Loretta Ayeroff

….by Robert Frank, at one time, belonged to my friend, Garry Winogrand. The “TC” before my signature, in the upper right hand corner, meant that this copy had passed to Garry’s friend and printer, Thomas Consilvio, after Garry’s death in 1984. I inherited it after Thomas’ death in 1991. Which brings us to my subject, what makes a photograph “iconic?” Why do we recognize, even from a distance, as I once experienced, looking through the window of a closed photography gallery, that an image is a “Kertesz” or a “Cartier-Bresson” or an ”Arbus?” Why does the shape of a subject, like Kertesz’ figure on the couch in “Satiric Dancer” enable us to know who shot it? Or, that when we pass a draped car, we are reminded of Frank’s image, “Covered car - Long Beach, California” from "The Americans"? What makes a photograph “Gurskyesque?”

 In a way, recognition is simply in the eye of the beholder. Certainly the photographer was not thinking of making an icon when the image was shot, with the exception, possibly, of Ansel Adams shooting a full moon in Mexico. Currently, a traveling exhibition of photographs by Robert Frank, originating from the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., organized by Curator Sara Greenough, gives us, the viewer, another opportunity to understand what makes an iconic image. Running through August 23, at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, “Looking In: Robert Frank’s ‘The Americans’ ” celebrates the 50th anniversary of this seminal book’s publication. If you are in the Bay Area this summer, you might want to take a look…And, in Los Angeles, images from the permanent collection of “The Americans” can be viewed at the Museum of Contemporary Art, along with films by Robert Frank, through October 19, 2009.

 http://www.sfmoma.org/

http://www.moca.org/museum/exhibitiondetail.php?id=422

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/06/robert-frank-

the-americans-san-francisco-museum-of-modern-art.html

http://www.cameraquest.com/LeicaM4G.htm

5 ?s 4: Willie Middlebrook, Photographer/Artist 

 1]     Does your work sometimes surprise you, or take its own direction?

Of course it does. What would be the fun of creating, if you knew exactly what was going to happen. What separates us from the animals is curiosity, we want to know how the story ends, but the true fun is the journey.

 2]     How do you see your work growing, changing or evolving in the future?

  I have no idea. Again what would be the fun if I knew.

 3]     What was the best advice you ever gave your students, and, what was the best advice you’ve received, from someone else, about being an artist/photographer?

  To Students - My Father never lied to me. (Listen to your elders. This does not mean follow every word.)

To Me - The world, doesn't have the storage for the amount of best advice I have received over the years, that I keep in my head.  That’s why the brain will always be the best computer.

 4]     What inspires you - how do you use these inspirations in your work?    

  I am inspired by everything!! In every way!!!

 5]     If you were an art critic, how would you describe your current exhibition?   

  I am not, and will never be, an art critic. I cannot see myself in that position for any reason.  I believe in discussion not criticism. Only a fool does not vote for him or herself.  So, for the record, I have never had or been in a bad exhibition.

Eshibition: "Willie Robert Middlebrook EARLY WORKS 1977-1984" WLCAC Cecil Fergerson Gallery, June 1-July 24, 2009   http://www.wlcac.org/wattsart247.html

Website: http://web.mac.com/middlebrook

http://cola2009pressroom.wordpress.com/

http://www.geocities.com/aestheticsforus/

Los Angeles, July 7, 2009...East, towards downtown...5am...dawn...

helicopters already spinning...Michael Jackson Memorial Day...

5 ?s 4: Andy Summers, Photographer/Musician

 1]     Does your work sometimes surprise you, or take its own direction?

 Well that is the nature of the beast…whatever creative media you are doing, photography – painting, music or writing, you nurse the thought that maybe the work will start presenting itself, as if independent from your control and – surprisingly – ends up rather differently that you expected.

 2]     How do you see your work growing/changing/stabilizing in the future? 

 I hope whatever creative work I do doesn’t stabilize itself in the future – that sounds rather deadening to me. It is possible that you become more sure of your technique as you continue on – thus creating a sort of stability, but then the challenge is to abandon technical prowess and risk doing things differently. It is so easy to repeat oneself – especially if you have had some sort of success. But that can be death for the artist.

 3]     What was the best advice you ever gave one of your colleagues about being an artist, and, what was the best advice you’ve received from someone else, on the same subject?

 Advice is a dangerous thing - it tends to end up in clichés, unless it is specific technical advice from an experienced artist to someone in the early stages. The most sage advice - well not really advice but more of a philosophical tenet is “do it for yourself.” Outside of that, any external success is a bonus.

 4]     How do you use your personal inspirations in your work?

 I‘m not sure what you mean by personal inspiration. But I can say that I’m looking for an emotional place in both music and photography that resonates with me. It’s hard not to resort to cliché here, but it’s probably a place where you want to sob…   

 5]     If you were an art critic, how would you describe your current exhibition?     

Apart from all the superlatives….Dark, ambiguous, layered, asymmetrical - transcendental…

Exhibition: “Desirer Walks the Streets” Sarah Lee Artworks & Projects 

June 13-Sept. 3, 2009  http://www.sarahleeartworks.com/

Book: “Desirer Walks the Streets” by Andy Summers  © Nazraeli Press 2009

http://www.nazraeli.com/bookdetail.php?book_id=100270

Website: http://www.andysummers.com/

Image, cropped: Turning Man, Times Square, NY © Andy Summers 2004

On August 3, 1985, according to my proofsheet, I photographed Henry Butler for The LA Reader. The story detailed his life, as a jazz pianist, and photographer, both challenging careers for someone who had been blind, from birth. I dug out my assignment, because of the Los Angeles Times article in today’s - 6.17.09 - Calendar Section, “The inner eye” by Christopher Knight, a review on the photography exhibition “Sight Unseen” at the California Museum of Photography, UC Riverside. Guest curated by Douglas Mc Cullob, one of the artist’s names jumped out at me - Henry Butler. Devoted as Butler was to his photographic craft when I earlier met him, his New Orleans portrait in today’s paper shows a definite growth and confidence. Great that he’s still shooting! In my photo for The LA Reader, Henry holds his camera in position to photograph me, circled in red on my proofsheet. Never got to see that image…wonder what it looked like….

 I share a quote with you from the LA Reader article of 1985, “The Photos of Henry Butler,” written by Kirk Silsbee, along with links to the current exhibition and LA Times article:

“A couple of weeks ago, Butler was led to the piano bench at a concert. He put his hand down and struck a note, seemingly at random, and was instantly off into a composition. No warm-up, no trying to determine where the keys were in relation to him. Just GO! When reminded of the incident, Butler laughs. ‘I’ll tell you, I wouldn’t have done that before I started working with this photography thing. Just as you have to take a picture in an instant, I feel that you have to be able to create a composition in an instant. You have to be able to see the plan in your mind. People like Keith Jarrett can do that. Mozart could do that. That’s one of the reasons I keep doing photography. I know that the more I call on intuition, the more it will help me in my chosen field.’ ”

http://www.cmp.ucr.edu/

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/06/blind-photographers.html

Image: Henry Butler Proofsheet © Loretta Ayeroff 1985