Salud! (Cheers in Spanish)

(click on the image to enlarge)

At the Perfume River, Vietnam - © Flavio Martín Morante_2013

And here we are, another year gone, another year to come.

Today I will raise my glass for the good and the not so good hoping to be thankful for what I have, among that that nothing bad happened to Dawn in the car accident she suffered at the beginning of this year; for my family to be healthy; for my cousin that keeps fighting for her life; my sister getting the job she wanted and for my Dad to finally retire after a long life of hard work; for the jobs we are luckily to have and for the ones hopefully to come; for the places we were able to visit close and far away; for the shows I was able to participate; and for the shows I did not get selected but that do push me to try to be better; for going back to shoot 35mm and the photographic project I started with it; for finally get a place of our own and start a new chapter in our life; for the good friends I got to meet this year and for the ones that have been always there; for my two best friends that are the youngest and the oldest brothers I did not have and seeing how they move forward; for bringing people together through art with the PORTfolio program I started at the library; for the many pieces I have made that this year found many different homes with people that will care for them; for keeping it going when sometimes its hard to keep it going; for Manlio and all those that sadly have left us this year; and for Leonor, my friend/brother Daniel's Mom that is an example of courage, for...

As a photographer I have to say that to me a new year is like a new roll of film loaded in the camera. Will go through some good frames, some bad frames, good and bad decisions and moments that will surprise us and that won't ever be repeated, we will look for things we already know where they are or what they look, and sometimes will go without knowing what we would get and at the end we will process it and hopefully learn something from it and I hope you do the same.

Salud! and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

If 10 Years Later...

click on the image to enlarge)

"Jumping Rails"_ 25 de Agosto, Florida, Uruguay

© Flavio Martín Morante_2004_ Nikon N80/ Fuji 400 Superia

I have come across this week with a LOT of negatives that somehow were forgotten from many years ago. A lot of them from my last year on Uruguay (2004) and as we closing down on this year, I cannot avoid to think on the past of time and how much has happened not only this last one, but also this past decade.

Yes, I know 10 years is a lot to write but what come first to mind it is how much it has been walked, and despite of having felt on few holes here and there, how much its there to walk yet. Hopefully we can keep going in this path we call life.

I will be posting a greetings message for the new year soon, but I still wanted to share this picture and thought today.

Best,

Whatever you do, wherever you are... Ho, Ho, Ho!

click on the image to enlarge)

"Saigon Santas"_ Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon D200

My best wishes to everyone for tomorrow, independently where you are, how you celebrate it or how you call it.

Just have a great time!

Some Call It Ego, I Call It Pride

click on the image to enlarge)

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon D200

I have delivered today the piece from my work "Marinas" for which I was selected as a finalist to the 2014 Wisconsin Biennial of Arts, which will open on January 17th at the Museum of Wisconsin Art (MOWA) .

It is the first time one of my pieces will be hanging from the walls of a mayor North American Art Museum and this really makes me proud and happy of have chosen a camera as a way of self expression.

Join me on January 17th at the opening to raise a glass for that and for art in general.

The First Sixty

(click on the image to enlarge)

Thanh Nam Fishing Village near Hoi An, Vietnam

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon D200

I have just added the first sixty pictures I have edited from the last trip to Vietnam. In that set, I try to share some of its beauty with its calm and its madness. Check it out by doing click HERE. When you open the gallery, click on the image in order to read some of the captions. More to come.

(click on the image to enlarge)

Saigon Style Madness, Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon D200

Just Returned.

(click on the image to enlarge)

Mekong River, Can Tho, Vietnam

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon Coolpix P7000

Dawn and I have just returned from what it has been one of the most fruitful experiences traveling overseas. It is hard to come back to the Wisconsin Winter, but as we slowly and fast at the same time make our way back to our daily routines, I will be posting soon photos and videos along with some of the stories from it.

To leave a general first impression, I will share here a photograph (below) that somehow became to me the perfect visual metaphor of how I did perceived the place. 

(click on the image to enlarge)

Clocks repair man on the streets of Hué, Vietnam

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ Nikon Coolpix P7000

I took this picture on the city of Hué of a man who repair clocks and watches on the streets as many of the businesses on the streets of the city set for all types of repair. The reason why it became a representation of how I perceived the country, is because Vietnam to me was like stepping into a window box where many different clocks are there on display, some of them running behind, many running forward, others running at perfect precision while others have stopped forever. And not matter what, there is always someone trying to make them work.

More pictures (hopefully some flickr albums) and Vimeo videos as soon as I squeeze some time between work.

Good to have experienced it, good to be back.

Going West to Go East!

I am glad to share that Dawn and I will be making our way tomorrow Monday to Vietnam for another adventure. It will be a long flight -Chicago-San Francisco-Hong Kong-Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)- but with the anxiety to discover another place we will make it there faster than we think.

For Dawn it will be somehow a significative visit, as her father was there during the war. For me,  loving XX century history as much as I do and having read so much about the succession of events that happened there (specially after WW2), it will be a great experience to visit several key places as it is Ho Chi Minh City-Saigon- itself (planning to do the Cu Chi tunnels and the Mekong River as highlights), the imperial city of Hue and some small towns in between along the China Sea coast, including the medieval town of Hoi An where we will be staying with a family.

In photographic terms, I ended deciding to take digital cameras to work completely on color as I want to bring back with me a lot of the color of a country that have seen so much black and white but have managed to find rainbows still.

Will not be posting it all until we come back as access to web will be limited but also because I will be on the streets instead of behind the screen.

Cheers and see you upon return.

Martin

Finally Arriving!

(click on the image to enlarge)

"Untitled"© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

Port Washington, Wisconsin

Camera_Voigtlander Bessa R3M/Heliar 50mm

Film_ Ilford HP5 Plus 400ISO

Paper_ Ilford Multi Grade RCIV Pearl

Better late than never they say. It took a while (plus the selling of a couple of my paintings in the last weeks) but I was able to purchase the film scanner I was long waiting to get. Last weekend like a kid on X-mas, I plugged it in, and starting to "play" with my negatives (some of the results seen above and below). It was a wonderful feeling to see the pictures coming up on the screen with such vibrancy that I was ecstatic. 

Anyway, a lot of work to do now, 1300 photographs from my work "Marina" have to be edited from the contact sheets and work its way into the pixels. Is going to be a productive winter full of work for what it promises to be a great coming year.

More to come!

(click on the image to enlarge)

"Untitled"© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

Port Washington, Wisconsin

Camera_Voigtlander Bessa R3M/Heliar 50mm

Film_ Ilford HP5 Plus 400ISO

Paper_ Ilford Multi Grade RCIV Pearl

Dreamers and Dreams.

(click on the image to enlarge)

"Dreamers_#1"© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

Port Washington, Wisconsin

Camera_Voigtlander Bessa R3M/Heliar 50mm

Film_ Ilford HP5 Plus 400ISO

Paper_ Ilford Multi Grade RCIV Pearl 

I am really happy to share that I have just received confirmation that the photograph above (part of my work "Marina") has been selected as finalist on the upcoming 2014 Wisconsin Biennial of Arts to open at the Museum of Wisconsin Art on January.

Really, really happy!

For You Vivian!

I processed yesterday some photographs from Chicago before I dismantled the darkroom, as I moved everything to the house hoping to set it back soon. Meanwhile, I leave here this three photographs I took on the last Chicago excursion, which I have to say are the first real black and white photos I have made on the city in quite a while. (The last time I recall carrying a camera to the city loaded with b&w was on 2008).  

And then I can't avoid to think of Vivian Maier when I look at this photographs.

(click on the image to enlarge)

Crossing the Chicago River on the "L" (Brown Line). Looking East.

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

(click on the image to enlarge)

A person reads the paper in the company of one of Iceland sculptor Steinunn Thórarinsdóttir's "Borders" scultptures. It really makes me think of "Wings of Desire".

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

(click on the image to enlarge)

Segway tourists stop at the entrance of the Chicago Art Institute. I look at this picture and think how fast could they go if the lion starts to roar?

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013

Will be back with more black and white photos as soon as I set the darkroom again (or finally get a negative scanner).

In the month of October.

(click on the image to enlarge)

The fog covered Port Washington Harbor in the afternoon today.

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ IPhone 4

I share here couple of pictures from Port taken today while I took my break from the library and headed to Port to do some photos. I did some interesting shots with my film camera which will have to wait for processing now. 

(click on the image to enlarge)

Port Washington this afternoon.

© Flavio Martín Morante_2013_ IPhone 4

(out of focus, not used yet to the phone picture taken thing)