Talking About Art

In the middle of writing a blog post reflecting on everything going on this autumn, I end up writing about art and and the way we talk about it. It’s still a work in progress but I thought I would throw out some questions before I finish it.

Ikamura Gessozaburo wants to talk about art.

I know how I feel about art and talking about it, but what about you good people?

1. How do you feel about art?
2. Do you feel comfortable about talking about it?
3. Do you have any notions about what you can or can’t say about it?
4. Do you think there are requirements or that there should be?
5. Do you have any stereotypes or specific images about art discourse?
6. What kind of experiences have you had?

I’m interested in your opinions. Please share them. Don’t worry about being right or wrong. Just be honest. I look forward to hearing from you.

Unexpected Contrasts

I’m bringing Ikamura with me on my flight to Canada because he makes a surprisingly good neck pillow. I took a photo of him at Saza Coffee in Shinagawa Station. I was really surprised at the lighting effect. It’s like a inverted fishbowl or aquarium.

Unexpected lighting can make interesting photos. It’s worth knowing how light will transpose onto digital or film images. This photo is with my iPhone and unedited. The auto white balance set for the cafe giving an odd color cast to the hall outside.

If you can change the white balance on your camera, it is worth playing with the white balance settings. One of my favorite tricks is to use tungsten white balance for color night shots. Skies turn a nice velvety blue-black.