But from Funk Comes ART!

It's President's Day, and I still have no new photographs for you.  I'll have some soon.  I swear.  It'll happen.  But, while you are eagerly awaiting that exciting day- I can smell your anticipation from here, enjoy some work by a friend of mine- Kacie Leo!

Kacie and I have known one another since we were eleven, making her one of my oldest friends.  While I do photography as a fun and silly hobby, she's actually doing it as a career.  She's in school for photojournalism, but does lots of amazing artistic photography as well.  Kacie modeled in high school, and for a year or so after we graduated, and now she uses herself as a model in a lot of her work.  She does mostly film, but uses digital as well sometimes.  This morning, she sent me this new series she recently completed, with herself as a model, and I think it's lovely.  Her art often has a darker, edgier quality to it that, frankly, I'm not particularly awesome at capturing.  I tend to be drawn to things I find nice, or pretty, though sometimes I use subjects that are slightly grittier.  When I do, though, I tend to shoot it in a way that ends up, once again, looking moderately pretty.  Kacie keeps the edge in her work, and it's a bit different than what I usually show, which I think is fun. So, I thought I'd share it with you!  Enjoy.

Here's what she told me in her email, "This recent hospital adventure put me into a bit of a funk. But from a funk comes ART!  If you feel so inclined, I would love to see these on your blog. I put a lot of myself into these images. I don't have an artist statement, or any sort of text with my vision. If you choose to use any of these, you may write what you find fitting".

Instead of writing a statement... I'm just going to let the work speak for itself.  I love how she used the hospital bracelet, and sick look after her hospital visit, however.  It's so easy to want to photograph yourself as attractive all of the time... see yesterday's post to get a glimpse at my compulsion into this.  Kudos to you, darlin', for embracing the look of the piece, and still managing to look glamorous.  

Go, Kacie.  Go.

Photographer Feature: Bianca DiMaio

Bianca DiMaio currently lives in Philadelphia, and she is in her last semester as a Film and Media arts student at Temple University. After graduation she plans on pursuing a career in post production. Editing video is Bianca's true passion, and she has always loved story-telling. Photography has been a hobby of hers since high school when a close friend's work inspired her to start taking pictures. Right now, she is enrolled in an animation class that has really emphasized the importance of each individual frame in creating a truly beautiful film.

When something beautiful catches Bianca's eye, she can't help but run for her camera to snap a picture of it. Her work can be found on her portfolio website at www.biancadimaio.com/ as well as her blog at www.biancatake1.blogspot.com/.

Philadelphia was hit by yet another snow storm this year, but that didn't stop Temple from holding classes and operating as usual. 

Bianca captured this photo in the summer of 2009 in Franklin Square Park, right in the heart of China Town. This carousel is accompanied by a miniature golf course, a fountain, and food stands with everything you might need for a fun day in the park.

 Last year there were a couple unseasonably hot days in March. What better way to spend this beautiful afternoon than laying by the fountain in Love Park? Philadelphia is a beautiful city and part of that beauty is the historical architecture. Bianca often overhears tourists pondering over this massive building in the middle of the city and wondering what it is. City Hall stands tall in the background of Love Park in Center City Philadelphia.

 This is a picture of one of Bianca's favorite locations in Philadelphia. Whenever she feels the need to get away from Temple, Bianca escapes to Penn's Landing. The Moshulu is the beautiful boat to the right and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge is in the background. 

Bianca and I went to high school together, and have remained friends ever since.  She's been up to New York to visit me a few times, and I hope we'll see each other more in the future!

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Photographer Feature: Lauryn McCarter 2

Lauryn McCarter has been featured on Travel and Toile previously with pictures of Prague and Budapest. She has just graduated from NYU and returned to America from a semester in Prague. These pictures come from two trips to Denmark, including a pilgrimage to Elsinore (Helsingør), Hamlet's castle. More of her photography can be found at www.halftrue.tumblr.com.

Cathedral
Copenhagen/København, Denmark

Copenhagen Botanical Gardens
 Copenhagen/København, Denmark

  Elsinore Castle
Kronborg Slot, Helsingør, Denmark

Kronborg Slot, Helsingør, Denmark

Kronborg Slot, Helsingør, Denmark

 Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark

Photographer Feature: Joan Kanarkiewicz

Joan was my roommate for a semester during college.  She's currently a student at NYU and takes some awesome photographs.  During the fall, she studied abroad in Spain and was able to capture some amazing scenes and locations, that I am very excited to share with you!  Beyond being a great artist, she's a good friend and wonderful person... as well as a very fast runner.

Coimbra, Portugal

Barcelona, Spain

 Bellas Artes, Oceanografic

Valencia, Spain

 Ke$ha Concert 

Madrid, Spain

 Archipelagos

Goteborg, Sweden

Forlorn Ferris Wheel

Rome, Italy

Photographer Feature: Susan Gayley

  I am a psychology major with a minor in marine science.  I recently did a independent study on psychology as portrayed in photographs, it was specifically on dogs and human relationships.  I am an animal trainer, currently working with dogs, and one day hope to be training marine mammals, like dolphins and whales.  I love taking photographs of animals and capturing those special moments between humans and animals or animals doing cool things and even just being themselves interacting in nature.

 This photo was taken in Sea World Orlando at the Dolphin and Whale show.  

This was the end of the show and each dolphin was doing different trick.

  This photo was taken in Sea World Orlando at the Shamu show.

 This photo was taken in Sea World Orlando at the Shamu Show.  The large killer whale on the left is the mama and the smaller whale on the right is the baby.  This baby was 2 months old and the 16th born in Sea World Orlando.  The spots on the baby killer whales are brown and change to the white when they are 3 months old.

This photo is of my Bichon, Gigi.  

She was very much enjoying the last bits of yogurt from my mom.  

This was taken at a dog show in Flemington, NJ.

  This photo was taken in my parents backyard in Lanoka Harbor, NJ.  

This Rhodesian Ridgeback pup is three months old and enjoying a fun game of Frisbee in the summer.

 This photograph was taken in the Florida Keys.

Orlando, Florida, USA

Florida Keys, Florida, USA

Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey, USA

Flemington, New Jersey, USA

Photographer Feature: Nick Griffith

Nick Griffith and I went to high school together, and I think he's a very good photographer, as well as a great artist in other mediums!  He's been some places that I have never seen... including Hawaii!  I'd love to go there, and maybe I will one day.  But, in the meantime, I hope that you will join me in enjoying his photographs and dreaming about how beautiful it must be.

More of Nick's work can be found on his flickr account, The Next Big Thing.

Here are some more of Nick's awesome photos. These ones were all taken in Pearl Harbor.

Hawaii, USA

Photographer Feature: Frankie Hruzek

Name: Frankie (it is, in fact, much longer and more complicated than that, but let's keep this simple) :)

  I've worked as a freelance photographer for years now. I've photo-slaved myself out for newspapers, magazines, and, when times were tough, the odd wedding. In all of it I've found that I prefer to photograph people more than anything else. The spontaneous portrait is far and away my favorite type of photography. When it comes down to it, a place is almost completely static. It's -people- that are dynamic. Maybe it's a narcissism inherent to us, but most of the time, we're most interested in looking at things that seem to look back. What follows are a few of my favorite portraits that I've taken during my adventures, domestic and abroad.

Sites! 4and20.tumblr.com (photography); frankiefightsfood.tumblr.com (nom nom nom)

 San Marcos, Texas

 My Grandmother.  

Wallis, Texas

Self-portrait
[it might be weird that a self-portrait is one of my favorite pieces, but everyday I'm still amazed at the sheer size of my balls when I woke up that day and decided to do this. Not sure if it's an experiment that will ever get repeated, so I mark it as a victory to remember.]

La Rochelle, France

San Marcos, Texas

La Rochelle, France