a little green

seasonal change is glorious and is best appreciated on it’s own terms. each season brings it’s own joys and heartbreaks and each is unique. over the past few weeks us Chicagoans have seen mother nature stretch out her arms, yawn, and start to shake off her winter blanket.

yet with the resent weather here (65 on friday then a snow storm the fallowing day) i feel that she is as unsure about the approaching warmth as me. as far back as i can remember i have been a summer baby. oh to run in long flowing skirts and tank tops, barefoot feeling the grass! this is the first year in my almost twenty five years of living that i will morn the conclusion of the winter months. 

these are things i will miss:

having to take a bath everyday because it’s the best way to warm up after running around in snow

heavy blankets

comfy sweaters

fun scarves

hats and hand knitted gloves

the twilight blue shadow on white snow

vegan hot coco

soup

boots (however will not miss wet socks and cold feet)

twinkling holiday lights

i am not ready to put away my sweaters and hang up my scarves! i have heard many of my chicago peers complaining about what a horrible winter we have had; what short memories they have! the last few years k and i were forced to wear long johns all winter long. not true for this past one. in fact there were only two times i recall thinking “man it’s freaking cold right now!” even those were on self imposed, long unneeded walks from work to whole foods. we had a nice tame winter with minimal slush.

due to the weather change that last souper sunday was held this week. it was a wonderful way to get people out of their houses in the cold months and share some good food with some good people. thanks to everyone that made it a point to come out and make those nights so memorial for me.  i enjoyed those sunday nights and am sad to see them go, but am happy to be relived of the pressures of hostess duties.            

my thoughts turn now to the magic of spring and creation. what surprises will she hold for us all? about two years ago k gave me a wonderful blooming lily plant as a gift. lilies are my favorite flowers along with daisies and daffodils. my heart broke when the buds fell and the plant dried up and disappeared. we left the pot alone for the next winter. just letting it sit with few waterings and the occasional positive thoughts towards it. at the start of spring last year little green shoots popped up and stretched for the sun. i had a new little lily plant all of my own.

well this year appear to be no different and my lilies have started to raise form the dirt like a phoenix! springtime embodies the essence of life and i thank her.        

chalmers

-->

i believe that it is only stephen chalmers that can make such eloquent images of serial killer dumpsites  that i would love to picnic there. i would wonder lackadaisical through these lush landscapes as if in a dreamy movie. stephen is not lacking a sense of humor or irony.

stephen is an artist extraordinaire with an impeccable eye and fascinating mind. his dumpsites is a clever blend of his training and experience as an emt, a B.S in psychology, a B.A. in fine art photography, toped with M.F.A in cinema and photography.

personally, as an law and order junkie i adore this project. however, stephen helps us see the reality and humanity of the situation by titling the prints with the names and ages of the victims.     

Stephen Chalmers, Kenneth Whitacre (40), Charles Fleming (67), Melford Sample (uk), Donald Smith (uk), John Haluka (uk), Warren Kelley (uk), Sigurd Beierman (uk), William Emery Kamp (uk), Clarence Hocking (uk), James Howard (uk), Jonah Smallwood (uk), Elbert T. Riley (uk), Paul Allen (60), Edward Martin Cupp (uk), Albert Hayes (uk), Raymond Muchache (uk), John Jackson (uk), Lloyd Wallace Wenzel (uk), Mark Beverly Shields (uk), Sam Bonafide (aka Joe Carriveau) and Joseph Maczak (uk), plus four John Does

2010 is looking to be a promising year for my friend. He will have the honor to add a solo exhibition at Light Work to his already extensive resume. the show will be up from march 22^nd –may 29^th with the gallery reception being held april 1^st. i whole-heartedly congratulate stephen on this great accomplishment.     

you can also see more of stephen’s work in the public collections of the Museum of Contemporary Photography here in Chicago, the Getty in l.a, the Polaroide Collection in ma, the University of Louisville in ky as well as the Lighworks collections.

schneider & tiramisu

last firday evening, k had an opening at the Schneider Gallery along side argentinean photographer Guillermo Srodek-Hart.

we had been talking about his opening as if it would be something in the far future for so long and now it has come to pass.

i am so proud of him. k is extremely talented & hard working and this is quite the honor.

the evening was a whirlwind & the river north gallery stayed consistently and pleasantly  packed.

it was a great honer to see so many photo faculty from columbia college (where i got my bfa and k his mfa) in attendance that evening.

k with judy natal

it was beyond wonderful to have so many friends come & show their support. also my mother and father came. this meant so much to the both of us. the were so cute and brought k flowers & a great bottle of wine. it meant the world to me.    

i am a happy proud girl.

i can't seem to help myself & need to put in this image of our vegan tiramisu cake.

purple rain

shopping locally to support local farmers and small businesses is a priority for me. you could imagine how happy i was when the dill pickle food co-op opened right around the corner from k’s house. it’s a community-owned grocery store and, to me, it feels like portland, or. i do believe this is the first co-op of its kind in chicago. please correct me if i am wrong. it’s such a cute little store and carries a quaint selection of organic and locale goodies. to my further delight, their produce is seasonal which I guess goes with the territory for carrying local and organic.

for the month of march, one color is jumping off the shelves at me. purple. purple broccoli, purple beets, and purple potatoes are in season this month along with loots of hardy root veggies such as radishes, leeks cabbage (also purple), and eggplant (once again purple) and mushrooms. yum.

having the dill pickle just around the corner reminds me of living in italy. little local and fresh grocery shops are on every block. it is wonderful to swing into the shop on your way home from work and pick your evening meal by what is fresh.

i will certainly enjoy the month of march. let’s all just hope i don’t turn purple.