Loneliness

It is also why so many great photographs concern loneliness. The lens may distance the photographer from the rest of humanity, but with that distance comes an enhanced ability to see what is overlooked and underloved, whether it is the piebald of shadows decorating the side of a house, or the greased-glass door of a motel (the melancholy iconography of the American road—the motels, the slumping wooden houses, the elm half-choked to death by kudzu, the sun-cracked stucco building—is to modern photography what a wheel of cheese and a tumble of grapes were to Renaissance painting), or, most powerfully, the lone human being.

Exhibit Schedule

The dates of my exhibit at the South Florida State College Museum of Florida Art & Culture are now official:
Exhibit Opening: Wednesday February 6, 2019
Opening Reception: Thursday February 21, 2019 at 1:00 p.m.
Exhibit closing: May 8, 2019

Yes, the opening reception is at 1:00 p.m.

The college is located at 600 West College Dr., Avon Park, FL  33825

Immigrants Serving in the Military vs. Donald Trump

Trump and his administration are a disgrace and a stain on the honor of the tens, if not hundreds of thousands of immigrants and other minorities who have served this country in our military over the last two-plus centuries. The man who dodged the draft five times cares more about the rank prejudice of his “base” than he does about the national security of this country.

African American Sawmill Workers

Like shadows of history, black sawmill workers and loggers in the area that is now part of the Big Cypress National Preserve and its environs, made a way of life laboring in fearful and dangerous circumstances. They raised families, worshiped in harmony, and then disappeared with little notice taken of their presence, their passing or their contributions. In less than five decades, a way of life, and many of the people who lived it, has been dispersed from public memory. More is known about the ancient Calusa and Tequesta Indians than is known about this segment of the population from our recent past, and the tremendous contributions they made to our country and the world. It almost begs the question, “Were they ever really there at all?” There are only passing references to “negro labor” in the best-known history books. Recent efforts by local writer Maria Stone and the Museum of the Everglades have captured some of the stories from the mouth of the people who lived them. (We Also Came: Black people of Collier County, by Maria Stone) oral interviews collected by the Museum of the Everglades, April 28, 2001 and April 27, 2002.

Grizzly Hunt

This week, the Wyoming Fish and Game Commission voted to allow hunters to shoot as many as 22 grizzlies outside of Yellowstone National Park. The hunt, slated to start this September, will be the first allowed in the state in more than four decades. This action was made possible by a 2017 decision by the federal Fish and Wildlife Service to strip Endangered Species Act protections from this population of grizzly bears despite a recent spike in grizzly deaths in the Yellowstone region.

Florida and the Arts

At the end of March, Governor Rick Scott approved the state’s $88.7 billion budget for fiscal year 2018-19. Unfortunately, the final budget included only $2.6 million for cultural grants to be distributed among just 489 organizations across Florida—90 percent less funding than the current fiscal year. This year’s funding level moves Florida from 10th to 48th in per-capita appropriations for the arts for the nation’s third largest state.

Thoughts from Ansel Adams

We are not just talking about saving scenery. We are talking about the immediate future of the world.
Ansel Adams