J Bennett Fitts

So, if you guys haven't guessed my method already, as I read blogs, and generally surf the net, and come across photogs/artists I like, I bookmark their sites in my "to blog" folder. I wanna be able to blog daily, or nearly daily (a method I stole from my ladyfriend)... Mr. Fitts comes from my folder, for your enjoyment!

J Bennett Fitts is a California based photographer, and received his BFA from one of my top 5 schools (for my MFA) Art Center Pasadena, not that I could live in Pasadena, but still. Anyways, his "No Lifeguard on Duty" series really impressed me. So here it is:

(Images courtesy Fitt's site)

Ben Huff

My professor, Torrey showed us this photographer in our class over Maymester.

Here's Ben Huff. He's an Alaskan photographer, and his work focuses on Alaska's Dalton Highway, which is 414 miles of predominately dirt and follows the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline. Huff states that this is a work in progress.

The Last Road North:

(Images courtesy of Ben Huff's website)

Lydia Panas

Here's some work from Lydia Panas, very, very interesting portraiture. I've included her statement as well:

"These photographs explore who we are and how we see ourselves. With these pictures, I try to describe the stories we reveal. I invite people to move through my landscape. They stand in front of the camera. I watch to see what happens.

My subjects are people I know; family, friends, and acquaintances. I look at the details. I watch their postures, their gestures and glances. It is a combination of strength and vulnerability that makes me respond. They are complex emotions that guide us. Sometimes what we try to conceal is the most revealing. I am interested in what we know but do not see, as the familiar becomes commonplace.

Relationships are complicated. We are at our best when we are learning who we are. My intention with this series is to show us ourselves."

Here's her site.

Coming soon

Aaron will begin blogging again this weekend, after a good 10-12 hour sleep. He has some stuff to show you guys.

My Social Documentary Class

This class is being team taught, by a borrowed (thank god) professor from ATL, and one of our staff teachers, Torrey. The borrowed teacher began the first week and half (it's a three week class) and it has been physically painful to attend. Lectures horrible. Our Torrey took over today and it was easily 1000x better than it was. I made a graphic representation of this:

Note: I'm not a complainer, but this class was so painful to sit through I had to write this to express my relief after today.

Mathew Scott

I recently ran across Mathew Scott, and I think honestly the reason I like his work so much is simply that he lives and works in an area that I love. California, specifically the Bay Area. Here's some of Mathew's work:

Can someone buy one of these please?

I just need someone to buy me one of these... espresso everywhere!

Courtney Ann Greenlee

So I wanted to introduce you all to a friend of mine, Courtney.

We've taken several classes together and I've grown more, and more impressed with her work, to the point where she might be my favorite (no offense to anyone else) student photographer at Watkins right now. I'm so excited to see what she comes up with for this Social Documentary class that I am in with her during the month of May. Here's some of my favorite pieces she's done:

These are from her series, "A Dream I Cannot Remember."

Fantastic work, if you go to her site, which you need to, seriously, look at her journals too. Probably the most gifted journaler I have ever run met.

Morning from Rainy Nashville

I'm off to class.

Bob Myaing

I love photographers, who take an interest in finding the unusual. I think our most basic role, as photographers, is to do that. So, I like Bob Myaing. Here's why:

Bob goes to MICA, and typically works in and around Washington D.C.

(thanks once again to BOOOOM!)

Missing you Pacific

This post might be overly personal from what I normally do. I went online and looked at real estate in Southern California today; it’s not as ridiculous as you would think. We could find a place in south bay or Venice beach for 1100 – 1300 a month, expensive yes, but doable. There’s an odd pull for me back westward. I never felt as inspired as I did when I lived in Los Angeles. I do know that it’s not New York, and not the “art capital of the world” but it’s close. I like the climate, and the culture. I never lost my left-coaster non- chalence, but for some reason that does not go over as well here in the south.

I never learned how to surf, I’ve only been to Carnival in West Hollywood once, I never went to LACMA, only did the art crawl at the brewery twice. I want to go back, and work somewhere organic, hippyish, ride my bike to the beach, drive my hybrid in the commuter lane, goto Mosaic, walk Pasadena old town, hang a show in Long Beach, collect seashells, goto another rooftop party in downtown LA (I did that once and I felt like I was in a movie.)

So anyway, I want to move back. To all my friends in LA, I miss you all terribly. To the Pacific Ocean, it’s been too long. And to the smog, maybe I’ll take you back, maybe.