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November 20, 2019
221.4 lbs
November 20, 2019 036 Beacon, NY
November 20, 2019 014 Beacon, NY
November 20, 2019 005 Beacon, NY
8:43 AM - Ella’s Bellas
... All that we build beyond raw existence, all the many powers which give the world a physiognomy, we owe to Misfortune—architect of diversity, intelligible instrument of our actions.[1]... misfortune, the definer of worlds, the impact impossibly strong compared to good fortune, which we easily take for granted... Robert Adams on my mind, his description of what art does, what it is for, when it has been achieved, his idea that the beautiful scene can be rendered, without sentimentality, sticks in my mind, i think of the many pictures i have taken with a romantic bent, with an eye to the beauty of the scene, though there have also been many photographs about the sad beauty of a scene... Work with the greatest defilements first.[2] pride, aggression, self-denigration, are cited as examples of obstacles in our way... our lives starting to return to normal, Chas continuing to be episode free, we have started to reduce the medications, fingers crossed, planning to move my computer back up to my studio... skin doctor appointment, haven’t been in a year, no reason to think there are issues, just something i need to do once, twice a year, D with a couple of melanomas, me with lesser cancers diagnosed a couple of times, i protect myself, still to some degree, the damage may be done, as a child, when i burned so easily, so freely, years before i took sun protection very seriously, i will be more relaxed after the appointment... Light explains nothing about meaning, but for Hopper, it was the basis of a lifetime’s faith.[3]... meaning, does every image have to have it?, what is it, how to achieve it...

[1] E. M. Cioran, A Short History of Decay
[2] Pema Chodron, The Compassion Book
[3] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
[1] E. M. Cioran, A Short History of Decay
[2] Pema Chodron, The Compassion Book
[3] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
November 19, 2019
222.2 lbs
8:33 AM - Big Mouth Coffee Roasters
... made an awesome dinner last night, Halibut with Sweet Corn Zabaglione and Fava Bean Salad, my first Zabaglione, sooo good... a number of articles posted to FB this morning about the Trump Administration and it’s impacts on us all, deeply disturbing, all of it, more than likely to get worse before getting any better, not sure if it ever will be better in what remains of my lifetime... As a college student I tried to determine how much a person needed to adopt an ironic manner, and Hopper’s paintings on Cape Cod and elsewhere in New England demonstrated that it was possible, without sentimentality, t express affection for places that were naturally beautiful. One did not need to be ashamed of having a heart.[1]... i find myself frequently wondering something similar to this, especially when i make pictures on Block Island, a naturally beautiful place in which it is hard to make pictures that are not beautiful, and one wonders, overly romantic in their effect... i find myself wondering how to give them an edge, how to interpret the subject matter in a way that is “affectionate” but also speaks some kind of cosmic truth?... yes, some places are still beautiful, may always be beautiful, but what is that in the face of wholesale planetary debasement?, what pride can we take in inhabiting these places if we are lucky enough, affluent enough, to be able to?... it feels inconsequential to live in the midst of beauty when the world is burning down...

[1] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
[1] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
November 18, 2019
222.2 lbs
November 18, 2019 036 Beacon, NY
November 18, 2019 020 Beacon, NY
November 18, 2019 014 Beacon, NY
November 18, 2019 008 Beacon, NY
8:29 AM - Ella’s Bellas
... how be optimistic when everything is going badly, the consideration of the morning, the day, The Compassion Book, Pema Chodron, remind myself to have compassion, to be grateful, that i wake up and can appreciate what remains, what is still beautiful... Don’t ponder others.[1]... i am not supposed to ponder the weaknesses of others becoming arrogant about my own accomplishments... news that D’s heart is not functioning well, i contemplate the possibility of losing him, i start to feel sad in a way i did not expect, the relationship so difficult, for a long, long time... It is the responsibility of artists to pay attention to the world, pleasant or otherwise, and to help us live respectfully in it.[2]... how do i do that? am i doing that? i do pay attention, i don’t know if i am helping anyone live respectfully in it, i don’t know if i am an example of living respectfully at all... organization of the kitchen over the weekend, more shelves which seemed to fill in with stuff as soon as installed, plans for more shelves, more reconfiguration... next up, holiday lights in the dining room, should be able to have a very nice display... Mick Jagger, Beast of Burden, anthem song for a generation of young men... how do i always get so far behind with the photography?... how does that happen... S is back from the north, saw W a few days ago, so i knew she was, the writing group will start up again...

[1] Pema Chodron, The Compassion Book
[2] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
[1] Pema Chodron, The Compassion Book
[2] Robert Adams, Art Can Help
November 17, 2019