Month: July 2011

Third purchase!

 
Ooh, a little gift from the powers that be. Extremely exhausted, Remi and I left the apartment to go and pick up our boxes for the move. And a good thing too, considering that it is next Monday. Afterwards, we stopped by Troc’ Soury, where I happened upon our first purchase for the new apartment. Hooray! Right there in front of me, voila, the light for the entry hall. And…at only 18€ a far cry less expensive than a very similar new version that I had planned to order from Morocco. Of course, with a new light, it would take decades to achieve the patina of this beauty. I am delighted and can’t wait to see it lit–but there are spider webs and the remains of a nest inside it! Something to look forward to for the new apartment. But now, it is time to start packing…

Limbo

I am so exhausted that I can’t sleep. The switch is stuck on some sort of “on”, one with faulty wiring as thoughts whirl incessantly even if I am too tired to do much about it. Moving day is fast, fast approaching.
Have I packed anything? Not at all. Is our new apartment ready? No, it isn’t. Moving is always like this. As many times as I have done it, there is always more than a pinch of drama involved. Not as much, of course, as the time that I moved in NYC by subway. Yes, that is right and oh, the pitying looks that I received. I had an old Army trunk and I remember how loudly it thunked across the station platform.
So now, as then, it will be one of those down to the wire pushes. Because, frankly, for the moment, we are having too much fun. A fantastic couple that we both adore came from Paris to see the highlights of the Rencontres International Photography Festival. So many shows, spread out throughout Arles. Last night was the “Night of the Year” (well, personally that would be the Oscars, but to each his own) and it doesn’t get more downtrodden glamour than that. Or at least that is how it seemed to me after entirely too much rosé.
The Arena had been divided into sections with running photography slideshows, accompanying music and for some reason, hundreds of smudgy candles, that while appealing, smelled appalling. How insanely decadent to wander the halls of the Arena with invitations of images in each corner. Bands of twenty-somethings swayed to the DJ’s spins on the sands where the bulls run. I loved it, until I had to go home. Immediately.

The lure of the Rencontres was evident the next day as we baked under the roofs of the former factories that repaired the trains on the Marseille line, known as the Ateliers SNCF. More about that another time, as this particularly down-trodden lieu holds the key to Arles’ future. Rusted iron beams, cracked walls make an oddly appropriate setting for the avant garde of the photography world. Apparently, it is a fitting enough for Frédéric Mitterand, France’s Minister of Culture, who toured the exhibits as we eyed his bodyguards. I love that France has a Minister of Culture and that his role is considered to be so important. Let’s hear it for a country that still believes in the power of its creativity.

The issues that I raised in my previous post were present in some of the pieces presented, such as one made of a collage of images that had been taken off of Flickr or the “Chicken Museum” with ridiculous photos from the internet and pecking chickens making a commentary on our society. We were left with much to think about and highly inspired. The Rencontres is running through the rest of the summer and is well worth the time and the effort. But speaking of efforts, now I really must go…my apologies in advance if I post less in the upcoming week! 

A photographer’s rights

Remi and I just returned from participating in a manifestation or demonstration that was organized by France’s union for professional photographers. The point was to raise awareness about how the decline of the droit d’auteur, or the price that a photographer is paid for the use of his images, is drastically hurting photographers worldwide. This is a subject that is very dear to my heart, as it has affected me directly. 
As many of you know, my companion, Remi Benali, has been a professional photographer for over twenty years. His work has appeared in leading publications throughout the world including Time, Newsweek, Vanity Fair and National Geographic. Due to the economic crisis, magazines are producing less content, which means fewer assignments. That loss of income was partially balanced by the sales of Remi’s images that have been distributed to image banks such as Corbis and Getty. However, with the arrival of websites like Flickr, where images can be obtained and used without charge, the image bank sales have also taken a nosedive. Remi has been told of photo editors at magazines that are given a bonus for coming in under budget and they do so by sacrificing the quality of the content by using free or inexpensive images. Everyone loses in that case as the public loses interest in the magazines, as they no longer offer a unique perspective. We know of at least five photographers that have been forced to give up their profession due to this turn in events. Press photography as we know it, is endangered. 
I know that this a tough subject to bring up in the blogosphere, where little thought is given to a photographer’s rights and need to be paid for their work. Why, for example, are there several of Remi’s photographs (along with some of my text) on Pinterest despite the fact that they are clearly marked as copyrighted on his website? Musicians have fought to stop illegal downloads of their work, as has the film industry. Photography should also have the same protection, one that goes beyond slapping on a photo credit on a stolen image.
I was happy to see that Lucien Clergue also participated in the demonstration. As the first photographer to have been elected a member of the L’Académie des Beaux-Arts de L’Institut de France, he is putting a very public face to this increasingly alarming problem.

Nimes, Part Two

Oh my goodness, I didn’t intend for this to be my next post but time is of the essence these days, so I hope that you will excuse this largely visual offering! Remi and I are really making progress on our new apartment. Frustratingly, he is doing all of the painting alone, as my scrawny Olive Oyl arms aren’t strong enough to properly cover the stucco. And of course, we have already had at least one radical paint turn around–we’ll see if there is another! In the mean time, I am scrubbing off years of dirt that is layered on the doors and windows. It feels wonderful to be bringing elegance back to this apartment.

But back to Nimes. Yes, there is more to show of our day but I want to get my facts right and don’t quite have time to do so now. Instead, I hope that you will enjoy the architectural details on buildings in the Historic Centre of Nimes. I found the patina truly remarkable and the workmanship, especially on the massive wooden entry doors, very impressive. Here and there are even Roman era statues that are embedded in the walls. I was fascinated and would only move along when my friends called after me. The quality and timelessness are something that I long for this all too temporary society!

Revealing

Why do something the easy way when you can do it the really, really hard way? It’s my fault, of course. I admit that right up front. We were just supposed to clean and paint and decorate. Basic, non? Well, I found this tiny crack in the stucco behind the double doors leading from the living room. A quick revisit to my vision of the entire length of wall along the street to be in stone flitted through my head. I picked at it, just like that scab that you know will leave a scar but you can’t help yourself. A swath of cream–could it really just be the stone, right there, so close? I called Remi in, sheepishly. We started picking a little more, then a little more, looking for the stone’s joint. No such luck, it was just plaster, but the more that we dug, the more that we could see that in some places, the stone was visible.

Days later, the stucco is off of the length of the wall. I assumed my rash act and did most of the grunt work with Remi polishing and brushing down behind. He also took care of the covered over placard, which has a lovely faint greenish tint. I had hoped that when we were finally able to open the top half that there would be a hidden treasure stashed inside–a forgotten Van Gogh perhaps?–but in vain…

How fantastic to be rid of that linoleum in the bathroom! The tiles beneath, though not the loveliest brown are a close enough match to the rest of the tomettes in the apartment. I proposed a whitewashed parquet to go over it but that idea has been nixed…for now. I also took care of one of the sillier things that had been done–the charming glass panes in the bathroom door had been painted over–not any more! Yes, even with the addition of a sheer curtain, those windows will let in light to the hall.

My hands are ripped to pieces and my whole body sore but it feels wonderful to bring out the finer aspects of this beautiful space that has been mistreated for far too long. Remi is over at the apartment as I type, mixing the pigments and materials for the lime-wash that we will hopefully put up today. Then we will get rid of the garbage bags full of stucco and attack the paint. Did I mention that this upcoming week is the Rencontres International Photography Festival and we have friends coming to stay? 
Protected by CleanTalk Anti-Spam