Category Archives: La Macina

Camera Oscura

I open the double glass doors to a building that was built in the 900s AD that now housed an artist studio. The interior was decorated with low oblong brick arches and cobble stone floors. The camera oscura was situated just across the double glass doors and darkened with two very thick red velvet curtains. The feeling you got in this space was as if you were a 15th century alchemist studying notes from their book in the dim light. The camera oscura was lined with shelving to the ceiling full of esoteric and miscellaneous photographic equipment left by it’s previous users. To my left a shelf was stocked with brown chemical bottles and miscellaneous equipment to mix photographic chemicals. To my right was a wood board that was created as a makeshift table to do your developing in. To the far right of that was an enlarger for photographic prints. The table space was just enough for my device as well as the photo chemicals trays. I almost felt like a time traveler –  bringing a device and a photographic process that was relatively futuristic into a space that was there since the 900s AD.

 

Landspeak

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 Landspeak
Art by James Wardell
Art by James Wardell

 

The following article was one that came up recently on my facebook feed via Orion Magazine. It’s posting couldn’t be timelier with my residency in Greve. I have taken a lot of inspiration so far, so much so it’s taking me a couple of days to get through this article! I have never run across an article so inspiring before.

Continue reading Landspeak

Beltane/First Day of Greve

Happy Beltane!

Finally I am able to blog! Things have been crazy with traveling and work in between. But I traveled through London and arrived in Italy OK. Everything in Italy is a lot more organized than I anticipated it to be – which is reassuring.

Tomorrow, I will be doing my first exposures in the studio here and to test out the device. I’ve found some really awesome flowers today on my first walk around the property.

The other Americana artist here is really nice. He’s acting in a film and asked to film my process which I think would be really cool.

I haven’t worked in the studio yet, I had some graphic design work to do today and intend on doing some exposures tomorrow hopefully. I’ve been working on my artist journal and finding inspirations.

Yesterday, was a really crazy day. I woke up at 4:45 am and left for the airport in London to fly to Florence. I met up with my driver/caretaker who drove me to Greve. This area is absolutely amazing and I’m excited to be here and make art. I definitely feel at home here. 🙂 I unpacked, went into Greve to pick up food and came back, got dressed and went into Florence for an art opening of one of the caretaker’s friends. Came back, had a bottle of wine and worked on some more graphic design stuff and skyped quickly with my client whose based in Dubai then went to bed around 2:30 am.