L'avenir, comme tout le reste, est pas ce qu'il était
The future, like everything else, is not what it used to be. ~ Paul Valery
The future, like everything else, is not what it used to be. ~ Paul Valery
The French Riviera, Nice
And so I watched the television screen replay the video while tears fell from my eyes and my heart cracked into a different kind of grief broken only by pauses of silent shock as it was a little less than one year ago today that I had a chance to spend three weeks in a paradise of blue and white light that bounces and reflects a warm radiance. A mythical city where each impression was a lyrical sensation - the language, the food, the people, the art, the antiquity in the modernity. I was struck by the care given to something as humble as a baguette and coffee, for the simple pleasure of sitting under the awning of a cafe lingering in timelessness - no particular place to be at any particular time sans agenda.
While my time in Nice wasn't particularly an easy one given the task I was there to fulfill, I was warmed by a beautiful group of people who embraced me in a way I hadn't expected. I was surprised by a rise of internal independence and a voice that had long gone silent finding it's way out into the world. On fragile wings I navigated this beautiful city in an ordinary way: walking the streets, sitting in outdoor cafes, strolling on the Promenade de Anglais, afternoon time at the beach to immerse in the sea and delighting in the simple pleasure of a meal. I had no phone to preoccupy me, no book or newspaper nor could I speak the language. I only had my senses to work with and my camera and pen/paper to relay and preserve my impressions.
So what has happened in Nice ripped through me in a way I cannot describe. And after ensuring the safety of those I adore who live in the city, I went to the photographs which I've never shown as a whole. As a way of extending love and my own little flower on an altar of prayer, I felt a need to share images from my time both in color and black and white. For this is the city I had the great fortune to spend time in and a place I will return to again.
This is the city of Nice. A jewel that shines in the heart of the French Riviera.
In color
and black and white
mfa + boston
I believe art is like exercise and diet - once you stop moving, the old habits surface and in too short of a time, all the forward progress retreats at an alarmingly fast rate.
I believe art is like exercise and diet - once you stop moving, the old habits surface and in too short of a time, all the forward progress retreats at an alarmingly fast rate. It's much easier to grasp this in terms of dance or athletics for without daily stretching, the muscles tighten and the drive to push past a known limit dissolves. It's a metaphor I see with photographing. While sometimes the spaces in between can offer rest and inspiring insights, too much time away often leaves me unable to be present for I'm more eager to find something spectacular rather than enjoying the moment. While all this surfaced during a visit into Boston to see the Class Distinctions exhibit at the MFA, this time, I was willing to stand in the undertow of with compassion and rejoice in the moments that appeared.
hope | mfa, 2016
the art lesson | mfa boston, 2016
digital jukebox, conversation with imaginary friend | boston, 2016
the sketch
I am without words to aptly put the year behind into some kind of focus ... let alone a context to all the life that's been lived.
I am without words to aptly put the year behind into some kind of focus ... let alone a context to all the life that's been lived. Given the tendency at this time of year to make sense of what’s past, I think we are naturally inclined to understand our truths; to thoughtfully reflect on what felt like triumphs; to make sense of those times when the shadows were a little darker and days felt a little heavy. That by doing so, perhaps we can infuse what lies ahead into a mirage we cling to in our minds - that bit of nirvana we hope and pray for in our day to day. But when I think back to the bits I remember of last year at this time in thinking about the year ahead, I can only recall a desire to sense an impression - to sketch an outline instead of a shape. Yes I had hopes and wishes and goals yet they were trivialities in the grand scope of the review mirror for I could not have even in my wildest imagined all I've experienced. So on the second to last day of this year, I am reviewing all that was; retracing the steps, recalling the sights and sounds, the faces and places and spaces ... the seeds of last year's grains cast to the wind for the year ahead.
Wells Blog
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