Soon I will be traveling to the United States of America. I’ll be traveling to some nice places on the east coast and the south of the country. In preparation of this trip I made a ‘selfie’. Just for fun 
Guess to what city I’ll be heading first…
conceptual
I Fought the Law!
Perhaps every country has at least a couple of them. Weird, strange or just plain stupid laws. Photographer Olivia Locher looked at the USA and found more than a couple of strange laws. The series’ called I Fought the Law. Above: In Alabama it is illegal to have an ice cream cone in your back pocket at all times. At all times? Perhaps a book can be written on how these laws came about. But before that just scroll down and enjoy the weirdness of the land of the free.
The complete series can be found on Olivia’s website: oliviaocher.com.
Do you know any of your countries weird, strange or just plain stupid laws? Leave them in the comments.
In Utah no one may walk down the street carrying a paper bag containing a violin.
In Wisconsin it is illegal to serve apple pie in public restaurants without cheese.
In Maine it’s unlawful to tickle women under the chin with a feather duster.
In Kansas it’s illegal to serve wine in teacups.
In Tennessee hollow logs may not be sold.
In California nobody is allowed to ride a bicycle in a swimming pool.
In Arizona you not have more than two dildos in a house.
In Rhode Island it is illegal to wear transparent clothing.
In Delaware it’s illegal to wear pants that are “form-fitting” around the waist.
In Texas it is illegal for children to have unusual haircuts.
In Oregon one may not test their physical endurance while driving a car on a highway.
In Hawaii coins are not allowed to be placed in ones ears.
In Ohio it’s illegal to disrobe in front of a mans portrait.
2D or not 2D
Combining or taking inspiration from different art forms can bring about wonderful pieces of work. Photographer Alexander Khokhlov created portraits of woman with wonderfully painted faces. The faces references to all kinds of different works of art. We recognize the comic style, or for the art lovers pop style, of Roy Lichtenstein; we see a pixellated portrait we all know so well by looking at pictures on our computer screens. Even the iconic Obama Hope poster by Shepard Fairey is painted and photographed wonderfully by this Russian artist.
A wonderful series to celebrate both photography and art in general. Below the series. Visit his website for more of his work.
Alexander’s webiste: www.alexanderkhokhlov.com
Alexander’s webiste: www.alexanderkhokhlov.com
Before and After in Kiev
Kiev is in turmoil. And this turmoil has been beautifully captured in a before and after image by Reddit user nasdaf.
Click on the image below to see the complete overview of the before and after state of independence square in Kiev, Ukraine.
The Value of Photography
Have some money to spare? Perhaps you should invest in art. And what better art then photographic art. As the art world is always undergoing change. The influence of photography in the art world has been on the rise ever since the camera was properly used to capture ‘real life’ and since Man Ray played around with this ‘real’ medium. Of course the price of a photograph will rise when its historic relevance to some important person or event seems rare and thus special. But the most expensive photographs lately were created by photographers who used their cameras to create and tell a story. Ignite an emotion in the viewer. And that of course is what art is all about.
Below the top 10 of photographs sold for a couple of more pennies than I have managed to sell mine. So which one would you like to hang on your wall?
#1 Rhein II – Andreas Gursky (1999) $4.3 million
#2 Untitled #96 – Cindy Sherman (1981) $3.9 million
#3 For Her Majesty – Gilbert & George (1973) $3.7 million
#4 Dead Troops Talk – Jeff Wall (1992) $3.7 million
#5 Untitled (Cowboy) – Richard Prince (2001-02) $3.4 million
#6 99 Cent II, Diptychon – Andreas Gursky (2001) $3.3 million
#7 Los – Angeles – Andreas Gursky (1998) $2.9 million
#8 The Pond/Moonlight – Edward Steichen (1904) $2.9 million
#9 Untitled #153 – Cindy Sherman (1985) $2.7 million
#10 Billy the Kid – Unknown (1880) $2.3 million
Perspective is Everything
Bela Borsodi created a fascinating photograph for an album cover (“Terrain” by VLP). At first glance it looks like an image constructed out of four different photographs. But if you look close, very very close you might be able to see the amazingness (is that a word?) of it all. It’s just one photograph! The cleverly placed objects fool both our minds and eyes. It’s all about placement and perspective. Very impressive. Below the video of this crafty project.
Bela Borsodi’s website: www.belaborsodi.com
Above the same set up. Only a different perspective. Still a colorful image but not quite the same.
Bela Borsodi’s website: www.belaborsodi.com
The Neighbors by Arne Svenson
Controversy is always something that can help promote your work. Because of all the commotion around the photo series The Neighbors it manages to come across my table. And that’s why I’m sharing it with you. So in a way the saying, bad publicity is good publicity worked for photographer Arne Svenson. In his series he pointed the camera at the apartment building across from his studio. It shows us snippets of the lives lived in these stacked living spaces. A series of anonymous lives lived behind the windows of downtown Manhattan.
The photos have a painting like quality. The framing of the windows mimic that of paintings. And they remind me of the works of Edwards Hopper. Moments captured in a wonderful composition. It leave much to the imagination. The subjects aren’t recognizable. The artist allows us to create our own story. A theatrical way of looking at ordinary life. It also reminded me of the series Windows by Michael Wolf.
Read about the controversy of being secretly photographed and putting the work up for sale here. I can understand the feelings of being photographed in your private homes. It does raise some privacy questions but overall the work doesn’t seem to be about those specific neighbors. It shows a stage we can recognize. If I was Arne’s neighbor I would ask for a print. Not sue him for making such an interesting series.
Arne Svenson’s website: arnesvenson.com
Arne Svenson’s website: arnesvenson.com
Vertical Horizon by Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze
Cities are growing and growing. More and more people move to the big city to achieve their career goals and chase their dreams. Because of this growth the landscapes of places change. If you have ever been to a major city you will recognize Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze’s series Vertical Horizon. The photos show us a different look of Hong Kong’s cityscapes. The lack of a true horizon due to all that growth shows us a new vista. A vertical one. Look up with Romain and be part of his journey between the geometry of Hong Kong’s urban environment.
Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze’s website: www.rjl-art.com
The book on amazon:
Is Media Child’s play?
In the Playroom is a series by Canadian and award-winning photographer Jonathan Hobin. The photographs show us children playing out events that we all recognize. From the tragedy of 9/11, the torture at Guantanamo bay to the devastating tsunami on boxing day 2004. At fist glance we see a scene of children playing. But quickly we notice that what we see isn’t all that innocent or cheerful.
Jonathan Hobin created this series to comment on what it means to live in a world with the constant presents of media. The shift from the consumption of media to generating it as well. And on top of that Johanathan’s work also depicts the darker side of childhood. That it’s not all that normal that childhood is a happy and innocent time for many of us.
What ever you feel by seeing the images I do believe this artist really knows how to push buttons and therefore make you stand still by reflecting on how we go about media and news in this time and age.
Jonathan Hobin’s website: www.jhobin.com
Jonathan Hobin’s website: www.jhobin.com