Archive | darkroom work

Building the foundation…

By John on September 30, 2012 in beauty, craft, darkroom work, skill and craft, working

We all begin somewhere. If one wishes to build fine furniture, knowledge of the tools, types of wood, adhesives, joinery, stains and finishes must be mastered first. This begins with an apprenticeship, since the novice knows nothing except the novel desire to see a project through. ‘The right tool for the right job’ is not an idle cliché. This applies to the studio arts as well. When I began my painting classes last spring I knew little of this craft and had very limited skills. All I knew was what I would like to portray, not how to accomplish it. I had to ask for help. I asked my teachers, since that is what they were for. I asked fellow students who were more able than myself, for that is part of their role as well. The great leap is that I took their advice and my work improved. I also do this with my photography. I ask for help and take the advice. There are many ways to do this. I go to the Kodak webpage for help with start times and other technical details, for example. I ask those who have come before “How did you do this…?”

And so my foundation is built of sturdy stuff–strong mortar, supportive materials, able to carry the larger structure that becomes the rooms, halls and stairways of this artistic domicile. There is more to the photography than that, however. My skills and craft are broadened by reading Homer, or T.S. Eliot. I get ideas from looking at the sculpture of Canova and Bernini and the paintings from a diverse world of museums and galleries. I soak in the experience of waiting at the bus station in Ravenna in the rain. By writing about these things I synthesize what I know into something else, perhaps not new to the untrained eye, but certainly original, if only in small ways.

The foundation–my foundation–is greater than the sum of its parts, yet contains all that I have seen and heard. I become my work and in doing so my work defines part of my being, part of my ‘self’ and grants a sense of community. More about this later…

JDCM

The hustle and bustle of an island evening…

By John on September 28, 2012 in autumn, craft, darkroom work, Paros, skill and craft

At last, I am back on Paros. Italy was lovely, inspiring and worth every second, but as the Aegean flight arced around to land in Athens I breathed a sigh of joy–back in Greece at last!

I have spent the last two days assisting the staff in opening up the school. I have been sweeping, vacuuming and mopping the darkroom, washing out trays and I have made a fresh batch of Fix. I will wait to make the other chemistry until Sunday or even Monday. I have printed out a fresh batch of darkroom schedule sheets and straightened out the desk area for ease of use. The restroom is well-supplied and I have made sure the window is light-tight. Kala! Polikala!

The rest of the students arrive tomorrow from their 3-day visit to Athens and from what I have heard they have had a wonderful time in that ancient and complex city, so different from Rome, Florence and Pistoia. They will be excited to see the island, I am sure. I know that I was, and still am, to be honest. There is nothing like the adventure of sea travel and being able to say, “land ho!”, if only in you heart.

It was a huge relief to unpack my bags and put away my belongings. I was growing tired of living out of my suitcase, so to speak. As much as I adore travel, there is nothing quite so satisfying as coming home. I guess I cannot say much more than that. The weather is lovely and when I haven’t been working at the school, doing laundry or putting away my travel gear I have spent some time at the beach and swimming. The water is perfect and the weather has been hot but not the unbearable oven that was August. I have no food in my flat so I still have to go shopping but that lack of food at home has been a good excuse for eating out. I have missed Greek food. Yes, the Italians have some good grub, known the world over, but they seem to have missed out on something that Greece excels at. I haven’t been able to put my finger on it, but there is a soul-fulfilling aspect to Greek food. Maybe it’s just me. Maybe it’s my soul. Maybe I have been here before. Maybe I have never left.

Tonight the neighborhood around Mikro Cafe is bustling with early evening energy. Families out for a stroll, conversations on the doorsteps, and fundraising bazaars full of eager shoppers. What a place I have found! Not that this path hasn’t been walked before, but it feels right to me.

JDCM

Paros and Emerson…

By John on August 2, 2012 in 4×5 photography, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, Uncategorized, working, Wright Morris

My trip back to Greece was uneventful although the security in the large airport from which I departed the USA was tighter than usual. As a wise man reminded me, “These are the signs of the times we live in.” So true. And yesterday we all said goodbye to another wise man, Gore Vidal–writer, critic and general thorn in the side of anyone he felt needed a sharp poke as a reminder of their mortality and insignificance. I have a feeling that he and Marcus Aurelius would have been good friends, cynics both–grumblers concerning the state of the world–and brighter stars in what can often be a dull firmament.

It was a pleasure and a relief to arrive back in Greece even though I have had to leave dear friends and family behind. Such is my current path. PAGE Literary and Art Journal is going to print and the files have been sent to the printers. The only remaining task is to choose the paper stock for the cover and interior pages. This is a hands-on job so I will not be taking care of that responsibility. It is a very pretty publication, with relevant articles, both new and republished, and interesting work from the artists in that microcosm of the Northeast. With that behind me I have returned to Paros and I am happy to be back. My visit to the USA was so short it feels surreal to walk down the narrow streets of this port town, now more crowded with tourists, feel the heat of the Greek sun and hear the ancient familiar music of the Greek language. It is as if I had never left, yet I have the jetlag to prove it. I have work to do here before I leave for Italy in a few weeks so I will be busy and I am looking forward to that. For me idle hands are the devil’s playground. In short, I need to have work to do and some structure to my life, a schedule of some kind. People to see, places to go, things to do. Then I can rest.

Today’s (2 August) reading from ‘ A Year with Emerson’ is appropriate since I am back here and in contact with my teachers, mentors and those who would guide me. When he was thirty years old Ralph wrote a letter to his Aunt Mary and gave a description of his ideal teacher. He wrote, “God’s greatest gift is a teacher & when will he send me one, full of truth & boundless benevolence & heroic sentiments. I can describe the man, & have done so already in prose and verse. I know the idea well, but where is its real blood warm counterpart…I may as well set down what our stern experience replies with the tongue of all its days. Son of man, it saith, all giving & receiving is reciprocal; you entertain angels unawares, but they cannot impart more or higher things than you are in a state to receive. But every step of your progress affects the intercourse you hold with all others; elevates its tone, deepens its meaning, sanctifies its spirit, and when time & suffering & selfdenial [sic] shall have transformed and glorified this spotted self, you shall find your fellows also transformed & their faces shall shine upon you with the light of wisdom & the beauty of holiness.”

“You entertain angels unawares…” How lovely. We are only ready to receive that which we are ready to understand. In a way he is reminding me to remain open to the ideas around me, to not shut myself off from the “sunlight of the spirit” and to look keenly into the eyes of those who know. I must admit that I cannot say much else after that. That’s alright. I think Emerson, Vidal and Old Aurelius would agree. As a parting shot I would like to introduce a circular idea I have been mulling for the past few months: learn, practice, teach.

JDCM

Melancholia atop the Hotel Attalos…

By John on July 1, 2012 in darkroom work, Greece, Paros, quiet islands, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

I am once again in Athens after a long boat ride from Paros. Tomorrow I fly to Vienna, en route to America and a month in the green, lush Hudson valley and my mother’s home. I was saddened leaving Paros today. I sat at a cafe and said goodbye to a new friend from Paris and as I walked to the port I hugged a fellow student farewell as she opened up the small cafe where she worked. The crowd to get on the Blue Star Paros was large and I waited in the sun for about 15 minutes until we boarded. One of our teachers at the school was boarding another ferry on his way back to Amsterdam and he was being helped by a good friend (to many of us) who, in a few weeks, will be saying goodbye to Paros forever. Her life path has shifted and will no longer include Greece or the Cyclades. I was struck by a melancholic mood as these interactions occurred and as I boarded my ferry I received a text from a friend who had arrived too late to say goodbye in person. We spoke on the phone and it was good to hear his voice. A few minutes later another friend sent me a ‘bon voyage’ text. So some of these ‘farewells’ were from a distance and not face-to-face. It felt as if something was missing. There is no substitute for the real thing.

I have come to an odd point in my journey through Greece. I have many questions and my future on Paros suddenly seems less certain than it did a year ago. There was a time where I needed university credit-that is no longer necessary. It is essential I establish my own existence outside of the Aegean Center if I am to survive happily on that little island. I am a photographer and need to be so with or without the Aegean Center connection. To rely on that resource for too much support (of any kind) would be unfair to them and detrimental to my own sense of self and stunt my intellectual and social growth.

I have made friends and lost friends at the Aegean Center over the past two years. I have made terrible errors of judgement regarding friendships and even recently the possibilities of love. This has had the effect of pushing me further into myself, thus finding an easier path to isolation and solitude. I know this is not always a good place for me to be, but I feel as if I have no choice. If I am to be emotionally secure then I have to be very wary, almost suspicious, of others. As my father has warned me, I can be too naive regarding people. Yes, there are some people I can trust, but more to avoid or at least be careful around.

So I leave Paros with a heavy heart. Few real farewells and only one or two ‘kalotaxidhis’ have left me wondering what my future in Greece will entail. I will work through the year since I have made that commitment to myself and others, but after that it may be time to move along. We shall see…

JDCM

Paros news, part II, and travel ahead…

By John on June 25, 2012 in 4×5 photography, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, quiet islands, rangefinder camera, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

Once again I find myself at Mikro Cafe updating this electronic epistle, free to whomever wishes to read it and in doing so, please respond. I arrived after my 12 day island-hop with fifteen rolls of exposed 120 film and I have developed it all. This is important because it means that I may not have to bring my heavy medium format camera to Italy in the fall, which also means no tripod, no film, etc…What a literal load off my shoulders! I can concentrate on digital color and get to know my new Leica M8 during the Italian session. There was an issue in the darkroom, however, dealing with the near-tropical conditions. In short the water coming out of the tap was 24-25C and I need the chemistry to be 20C. The ambient room temperature was also 24-25C which meant that all the metal canisters and film reels were all 24-25C. The upshot is that even if I drop the chemistry temp to 20C the second I put the soup in the can, the temp will rise 2 degrees at least, thus dropping the developing time. This was my solution:

I made the initial film rinse at 16C, thus dropping the can/reel/ temp to 20C. Then I can add the 20C soup and it will at least be stable for a couple of minutes before the ambient room temperature raises the can of soup a degree or so. Now, since I have been under developing my PlusX by N-2 anyway in this darkroom I have to adjust the time again, this time for ambient temperature. For this round of work I dropped the time to N-5 and the effects are very nice indeed: good separation in the shadows, nice highlights that are not overexposed and a balanced contrast. Considering that many of the images were made in the height of the Greek sun (10:00-15:00, or 5800K) I am very pleased with the results.

Paros is much the same. The Watercolor Workshop and the Digital Photography Bootcamp finished and hung a small exhibition last Friday which was lovely. I was impressed by the photographers and enchanted by the watercolorists. Some of the photographers had never worked in this kind of digital dynamic before and their work was terrific: all illustrated an excellent use of negative space, lovely light/shadow, texture and elegant composition in the work. The watercolors were ethereal and splashed with colors, bright and soft. There were some students who had never worked in this medium as well but that wasn’t apparent. This is a testament to both their innate skill and that of their instructor. There are more tourists on the island, but it is not crammed with people. I am sure this is making some business owners nervous about their futures, but the summer hasn’t really arrived and the July and August crowds will write the book on this piece of marble in the blue sea.

I leave Paros for the USA in about a week. I would like to think I will have a relaxing time back in New York but my time will be short and I have much to do, many people to see and commitments to keep. I will be off-island and out of the EU for a month and then return at the very beginning of August. As the plan goes I have about three weeks here and then I am off to visit a friend in England for a couple of days and then head to Italy, Ravenna and finally Pistoia and the Villa Rospigliosi where I meet up with the rest of the school for the Italian Session. I have a lot of work to do for the fall. My portrait project must continue and I need to push that a bit if I am to stay on schedule for the beginning of printing in October. I am thankful for all the work I have done so far and I am a little ahead of schedule in the darkroom, but I must not rest on my laurels. My role as student/intern is unwritten but the future looks bright, at least from this vantage point.

JDCM

Paros homecoming…

By John on June 20, 2012 in craft, Cyclades stone walls, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, quiet islands, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

As we left Sifnos I waved goodbye to that pretty island and began my short journey home via the Aqua Jewel, a ferry I have come to know very well. The northern wind whipped up the waves and as we sailed due west we were in a beam sea most of the trip. This caused a fair amount of pitch and roll and, although I am not one to get seasick, I kept my eyes on the horizon to keep my inner ear on an even keel. The trip was, as I said, supposed to be a short 3 hours, but it went for an additional 45 minutes due to that weather. As we came into closer sight of Paros, we turned south, the seas calmed and the rolling ceased. The following sea pushed us and as we sailed past The Doors and I felt like I had come home. A friend met me at the port and we caught up with others at Pebbles for a sunset.

This morning I loaded a large pile of laundry into the machine, opened up the doors of my flat, shook the rugs out, swept, mopped and generally re-opened the place after having it closed up for almost two weeks. I then headed to the market and picked up some essential stuff and went out to Drios to pick up the rental car I had lent to my friend Jeanne. It was great to see her and some other folks. When I returned back to Paros I realized that I had accomplished what I needed to do for the day and had little choice but to head to the beach for some swimming and lazing about. Not really, of course. I did a hundred or so crunches and bicycle pumps, swam a few ‘laps’, read a bit (a biography of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius) and then headed back to Paros for a shower and quick nap.

As I write this I am back at Mikro Cafe. Colin has made me a wonderful iced latte and offered me an apricot from a friends garden. “They were falling off the trees, he said…” There is chill music on the stereo, the weather is balmy with a light southern wind and I have plans to be in the darkroom tonight to begin developing the film I shot while I was hopping about the Cyclades.

Ah yes…back home and back to work!

JDCM

Sifnos, hiking and going home…

By John on June 18, 2012 in craft, Cyclades stone walls, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, quiet islands, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

I left Serifos almost three days ago. It was sunny and warm and the northern wind was Force 7. The ferry arrived shortly after 12:00 to take me to Sifnos and off I went, rolling a bit in the sea, but enjoying being back on the road, so to speak. How do I describe Sifnos? If Serifos is the rugged, rough and rocky island then Sifnos is its more quiet, calm and well-preserved cousin. It is not as if either are not developed, but Sifnos has been developed in a more thoughtful way while Serifos will always bear the scars of 19th and 20th century industrial manhandling. In short, Sifnos is lovely. The towns are small, the island running roughly north-south and the ambient charm all Greek, all Cyclades, all the time. Sifnos is the ‘Island of Potters’ and the number of ceramic workshops dotted across the landscape speak to that, but this was not always the case. At one time Sifnos was an island of gold and other metals which made it very wealthy. Each year the inhabitants gave a golden egg to the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. The end came around 500BC when, as legend has it, the Sifnains gave a gilt egg instead of a solid one and so brought on the wrath of the god who flooded the mines thus ending their prosperity. Just a warning from history about taking shortcuts! In any case, the island was eventually part of the Duchy of Naxos, then suffered under the Turks and then finally liberated in 1830 along with the rest of Greece. The history is more complex than what I have just written and you can read a bit more here.

My stay so far has been relaxed yet very active. I have been taking pictures and have only a single roll of Plus-X 120 to shoot. If I don’t manage it I won’t kick myself because I know I will be back here soon but I would like to finish up the pack. The quality of the walls here on the island is magnificent and I have been documenting them extensively. Like most of the islands there are stone walls everywhere but the level of preservation here is well above the others. I imagine this has more to do with the importance of agriculture when compared to other islands. More agriculture means infrastructural relevance which translates to a pragmatic upkeep of existing bulwarks and boundaries. There are olive groves covering open areas and along myriad terrace farms while fields of barley grow wherever flat ground can be tilled. One striking short journey is from the port of Kamares to the primary town of Apolonia. Through the long winding uphill valley the olive groves line the road, hugging the steep hillsides, their silvery green-grey leaves standing out in stark contrast to the dried golden hue of the surrounding flora. The Port of Kamares is small. I like port towns and it is quiet when one compares it to Adamas or Paroikia. There is something about being so close to the hub of travel that excites me. Once again I am reminded of the millennia preceding me and the countless footsteps that have traveled the path I now tread. Not much has changed, I think. Not really.

I have been staying at Simeon’s Rooms and Apartments. It is clean, neat, the terrace of my double room looks out over the bay and I have a lovely view of the sunset. The owner and his family have been very helpful during my stay and I highly recommend the place. They also seem to run a small taverna about 100 meters from the dock where I have been happily eating for the past two nights. I tend to stay away from overly-complex new-wave Greek cuisine in favor of local home cooking and I have found it here. The kolokithokeftedes I had two nights ago were fluffy on the inside and crisp on the outside. They were a perfect match to the garlicky tzatziki. I could spend a week here and really explore the restaurants but in the end I am a creature of habit and when I find a place I like, I stick with it. I’ll be there again tonight, this time for imam baldi, salad and something else to be decided upon later.

Sifnos is also noted for its hiking. There are many well-marked trails running throughout the island and all of them well maintained. I have been on two jaunts so far, the same one really, but tough enough to make the second time as challenging as the first especially in hot weather. My choice has had more to do with the high northern wind and my search for a quiet beach away from whatever crowds are here. I chose the path that runs on the southern tip of the island from the small seaside village of Vathi to Fykiada Bay. The hike to the bay was mostly downhill and I covered the 3km in about 25 minutes. The return trip took 40 minutes. I brought 1.5L of water, some fruit, sunblock and other beach necessities. The fine, sandy beach is nestled in a quiet cove and I saw no other humans the entire time, including during the hike. The only other souls were a few goats running around the scrubby, rocky hillsides and the beach. There is an abandoned farm behind the beach and an olive grove stretches another half kilometer to the NE. I loved walking through the grove, feeling very much like I had discovered this place for the first time. In the middle sat the old farmhouse, crumbling stone barns and other outbuildings. I wandered around the place for a while today, snapping pictures.

This is my last evening of my island hopping adventure. I have been away from Paros for less than a fortnight yet it feels like a month since I have sat at Mikro Cafe for coffee or watched the sunset from the terrace of Pebbles. My friends at the Aegean Center have been busy with their watercolor workshop and their digital photography boot camp. I have been working as well, but at a different pace. Tomorrow afternoon I board the Aqua Jewel for the three hour voyage to Paroikia, a place I hope is becoming my home. I have loved my break and there have been moments when I have lost track of time. This has been a cure for my restless mind. I have met some very interesting people and I hope to see them again in the future but as I write this my thinking is already beginning to shift. After over a week of being off-island I need to clean my apartment and air it out; I need to finalize some details with my mentors regarding the fall; preparations need to be made for my trip back to the USA in two weeks; I have to develop 15 rolls of Plus-X…the list could go on, but you get the drift. Reality seeps back in to the fantasy of life on the road and reminds me where I need to be standing. I can have my head in the clouds all I want but my feet need to be firmly attached to the earth in order to properly fix my position with the wandering stars.

JDCM

Charmed by Serifos…

By John on June 15, 2012 in autumn, craft, darkroom work, Greece, quiet islands, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean

Some would say that Serifos is a desolate place, barren and dry with few amenities. I have found the opposite to be true. It has just the right amount of mod-cons for me. It has one bank, one petrol station, wonderful and accessible beaches, excellent hiking, beautiful vistas, local grocery stores (no franchises) and a very friendly and hospitable local population eager to help an intrepid traveler from across the sea. There are many restaurants, most of which fall into the middle-of-the-road category, a few that are trying to impress and at least one where I wish I had been eating all along. First, the bad news…

I ate at ‘Aloni’ last night. This place is situated on the hillside just below the Chora, overlooking the harbor. It is a lovely view and the restaurant itself is relatively new having opened in 2007. I was pointed in its direction by a local business owner and I must admit it has many qualities I found enjoyable. I sat outside and ordered simply: saganaki and a half-kilo of lamb chops with fried potatoes. The sagankai was perfect-crispy on the outside and gooey and hot inside. I didn’t need to ask for lemon as it was served with a large chunk on the side, same with the lamb. This, for those who don’t know, is something I have had to ask for on both Ios and Milos. It is traditional. The lamb chops were alright, a bit overdone, but the fat was crunchy and the meat still tasty if a bit dry. The potatoes were decent. Now, the downside. I chose to sit next to two Greek men about my own age who were loud and boisterous, always on their mobiles and every third word out of their mouths seemed to be ‘malaka’. I know it has multiple meanings and was probably being used in an affectionate and friendly manner, but I don’t need to hear it all through my meal at such a high volume. Plus, how do I know it was being used affectionately? In any case, back to the meal. After finishing my entree I sat for at least 35 minutes with no sign of the waitress (not uncommon, and normal, so no big deal) but when I called her over she disappeared into the restaurant and returned with my check, which I had not yet asked for. I guess I wasn’t having dessert. I paid the bill and left, feeling as if I had been given the ‘bum’s rush.’ I was let down, to say the least.

Tonight, however, I found a secret restaurant, hiding in plain sight. Next door to my hotel is the Hotel Cyclades. The Hotel Cyclades is located away from the main cluster of the port restaurants and not in Chora, so they seem to be a little in the background of the hustle and bustle that is downtown Serifos. I was overjoyed at being able to have a starter of melitzanosalata (acidic and rich) then a mixed dish of gigantes, imam and roast pork in lemon sauce. I even ate the bread, which I usually try to avoid. It was the best I have had here, chewy and flavorful. The dessert was a traditional sweet cake and they brought me an excellent double espresso to wash it down. Really superb and my kind of Greek food. No pretense, no flash and no trying to ‘out-restaurant’ anyone else. Just good Greek home cooking. I cannot speak of their rooms but I imagine that they are as basic, clean and neat as these kind of family establishments tend to be. Next time I visit Serifos, I will try to eat there more often.

As I sit outside at the Serifos Yacht Club, listening to a mix of world groove and enthusiastic action from the European Football League playoffs on the big screen I am washed in a balmy breeze from across the small harbor. The parade of life that is Serifos on a Friday night wander past, off to dinner, cafes or coming home from one of the same. I have yet to pack my bags for my short boat ride to Sifnos tomorrow at noon. I have to return my trusty Suzuki Vitara in the morning and pay my hotel bill. Yes, I will say ‘ephcharisto para poli’ and ‘yassou!’ to Serifos but only for a short time. I am looking forward to returning, perhaps in the fall when the crowds have thinned out and Serifos is once again the Serifians. I will hope to find some sun in the gradually shrinking days of autumn, dine at the Hotel Cyclades and find a less aggressive light in the whitewashed streets of the Chora to photograph. I will bathe in the sea, still warm from the summer heat and count my lucky stars that I have been able to experience this place, this small island of Serifos.

JDCM

“…My God, it’s full of stars…”

By John on June 14, 2012 in craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

Anyone reading this has a chance to win a free cup of coffee or tea at Mikro Cafe on Paros if they can guess the movie the above quote is from. This was my reaction after walking back to the port last night after dinner. I ate in Chora at a lovely little place called ‘Karavomypos’. It is not quite traditional Greek, but it has taken some Greek ideas and spun them into something quite good. I started with louloudakia, zucchini flowers stuffed with rice and then fried. They were served with a mayonnaise style sauce. Very tasty. The entree was grilled pork tenderloin with a side of oven roasted potatoes seasoned with garlic and oregano. Also very good. For dessert I had a small plate of cherry spoon sweets, a fruit conserve in sugar syrup. Yum! An excellent meal and I highly recommend the restaurant to anyone coming to Serifos. They are only open for dinner.

Mamiya c330 and a view of Chora, Serifos

On the walk back down the hill to Livadia (4km) I chose ‘The Stairs’ a broad rambling staircase leading back down to the port. It only took me 25 minutes in the dark but the way was lit pretty well most of the time. I did have to be careful and I did take a wrong turn once in a while but I figured that as long as I was heading downhill I was alright. At one point during the walk home I chanced to look up. There were few lights where I was and I had not seen so many stars since I was in the fields behind my mother’s house in New York. It was inspiring and so that line from the movie…

I hit the beach early this morning (07:30) and sat on the sand as the sun warmed the earth. It was lovely, and quiet, the water still as glass. As I dove in I was surprised how warm it had become since yesterday, but then I remembered that I was on a different side of the island. I basked in the sunlight, drying off slowly, swam some more and then headed off in my Suzuki jeep to take pictures. I was able to shoot a whole roll of 120 in one area, documenting some walls and part of a donkey path. I was grateful once again for four-wheel-drive as the road to and from the site was very steep and made of sliding gravel. Bravo Vitara! I continued and stopped at the Monastary of Taxiarchis (Archangel Michael), a beautiful 15th century structure still in use. It has served the island well as a fortress against raiding pirates and a spiritual center. By 11:00 the temperature risen to an unbearable heat and I pulled into Chora and sat at a cafe, ordering a espresso freddo and a water. As I cooled off under the pergola I realized that my day nay have to be cut short. I had been up since 07:00, tramping about in the bush and although I had stayed hydrated the dryness of the climate had worn me out. i went back to my hotel and relaxed until 15:30 when I went back to the each and lazed about until 18:00. Then I came back to the hotel and showered, lay down and slept until 20:45. I went out, ate dinner (review tomorrow) and here I am back at the keyboard. It is just after midnight and I am seeing the end of my island hopping. In two days I head to Sifnos where there are few beaches to write about but much in the way of local color and sights to see. I go home to Paros next Tuesday and it will be good to be back. I miss the friends I have there and am growing tired of eating dinner by myself all the time. The locals begin to look at you funny…

JDCM

Serifos, first impressions…

By John on June 13, 2012 in craft, darkroom work, Greece, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, Uncategorized, working

After the busy-ness of Milos, I boarded my beloved Aqua Jewel and headed north to Serifos for another 3-4 day stay on that little island. I had been told by one Greek person that Serifos “was spoiled”. I am not sure what she meant but I have found the exact opposite to be true. This is a charming place; rugged, undeveloped in the ways of other islands and, in the words of another friend, like Greece was many years ago. Yes, there are tourists, but not so many. There are boats in the harbor, but again, not so many. It is, in some ways, similar to a little backwater town that is somewhere off the tourist maps. I mean this in a good way. The locals are very hospitable, the food is tasty and the beaches are lovely. I spent the early morning and mid-afternoon on a quiet beach called Vagia (vay-ya)on the island’s southern side. There was no one there the entire time. This may to do with the month since June is not the high season for them, but in reality I needed my little Suzuki Vitara to get down to the sand. Also, there is no public transport so you must drive there. It is too far to walk and the heat even at 10:00hrs grows oven-like. In any case, I swam and basked in the sun for a while, then did some crunches, my bicycle pumps and some stretches before having another swim, drying off in the sun and heading back off to take some pictures.

One of my favorite subjects is old equipment left over from the influx of humans and their work. Like Milos, Serifos was heavily mined, but only since 1885. The mines closed in 1963 and what is left is fascinating. Ore carts, tracks, trucks, buildings, machinery of all sorts lay scattered around parts of the island, primarily in Mega Livadi and Koutalos. I am enthralled by this milieu as it always reminds me of the poem ‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley. These wrecks of industry lying powerless among the thorns, rocks and heat are a reminder of the futility of mankind’s hollow greed and hubris. Someday when the human species has disappeared from the face of the Earth, the Earth will swallow the remains, turning them back into the minerals and metals from which they came. We all return to the Earth, it seems, even our tools. This may sound bleak but I find great comfort in knowing that the Earth is a more powerful force than we are. It keeps me right-sized. As a photographer I find endless textures and shades of color in these objects and they contain a beauty all their own. I had to do some hiking to get the images I wanted but these places are not roped off and are safe to approach as long as one uses common sense and simple caution.

My hotel is situated on the peralia, the strip of road the runs along the half-moon of the natural harbor. The Hotel Maistrali is a clean, neat place and the owner Bobbi is a charming host. We have already had conversations concerning politics, mining, and Serifian history. He has looked at the map with me and told me of the high and low points to see and avoid. Not much to avoid, but still…I found his place via another travel website which is also a wealth of Greek information. I am here for another two full days and am looking forward to more photography, more beach time and general sightseeing. Tonight I will have dinner in the chora, the older town up on the hillside overlooking the harbor.

JDCM

← Previous 1 … 5 6 7 8 Next →