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Sifnos, hiking and going home…

By 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

 

Serifos, first impressions…

By 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

On my way again…

By on June 12, 2012 in craft, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

 

My new clock

I had forgotten the joys of the open road after living on Paros for such a long time. True, the occasional trip to Athens took the edge off of staying put, but when I began traveling back in 2005 I was always exhilarated by what was around the bend or over the next hill.  I have missed this.  I seem to have found it again in this little island hopping adventure on which I am currently engaged.  First, the ferry schedule mix-up on Ios readjusted me to the realities of the road (or sea, as it were) then, as a result of the schedule changes not only did I spend a lovely day on that island but I was “forced” into coming to Milos, an island not originally on the agenda.  I am very happy that this occurred.  I have had a lovely time here and met some of the nicest people.  Let’s face it, the Greeks are the nicest bunch of folks I have ever met anyway so this is saying a lot.  The beaches, the food and the accommodations were all top notch in my book.  I stayed at a nice place, just off of the port called “Aphrodite of Milos Hotel Apartments.”  The owner, Nikos Mathioudakis is a charming host and was willing to talk about his joys and troubles in the same breath.  He was also able to help me with a small load of laundry and send an important  fax to America.  All of this he did without charge. Ephcharisto para poli Niko!

This morning I was up at 07:00 and out the door with my camera, tripod and a towel.  I stopped at the old salt factory on the edge of town and finished up my shoot there, which makes for 5 rolls of Plus-X exposed on Milos. I have 9 rolls left and I am pretty sure I can use them up on Serifos and Sifnos.  This will make me happy.  After the shoot I went down to a nice sandy beach for an early morning swim.  The water was perfect and as the sun rose above the craggy rocks I walked along the edge of the sea to dry off.  Then, of course I had to swim some more and then walk around again.  I decided to do some stretches and crunches so I did about 50 of those and then, yes, I had another swim.  At that point it was edging up to 09:00 and almost time to drop off my reliable Fiat Panda at Nikos Rentals here in Adamas.  So I walked around some more, dried off, got dressed and headed back to the road where I had left the Fiat.  As I drove back into town I was full of gratitude to be able to be living this life.  Truly amazing.  I checked out of the hotel and wished Niko good luck for the summer.  When I come back to Milos I will stay there again.

I have a few hours until the NEL Aqua Jewel arrives to take me to Serifos and I am sitting in the Puerto Snack Bar, immediately adjacent to the port.  It is a decent place and actually only serves Greek fare in the evenings when they make kalamakia but during the day it is more western: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, hot dogs, panini, salads, etc…Excellent espresso freddo, by the way, and lots of shade.  It is just after 11:00 and it is already very hot.  Poli zesty!   If the boat arrives on time (14:05) then I should be on Serifos round 17:30, I think.   No matter, however, since I am on a different kind of schedule that pays less attention to timetables and emphasizes the unknown journey over the wine dark sea.

Showtime at the Aegean Center for the Fine Arts…

By on June 2, 2012 in craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, Uncategorized, working

It is showtime tonight and the student exhibit is up, ready to be viewed by the public.  We have cleaned the school, hung the paintings, drawings and photographs with care and pride and have cleaned our respective studios.  These will be open to the public as well so, like those before me, I have arranged some paintings and hung some of my better drawings on the wall in a display.  My paints are out so that others may see the limited pallet that has provided so much color for the past three months.  It is a very pretty show and reflects hard work on all of our parts during what was, at least for me, a very difficult and trying session.  The mid-session stroke that left my photography teacher partially paralyzed threw a real monkey wrench into my thinking, but I pulled through as did others.  We have learned in proportion to how we have participated and that will always be true no matter how much or how well we age.

There are several alumni here this week which makes for fun times.  One is a young woman who I had a particularly difficult time with last spring.  She believed I had fallen in love with her when a simple gift of farewell and good luck was misinterpreted as something more.  I have decided that being friendly and supportive is a better path than being withdrawn and sullen.  This is a very Greek cycle.  It has been year since the incident occurred so I suppose it is time to the let the water go from under the bridge, over the damn and back out to sea.

Speaking of paths…Another alum is here and next week see begins her journey along the Camino de Santiago, walking the 790 km French route from Pied-de-Port, France to Castello de Santiago, Spain.  I have left the hyper-link for a reason. Follow it and find out what it is if you do not already know.  I have made it a goal to walk this route in the fall of 2013.  Yes, more than a year away, but I have goals to achieve before that in my photography.  I’ll talk about that later…

More to come.

JDCM

Here at Mikro Cafe…

By on April 2, 2012 in 4×5 photography, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

“Latte, please,” JDCM said.  Colin stands behind the bar, talking of his love of chewing on coffee beans.  Fresh from his bi-athalon on Naxos, he is feeling sprightly and full of energy.  He was able to shave off 6 seconds from the last event of this type so that’s a win and new personal best…Bravo Colin!

On other notes my portrait sessions have begun and I have photographed one student, the artist Jackie Massari and one of the instructors, the painter Jun-Pierre Shiozawa.  I hope to work with Colin Brown and his wife Stella later this week, perhaps Wednesday afternoon.  Couples are more difficult than single subjects, but I hope to work this out.  I’ll do some research on the subject so I can get some ideas first.

Other students are using the studio as well which is a good thing, and I am eager to see their work.  My painting is moving along and I am getting the hang of glazing, scumbling and the balance of colors.  We are still using a limited pallet and I understand why.  I am champing at the bit, however, to open up the brighter, more vibrant hues and work them in.  This will come with time.

Weather still fine, cool at night, etc…

JDCM

Painting, Paros and changes in the weather…

By on March 15, 2012 in craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

The weather has finally turned around on Paros, at least it seems that way for the next few days.  Last week it was brutal and maritime with Force 8-9 winds at night and rain most of the 24 around the dark.  That lasted three days but yesterday the wind shifted and blew the clouds and rain south and began to dry the world.  In the sun it is warm and comforting, but step into the shade and the coolness returns to still chilled bones quicker than you can say ‘parakalo’.  I am looking forward to the hike tomorrow into the hills surrounding this small piece of vegetation covered marble floating in the wine dark sea.  I need to clear my head.  Two years of feelings cannot be discounted so easily, but as a friend reminded me,”on to the next hill!”  I digress–another story for another time perhaps.  Anyway, the walk will do me good.

My painting courses have been a series of remarkable epiphanies.  It turns out that I am pretty good at it and have a decent eye for color, tonal values and composition.  I have never painted in my life and find I love working with oils. They are forgiving in may ways but not to be taken for granted.  The white spirits used to thin them can run against me so I must be stern with the pigments and move them vigorously, not the other way around.  I can bully them around and they will behave.  So far we are using tonal values of black/white in exercises and today we began to use glazes and scumbling to build up color on that same grey-toned background.   Our pallets are limited on purpose so we get used to blending slowly.  Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Ultramarine Blue, Ivory Black and Mars White can be mixed to make myriad shades and colors.  One aspect I have discovered is the commonality between painting and photography.  Balance and tonal values rule the canvas as they do on the paper.

Tonight is Pub Quiz at Mikro Cafe here in Parokia.  My team, J.A.G., has won the quiz in the past two weeks.  If we win tonight that will be a hat trick.  I have joked about retiring from the quiz if that happens.  It’s just a joke.  I have no intention of retiring.  It is one of my ways to blow of steam.  That and the hike…

More to come…

JDCM

6 days and eager to get going…and a little rant…

By on February 21, 2012 in Greece, spring in the Aegean, working

I leave for Greece next Monday and I am, as you all know, eager to get on the road and back to what I love to do: work, travel and be anywhere but here.  By ‘here’ I mean the country in which I live, not the circumstances, or is it the circumstances within the country…?

This place has lost its charm for me.  There is little joy left in Mudville when I contemplate a life led here in North America.  The Religious Right are  taking over much of the country with their backward-ass medievalism; politics is becoming more obviously about money and elitism; the growth of the police state is of great concern since ‘The People’ seem to welcome it and the mainstream media circus provides Fear of the Outside World in much the same way that Ed Sullivan introduced his variety show–a little tease, the wind up and the pitch…Kapow!  Watch out folks!  The Boogieman is back in town, in fact he has never left and is hoping to turn your quiet and peaceful (both lies!) neighborhoods into cesspools (which they have always been, btw…) of moral and religious degradation.  God, I am so tired of this place…

At least where I am going there is no doubt who the fascist/liberals/Greens/Commies are.  They are upfront about it and do not speak in double-talk designed to confuse and disorient the voters.  Protest is allowed and not cordoned off a mile away from the place of interest and , yes, sometimes it turns violent.  What can one say?  People are pissed off…

But I remain in eager need to be gone.  I’ll start packing on Friday, but I have to inventory my socks and so forth to make sure they are all good.  I’ll pick up some new ones if I need to.  I have more film to shoot and develop, but I have time for that.  There are a few odds and ends of errands I have to cross off the list, but otherwise I am good to go.

There are two art openings this spring in the area in which I will be represented.  The first is a ‘small works show’ at Noble Horizons in May and the second is a 14th Colony gig in Millerton, also in May.  I have two pieces being matted and framed as we speak and I’ll leave them with a friend to hand in.  So yes, I am happy to be a part of something here in The West, but I will keep much of it at arms length at least, if not further away.  Best not to get involved.

JDCM

12 days, 1200 Euros…

By on February 15, 2012 in 4×5 photography, craft, darkroom work, Greece, Paros, spring in the Aegean, Uncategorized

My debacle with Greek Customs is all but resolved.  Three of the four boxes I have sent have been delivered to Paros, safely and without incident.  The other four that Customs snagged have been evaluated and the price is high, in fact it is as if I have to purchase everything again.  They have assigned the value at 1200 Euros, just over 1500USD.  Ouch indeed.  As a good friend told me, I am now part of an exclusive club.  I have little choice but to comply if I wish to have my possessions back.  There is an avenue of appeal, but this would be a long, drawn out affair and in the end it is doubtful I would gain anything from it except to garner resentment from the Greeks.  As my friend also reminded me, the customs agents probably have relatives on Paros so why make my life difficult?  Give them their pound of flesh and be done with it.  Lesson learned, but what lesson that is remains unclear.  The good news is that the boxes have been released from customs and are waiting for me at the PO on the island.

I leave for Greece in 12 days and I am very excited.  The mystery of the future fills me with hope and I am looking forward to being a beginner in school, working on my own photography and contemplating the possibility of my own, first, book.  The recent news regarding the social unrest in that little country is unsettling, but according to friends I know in town the press has exaggerated the scale and scope.  Yes, there are troubles both social an economic and many Greeks are distressed about their own abilities to cope.  The good news is that they have gone through worse before and in more tense situations.  WWII and NAZI occupation, the Junta of the The Colonels, the Greek Civil War…These all overshadow the current crisis and, in a way, keep the population centered around what they can do instead of what they are powerless to achieve.  Their future, like all futures, is uncertain and I have faith that a solution will present itself.  No one wants a return to the military rules of the past nor the brutal foreign dictatorships that governed with iron fists.  Social reform and economic balance is never easy and the Greeks have their work cut out for them.  Europe will not let them leave the EU so it is logical to feel that they would not allow them to leave the EuroZone.

This brings up the Euro itself, a troubled and controversial subject from its inception.  It is incorrect to compare the EU system with that of the USA.  Europe is not the US, thank the gods.  Many analysts feel that the Euro was doomed front the start and perhaps they were right.  Still, it is always easier to destroy than to build, seemingly more sensible to abandon than to support.  Responsibility is a good place to begin and all of Europe must take responsibility for the failure or success of their fledgling currency.  It is a brave venture to change 1500 years of historical divisions and nationalistic pride.  It is a matter of faith and action which, I have heard, is like a blind man walking down the stairs.  This painful growth spasm is just that.  It will pass.

More to come…

JDCM

16 days, crossing things off the list and postal updates…

By on February 10, 2012 in 4×5 photography, craft, darkroom work, Greece, nude studies, Paros, silver darkroom, skill and craft, spring in the Aegean, working

I haven’t been counting the days recently so imagine my surprise when I realized that I had only 16 days until I head back to Greece!  Amazing, really, just amazing.  I am very excited to return to Paros and the Aegean Center and begin working. It feels like I do no work here.  Although I take pictures and develop film I seem to spend more time combing through my Netflix queue and meeting friends for coffee and all that.  On Paros I have days full of reading, dark room work, digital work, artistic discussion and more that are much more fulfilling.  I also get more exercise which is good since I tend to loaf around here more than anything-and gain weight in the process.  This isn’t saying that I do not “get things done” because I do.  I have been crossing many things off the list recently and  am confident that I will be departing Ancramdale in ship-shape-and-Bristol-fashion.

The tree work and storm cleanup has been finished.  The place looks lovely and we are getting everything ready for spring, which is just around the corner.  No snow to speak of, but we are supposed to get some tonight and this weekend.  the ‘Farmer’s Almanac’ claims a big storm later in the month, but thankfully before I leave.  We shall see.  Mom’s care is all set-up and all the important adjustments have been made for her going forward for the next few months.  I have visited my father in Pittsburgh and followed through on that commitment.  The donations to charities have been made and I feel hundreds of pounds lighter than I as before–not so much material stuff anymore.  It has been a cathartic few weeks for sure.  I have also hired some new employees to replace my mother’s long-time home maintenance man.  He has been a good guy but in the past few years has begun to flake out due to burnout.  It is time to switch to those who have the resources and will to do the job.  I’ll bring the Mini Cooper up to the shop in Latham next week for a tune-up and then it will be ready to sit quietly until I return in July.  I’ll have someone drive it once in a while during my absence.

The boxes I have sent to Paros have all but arrived.  Three are on the island and have been delivered to the school, but four are still in customs, waiting to be released.  I have had to jump through some hoops to have them cleared but I think that they will be soon.  I’ll be charged a fair amount of money for their freedom, but it will be worth it in the end.  The other night I had to call Greek Customs at 3:40 AM to speak to the official there, but I think I have solved that problem.  It was not without a lot of help so, from the bottom of my heart, I thank those who eased the tensions and fears around this issue and acted on my behalf.  You know who you are!

On another note, I have so many wonderful interactions with other Aegean Center alums here in New York that I am bowled over by the solidarity.  First was the meeting at the Metropolitan with Jeffrey, Liz and the others and then the other day I met with some other former students at MoMA and the Met for a wonderful day of art and conversation.  Really great!  I am grateful to have had the time with them and thankful that I am able to do so.  Super photography, beautiful paintings and a lot of crappy post-modern junk have assured me that I am on the right path and that my ethics are true.

More to come…

JDCM

Counting down and mailing out…

By on January 18, 2012 in darkroom work, Greece, Paros, silver darkroom, spring in the Aegean

I depart for Europe in about 40 days.  By 1 March I will be back on Paros and in my apartment.  I am looking forward to the next phase of my life, but I am nervous.  Perhaps this will never go away.  I have faith that if I show up, do the work I am assigned and participate in the human experience around me I will do well, and probably better than that.  I am just nervous because for the first time in 10 years I am branching away from my biological family again and taking on the mantle of an adult, a garment I do not always wear well or properly.

I have heard that due to the economic crisis and possible political instability (from a US standpoint of course ) there may be a drop in enrollment this spring.  This is believable in this day and age and perhaps this is one curse of the electronic info-era we currently live in.  There has always been and always will be economic woes and political upheavals.  The media has blown so much of this out of proportion that it feeds the fears of those who stay glued to their TV sets and believe everything they see and hear from that medium.  As a student of history I am thrilled to be living through and in this period of time.  Once again we are perched on the brink of change,  imminent growth and cultural wisdom, but only if we take a helpful and positive track.  Hiding in the shadows helps no one.  As a species we are slowly overcoming many of the angers and fears that have directed our thinking for millennia.  The currents flowing down the river of change are paced by the fierce creatures that run along its muddy banks.  They wave crude spears and dark banners, shout slogans designed to divide and alienate and try in vain to alter the water’s course. But water always seeks its own level and these creatures have historically been left behind, rendered hoarse and obsolete by time.   All of this is out of my hands.  I am grateful for that.

I have mailed 5 boxes to Greece so far.  1 today and 4 last week.  The first 4 have arrived and are being inspected by customs.  If I have to pay fees for these I will, but I hope not.  They are not consumer goods, but rather goods I have purchased for my own use at the Aegean Center.  Most of it is used gear anyway.  The rest are books–a small library consisting of some collections: Hemingway, Chekhov, Callahan, Kertesz, Frank, Ashbury, Oliver…the list goes on.  To be honest I chose the best of my personal library and then weeded that out some more. Ex Libris Paros…

I have my painting supplies and will be carrying them in my checked baggage during the flight. There are  no caustic materials and I am already in love with many of the names on the list…Permanent Alizarin Crimson, French Ultramarine, Payne’s Grey.  Soon I will be an undeniable beginner again, a place I enjoy of only for its foolish zest and unknown questions.  I will be asking for a lot of help in the next few months.

JDCM