Whirlwind in full effect.
And Yours Truly functions well in whirlwinds and other moments of pure motion in throes of observing and documenting.
This past Friday evening motored to Rochester for the member opening of the Ansel Adams exhibit at George Eastman House, where YT has been a proud member since Tony Bannon took over the gig of director.
Arrived on the scene with Sparky and we promptly toasted our arrival with a nice glass of champ before we headed in different directions so I could subsume.
As I sketched some of the prints and took notes I overheard a man telling his much younger date on his arm that No, this was the age before PhotoShop – to her amazement at the tonalities and sharpness of one of the prints.
I was there for art's sake and for a piece I'm writing for the Shiney Happy.
Big Fact Gleaned (BFG) is that AA did not use a darkroom timer (as some non-timing old timers did not) but a metronome, emanating from his pianistic training.
A main lovely feature of the show (besides a vid of AA and Georgia O'Keeffe in conversation) is a wall explication of how he created a shorthand of notes on printing each print, in a grid system. I think this is lovely info for all photogs who actually spent years in the darkroom, it certainly springs up lovely (for real) mems of being in the darkroom, lovingly sloshing chemistry over a print and working for hours and hours on one image until it was just Perfect.
And still, after all those years of childhood photo self-ed/experimentation, Nancy Golden workshops, big U undergrad courses, news bureau and newspaper printing on a deadline it was all still Magic.
Tony Bannon and I were so happy to see each other and me, Tony, Sparky visited in the GEH café and Tony gave me two gorgeous books: an AA book and another called Picturing Eden (after I told him of my nature-capturing photog ways and concerns and how grad school powers that be tried to flush this all from my system but it persisted and persists) in which he not only wrote a profound intro but a very sweet note to YT.
He then took me and Sparky on a back-staircase tour of GEH, culminating in a visit to his office which, back in the day, was Eastman's screening room.
Tony had photos (quel shock) of the screening room in Eastman's day, replete with stuffed animal bounty heads, extension cords suspended awkwardly from things, stacks of films in their canisters, an odd assembly of chairs for watchers.
Tony also wanted to show me a plant I gave him as a big thanks for writing an essay for a solo show I had at Big Orbit. The plant thrives, perhaps better than the art career of YT, who works all the livelong day making everyone oso happy with beautiful documentation of what they do.
Speaking of such, had the most amazing five-course dinner chez President Simpson and Katherine on Saturday evening during a pre-Commencement soirée. Tuna carpaccio, duck breast, side dishes that were so intricate and a dessert that, due to a pending deadline, will only be described as Architectural. A few of these dishes YT will attempt to recreate for one of my next dinner parties.
Mucho latero met the gang of girlies out for double b-day trouble, celebrating the births and lives of Jana and Tiffany.
The only snag du soir was that the Sabres lost in double OT.
Dined with my loving parents last night and, despite giving her a lavish bouquet that she received direct from growers (ProFlowers rules), gave her another gift so that those in restaurant would not glance over and think Geez, what a cheap-ass, no gift for her mom. So I stood up and in grand gestures, lest anyone was watching, presented my dear Mom (Fats to YT) her lovely gift of excellent jacket, just the thing a daughter who digs the shop acquisition, will buy for a mom who would not toss herself over that certain precipice of fashion chance.

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Laser-focused Love, Love.