New Studio Photo

Here's a pic taken a few days ago. We had tons of balloons up but by the time I took this photo the kids had pulled most of them down and were beating each other with them!

Studio/Gallery Photos

This is it! The long awaited for and finally arrived studio/gallery space I've always wanted. There's 4 huge windows of northeast light which I keep diffusion material on providing very soft and wonderful light to paint and photograph by.

We're unofficially open right now but am planning an official party/opening night for December 7th! There will be live music, food and intermingling of creative types and whoever walks in the door! I'm very excited-I'm sure you can tell by the number of exclamation marks at the end of my sentences!!!

Exact details are coming. Stay tuned...

Is Life Ever Really Normal

I used to have problems with being "normal." But then what is normal? Normal doesn't exist! We all are who we are defined by our personality, upbringing and events in life along with the desire to achieve and become who we dream about being.

That said I have quit traversing the country in hopes of finding who I am and have settled back in my home state of New Mexico. We have a beautiful studio/gallery on Main Street. Like a lot of small town main streets there is a lot of activity during the day but it is almost deserted at night. We still have that city-dweller feeling but without the problems of traffic and safety found in the city. Yes, I miss the coffee shops and hole-in-the-wall cafes so we try and do our thing to make up for it.

A few nights ago a friend and the two of us sat outside on a bench in front of our building until almost midnight waving at the occasional car and passing bicyclist. It was a beautiful warm night with just a hint of fall coolness and we were the only ones downtown. There's an old abandoned historic hotel across the street and a small patio area skateboarders use. It reminded me so much of Deep Ellum in Dallas at night but more safe!

I'll post some photos of our studio/gallery. I have 4 huge windows of natural light, North-Northeast, to paint by and to show off our gallery when we open soon for business.

Technology

My last stronghold against overwhelming technological advances fell this summer when I bought a Blackberry. My cheap, free flip-open phone was great. I could communicate with the world but its' technological simplicity kept the modern world at bay. No, I didn't text. In fact I treated texting like Green Eggs and Ham; I would not eat or text them Sam I Am.

Enter my great deal on a Blackberry. Even though my fingers usually hit 2 keys at once I was texting because I couldn't call anyone anymore because no one calls anymore but sends texts. As I began to figure out all the applications my Blackberry took the place of my watch, alarm clock, most computer functions and the need to use my voice to communicate on the phone. I can now text like a 16 year old girl texting her best friend saying bad things about her other best friend. I progressed but regressed. My Blackberry is now an appendage and carried around like a medal of honor.

I don't drive and text-that's utterly stupid! I will talk on the phone on the highway but no texting. When I do text I'm committed. Hours-long sessions seem the norm now, much to the chagrin of my wife who is Blackberry-jealous; not of the phone but of the time I spend on it sometimes texting her friends for her when she's too busy to text herself...(hmmm, now that I see that in print it sounds kinda weird-like I'm doing her a favor texting her friends?). I feel like the Age of Aquarius is here and I'm Up, Up and Away with my Blackberry.

R.I.P. old notions about texting and barring the door against advancement. I wasn't dragged through kicking and screaming. I quietly snuck in and intermingled with the others already there and made them believe I was one of them by flashing my Blackberry and texting my wife, who was stuck at home writing a research paper with the old flip-phone her means of communication. Texting-unfriendly, the flip phone is a dinosaur from the distant past-2 years to be precise.

mobile blog

Having gone totally mobile I have neglected my blog since moving. I'm actually without a computer right now and just got used to the small keys on my new Blackberry where I can type without too much frustration.

I'm back in NM for a couple of weeks and will be in Santa Fe for two days. I hope the economy improves there soon. Still love being there.

The Muse

The Met is featuring an exhibition focusing on the influence of models within the world of fashion and art. Warhol and Dali painted fashion models but the rate at which models are now appearing as subjects on canvas is interesting.  

The model with the most coverage is probably Kate Moss. Though a celebrity she is still has an air of mystery about her because of what is not known of her. Likewise with other models. We see their faces and figures yet they still have a certain distance from mainstream celebrity. Check the exhibition here   at http://www.metmuseum.org/

By the way after teetering back & forth I have decided that Facebook and Twitter are a waste of my time so I've closed those accounts. If they work for others that's great. I can always be reached at john.benjamin.pritchett@gmail.com.

Fashion Photography

Just picked up the latest issue of Vogue magazine at my local newsstand. Catching my attention was the article about fashion photographer Steven Meisel. Considered  to be the most successful fashion photographer of the current era Meisel is who each of us aspiring fashion photographers (no matter the stage  our careers are in presently) wishes he/she could be.

Interestingly, Meisel goes against every principle and practice of modern self promotion, marketing and publicity. He has always shunned publicity and rarely gives interviews, doesn't have a website and is mostly inaccessible to the public and media. He is said to be shy and doesn't seek a public life.  Yet he has photographed every Italian Vogue cover since 1988, not to mention all other fashion publications, and has been responsible for the success of many, many of the most famous models.

Even if you're not a fashionista the current article is definitely worth reading. In addition there are great photographs by Meisel, Annie Leibovitz and David Sims that capture the imagination. And that's what fashion photography should accomplish.

See my work at johnbpritchett.blogspot.com