Polar Postcard

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Port Washington, Wisconsin _ IPhone 4S © Flavio Martín Morante_2015

Taking advantage of the privilege of a nice sunny day today, I took a nice walk today during my lunch break, sandwich in one hand and camera on the other just to find myself looking at a very winter postcard as the one seen above.

5 more weeks? hmmmmm

The New Family Member

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Yashica Mat-124 G at home.

I am glad to say that I am adding a new member to my family of cameras. This time is a twin lens reflex in VERY NICE condition, which it will allow me to work on a format I haven't have a chance to do personal work yet: square 6 x 6. 

It seems to be working fine despite a light cleaning needed on the lens, but while I am looking where to send it for a routine full service, I have loaded it with film to give it a try and I am really EXCITED about the window this format will hopefully open, for learning and artistic purposes.

Looking forward to have time (and good weather) this weekend to do some testing shots and see what comes out of it.

More Postcards from Paradise.

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Hahaha Bay seen from Pauwaulu Point, Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

4in x 5in  Ilford FP4 Plus (film negative). Ilford Multigrade Paper (contact print). 

Pinhole camera f231_© Flavio Martín Morante_2014 (printed on 2015)

Prints and good memories keep coming out of the darkroom as I keep processing the photos from Hawaii in preparation for the upcoming show.

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Ahihi Kinau, Natural Reserve, Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

4in x 5in  Ilford FP4 Plus (film negative). Ilford Multigrade Paper (contact print). 

Pinhole camera f231_© Flavio Martín Morante_2014 (printed on 2015)

The Eye of the Beholder.

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Paia near Ho'okipa Beach, Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

4in x 5in  Ilford FP4 Plus (film negative). Ilford Multigrade Paper (contact print). 

Pinhole camera f231_© Flavio Martín Morante_2014 (printed on 2015)

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Paia near Ho'okipa Beach, Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

IPhone 4S on square format © Flavio Martín Morante_2014

I keep working on the printing of the images from the Hawaiian trip, while I prepare some of them for the upcoming show at the Cedarburg Art Museum together with Vicki Reed and Hal Rammel in February.

I am adding these ones to the blog to show the contrast given to the feelings that different formats can produce on the way an image is perceived. Not many times I come about making this comparing samples, so I thought to share them here. I like both of them, however it does touches me more the one at the beginning of this post. 

Matters of preferences, as they say is all in the eye of the beholder.

All for $9.75

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"Rest in Peace". _ Pinhole photograph using Kodak Tri-X 400© Flavio Martín Morante_2015.

As I mentioned on some previous post, this is the year for experimentation. Because of that I took with pleasure the invitation presented by my friend Vicki Reed to me and Hal of assembling a plastic pinhole camera, and with it, to shoot some images in preparation for our upcoming show at the Cedarburg Museum of Art.

The camera is a "toy" with a cost below $10 (depending where you purchase it) and you can assemble it yourself in 5 minutes. So there I went around our house taking some silly pictures to see how it works. Here then I share some samples. Because I use solely the materials provided with the kit, the pinhole was made using the aluminum foil provided, and because is so thin, it is really hard to achieve a completely evenly circular pinhole, reason why the photos loose their focus, becoming a little blurry. Still, with a calculated fstop of 150, the exposures which ranged from 10 seconds to 3 minutes indoors came about right.

The camera kit will be for sale at the museum's gift shop and I believe we will have a photograph made by each one of us as a sample.

"Automata". _ Pinhole photograph using Kodak Tri-X 400© Flavio Martín Morante_2015.

"Frankencallen" _ Pinhole photograph using Kodak Tri-X 400© Flavio Martín Morante_2015.

"Exupery" _ Pinhole photograph using Kodak Tri-X 400© Flavio Martín Morante_2015.

"Winter Postcard" _ Pinhole photograph using Kodak Tri-X 400© Flavio Martín Morante_2015.

Free for a Walk this Weekend?

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Port Washington, Wisconsin. _ Voigtlande Bessa R3M. © Flavio Martín Morante_2013.

If so, stop by Art Upstairs Gallery at the Marshall Building in Milwaukee, where I am represented there with a big part of my work MARINAS. This weekend is Gallery Night and Day, and all the studios/galleries will be open there. 

I personally will be there between 11 and 4 on Saturday. Stop by, support the arts and enjoy a good talk.

See you then!

All the Way From Alabama

Tomorrow at 6PM I will be starting the PORTfolio programing for 2015, in what promises to be a great year for visual arts related documentaries being screened as part of this program that will reach its 2nd year already.

Join me for the screening of an interesting documentary about the Quiltmakers of Gee's Bend, Alabama in preparation for the opening of the fiber's show at the end of this month at Gallery 224.

Movie starts at 6PM and is free.

Magnetism.

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Playa Malvín, Montevideo, Uruguay.

Nikon N80 © Flavio Martín Morante_2003.

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Gabriel wrote me and among few things he mentioned it on his letter was the comment on how for granted I would it have been sitting by the shoreline if I was there to celebrate the beginning of this 2015. Thinking on that and maybe because I am already getting tired of the below zero temperatures I decided to dust off the picture that illustrates this post, but on the act of doing so, I found myself looking back and seeing how I actually do have a photo of each place I have been with a camera in hand, in which people is by the water as a some sort of hard to explain mirror image of myself and that magnetism I feel for any water front.

I leave some here as I keep digging between my files and negatives.

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Punta Gorda, Montevideo, Uruguay.

Nikon N80 © Flavio Martín Morante_2002 or 2003.

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Genova, Italy. _ Nikon Coolpix P7000. © Flavio Martín Morante_2011.

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Seattle, Washington State, US. _ Nikon Coolpix P7000. © Flavio Martín Morante_2012.

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South of Da Nang over the China Sea, Vietnam _ Nikon D200. © Flavio Martín Morante_2013.

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Lake Geneva over Montreux, Switzerland. _ Nikon Coolpix P7000. © Flavio Martín Morante_2012.

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Port Washington, Wisconsin. _ Voigtlander Bessa R3M. © Flavio Martín Morante_2013.

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Self Portrait _ Nikon D200. © Flavio Martín Morante_2008.

Will be uploading some more as I dig them out.

IN LIGHT WE TRUST, Yes we DO!

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Old Lahaina Harbor, Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

4in x 5in  Ilford FP4 Plus (film negative). Ilford Multigrade Paper (contact print). 

Pinhole camera f231_© Flavio Martín Morante_2014

Mark your calendars!, the Cedarburg Museum of Art has posted the dates for the exhibit "In Light We Trust" on pinhole photography that Hal Rammel, Vicki Reed and Myself will be participating from February to May.

I am planning on presenting some of the photographs I made recently in Hawaii, including the one that illustrates this post which I took on what it used to be an old harbor in the town of Lahaina for the whalers that will go fishing through the islands.

You can find more info HERE 

See you there!

What's Next? (1)

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"Time Machines" 
(My Kodak Brownie Rainbow Hawk Eye and Kodak Pan 620 Verichrome film expired on 1965)

Flavio Martín Morante_2014 _Iphone 4S

This year I hope will be one of loose experimentation when it comes to my constant self search in the artistic process. I do not have a specific goal as it was last year to build the camera, do the MARINAS show and book, but still, I have a list of few things that I would like to see done and photography as always is on it. 

The idea this year to not attach myself to any body of work. Just let things happen while discovering new ways to create and work with images. So far we can say I am at a good start and not better way to do it that dusting off a 1920s Kodak camera using some very expired film (I mean 1965 very expired film). The 9 images that came out of it, 3 seen below, are a good example of this willing to create not the perfect image (technically speaking) but instead, create images that speak, at least that speak to me first. It was a fun "exercise" to do.

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One of our trees on the back. 

Flavio Martín Morante_2014 _ 

Kodak Brownie Rainbow Hawk Eye and Kodak Pan 620 Verichrome film expired on 1965.

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One of our trees on the back. 

Flavio Martín Morante_2014 _ 

Kodak Brownie Rainbow Hawk Eye and Kodak Pan 620 Verichrome film expired on 1965.

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One of our trees on the back and the neighbors house. 

Flavio Martín Morante_2014 _ 

Kodak Brownie Rainbow Hawk Eye and Kodak Pan 620 Verichrome film expired on 1965.

We will see where this year take us, but I am looking forward to it, with the same passion and excitement as always.

PS_ and yes, to hang the new mirror on the bathroom is on my list :)