Readers of my blog know my feelings about so called “appropriation art”. So I’m happy to read that Patrick Cariou has won his lawsuit against Richard Prince. Congratualtions Mr Cariou, let’s hope the lawyes don’t file an appeal.
Article here:
http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/Patrick+Cariou+wins+copyright+case+against+Richard+Prince+and+Gagosian/23387

I’m honored and humbled to be included in this collection of works acquired on behalf of the State of Oregon to be displayed at Oregon’s State Capitol.

“There are too many images,” he said. “Too many cameras now. We’re all being watched. It gets sillier and sillier. As if all action is meaningful. Nothing is really all that special. It’s just life. If all moments are recorded, then nothing is beautiful and maybe photography isn’t an art anymore. Maybe it never was.”
Robert Frank

Once again spent the New Year holiday at Twin Rocks with family and friends. This is the first picture I made in 2011, call it an homage to Harry Callahan if you wish.

One of the best things about shooting film is the magic of seeing the images for the first time, the confirmation of a vision realized, or disappointment in the failing. I sometimes collect random rolls of film and for no good reason, not process them for some time, but rather let them collect in a box for years before finally getting them processed. I just went through a batch and the anticipation of seeing what was on those rolls reminded me of those early years when every time out it was an adventure. Amongst these half dozen rolls were 35mm color negs, some color 120 from a Holga, a couple B&W 35mm.s and even a roll of 620 Kodacolor II that had to be 30 years old. In fact I don’t even know what camera it went through. As you might imagine image quality was not great on some of these rolls but it did offer up a few nice surprises including the above taken in Houma Louisiana during Mardis Gras in 2006, as well as a few more I’ll post over on Miscellaneous over the next few days or so.

I wish I could say I was regular at Satyricon, it would make me sound much cooler than I really am. But the truth is by 1989 when I moved to Portland my punk rock days were mostly behind me. I had trashed my ears years earlier at places like the Triangle Theater in Rochester, CBGB in NYC, Continental Club in Austin and the Hot Klub in Dallas, as well as numerous other such venues.
But I did see a few shows at Satyricon in the early 90’s, no one of note and none I truly remember with the exception of Austin country/folk/roots songwriter Darden Smith, who was so completely out of his element at Satyricon that the baffled crowd of club regulars found themselves entranced by his evocative accoustic storytelling.
Even so I was saddened to learn the club was closing for good. Another piece of authenticity lost in a Portland that is fast selling it’s soul to hipster artifice. The place was legendary in the Northwest music scene hosting anyone who was anyone at one time or another. According to legend Kurt met Courtney there, Foo Fighters played their first show there. It was a classic punk dive, all black with tattered chairs, cheap beer and lots of attitude. A real shithole, with the emphasis on real. It was all about the music, not much else mattered.
Willamette Week just published a good piece with some video clips, (I like the Jackals clip) you can read here.
The following pictures were from a 1994 travel assignment for the New York Times. Crash Worship was the head liner that night but I bailed out of there before all that craziness got started after getting into a scuffle with one their drummers. I think the band on stage as I was shooting was called Plastic Horn Devils, or something.

Found via Stupid Photographer

Smithsonian Magazine just published an essay on Portland by author Katherine Dunn that I had the pleasure of making the photographs for. In addition to the lovely portrait of Katherine made on location on the Hawthorne Bridge shown above, I photographed some classic Portland locations, such as Forest Park, the Eastbank Esplanade and others. You can view a photo gallery HERE.

This was the second time I’ve worked with Katherine, once back in the 90’s for Esquire on a story on perhaps the greatest boxing match in history, the first Riddick Bowe vs Evander Holyfield fight. Katherine is a brilliant writer, her incendiary novel Geek Love should be mandatory reading for anyone who loves great literature.

This time the subject is her hometown and my adopted hometown, Portland. Reading her essay makes me wish I had been here back in the day, when it still had that funky grungy edge that was long ago covered over in hipster cafes, bike lanes and pearl district loftominiums. That Portland was breathing it’s last gasps when I arrived twenty one years ago but if you know where to look, you can still find remnants here and there.

Further proof that I have the best job in the world, link:
http://magazine.traveloregon.com/fall-2010/open-road/

And a few outtakes: