Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
The only salon type group I've heard of in SF was said to include
Lawrence Ferlinghetti and an owner of Enrico's(I just remembered that
this was a public forum so I omit the one name).  I have met both of
these and both have seen(and one has hung) my art and yet I have not
been asked to join the group nor, in the latter case to hang again,
though I have sent slides of new work.  This is what I am up against; 
an enclosed system.  

The question is; do I have the time and is it worth the time to try to
open the SF scene?

The other question is;do I suck so bad that even the bar owner who
hung my stuff doesn't want to hang anymore?

I have reasons to believe the latter is not true ....Soooooo....WTF?

Why don't we have people canvasinng SF for new talent?  Because they
are lazy and comfortable in Marin or San Jose or Monterey?  Probably
the latter.
  

    
Re David's post (#125)...
In my experience, the only thing that’s needed vis-à-vis the depth or
content of group discussions is PARITY among the particpants.  I attend
one group where the conversation centers almost entirely around
technical demos of digital photography software, and the people who
attend are happy as clams doing exactly that. Those who are driven up
the walls by such techie stuff have long since left the building. At
another artists’ group I enjoy, work receives only praise, never
criticism -- it’s a support group in the simplest and most literal
sense of the word, and the one time someone tried to introduce
heavy-duty analysis into the discussion, he soon retreated under a hail
of dead cats. And the little Salon I’ve mentioned before – well, any
subject and any art is a fair target, and woe to the bearer of
unexamined propositions!  But the point is, we each self-select the
people and ideas and the format of life that suit us best -- and that,
I think, is about as it should be....
  

    
Wow, so you're in three different Artists' Groups? How do you find time to ,
you know, make any art?
  

    
Who said Ted doesn't make work *at* these meetings?
  

    
Well, each is just an evening among friends, once a month or so. And
by adding the (self-imposed) challenge of having some new art to show
each time, I probably make more work -- and bring that work to closure
sooner -- than if I were just loping along without those friendly
deadlines.
  

    
Ah, cool.
  

    
Well, as I think about it – yes, I have made actual art (defined as:
photos-that-made-it-to-the-mountboard) at artists group gatherings and
workshops. Some very high proportion of the portraits I've made fall
into that category -- including, among others, a portrait of Chris
Carroll that I made at Penland a quarter-century ago. Also, some
artists groups (and many workshops) meet in the field with easels or
cameras at the ready, thus offering incentive and subject matter and
feedback all at once. It was on just such an occasion that I made my
soon-to-be-world-famous technical breakthrough -- namely, proving that
a zip-lock plastic baggie makes a perfectly good underwater housing for
a Holga (at least to swimming pool depth). But I digress. It’s even
more true that I’ve made art at workshops while ostensibly
demonstrating use of filters or some such thing. One of my pics that’s
been widely seen -- “One-and-a-Half Domes, Yosemite” – was made in
exactly that circumstance. 
  

    
"a zip-lock plastic baggie makes a perfectly good underwater housing
for a Holga "

That is exactly the portrait I was thinking of.

And you mean to tell me you have a portrait of Chris Carroll from that
many years ago???? 


 
  

    
Yup. Like I say, the photography world was pretty small back then. The
nice part is crossing paths again for the first time since those early
days and discovering that we're both still in the game!
  

    
Wow!   What a great two weeks!   

Thanks so much to Ted and Chris for a lively and fascinating talk.

Even better, it doesn't have to stop now.  You're all welcome to 
continue the discussion for as long as you like, right here in
the Inkwell.
  

    
To all of you who’ve dropped in and posted your ideas & stories here
over the past couple of weeks, my deepest thanks (!) for your interest
& goodwill. I found LOTS of good food for thought, collected more than
a few gem-like zingers -- and answering your questions brought the
added benefit of forcing me to clarify my own thinking on every issue
that came up. That’s my idea of a good exchange.
  

    
Thanks, Ted, for your book, your time, your ability to teach, and your
willingness to share.  Thanks, too, to Chris, for posing such
provocative questions and for drawing us all into the conversation. I
feel like it just got started.
  

    
Yeah, thanks to da both of youse!
  

    
Actually, I felt I was finally getting my footing in this mode of
exchange just as it drew to a close. It usually takes me hours to write
a paragraph, but by the end I was burning up the keyboard (and my
snyapses) at the rate of a word a minute -- practically as fast as I
can TYPE, given my two-finger hunt&peck technique.
  

    
Thanks for your time and thoughts.  I've got some new ideas to take
with me when I step out with the camera, and consider what & why I'm
trying to get out of it.
  

    

Ted, if you have the time and inclination you're welcome to stick around and
continue. I'm sure the folks here in Inkwell (and those reading from
offsite) would be delighted to have you here longer.

You're also welcome to drop in on any of our WELL conferences that interest
you. May I recommend the <arts.> and <photography.> conferences, for a
start!
  

    
Thanks, I will look in here each day, and also hope to explore some
other corners of the WELL. 

(However, I will be away -- exploring the "real world", as they say --
for a few days next week now that the need to stay beside the computer
each day for the formal interview has passed.)
  

    
Actually, I think Ted might find <byline.>, <design.> and <words.>
interesting too.  Plus a couple of independent conferences, such as one
for 'Booksellers and related professionals'. 
  

    
And I'll add a belated thanks for a wonderful and illuminating
conversation!
  

    
Ted, thanks for taking part.  I know my 'contribution'  was a tad self
centered, but art is nothing if not solipsistic.