A different world

A different world #1, Lumen print digitally enhanced

These past few weeks, living in the shadows of Covid-19 were easier on me than most. Spending time in the studio, gardening, reading and most importantly having all family members well and healthy - I really can’t complain. Most of the time I am at the loom, weaving. “Morning sounds”. Weaving while talking to the birds perching on the tree just outside the studio window. Weaving (or spinning for that matter) are just the thing for letting the mind wander. And wonder. How will our world change? Will this pandemic make us realize how connected are we to each other and to the other parts of nature? How a bat on one side of the world can change lives of millions of people on the other side. Will we find a different equilibrium between the physical and virtual world?

While “Morning Sounds” is off the loom, resting for a couple of days in the studio, I’m back to playing with Lumen prints. Combining physical and virtual reality in my own way. A different world.

“Morning Song” off the loom, resting on the table in my studio

Talking to the birds

Conversations with a stone

I read the poem “Conversations with a stone” years ago and loved it. Filed it in my ‘ideas’ folder where it patiently awaited nil now. A short trip to the desert, to Ramon crater in the south of Israel, a place renown for its colorful rocks, and yet all see are faces. Human forms carved in stone by heat, wind and water. Art created by nature.

“I knock at the stone’s front door.
It’s only me, let me come in.
I want to enter your insides,
have a look round,
breathe my fill of you.”

“Go away, ” says the stone.
“I’m shut tight.
Even if you break me to pieces,
we’ll all still be closed.
You can grind us to sand,
we still won’t let you in.”

“I knock at the stone’s front door.
“It’s only me, let me come in.”

“I don’t have a door, ” says the stone.”

Unlike the conversation in the poem , for a short while, thru the camera, I find the door.

Born in Paris

Nnam Yllas #1

“For more than a year, I have been waiting to see this exhibition, and here I am. So close to the art, I can almost touch it. Instead, I raise the camera and allow the artwork to touch me. The unimportant details take center stage while the actual art pieces recede into the background. After a while, the absurdity of the situation hits me. Why do I tune out the real objects in front of me actively searching for what I want to see?”

Nnam Yllas, a new body of work, born in Paris. A good place to be born in. At a fantastic exhibition at Jeux de Paume. Moments of wonder, awe and I confess, a few tears as well - I expected the experience to be overwhelming. What I did not expect was the urge to photograph. The instinct saying this is important even if I do not understand why. I wonder what the people around me thought of the crying woman with the camera who seemed to photograph the images in the worst possible way: too close, at a weird angle, without enough light, moving around the image with the camera glued to her face. If they only knew ….

To see the resulting body of work, go here.

Apeiron

In 2017 I started playing with Chemigrams. This was a natural part of a growing tendency toward abstraction coupled with an attraction to processes where the outcome can be directed but not controlled. Neither photographs nor drawings, Chemigrams inherit from both worlds. Created on black and white photographic paper, using traditional photographic chemicals, ingredients from the kitchen, art materials and light, the images are coerced into existence by painting, spraying and/or dipping the paper into the different solutions.

In 2018, as I started to prepare for a trip to Greece, I stumbled upon a lecture on Greek philosophy and encountered for the first time the notion of 'Apeiron' which resonated very strongly with the work I was doing in the studio. The result is my first Chemigram squence - 'Apeiron.'

Apeiron (ἄπειρον) is a Greek word meaning "(that which is) unlimited," "boundless," "infinite," or "indefinite." Anaximander, a 6th century BC Greek philosopher, believed the beginning or ultimate reality (arche) is eternal and infinite, or boundless (apeiron), subject to neither old age nor decay. As such, Apeiron can be understood as a sort of primal chaos out of which everything is created as well as the destination of everything once it ceases to exist. (Wikipedia, abbreviated)

See the complete 'Apeiron' sequence here

Of Earth and Sun

Intertwined. Collage of Lumen print and digital images

The last few months, I have been collaging camera-less Lumen prints (prints done on photographic paper using the sun) with digital images, trying to give voice to the connection I feel with the earth. To test the waters, I submitted one of these images ( "Of Earth and Sun" below) to a call for entry that asked for images "that hide a secret". The image was accepted, and is hanging now in a beautiful gallery perched on the cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean sea. 

Last Saturday, I spent few hours in the gallery, showing the art to visitors. One lady seemed to have a particular interesting way of interpreting the art pieces and after talking about a few of them, we stopped by "Of Earth and Sun" and I asked her what does she think it is about. "Well, this piece is not about logic or understanding" she said "it is about feeling and connecting." I could not hope for a better comment. Yes!!! 

Of Earth and Sun. Collage of Lumen print and digital images

Unfortunately, this is real too

Maybe it's the influence of Wynn Bullock's amazing color abstractions, maybe these are lingering thoughts after yesterday's meeting were I was exposed to the reality of the asylum seekers in Israel. Anger, shame, determination, all bubbling inside. Something needs to be done. Unfotunately, this is real too.

Getting lost in the shadows of a Magnolia tree

In the three years I've been photographing, there were a handful of times when I lost myself in the photographed object. I know this sounds weird, so let me try to describe such a moment in a non-poetic way ...

Yesterday, when passing by the kitchen window, I saw the magnolia tree in our front yard projects interesting shadows on the wall separating our building from our neighbors'. I grabbed the camera, went outside, and standing less than 2 feet from the wall started to compose images out of the patches of shadow and light. As there was a little bit of wind and the sun was constantly changing position, the light forms changed all the time. For what must have been at least half an hour, I moved a few inches at a time and ... created 70(!) images of a very ordinary concrete wall. A few people passing by asked if I am trying a new camera. Nope, I was not. I was getting lost in the shadows of the magnolia tree. 

When breath becomes air

Death is one of the hardest things to comprehend. The world changes. We realize permanence is an illusion, a figment of our imagination. When the physical body is gone, the spirit is stronger than ever. Breath becomes air. 

Wandering, camera in hand, looking for what else is there. For the first time, experiencing the truth Minor White expressed a long time ago. "One should not only photograph things for what they are, but also for what else they are". 

Raising the bar

Yesterday, I spent the day at the annual PhotoLA - the biggest photography event in Los Angeles. Soaked in the work around me, enjoyed seeing my work on display. Such events allow me to climb a few more stairs, get a bit more perspective on the breath and depth of the world of photography. Every step mean the bar is set a little higher, making me want to become a better artist. Wandering around the labyrinth of booths, I stopped by the 21st editions' table. Last year they had on display Sally Mann's book, and for at least 10 minutes I was glued to the floor, barely daring to touch it. As she is one of my favorite photographers, I assumed this year I will be less inspired by their display. Boy, was I wrong.

On a small table, next to some of his prints, was Wynn Bullock's artist book (if anyone can gift me 18,000$ to add this to my art library, please let me know ...). "Relativity". Excerpts from Einstein's letters and Platinum prints of Bullock's magnificent work. A feast for the eyes, a real treasure. Below, two sample pages I shot with the iPhone. "Wood" print alongside Einstein's thoughts on "the common element in artistic and scientific experience" (text reproduced below), and another spread which includes one of my absolute favorite images. 

From Wynn Bullock artist book 

"What do artistic and scientific experience have in common? Where the world ceases to be the scene of personal hopes, wishes, wants, where we face it as free creatures, admiring questioning, beholding, there we enter the realm of art and science. We do science when we reconstruct in the language of logic what we have seen and experienced; but when we communicate through forms whose connections are not accessible to the conscious mind, yet we intuitively recognize them as something meaningful - then we are doing art. Common to both is the loving devotion, the being above the personal, removed from our will" 

Oh, yeah. The bar jumped very high this time .....

One of my favorite images by Wynn Bullock "Navigation without numbers" 

Hallows' Eve

As someone who loves photographing the night moods, Halloween is a rare treat for me. Having just finished a night photography project, letting imagination wander in the quiet streets of Santa Monica, I have now a chance to witness how "the veil separating the worlds" becomes transparent and this quiet and beautiful neighborhood  turns into a modern rendition of the underworld.

I walk around with the camera, taking in the mood and colors, peeking through the veils. Light shining through cobwebs turns into abstract images depicting the land of the ghosts. A world filled with mystery and magic.

It is this veil between the worlds I am looking for whenever I photograph. The spirit and the story hiding beyond what the eye can see. No better time for this than Hallows' Eve. My trick & treats.

Hallows' Eve in Santa Monica

Rest in pieces

The scream

Inspired by the lights, creating my own ghosts

Inspired by the best

How are ideas born? Where do they come from? What translates objects into new concepts?

A few weeks ago, I visited an inspiring exhibit at LACMA - Frank Gehry. To say his work is inspiring, is an understatement. The funny thing is that it is irrelevant whether I would like to live in such a house (I get a bit dizzy from looking at his buildings ...), or if his original inspirations (crumbled paper ..) sound exciting. His thought process and the way the concept was translated into glass and metal, triggered something in me.

How about showing these building is  different way. Near some of the building models, were videos showing the real buildings in their environment. In some cases the videos included interior shots. How about combining the models (physical manifestation of idea) with shots from the videos ( a virtual representation of reality)? 

I wonder what would Frank Gehry say of these. Thank you Mr. Gehry for being an inspiration. if you happen to be in Los Angeles - run and see it.

Disney Hall in LA - an integrative view 

Gehry's house in Santa Monica. Passed is several times on morning walks, not knowing it was his ...

Inside and out - Frank Gehry exhibit at LACMA. If you are in LA - run and see

Ripples of light

Playing with the camera. I do not want to capture the magnificence of the beach. It's the ripples of light, the salty air, the sound of the waves, the continuous movement that I am after.

Hundreds of images of the beach, and I am still looking for the right way to photograph it. Ironically, it is when I am starting to play and let it happen that some of the barriers break down. 

Movement and light 

Moving, standing still

Wings and waves

The joy of spontaneity

I usually take photography very seriously. A full frame camera, handpicked lens. Studying all I can about photographers, art and any other subject relevant to the project I am doing.  This is true .....most of the time :)

About a week ago, while in Germany, I thought I would take advantage of the recent fall in the value of the Euro and buy a lens. After testing a multi purpose (24-300mm) one, and deciding it is not good enough I started thinking about alternatives. The times when I need a telephoto or a wide are lens are few and far between. Mostly when we go on trips and we want to document the moment. If so, why to spend so much on (2) state of the art lens for the D750 when a super tele bridge camera might do the job for a fraction of the price? This is how I became the owner of a Fujifilm finepix S1, hence named 'Fufu' :)

While the images are not at the quality of the D750, Fufu comes with some unexpected benefits. It is so light, silent and its automatic mode works so well, that it made me regress to the age of 5, experimenting and having fun rather than being serious about the images I take.

Yesterday, in a very uncharacteristic rainy weather (rain in LA in July???), we drove to LACMA museum to listen to some Jazz and see a photography exhibit. My husband drives, while I sit next to him, and amuse myself with photographing on the go, through the rainy windows. Than, as Fufu is weather proof, I do not hesitate to step outside in the rain, and photograph a lone table and its reflection. A tiny bird aspiring for stardom landed under the chair - just in time.

At the photography exhibit, I saw for the first time an authentic photograph by Henri Cartier-Bresson. The one who coined the term 'the decisive moment'. The one who said the camera is an instrument of spontaneity. I never agreed with him more.

Under the table by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

A beautiful image by Henry Cartier-Bresson at LACMA

Driving on Wilshire blvd by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

Imagined realities

I know the beach at Netanya for more than 40 years.

That's where I spent time as a young girl. 

Where I studied for high school exams. 

Where I had my first kiss....

It's the view my dad saw from his apartments' window until his last days. The building is still here. His body is not, but for me his spirit still looks at me when I am on this beach.

Now, before leaving, I went to say goodbye to the beach. With the camera. Trying to capture the present and the past. And who knows, I might have captured a glimpse of the future as well.

Self portrait, Netanya beach June 2015

Girls at play, Netanya beach June 2015

Who's this girl? Netanya beach, 2015

Musical shapes

April 21st, 2015.Our last night in Kadoyde, Japan. To celebrate the end of our stay, Kobayashi, our host prepares yet another surprise. A sky lantern. He holds the large paper lantern while someone lit the fire beneath it. 

For a few seconds, all seems well. Then slowly, the lantern catches fire, and its shape disappears while its spirit emerges.

This reminded me of  Constantin Brancusi, the Romanian sculptor and his view on capturing the essence of things.

"When you see a fish you don't think of its scales, do you? You think of its speed, its floating, flashing body seen through the water... If I made fins and eyes and scales, I would arrest its movement, give a pattern or shape of reality. I want just the flash of its spirit"

And if it's the essence of the fire dance we are after, there is no need to look further than de Falla's 'Ritual fire dance' who does it with sounds rather than images.

Fire dance #1, lighting the lantern

Fire dance #7, The end

and a colored version ...Fire dance #3 by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

When light meets time - experiments in photography

One of the things I like most about photography is that it sits right at the junction between science and art. A bridge between logic and emotion.

The image above is not a result of Photoshop. This is pure in-camera photography. Proof that the camera doesn't 'know' what it records, it just records light. It is up to us to control what is lighted and capture it in the frame. Nothing new here, right?

This week I started to experiment with controlled light (using the most basic flashlight, the 3$ type...) and long exposure. The results, can probably be much improved, but the potential is amazing. To literally show the invisible. Explore realms our eye can not see, but the lens can help us create.

And the best of all - a way to really have fun.

since leaving the hi-tech world, I am struggling to redefine the notion of success. I think the answer starts emerging. In flashes of light :)

If I had a sister - photography by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

Dancing

Just you and me

Who needs Photoshop when it's raining?

When it rains, it pours ....for the last 2 days it has been raining non stop.

The back yard, which used to be a lawn is now a puddle. Most of the time sitting quietly at home, but now it's Friday morning, when I always go buy sweet treats at a local bakery.

Sneaked out of the house when rain seemed to take a rest. 2 minutes later, still sitting in the car in the parking lot near the bakery all hell broke loose.

The only thing to do was to take my phone out and take pictures. Through the moving raindrops on my cars windshield.

Who needs Photoshop when its raining ??? ......

The essence of a rose

I started photographing from a very good reason. As a goldsmith, I wanted to sell my jewelry online and I needed good photos. From there the road to photographing as a creative outlet was relatively short. Much shorter than the road to define to myself what is it that I really love to photograph and develop a personal signature style.

Why did I think of it now? Because since I remember myself I love gardens, and English rose gardens are at the top of my favorite ones. The white garden in Sissinghurst is something to be seen to be believed. There is a quality of fairy tale fantasy that can not be conveyed in words.

For the last 2 days I have been photographing a single rose in the garden. A pale pink one. But as beautiful as this rose is, taking a documentary shot of it did not express at all the sensuality of its petals. The delicacy and fragility of it. The impermanence - tomorrow it will start wilting, in a few days it will not be here at all. But now, today, it is just perfect. 

The essence of a rose. This is what I want to photograph.

Dancing light

Pure morning light. Streaming between the leaves in my front yard. 

Reminded me of my physics classes long ago. About light being both waves and particles. 

The thing that enables us to see. 

Rather than painting with light ( the actual meaning of photography ) this picture is about the unbelievable beauty of light itself.

Suspended in space, partly revealed, partly concealed. Radiating. Mysterious. Magical. Dancing between the leaves.

Rembrandt and .....manual focus

Life is funny sometimes. Moves in spiraling cycles. 

I was thinking today that it is as if I look at myself through the lens using the manual focus.

Unlike the auto-focus where you point at what you want and the camera decides on the optimal focus, the manual focus requires to turn the dial until you find the right focal distance. Sometimes, in the process, you decide to completely change what the picture is about. You keep turning the dial until the frame is perfect. Then you take the picture.

This looks a lot like my personal journey in photography.

Starting from a fuzzy concept - nature. Turn the focus dial a bit, and stopping at nature fine art. An additional tiny shift of the dial and now focusing closer on nature fine art where reality border on something that transcends reality.

The picture starts looking clearer.

more focus tweaks - reflections and post processing techniques that help blur the line between real and beyond.

And then, click!

I take the picture, and it's exactly there. Between physical and mystical. An accurate reflection of where my art is right now.

When I look at the picture (the one below) it reminds me of the dark paintings of Rembrandt. I look for him on the web, and surely enough the right quote appears. As if he is talking directly to me. Advice from a master.

Try to put well in practice what you already know; and in so doing, you will in good time, discover the hidden things which you now inquire about. Practice what you know, and it will help to make clear what now you do not know. ”
-Rembrandt