juxtaposition

martin luther king depicted with the aboriginal flag. universal...

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:09:34 +1100

martin luther king depicted with the aboriginal flag. universal message. sydney, australia.

hand-woven wool rug. marrakech, morocco…i love the motifs...

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:03:00 +1100

hand-woven wool rug. marrakech, morocco…i love the motifs found in these north african textiles - they remind me of cave paintings, or some of the aboriginal art i’ve seen in australia…so narrative, so orthographic.

camperdown cemetery. sydney, australia

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:49:33 +1100

camperdown cemetery. sydney, australia

camperdown cemetery. sydney, australia. hello! it’s...

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:46:00 +1100

camperdown cemetery. sydney, australia.

hello! it’s been a long time since i’ve updated my blog. this is my first post of 2013, and i am now living in sydney, australia - specifically in the suburb of newtown, which is overflowing with graffiti, street art, peeling posters and handmade signs. however, the first time i felt truly compelled to pull out the camera (iphone, rather) was today at the camperdown cemetery, one of sydney’s oldest cemeteries. the juxtaposition of the tombstones (some almost 200 years old) and the graffiti was quite thought-provoking, as i changed my point of view numerous times throughout my meandering stroll. at first, i made the pretty obvious observation of the sacred (easy to do when the inscription of most tombs begin with ‘in sacred memory of…’) and the profane (easy to do when so much of the graffiti is, well, profane).

but is it that simple?

if (when) the graffiti is 200 years old - wouldn’t we regard it as more sacred than profane? less arcane, crew-specific eyesore, and more historical record?

but then again - the graffiti is dishonoring the memory those buried there…or at least disrupting the visual peace of those who go there to remember them, isn’t it?punctuating the equilibrium of the fluid browns and greens, stone and trees, that make up the space.

but then again - we can’t know if the people who left the graffiti intended to be disrespectful. i like to imagine that they’re teenagers…challenging themselves to be in a graveyard at night…leaving their own marks on the world, and somehow, whether they can name it or not, feeling grateful to be alive - walking out of the cemetery feeling bolder, stronger, braver…perhaps i am ascribing too much thoughtfulness to the average teenager with a can of spray paint.

some sort of DIY kit for sale in Dubai, with the promise that...

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 00:38:41 +1100

some sort of DIY kit for sale in Dubai, with the promise that “It’s twinkles and lovely clay”

the nostalgic beauty of an old-school carnival...

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 00:32:00 +1100

the nostalgic beauty of an old-school carnival ticket…central park, victoria gardens, 2011

jewelry in the old souk. muscat, oman

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:32:40 +1100

jewelry in the old souk. muscat, oman

men at work on scaffolding, jumeirah beach, dubai

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:27:33 +1100

men at work on scaffolding, jumeirah beach, dubai

stegosaurus?

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:25:39 +1100

stegosaurus?

it’s been awhile since i’ve updated here. my husband...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 07:20:00 +1100

it’s been awhile since i’ve updated here. my husband and i have been on the move over the last year - kabul / california / australia / dubai / oman…and now we are calling astoria, new york, home. these are some of the images i’ve been collecting over the last year.

dubai is a city-state which punches you in the gut with the juxtaposition of the uber-wealthy and the desperately poor. like the empires of old, this is a city still under-construction, still being built upon the backs of modern-day slaves. often, they are bidden to construct the bizarre flights of fancy and whim which cater to those who come to dubai to be dazzled and awed -and who go to great lengths to ignore the sweating, hungry man with the hammer and nails.

sure, this happens everywhere to some degree. but, in dubai, the scale is simply magnified. there are a lot of great articles out there about the migrant workers in the united arab emirates, their treatment, their existence in the hidden male-only shanty towns, the promises of remittances to families that never materialize, passports confiscated…

here we see giant dinosaur sculptures in plastic, doubtless for some themed event, being assembled on jumeirah beach in 102 degree heat.

hands on the walls of old kabul to ward off the evil eye

Sat, 02 Oct 2010 01:21:07 +1000

hands on the walls of old kabul to ward off the evil eye

the art of the bicycle seat

Sat, 02 Oct 2010 01:06:41 +1000

the art of the bicycle seat

graffiti - yemen. in terms of what i was saying below about my...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:53:55 +1000

graffiti - yemen. in terms of what i was saying below about my love of graffiti - the public-ness (new word) of it, the shared space which can be either intrusive or engaging, offensive or inspiring (or any combination thereof depending on who’s looking) - i love everything about this photo: the public foosball (spell check actually wants me to capitalize foosball, i refuse) the spray-painted signs on the walls of the old city advertising a salon, among other things. there is simply no wasted space in this moment.

graffiti (?) - greece. admittedly, this is just a handpainted...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:45:03 +1000

graffiti (?) - greece. admittedly, this is just a handpainted sign - not REALLY graffiti - but it makes me want to visit the captain so much more than if this was just another manufactured sign with a fancy logo and neo-grecian font or some such puffery.

graffiti (?) - morocco - same location as below.

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:37:32 +1000

graffiti (?) - morocco - same location as below.

graffiti (?) - morocco. again, i know i am stretching the...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:34:52 +1000

graffiti (?) - morocco. again, i know i am stretching the definition of graffiti. is it just me - or do we not see a lot of hand-painted signage in the states? i just love the aesthetic it adds to the already visually stimulating old city in casablanca. all it says is : women’s mosque - but it’s so cool.

graffiti - jerusalem. stencil art. i love the idea of someone...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:29:30 +1000

graffiti - jerusalem. stencil art. i love the idea of someone making the stencil of the ka’aba - planning all the places they want to tag it…

graffiti - jerusalem. stencil art on the wall of a mosque. do...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:26:05 +1000

graffiti - jerusalem. stencil art on the wall of a mosque. do you suppose the israeli police barrier is there to protect the art?

graffiti (?) - jerusalem. i know this is stretching the...

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:22:00 +1000

graffiti (?) - jerusalem. i know this is stretching the definition of graffiti - like the ones on the wall of my istanbul hotel room below. these are interior - not exterior - but they aren’t really just paintings either - the wall goes, these go with it. maybe i should just call them murals - but i don’t want to. this is on the wall inside the offices of the “israeli committee against housing demolitions”, whose work should be commended: www.icahd.org

close up of the above

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:17:17 +1000

close up of the above