Beauty Edges Up to Death

Spring is a mixture of rotting as much as it is a time of new growth. On a recent trip to Sacramento with some friends we pulled over at the State Capital to wander around. There must have been every imaginable kind of camellia there in the gardens. Old bushes, established, thousands of flowers. I was, of course, drawn into the trampled, damp flowers on the ground. The perfect petaled versions were pretty, but not quite as interesting to me. In fact, the decay seemed to intensify their beauty. Two snapshots later and I had a new little project on my mind. Luckily for me, Grass Valley is covered in Camellias (having three in my own yard). These images are the results of my nightly walks along the streets here in town.

Pavement Trees

Last summer I started shooting concrete and parking lots and dividing lines, fading paint and patterns. Alongside my compulsive inclination to take a photo of every tree branch I see, this contrast to the natural world was a break from the norm. With all the rain this winter, my eye was drawn into the glistening cement and of course...puddles. I am fascinated how my two worlds seem to magically intersect and become one dimensional galaxies both in reflection and in print. It's almost like tree trapping ... yet transient as we know that summer is just around the corner and these accidental worlds will exist no more.

Richard

For those of you who are my Facebook friends, you know I went to WPPI this past week, and brought along a particular RED ball....named Richard. I started in snowy Grass Valley with my son's red ball whom was unnamed at the time and became Richard I. Elias would not share and subsequently I moved onto various Target stores along the course of the trip. The other players you see in these photos are: Richard II (who later got popped by a cactus), Richard III (who got stuck behind barbed wire in Bakersfield), and Richard IV (who is with me still...waiting for his next adventure). To say the least, this impulsive move on my part, quickly became my overwhelming obsession in Vegas and on the road (as many of my personal projects do) and for ONCE...I'm going to share them somewhere other than Facebook. Yes Gabe, I will get that Tumblr page up and running soon. Anyway, Enjoy and if you want to see more ...find me on Facebook and tell me Richard sent you.

XOXO