Happy Holidays

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It's all in your head.

A short film by Brazilian research company Box1824 showcasing their 5 year research on current youth culture.

via Devour

We All Want to Be Young from box1824 on Vimeo.

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The Mexican Suitcase: Sept 24 2010-Jan 09 2011 at the ICP

I luckily had some time to finally see this show at the International Center of Photography here in NYC and if you get a chance, I highly recommend. The Mexican Suitcase exhibit displays some of the 4,500 lost negatives that Robert Capa, Gerda Taro and Chim (David Seymour) shot during the Spanish Civil War. Their work during those years and during that conflict established much of what is considered modern combat photography today.

Besides the photographs themselves, the story of the two suitcases' journey—from an impending occupation of Paris in 1939, through the chaos of the war years, to finally a Mexican film directors bequeathment—is an amazing tale in itself.

New York Times write up here.

The Girl from Ipanema 1964

While hunting for something regarding a project i'm engaged in, I fell across this old favorite of mine. Getz and Gilberto doing The Girl from Ipanema. Although not on this album, my first jazz purchase was Stan Getz Trio and The Oscar Peterson Trio (pictured) and it really made an impression. Good to run into you again Stan. Enjoy.

Sparky Anderson 1934-2010

Hall of Fame MLB Manager George "Sparky" Anderson passed today at the age of 76 of complications resulting from dementia. He managed the 1975 and 1976 Cincinnati Reds to consecutive World Series championships. A quote of his...

“I cannot get rid of the hurt from losing, but after the last out of every loss, I must accept that there will be a tomorrow. In fact, it's more than there'll be a tomorrow, it's that I want there to be a tomorrow. That's the big difference, I want tomorrow to come.”

With Johnny Bench. A class act.

Istanbul Dispatch #03: Ritual

Another random photo from the Grand Bazaar photograph stash I stumbled upon on my trip. No annotation on the back. Just a memorable photo of some poor kids circumcision. I remember when I first saw this photo, how struck I was with the shot. The symmetry and the look of pain right below the look of coolness of his father, uncle or brother. Whomever he is.

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Istanbul Dispatch #03: Honest Johns

During my trip to Istanbul I ended up cruising the Grand Bazaar on rainy afternoons. Most stands have the same stuff, barking the same lines. I ended up in this courtyard off the main path and found a stack of old photographs in a biscuit tin for sale. I spent about an hour sifting through them and gave the guy 50 TL for the lot. There is an entire series of a young Turkish couple dating along the Bosphorus and eventually getting married. I have a project in mind for those. The other set is a random collection of Turks, in the early to mid-sixties, living their lives.

Honest Johns

November 1st, 1962

420 Honest John Tb

Erzurum (Picture taken in the city of Erzurum)

People in the picture

Gürbü Ünlü = from Istanbul

Ismail Krarabiyik = from Ismit

Murat Oral = from Ismit

Recep Iri = from Adapazari

Celebrating in the canteen.

These guys were part of a little piece of world history. After some research I found out that "Honest Johns" were the first surface-to-surface nuclear-capable rockets the US ever made. And in 1962, they would of definitely been deployed by NATO and manned by the Turks. The existence of these nuclear weapons were what prompted the USSR to install it's own missiles it felt were a similar distance from US shores... in Cuba. And that's how you make a missile crisis.

Istanbul Dispatch #02: The Big Picture

The Panasonic Lumix LX3 is a great camera, but you can only pull so much in with a 24mm lense. Here are some combined shots attempting to recreate the space I was able to experience in Istanbul. Click photos to enlarge.

Looking nowth-west up the Golden Horn from beneath the Galata Bridge.

Hagia Sophia cathedral.

The sea of Marmara meeting the Bosphorus. From the grounds of the Topkapi Palace.

The Blue Mosque.

Watching the Kabitash ferry on the Bosphorus.

Rustem Pasa Mosque. Known for its liberal use of high-quality Iznik tiles.

Istanbul Dispatch #01: Pattern

Two weeks in Istanbul proved to be the amazing experience I had hoped for. Here is a quick collection of photos that took in the strong underpinning of pattern in everyday Istanbul life. Enjoy!