Portraits of Lillian Bassman

(image credit)

Lillian Bassman kept photographing well into her 90s. Imagine that.

Rollieflex, in tow:  What do you see now?

(image credit)

Lillian Bassman has eyes on you. She harbors humor behind her expressionless face. 

(image credit)

Lillian Bassman, looking very Karl Lagerfeld. Fashionable, in her own right.

A Reminiscent Stroll of Songs I Loved

This song bucked the Disco trend in the late 1970s, as it was jazzy and it told a story, instead of just repeating a refrain endlessly.  Yet, it was a hit in that era, too, because you could dance to it.

Robin Ojay shared this video on Google+, and it became, for me, a reminiscent stroll of songs I loved in that era.

Dance Does it in Andrew Lloyd Webber

It was a royal birthday celebration indeed.  Andrew Lloyd Webber turned 50 years old, and this lavish 1998 production amounted to a live greatest hits album at the Royal Albert Hall.  Certain dance numbers were, to me, as memorable as the music itself.

"Whistle Down the Wind" did better as a concept album, featuring music pieces like that of pop star Bonnie Tyler, than it did in its 1996 debut production in Washington DC.   

The 1996 film adaptation of the stage musical "Evita" did well in the box office, with Antonio Banderas as the enigmatic Che.  His character is best understood, I think, as a Chorus woven into the story itself.  

"Starlight Express" tells the story of a toy train set that comes to life, hence the stage performance on roller skates.  Ray Shell was among the cast members, since its 1984 debut in London.  

Romancing Anne Hathaway

(image credit)

(image credit)

(image credit)

Behind the Scenes of "Dancers Among Us"

One of the things I love about art is the creative process behind it.  It may have nowhere near the aesthetics we come to expect, but that process is a very real part of the creativity.  In fact, without the latter, there is no aesthetics whatsoever.

Enter:  Photographer Jordan Matter.  Project:  Dancers Among Us.

Tenealle Farragher, at the famous Carnegie Deli in New York City

The staff at Carnegie Deli are a mix of befuddled and bemused, but Farragher proceeds nonchalantly to eat her monstrous sandwich à la ballet and Matter goes about snapping shots of the extra in the ordinary.

Matter was fortunate to meet a cooperative Deli manager, and didn't have to rush the shoot with Farragher.  Otherwise they have just a matter of seconds to shoot, before someone busts them.  But that kind of adrenaline is part of the creative process, isn't it.  

Speaking of whom and speaking of which, here's another photo in Dancers Among Us.  Expressing perhaps the relief of getting to the meter just before the parking officer nails her car with a ticket.  

Tenealle Farragher, in Washington Heights, New York City

A tweet exchange between dancer and photographer:

@jordanmatter that's awesome. Congrats #DancersAmongUs going off! love dancing in the rain especially in Paris see you in NY in 2013 :):);)
— TenealleFarragher (@TenealleNewYork) December 10, 2012

They were referring to this post on Matter's Facebook page:

This image of Tenealle Farragher was making its way around the internet uncredited until someone alerted me. And a good thing they did! When I contacted Dance World (a dance store in Dublin, Ireland) and asked them to credit us on their Facebook post, they did even better than that - they ordered 100 copies of my Dancers Among Us book!

Matter is a dancer, too, apparently.  Multi-talented, he.

Jordan Matter, in Times Square, New York City

I love Matter's biography, as he speaks in particular about his children and the inspiration behind Dancers Among Us:

The inspiration for this book came to me one afternoon as I watched my son, Hudson, playing with his toy bus. I was trying to keep pace with his three-year-old mind as he got deeper and deeper into a fantasy involving nothing more than a yellow plastic box and armless figurines. At least that’s what I saw. He saw frantic commuters rushing to catch the 77 local bus to Australia. He jumped in place, mouth open and slapping his knees, joyously reacting to a world I couldn’t see, but one powerfully present for him...

I’ve created these images for Hudson and his little sister, Salish. My children are everything to me; my dreams for them are enormous. I hope they have long and healthy lives, find loving partners and fulfilling careers, and, if it suits them, experience the joys of parenthood. Most important, I want them to be free from self-consciousness, to discover the deep happiness that comes from a life filled with passion, and to find the serenity necessary to be truly present. These photographs communicate my dreams for them more powerfully than words: Relish moments large and small, recognize the beauty around you, and be alive!

There is so much more to see, write about, and reflect on, with this super-awesome project.  Feel free to browse Dancers Among Us, Jordan Matter Photography and Tenealle Farragher.

Golden Oldie Love Songs

I love these love songs, because they tell a story.  They don't necessarily have happy endings, but they speak to age-old realities about our relationships.

Brandy wears a braided chain
Made of finest silver from the North of Spain
A locket that bears the name
Of the man that Brandy loves

He came on a summer's day
Bringin' gifts from far away
But he made it clear he couldn't stay
No harbor was his home

Come to me now
And rest your head for just five minutes
Everything is good
Such a cozy room
The windows are illuminated
By the sunshine through them
Fiery gems for you
Only for you

And Aubrey was her name,
A not so very ordinary girl or name.
But who's to blame?
For a love that wouldn't bloom
For the hearts that never played in tune.
Like a lovely melody that everyone can sing,
Take away the words that rhyme it doesn't mean a thing.

Variations on a Flower Study

There is a lot I love this flower study:

• It's backlit, yet there must've been enough ambient light in the room to capture detail, texture and shade.
• Think about the "Rule of Thirds" of composition.  Instead of a 3 x 3 grid, however, the artist applied the rule thematically, sectioned off by the flower and vase, the simple curtain, and ...
• The peeking cat, of course, adding wry humor to this piece.  

(image credit)

Sometimes art intersections simply happen, when visual and dance fall into place.  There is even a hint of music, that we can hear.

(image credit)

I think about the masters of painting from centuries ago ...

(image credit)