Hogbath

To all you steppers out there lookin' sharp. Margot in the haus. This pair of hands gives off waves of Googone as they zip over keys. Painting for the Mother Crew. What to write? How to spell out the span of a new season and who cares to know? April is here. Amazing! April always surprises me. Where the hell did January go? That life feels like a hundred years ago. 

Yesterday I looked over at Craig taking it eeeeeasy in his printing chair while our prints exposed in two minute tandem. His eyes fixed on the line heavy with new work. Real ease. Can it be so simple? Working at ease, looking with ease. He encouraged me to take a load off, relax while the enlargers did the brute work. Sit? Me? I can barely stand still these days but the reminder was nice. Darkroom dance for two; the inaugural dance. I am really happy. I know. Me too. Feels good to be zipping around town feeling light as a wing these days, free to go where Alba takes me. Dry pavement beneath, tucked in and enjoying the ride. After a flop dinner for two, Creme and I postered the town a new one. It felt good to staple posters made with my hands to funny places. DIGITAL BE DAMNED! It felt good to dip through chain link fences pulled up at the corner like a page in a book, graceful as a dancer on a mission. 

Promo. Check.

Here is a poster I made for our exhibition. No frills.

It's all Hogwash anyway.

With that sentiment in mind I finally got down to biz in that familiar basement. Tony was there when he felt like it, watching us work away, tail tracing muscles in my legs like he has known my body forever. Cat in the darkroom. Check. Now that work is churning out like sweet beurre, I have decided to raise the bar. Contrast printing is it for the next few days and then we are moving on to color. Only Creme would approach the process like it was nothing at all. The lessons I continue to learn in his company...

Tonight holds the first lesson in small motor building. Going in blind, with just a word caught in my throat: Porting. Whatever that is. Wrenching. That's what Craig calls it. 

Gone wrenching with the rat pack. Loooooord help me. I am hellbent on experiencing this legend speed for myself before I leave for the spring adventure. 'Been riding my bicycle with the motorcycle helmet in preparation. Gotta self propel before that too becomes a thing of the past. 

New Mexico, I am coming for you.

Welcome to NPD

End of the street activity. River vantage point.

Experimental Drinking

Alone at home on Friday night in Winnipeg. Slide party for one! The Rue Clark back balcony looked at home enough on the living room wall of the Barber House. Enough to run for the tripod, throw the timer and take a good long sip. Twice.

Two places at once. Missing that back balcony tonight.

Strange antics with this one. Pictures of pictures of pictures. Experimental photography at home. Can you see Erin's face? My mother's?

Margot's back. Beware.

Mystery March

Tiger suit on a Monday morning. Billie Holiday accompanies the morning coffee period along with a juicy tangerine and thoughts on mystery. Where has all the mystery gone? Perhaps it is time to lay this internet post to rest, along with the rest of them. Without internet outlets to feed recent work, daily thoughts and ideas, perhaps committing these hands to paper and print would come easier. Room for concentration without internet distraction. It is so easy to get sucked in, scrolling with eyes roving for hours, feeding my mind fairly useless information when I could be spending those hours working in the darkroom, drawing, sewing, cooking, printing.

So. With that said, this will be the last post of Margot Pollo until the exhibition at Le Taudis has come and gone.

Preservation of mystery.

If you would like to communicate via paperform, this is my latest address:
132 Barber St
R2W 3J7

Mail is timeless. Film is timeless. Horses are timeless.

It has been interesting, this process of building a collection of images to present to the public (many of them still stewing away, internal fires keep ideas bubbling near the surface). The feeling of GO OUT, hit the streets NOW with a camera at the forefront always surprises and thrills. Okay. Listen to your guts, they know what's best.

Listen to Chopin and Brahms.

Hold a baby.

Put away the computer. Pick up a pen.

A man rides down the alley on a bicycle hauling an empty homemade wooden cart. I watch from the kitchen window. This home is a good one. Living with Lisa King is good. Life is good. And now, let the mystery begin. There is a lot of work to do!

A photo exhibition with work by Craig Dueck and Meg Kroeker.
Friday the 13th, April of 2012.
Le Taudis, 567 Selkirk Ave.

See you there.

Looking animals in the eyes

Dear Rags,

Thanks for hauling me out of the city limits, for pulling over at a moment's notice in plain sight just like Willy taught you, for a winter day well spent.

This is us. Bright and clear.

Sugar Tappin'

Inspired by the neighborhood.

As winter winds down, the golden hour stretches out reaching private places accustomed to the dark.

Light confident.

Four p.m. light hangs similar to quality cloth, shadows leaning against buildings like long cool women. Faith in the future pooling with just a quick look out my window. Things golden, diffusion above, stark contrast below. Alfred Stieglitz would have run for his camera on a day like today. The long shadows drew me out the house late this afternoon.

Tripod.

Scott's light meter.

Big 'ol camera.

While walking around on Barber looking for a good spot, my inspiration was tapped. Connection and understanding came together and the pictures revealed themselves. All I had to do was remember to pull the Dark Slide out between each composition. I haven't shot around in such a way for many moons.

Sweet familiarity.

Since returning to Winnipeg, I hadn't shot a single stranger's portrait until this afternoon. It was starting to get to me, the inactivity. Something switched on in that beautiful light and suddenly there were faces everywhere. Heavy activity.

Made a picture of three young boys, nine years about. My first interaction with neighborhood kids. One of them had flaming red hair and crazy teeth. Big Super Soaker pumped and ready on a cold and clear Saturday. Keith (only name I caught; rookie move) wanted to see for himself--the feeling of shooting--and when I offered him a spot behind the camera he made me laugh when he tilted the giant body on the tripod straight to the heavens with the most extraordinary sureness I have ever seen in a kid. There was no question, he knew what he wanted. Shooting with confidence after a thirty second explanation. Whoa la.

Keith, respect.

It was a pretty top notch day. Three great meals with great people. Physical labor and a job well done. Children's laughter sounding through the house. Family not my own, but as welcoming. Baby on my hip, the free hand alternating between toast and coffee. South Park over neighborhood Chinese takeout and a dog on the lap.

Basil.

Lisa in the home.

My kind of Saturday.

Chanel and Margot sitting in a tree.

Short-month Showcase

Factory Gals

Rookies in Venice.

Katie Dangerfield shot this five years ago. Young pups. Looking at it always makes me laugh. Craziest chop to date. Wacky bob for baby Margot! Took the entire haircut experience standing up in front of a mirror in Paris.

Death's Zoo

Loud coat on the corner. 

I noticed Chris was in the cab while watching the little blue pickup whip around the fork on Sutherland while waiting in the sun to be picked up for a trip to the photo store for film and supplies. Hadn't seen him since yesterday and it was a nice surprise. Dropped my two F3 bodies off for parts and repair at long last and then wandered around. Brassai caught my eye (well the Taschen book version caught it considering Brassai himself is long dead).

Speaking of death, I stood in a room filled to the tits with dead animals today. Wild! Didn't see that coming on a Friday afternoon. I couldn't help myself but reach out and touch that long giraffe neck coming off the wall. Is it real? Yes. Winnipeg is full of surprises. Grateful upon entering for listening to my guts before leaving the house.

Bring your camera. Bring your camera. Bring your camera.

After the death zoo, we stopped in at Le Taudis to visit Rhayne working away on a new film production and again I felt inspiration pool into my stomach like milkshake through a funnel. Hallelujah. Drink it down. There is something special about the sun pouring down on Selkirk Avenue that fills me with wonder. Vitamin D in the hood. The three of us too poor for breakfast in the afternoon, the suggestion of a homemade meal was pitched and eat we did.

Before the scrambled eggs came helmet shopping. I am in the market these days.

Good company all day. As the afternoon light passed to dusk, I hauled out my projector and got down to business. Organized the mountain of negatives and mounted a bunch for viewing pleasure. Here is an iPhone photography sampler, which does zero justice to the true beauty of slide film. Slide show on a Friday night cause I am crazy like that.

Slides don't lie. And that is something I can get behind.