craftiness

------------------photos by Elaine A. Russell

so... I don't know if you know this about me... but I do a little bit of everything when it comes to crafts. I can crochet, sew, do needlework, collage, woodworking, wood carving, sketching, quilting, pressing flowers, assemblage, tile mosaics, ... whatever. None of it extremely well, mind you. Just well enough to have fun with it and make things on occasion.

Lately, I have been on a quest of sorts to use up alot of the stuff I have lying about. First of all... to (hopefully) make some money... but also for the shear benefit of using up stuff and cleaning out. I love working with materials that have been recycled... in fact, that seems to be the running thread throughout most all of my work.

I have alot of magazines. I mean ALOT. Like a 48 gallon tub full of vintage National Geographic magazines, etc. Now.. I love collage. And I do quite a bit of collage. But you can only use so much before it begins to take over the house.

The past couple of days, I have been taking some of the more interesting magazines and making envelopes. I have made envelopes from a wonderful FRENCH photography magazine, envelopes from an awesome JAPANESE model/ animation magazine, a whole bunch of envelopes from a quilting magazine, and a whole bunch of envelopes from vintage 1960's photo magazines.

The photo above is a sample of some of the Japanese envelopes.



Our Lady

---------------------------photo by Elaine A. Russell

When I was wandering around the neighborhood on Sunday, this was one of the shots I took. It is a statue, and I just love the way she looks.

Living in ABQ, there are alot of stautes around... maybe I will take it upon myself to photograph as many as I can this year. Especially, Our Lady of Guadalupe.. which is what this statue represents.

But for today -- I am off to go through a TON of fabric in my garage. Cleaning out. It's time.

I love apple blossoms

---------------------photo by Elaine A. Russell


I like to read about other artists... see what makes them tick and what inspires them.
I was reading the other day about Ron Ulicny. Besides being a kick-butt photographer, he does drawing, and designing, paints, sculpts, writes graffiti, tattoos, carpenters, does interior design work, and is even a successful musician. Woah, got all that?
In describing his photographic style, Ron Ulicny says, “I think a lot of photographers get trapped in doing one type of thing for extended periods of time and forget what it's like to just shoot. A good photo is a good photo is a good photo... and a good photographer can make an ugly, mundane or simple subject come across as the complete opposite."
I just think that is awesome.. and a wonderful perspective.
In other news... I love apple blossoms.

wow. monday.

-------------------------photo by Elaine A. Russell

Mondays are generally my cleaning day. I know, not very exciting. But it does need done. I am not sure where I got into the habit of cleaning specifically on mondays...probably somewhere in the back of my mind I figured mondays generally suck anyway -- so why not clean and get it over with ?!

Today, however, I do not feel like cleaning. I feel like sitting in an exotic cafe sipping something warm and delicious. I feel like walking barefoot in the ocean. I feel like driving way too fast down a dirt road to an unknown destination. Ah well.

But -- clean the house I will. And maybe work on some business stuff. It is monday after all.
Although --and not just maybe -- probably -- I'm thinking definately.... I will sneak off and sip something warm and delicious at a local cafe.
Photo was taken yesterday in front of my neighbor's house. She has a small patch of Iris plants that are just gorgeous !

Sunday




-------------------photos by Elaine A. Russell


Sundays are usually "lazy" days for me. Not that I am super duper busy on the other days... just saying that I have a whole different approach to Sundays. I don't worry if I sleep in way late. I take my time with my morning coffee. I usually take a walk with my Baby Sabrina. Sometimes I do photo adventures. Some days my hubby and I go on "dates" to Barnes and Noble and play Scrabble. It's a relaxing time.. no matter what else may be going on the rest of the week. It's just a different mindset.

Today my baby Sabrina and I took a leasurely walk around the neighborhood and took some photos. A few are posted here. Enjoy. Sit back. Have a cup of coffee :)

graffiti -- art or not ?



--------------------photos by Elaine A. Russell


So. Had a discussion with my daughter recently. I noticed a sign on the westside of ABQ commanding people to report "tagggers" or "suspicious activities" to the local authorities.
We were talking about the local restrictions on graffiti art. Generally, in America it is a major sin to be a tagger. In Europe and in other countries, not so much. In fact, it is more looked upon as an art form, rather than destruction or a criminal act.
I, personally, think that graffiti is one of the purest forms of public art being expressed. Now, that is not to say that I think it's ok to just randomly paint on someone else's property. But I do think that alot of time and money is wasted by the political powers that be, to arrest and hunt down the artists that do this stuff.
My daughter and I happen to love this style of art. We are huge fans of the magazine JUXTAPOZ (http://www.juxtapoz.com/) -- which is mostly centered around the graffiti art scene in LA.
About a month or so ago, we happened to be roaming about some of the tunnels in ABQ and photographing some of the fab art. Here are a few more photos from that expedition... recently tweaked.

imprisonment


-------photo and self portrait done by Elaine A. Russell

There was a period in my life when I certainly felt imprisoned. It is a time I tend to not think about or dwell on, and most of the people involved are long gone.

I felt trapped, imprisoned, held captive by rules and responsibilities way beyond the norm. I was working as a waitress, going to school, taking care of my invalid grandmother from 4pm-midnight, and doing chores and more around the house. It began when I was barely 12-13, and stopped when I left for college at 19.
It was a horrible, horrible time on many levels. And yet, it made me stronger --and more compassionate-- and gave me a strong work ethic to which I still hold fast today.

I have read, "that which does not kill us, makes us stronger." I believe it is by Nietzsche.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich_Nietzsche
Sounds trite.. but it is true.... at least in my case.

Photos are from my photo trip to the NM State Penitentiary in December.

NM State Penitentiary visit

-------------------------side view of the prison

---------------------my fav shot. View from inside the prison.

-----------------------the locked up Psych Ward.

-------------------a creative soul's cell.

............................................shell casings in C block.
===============all photos by Elaine A. Russell


So. Back on December 14, I went with a very small contingency of the FlickR photo group, and we went to the NM State Penitentiary up in Santa Fe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico_State_Penitentiary_Riot

The prison is the site of one of the worst prison riots in US history, and certainly a bad memory here locally. I personally, have taken care of some of the survivors of that riot, and even years later.. it is still something.

On that day in December, it was so cold and windy that most of the FlickR members decided to go another time, but a few of us went, and I'm glad I did. It is a grand place... huge, confusing, damp, and disturbing. The guide (Rick) was awesome.

Having recently aquired a mangled Nikon D70, I didn't really know the controls on the camera.. so I managed to take all my shots from the day in RAW format. I didn't have the appropriate software to edit my photos.. but thanks to this awesome FREE program online... I can now post them ! WOOT !
So-- better late than never... and here are a couple shots from the day.
If you want to see more.. see the link ---> to my FlickR page.

storm front


---photo by Elaine A. Russell


'tis the ides of March. And while most days are sunny and very much SpRiNg.... I was recalling a day a couple years ago, about this time, when we were traveling to PA.

We were driving through Oklahoma, and all the sudden we were in the middle of this tornado storm. We kept coming in and out of the edge of the eye, and we would get completely trashed and thrown about with wind and rain. We pulled off at the first exit (along with 17 semi trucks !) and waited it out in this little tiny gas station where the lady working made us coffee and we shared stories. It was awesome.

Photo just before the storm hit us hard....

random joy

--------------------------TTV photo by Elaine A. Russell

View from the roof of the Plaza Maya building downtown, by Elaine A. Russell
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A couple of random shots. I have been selling my photographic work since 1986. The equipment I have right now, is a Nikon D70 that is mostly dead (got it 2nd hand) and 2 lenses that are 15+yrs old and are dying. They have non-fixable spots all over the lenses, and the aperture rings don't work and frequently fall off.
So. I need new equipment. I need money to buy new equipment. It's a vicious circle.
Coincidentally, I have also been taking a class on Taoism... and if I have learned nothing else, I have re-affirmed my belief in the "use what you got" theory.. and the rest will come.
So.. combining these 2 facts/thoughts... I decided the best way to use the craptastic lenses that I have; spots and all... was to employ a TTV effect, where .. essentially... the specs just add more character to the photo.
I haven't done TTV in ages, but have always loved it... so here ya go !
The photo of the Plaza Maya building is down on 1st street, and I had the opportunity to go up on the roof when we were having a show there about a week ago. I loved the view.. and thought it would be a good idea to share....

hump


-----------------------------photos by Elaine A. Russell

When I was back in high school (albeit.. the dark ages)... wednesday was known as "hump" day. As in mid-week hump. As in ... half a week to go.. hump. Course, there were "kids" who had another meaning for hump.. but we won't go there today.

Today was a great day to just sit around at Starbucks and enjoy a coffee... and the birds singing.. and the panhandlers panning.. or whatever.