First Holga Photos of 2008

I finally had a chance to develop the rolls of film I have been shooting since the new year began, and scanned in some to post here. There's not a lot to say other than that, really. I've just been working in the darkroom a lot lately before things get more chaotic with exhibits and work and all that fun stuff. So here are my first Holga images of 2008:





It's Andy! He's shooting digital here because he gathers the photo pieces to make the most awesome digital collages I have ever seen:





I'm in this one (where's Waldo, anyone?):

Zack Arias - Atlanta Music Photographer

A while back, Zack Arias, who happens to be a mega talented photographer and friend of mine, asked me if he could use a Holga photo that I had taken of him during one of his One Light Workshops back in November of 2006. He needed an image of himself for the contact page of his new web site, and I am honored that he chose mine. Of course I let him use it, and it looks awesome if I do say so myself! A screen grab of the page is above, but you can visit his site by using the following link:

www.zackarias.com

Photo 08 - Ellipse Arts Center, Arlington

I have more great news! The first show I will be participating in this year is "Photo 08," which was juried by David Griffin, Director of Photography for National Geographic Magazine. Two of my Holga images were selected for this show, which was incredible considering there were over 700 entries and only about 70 selected images. I am truly honored to have been chosen to be a part of this exhibit.

I can't wait to see what other photos were chosen. The staff at the gallery said that the show was incredible, so I will be looking forward to the opening even more now. And I'm always curious to see what someone who happens to be the Director of Photography for National Geographic Magazine thinks is good art.
;-)

Some information about the opening reception, juror's talk, and other events regarding this show which will take place at the Ellipse Arts Center are as follows:

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21
Opening reception: 6 - 9 PM

THURSDAY, MARCH 6
Juror's Talk: 6 - 9 PM

THURSDAY, MARCH 13
Discussion on digital photography: 7 PM

SATURDAY, APRIL 12
Exhibition closes: 2 PM

To find the gallery:
Ellipse Arts Center
4350 N. Fairfax Dr.
Arlington, VA 22203
(703) 228-7710

It is one block away from the Ballston Metro Stop on the Orange Line, for those of you who want to come in by rail.

I hope to see you at the opening!

Oh, and these are my two images that were chosen for inclusion in the show:

black and white and... all over

This is the next (scheduled) exhibit I am slated to participate in:

“black and white and… all over” Curated by J.T. Kirkland

Participating artists are:
Erin Antognoli, James W. Bailey, Danny Conant, Stephen Crowley, Mike Iacovone, Jane Jeffers, J.T. Kirkland, Angela Kleis, Tom Paradis, Aleksei Pechnikov, Susana Raab, Alexandra Silverthorne, Jim Tetro, Bryan Whitson, Lloyd Wolf, Tom Wolff

February 27, 2008 - March 29, 2008

Artist’s Reception: Saturday, March 1st, 2008 5-8 PM

H&F Fine Arts
3311 Rhode Island Avenue, Mount Rainier, MD 20712

Hope to see you at the reception!

(In keeping with the tradition of the last post, I stole this post from Angela Kleis. I wonder how many posts I can steal before I am forced to write an original one?)
:-)

Phil Nesmith, My Baghdad. This Saturday

Okay, so I stole this post directly from Sean Hennessey's blog. But I had to share. I'll be at this opening, and I highly recommend you all see it too!


Phil Nesmith, Soldier, 2007, dryplate ambrotype (sandarac varnished silver emulsion on black glass)

Phil Nesmith, My Baghdad
January 12 to February 16

Opening Reception, Saturday, January 12: 6-8PM
Irvine Contemporary
1412 14th Street NW

Irvine Contemporary is pleased to announce the opening of Phil Nesmith’s first solo exhibition, My Baghdad, a series of photographs shot in Baghdad and produced on glass plates using a dry plate collodion process. A set of editioned C-print enlargements from the glass plates will accompany the unique images in the exhibition. Opening reception with the artist, Saturday, January 12, 6-8PM.

Contemporary photographers have frequently recovered earlier photographic processes to reinterpret image making and familiar genres of photography. Chuck Close’s daguerreotype portraits, Sally Mann’s wet plate collodion images, and Adam Fuss’s combined daguerreotype and photogram images have become part of the visual language of photography today.

The wet plate collodion process in the history of photographic images is inextricably connected to American Civil War photographs and to the look and feel of these images in our cultural memory. Phil Nesmith has recovered this early process for representing and reinterpreting photographs taken in Baghdad during the current war in Iraq. His new series of images are at once haunting, personal, and reflect back on our cultural memory of images in wartime.

See Phil's blog HERE.

Last Holga Photos of 2007

It's hard to believe this year is almost over. With the end of the year comes my last Holga images of the year. These are them. Enjoy, and if I don't make another post before the end of the year, well, have a wonderful rest of 2007, and a Happy New Year, and I'll be seeing you in 2008!

Christmas Tree

From a distance, our Christmas tree probably looks like most others that one might find this time of year, aside from the big fuzzy gorilla sasquatch lying at the foot of it. But if you look up close, you will see that this tree is filled with photos. It's only fitting for a photographer to put photos everywhere, I suppose. Every year, I get a photo ornament or two from family and friends, and I in turn fill those ornaments with photos of the people (and pets) that are dear to us. Since we live pretty far away from most of our family, it's nice to have a reminder of them. Unpacking the ornaments is definitely my favorite part of the season, and I figured I'd show everyone a few of those that I've collected over the years.

Not all of my ornaments are frames though. The colorful moons and stars came from our trip to India during Christmas of 2005, and there's a photo ornament of Andy and me wearing our Indian garb from that same trip. And I have to give a huge shout out to my great friend Devlan for the zombie ornament I got in the mail yesterday. Oh, how my friends know what I like! But *most* of my ornaments are indeed photos.

















Even the family pets get ornaments on my tree! You can see below one ornament that my mother got for me this year while we were shopping after Thanksgiving. I need to find a photo to put in that one and several others that are relatively new.



Whatever you're celebrating this season, make it wonderful, and keep your loved ones close in body and spirit!

Mummy

It's Halloween in December! At least that's what happens when you wait over a month to develop your film. I have three more rolls from Thanksgiving and beyond that I plan to develop and print over the holidays. Better late than never, I guess.
;-)

Holiday Juried Exhibition
“Art on the Small Side”
Mixed Media Art & Fine Crafts

Guess who won first place in this show? I did! Uh-Huh!
:-)

The show runs from December 12, 2007 – January 5, 2008. If you want to meet me, come to the opening reception. I'm fighting a chest cold, but if I don't get any worse, I plan to be there! Two of my Holga images will be included in this great exhibit of work (I cruised around the gallery today and saw a lot of it... I'm in very good company).

Opening Reception:
Friday, December 14, 2007
6 - 8:30 pm

In keeping with its tradition of showing affordable art during the month of December, Touchstone Gallery offers a juried show of mixed media art and fine crafts sized at 18 inches and under by artists from the metropolitan area.

Gallery Info:

Touchstone Gallery
406 7th Street, NW, 2nd floor
Washington, DC 20004
202-347-2787

Gallery hours:
Wednesday - Friday 11-5
Saturday - Sunday 12-5 and by appointment
http://TouchstoneGallery.com

Share: The New Hair

Just after Thanksgiving, I decided that I had enough of my long hair and chopped it all off. I look kinda like this now:

Ullman sacked by City Paper

Anyone who has been reading my blog for the last year has probably seen my posts about how excited I was to find out that fellow Kent State U fellow Rob Ullman was an illustrator for the Washington City Paper. Well, it turns out that a change in management determined that Rob's illustrations are no longer needed in the paper. After 7 years of illustrating for the paper, he was recently let go and is no longer employed there.

That really sucks because Rob is incredibly talented, and I plan to write a letter to protest this decision. They're throwing away a huge talent here. The new management obviously doesn't think readers need great illustrations to go with their articles and columns. Either that, or all decisions coming from their corporate headquarters are being made by trained monkeys. Although last time I checked, even monkeys seem to like illustrations.

Read more about the situation at Rob's blog. And send your letters of protest HERE. Be polite in your letter so that they will take you seriously.

Rob, many of us wish you well and hope things turn out for the best.

Thanksgiving 2007

This year we spent Thanksgiving with my family in Ohio. It's always nice to see my grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins, and family pets! If that sounds chaotic, it is... but it is also pretty fun having a big family.


These are only a few of the photos I took during the festivities.

My grandmother, who looks entirely too young for her age:



My father:



My brother:



My uncle and cousin:



The following are all my cousins!







Of course I have to take photos of the puppies!









And that top photo is one Andy took of me staring down Honey, the MiniPin that is smaller than my head.

I hope everyone else had just as wonderful a holiday!

Show Review

I know, I know... I am a bad blogger. But I have been out of town for almost a week, so I sort of have an excuse for the infrequent posting. While I am wading through the images I shot over the holiday, you can read this review of my recent solo exhibit and artwork written by Alexandra Silverthorne. Alexandra is a DC area photographer as well, and you should check out some of her other work while you are over at her blog.
:-)

Sorry for such a long gap!

I have been neglecting my blogging duties as of late. But that's partly because I have been redoing my art site. The old one just wasn't cutting it as far as aesthetics went, so I redesigned it to be a better fit with my work. It's very simple, and there are some changes yet to be made, but this is what it looks like right now. Let me know if you find any glitches, since I want to make sure it works on everyone's computers!

Visit the site here: www.eantognoli.com

Opening Night!

Fragments & Ashes opened last night to a great reception, and was the first showing of more than a handful of my Holga works at any given time. All together, I displayed 27 individual pieces at the Dumbarton Concert Gallery. I had to edit out quite a few, but in the end I would rather do that than crowd the work, so it all turned out well, and I thought the show looked amazing. Thanks so much to Jen Whitney for helping to organize and hang everything!

I want to thank everyone who came out to see my art show on opening night. Without you, the show would not have been nearly as fun. Aside from all those people I didn't know, a lot of my friends came out to support my first solo show in the DC area, and that made it extra cool. I would name you all, but am afraid I'd leave someone out, so I won't do that! And thanks to those who bought my work as well. I hope you enjoy displaying the photos as much as I enjoyed making them!