and be a photographer at that moment: getting him or herself ready to see; putting one in the correct frame of mind for photography. Isolating one’s mindset, focusing one’s energies and bringing your creative ability to new aesthetic levels is a key preparatory component for the photographer and the artist.

The great masters of tea ceremony or flower arranging can tell you. The readying steps are vital and bring about a richer, more rewarding artistic experience. Each and every person has his own way of bringing himself to this aesthetic level. For example, I like to have moleskine notebook, pens, a novel set in the area I am photographing (maybe an anthology of poems), and of course the camera. If it is a large trip I will have read several books played out in the area of travel before I depart, written by authors indigenous to the country so that I am able to better understand and pick up on the artistic sense of the zone. I like to walk slowly and look. I like to take time to stop at a café and write, read and contemplate my photography. In this way my photographs are simply one outcome of an entire aesthetic experience. It is this aesthetic experience that I term isolation: isolation from the daily grind, the have-to-do’s and the stress; whatever steps you have to take to bring yourself to a higher aesthetic level, more aware, isolated.