Photography is a tremendously varied pursuit that can take you many different directions, but there are a few fundamentals that every photographer, no matter what they shoot, should have mastered. If you are new to photography and ready to learn, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will teach you many of the basics in just 10 minutes.
Coming to you from Pay Kay, this great video tutorial will show you 80% of the basics of photography in just 10 minutes. If I could give one piece of advice to anyone just starting out and working on gaining comfort with concepts like the exposure triangle, it would be to put it into practice one piece at a time. A lot of people hear that manual mode is the best way to learn and the only mode that professionals use. Not only is it untrue that professionals do not use other camera modes, it can be overwhelming to try to manage all your settings simultaneously when you are just starting out. Pick a semiautomatic mode such as aperture mode and experiment with how changing that one settings gives you different results and creative control. When you are comfortable with all the parameters individually, then you can move on to manual mode as appropriate. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Kay.
It wasn’t that long ago that we shared Caroline Chao’s work in the AAPI exhibition Upon Further Reflection, but she’s on a hot streak! The From: C designer’s inaugural furniture collection, BLOC, includes fives pieces inspired by geometric shapes associated with children’s blocks. It debuted this year at “PLAYSCAPE” at Salone Satellite during Milan Design Week 2023 before going to win big at NYCxDesign 2023. There, the BLOC Collection took home the Emerging/Independent Product Designer 2023 NYCxDesign Award.
“I wanted to create something both playful and sculptural yet familiar and nostalgic,” says Chao, founder of From: C. “Children’s wooden block sets have shapes that are instantly recognizable, and part of a common experience that many people share. There’s a playful lightheartedness, yet sculptural geometric purity, associated with the shapes that I wanted to celebrate. It brings us back to nostalgia for childhood toys and a lighthearted curiosity as people interact with the pieces.”
Wedge Chair
BLOC draws inspiration from these shapes, with the furniture pieces aptly named the Cube Chair, Wedge Chair, Tri Stool, and Cylinder Lounge and Ottoman (available in large and small variations). Lots of juxtapositions are at play with the materials Chao chose to use throughout the collection. Soft versus hard, solid versus transparent, and textured versus smooth. These elements help to elevate something long familiar to what can be viewed as a more abstract, functional form that’s comfortable.
Wedge Chair
All of the pieces in the BLOC Collection are designed and manufactured locally to the designer in New York, with the majority of the collection also being primarily designer-fabricated. Other suppliers and material fabricators are also kept local through small businesses around the New York area.
Cube Chairs
Cube Chair
Cube Chair
Tri Stool
Tri Stool
Cylinder Lounge + Stacked Ottoman
Cylinder Lounge + Stacked Ottoman
Caroline Chao
To learn more about the BLOC Collection, visit fromc.co.
Photography by Pippa Drummond.
The nonprofit behind the annual Sundance Film Festival has received its largest endowment ever — totaling $4 million — to fund programs meant to boost Indigenous filmmakers from California tribes.
The donation, which the Park City, Utah-based Sundance Institute announced Wednesday, comes from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, a Northern California tribe made up of Coast Miwok and Southern Pomo groups.
The federation’s tribal chairman, Greg Sarris, has a personal history with Sundance, which filmmaker Robert Redford founded in 1981.
Sarris, born and raised in Santa Rosa, took part in Sundance’s screenwriters lab in 1992. He went on to write and produce the 1996 HBO miniseries “Grand Avenue,” adapted from his short story collection of the same name, which delved into the struggles of Native Americans living in his hometown. Redford served as an executive producer.
Sarris, speaking by phone this week, said he wanted to give back to the organization that helped him in his career as a creator.
“I wanted to have something in place [so] that young filmmakers in California will have … the wonderful opportunity I had at Sundance to do what I did,” Sarris said.
The tribe’s gift will support 13 scholarships and a fellowship for emerging and mid-career Indigenous artists, the institute said. With the new donation, Sundance’s endowment has a current value of $28 million.
Sundance Institute Chief Executive Joana Vicente addresses reporters at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
(Chris Pizzello / Invision / Associated Press)
“It’s both giving back, but also it’s giving forward,” Sundance Institute Chief Executive Joana Vicente said of the federation’s support. The institute has offices in Los Angeles and New York, in addition to its Utah headquarters.
Indigenous filmmakers remain underrepresented in Hollywood.
In 2022, 0.4% of theatrical film roles were portrayed by Native actors, while 64% were played by white actors, according to a report by the UCLA Entertainment and Media Research Initiative, which examined the top 89 English-language movies in theaters based on box office data. Native actors did not receive any lead roles in major theatrical films in 2022, the report said.
There were no Native directors reflected in 2022’s top English-language theatrical films, nor in the top 100 streaming movies based on Nielsen ratings, according to the report.
The Sundance Institute has a long history of supporting Indigenous artists, which has been a personal passion of Redford.
The group has championed creatives including “Jojo Rabbit” filmmaker and “Reservation Dogs” co-creator Taika Waititi, “Reservation Dogs” co-creator and director Sterlin Harjo and “Fancy Dance” writer-director Erica Tremblay.
“This is a community that has historically been overlooked since the beginning of film, since the beginning of TV, even though everything gets made on their own land,” said Adam Piron, director of the institute’s Indigenous program of California Native artists and filmmakers. “It’s been something that’s been largely kind of shameful of the industry.”
The expansion of the institute’s scholarships comes at a time when there is growing concern in the industry about whether Hollywood’s commitments to diversify will continue amid cost cutting by studios and pressure on streaming services to improve profits.
The Sundance Institute, like other nonprofits, is also dealing with the challenges of an uncertain economy, which has hampered its ability to fundraise. Revenue for the Sundance Institute is down 8% this year compared to fiscal 2022, according to the group.
Recent St. Thomas law school graduate Trey Perez ’23 J.D. believes that changes to federal intellectual property (IP) laws and the Indian Arts and Crafts Act could better protect and boost the economic development of Native American tribes and Indigenous artists. He explains why in a paper that was published by the Seattle University School of Law American Indian Law Journal in April.
Perez wrote the paper to fulfill his upper-level writing requirement toward graduation, but his professors, Reid LeBeau and Thomas Berg, felt his ideas warranted a larger audience and encouraged him to submit the paper to a law journal.
“I investigated Native American poverty in undergrad for my capstone project and felt that I could leverage some of that background knowledge into my upper-level writing topic at St. Thomas,” said Perez, who has focused on IP law while earning his Juris Doctor at St. Thomas.
Some Native tribes in the U.S. have established revenue streams, such as through casinos and gaming, however, others do not and experience high rates of poverty. Perez proposes that changes to federal trademark, copyright and patent law could provide additional income for all tribes, especially those that are economically disadvantaged.
“… tribes possess little power to police their tribal names, which limits their ability to prevent others from using their names on products,” Perez writes in the paper as an example of an IP issue that can impact tribes financially.
He also advocates for changes to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, specifically its definition of “Indian” that includes the component as having tribal membership. Currently, the Indian Arts and Crafts Board, which was established by the act, is responsible for, among other roles, designating who can call themselves an “Indian artisan.” Perez says the board should have the ability to grant this classification to those who meet a set of requirements, but not be contingent on membership in a tribe, due to the wide-ranging tribal membership standards across the country.
Perez’s interest in Native American culture and history goes back even farther than his time as an undergraduate student. He says it began at a young age through his grandmother.
“My grandma took my cousins and me on trips around Minnesota and the Dakotas to see various Native American historical sites,” he said. “She was deeply interested in their cultural history, and that rubbed off on me.”
Now that his paper is published, Perez hopes it will contribute to a larger conversation about poverty and the economic disparities among tribes.
“I’d love if the article contributed in any way to how lawmakers address Native American poverty at the state or federal levels, but if not, I hope it at least gets people thinking about alternatives to solving the issue,” he said.
Perez is currently a law clerk at The Spence Law Firm in Minneapolis, which represents clients in a variety of IP matters, while he studies for the bar exam.
Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) has named Alex Delotch Davis as executive director for the university’s SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film in Atlanta and Lacoste, France.
A SCAD alumnus with an M.A. in luxury & fashion management, Delotch Davis brings more than 15 years of experience as an arts marketer, strategist, and connector in Atlanta’s arts and cultural scene.
In the role, Delotch Davis will lead exhibition development, marketing, fundraising, and overall strategic vision and direction for SCAD FASH, SCAD FASH Lacoste, and SCAD Atlanta exhibitions.
Additionally, Delotch Davis will serve as a university ambassador to the local arts community, museum patrons, and fashion and film industries. Delotch Davis’s efforts will support SCAD FASH’s mission to serve as a creative resource for students of all ages, providing inspiration to visitors through exhibitions, films and programming.
“I’m excited and humbled by the opportunity to be part of this diverse and innovative organization,” said Delotch Davis said in a press release. “I’m energized by what is on the horizon for SCAD FASH, the museum is a treasure for the community and it is an honor to amplify the outstanding exhibitions and programming. As an alumnus of SCAD Atlanta, I’m also thrilled to be part of an institution that supports the development of artists and cultivates opportunities in creative industries, which aligns very much with my personal and professional values.”
Delotch Davis previously oversaw marketing and partnership strategy for the High Museum of Art, managing all special initiatives for the museum as well as directing the museum’s digital, print, broadcast, and social media campaigns.
Kari Herrin, SCAD’s Senior Vice President of Brand Experience said, “Alex Delotch Davis is an incredibly talented force in Atlanta’s dynamic arts and cultural scene. Her keen sense of creative strategy, vision, and a connective spirit to champion love and appreciation for artists and designers throughout the community will be a tremendous asset to SCAD FASH. We are fortunate to have her leading SCAD FASH forward with inspiring exhibitions, programming and activations to enhance the bond between the university and community, and reinforcing the museum’s renown on an international scale.”
Prior to joining the High Museum, Delotch Davis led experiential marketing programs and branded activations for Cadillac throughout the southeast, expanding the luxury car brand’s footprint at global arts events including Art Basel Miami. Previously, Delotch Davis also held senior marketing and public relations roles at Bloomingdales, Bill Lowe Gallery, and the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs.
Delotch Davis currently serves on the board of Atlanta Celebrates Photography and was recently appointed to Mayor Andre Dickens’ Atlanta Arts Advisory Committee.
To learn more about SCAD FASH, visit scadfash.org.
In the summer of 1977, Andy Warhol and I took a trip to his house in Aspen, Colorado. He loved that part of the world, partly because he loved pretending he could ski, but also because a number of his greatest collectors were based around there, many of whom were friends, too.
On this occasion, we went to visit the singer John Denver, who had a bunch of airplanes, from small private jets to this experimental bi-plane. When I saw it, I told Andy to jump in. But those things are actually pretty small and difficult to enter – it’s not like you can just hop in. Andy couldn’t manage it, so I told him to stand on the other side of the cockpit instead, and angled the lens to make it look as though he was inside the thing.
It felt right shooting him in this strange old plane, because so much of our time together was spent travelling. It feels fitting, too, because even though Andy was a quintessentially American artist who never really looked to Europe for inspiration – from the Campbell’s soup cans to the Brillo pads, he was American to the core – his work is now so global, there’s almost nowhere in the world that his work hasn’t travelled.
His facial expression was a trademark in the photographs that he made public. It’s this perfect neutrality: I’m not happy, but I’m not unhappy either. There was always an ambiguity he wanted to convey – almost as if it was up to the viewer to decide what he was doing, how was feeling, which “Andy” he was being on that particular day.
He was the same in interviews. He would almost never go into detail. Answers were yes, no, or at most a few words here and there. He never wanted to let on what he actually thought. I think he sensed, before his time, the importance of never giving too much away, always keeping something back, out of the public gaze.
It’s funny because in private, he was just so different. He could talk about anything, all day long. He was a fantastic conversationalist, especially at a dinner party. There was a sophistication to the way he interacted with the world that I always admired. One thing I treasured about him was his naivety in the face of new things. He and I were the same in that respect: we were never too cool to be amazed by something. Maybe it was a new place, or new food – but he had an innocent enjoyment of new things that was always so pure.
I think we became close because we had so much in common, beyond just our love of art and photography. We were both Catholic boys. We went to similar schools. We shared the same values. And we both had the same work ethic: when we worked, we worked hard; and when we played, we played really hard.
Over the course of our friendship, I took more photos of him than I can count. There are a few where he had no idea he was being photographed: it was him without his “Andy” suit on if you like, but I don’t find them more interesting than the others. I like my subjects to know they’re being photographed, to pose a little, because it’s a form of interaction with the photographer that can kind of go anywhere. It’s so much more fascinating to me.
I’ve always loved portraiture, whether in a studio or out in the world. So many images are about the surface, but in a portrait, I want to get inside, to understand and express something deeper than an appearance.
The first 15 minutes of any portrait session is about waiting until the person reveals themself. I’m clicking the shutter, but I’m usually not taking pictures. I’m talking, asking questions, trying to understand who they are. Only then am I actually capturing that person: no matter what they’re wearing, whether it’s nothing or something really fabulous, it’s only then you truly get to see someone. When that person allows themselves to be vulnerable with you, you can get a great photograph.
People often ask me if I miss Andy. But there’s really no time to miss him, because I’m always involved with my photographs of him that I took, looking back at them, arranging them for exhibition, interacting with them and my memory of him.
Born: Lowell, Massachusetts.
Trained: Self-taught.
Influences: Man Ray, Andy Warhol, Paul Solberg.
High point: “Moving to New York City.”
Low point: “Leaving Los Angeles.”
Top tip: “Consistency.”
All photos by Matt Dayak, © Brian Peters, shared with permission
Through his innovative Dyadic Series, artist and designer Brian Peters defies the limits of clay and technologies. The collection is comprised of cylindrical sculptures that expertly weave soft blue and green with the natural color of ceramic, all created with a custom 3D printer.
Rather than achieve the two-toned compositions through glazes or paints, Peters coded the machine to fabricate each sculpture with both the pigmented and raw materials—most 3D printers add layers from a single body of wet clay—and the resulting forms elegantly entwine unique, textured patterns.
Born out of more than a decade of research into ceramics and the fabrication process, the series is proof that more variations in this technology are possible. Peters shares:
The idea of printing in two (or more) colors simultaneously has been something that has intrigued me for a while, and I finally developed the expertise in building 3D printers to pursue the idea. This new field of exploration is very exciting because you are able to directly print with color, rather than glazing the color afterwards, and will allow me to explore different patterns and textures (such as the woven-like texture created with this first collection).
Based in Pittsburgh, Peters frequently works on large-scale architectural works and wall sculptures, which you can find on his site. He’s currently in the midst of several commissions and building another 3D printer with new capabilities, so follow him on Instagram for updates. (via Design Milk)
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article A Custom 3D Printer Weaves Two Colors of Clay into Elaborately Textured Sculptures appeared first on Colossal.
Art and design gallery Tuleste Factory and exterior design firm Manscapers recently collaborated on their first project. TFM is a collection of indoor/outdoor planters that bring together traditional and contemporary shapes for some eye-catching results. Available in a selection of both tame and bold colors, the planters are handcrafted by artisans in Mexico using fluted fiberglass. The combination of traditional fluting and high design silhouettes creates a modern moment whether in the garden or the family room. Create an interesting grouping using both standard and oversized planters in different shapes and colors or go completely monotone.
To learn more about the TFM planter collection, visit tulestefactory.com.
