On The Road

My friend lulu is a sketchbook/journal addict. About fourteen years ago she found a little store in Florence that sold handmade sketchbooks or journals - what you call them depends on whether you are an artist or a writer and since I am both, I get confused. Lulu is getting ready for her annual trip to Italy with her drawing group and this year they decided to order sketchbooks in advance so that they wouldn’t have to wait until they got to Florence to buy them.

I’m not going on lulu’s tour, but I did get in on the journal buying. I invited myself over to lulu’s studio on the day the box arrived from Florence. What a treat to see them all! Each journal is unique in that it is covered in Florentine marblized paper and bound with leather. Some of the covers are more colorful than others, but that’s what makes them interesting. The one that I’m holding in my hands in the photo is the one I bought.

When I was an art student, one of our ongoing lessons was getting used to using top grade materials for our work. It’s natural for a student on a budget to use the least expensive materials they can find. I went through a phase of doing all my work on cardboard because I couldn’t afford anything else.

As I held the journals in my hand, one by one, I thought back on those lessons. About how not to be afraid of the expense of the materials. There is almost two thousand dollars worth of imported journals laying at my feet in that photo. That is because of the euro/dollar conversion rate and shipping charges. A few years ago, they would have been almost half that. But still, these journals are molto caro, so it was quite a process in choosing just one. In any case it is not easy to put down the first scribbles in such dear book.

Lulu has a bookshelf in her studio that is full of these special journals that she has filled from cover to cover over the years. As I was looking at mine I realized that she was my age when she bought her first one. An omen? A sign? That in fourteen years I may have a bookshelf that looks like hers?

I justified the expense of my book as my birthday present to myself and today, on my birthday, I share them with you!

From June 23 - 30, 2008, a team of art educators and photographers from the US will live within the community and work with teenagers of the city of Nezahualcóyotl, a sprawling dusty expanse of low-income housing, and the second most populous municipality in the state of México.

Ciudad Neza is also considered among one of the most dangerous places in Mexico, due to rampant crime in the area.

Photographers will teach students, ages 13-17, photojournalism and story-telling skills, while creating awareness about social issues present in their lives.

As always, Project Luz needs the support of their friends and art community to succeed. They are currently seeking donations of old or new digital cameras to provide for their students. If you feel you can donate or assist them in obtaining camera donations, please contact:

Jasmin@ProjectLuz.org
or call
55 3051 6097 (Mexico)
415.335.4631 (US)

For further information: www.ProjectLuz.org

Participating Photographers In This Project:
Dante Busquets, Oscar Castillo, Livia Corona, Brian Frank, Nikola Okin Frioli, Darcy Holdorf, Russell Monk, David Paul Morris, Michael Mullady, Jessica Pons, Marcela Taboada, Holly Wilmeth.

I found this travel meme written by Mike over on Vagabondish and thought I’d give it a whirl. He asks to list out the five reasons why I travel.

1. Wanderlust. Lust being the operative part of that word. I lust for cultures I do not live in, languages I do not speak, food that I did not grow up eating, and history that I was not part of. You could also call it a drive or a passion, but I think there is a reason why it is called wanderlust.

2. Exapanding my boundaries. There are two types of people in the world. Those that are comfortable with the boundaries of home and those that aren’t. I’m not. I find home, wherever that is, to be a place of rest and restriction, while travel, wherever that is, is a place of rejuvination, discovery, and expansion. Travel expands me in the same way that a good book does. Except that I’m living it rather than reading about it.

3. Meeting people. I’m a very social animal and love to meet people from all cultures, all ages, and all types. I love to have conversations to see what makes people tick.

4. Landscape and Architecture. I love to look at and photograph landscapes and architecture. It’s almost as important as meeting people.

5. Art. I love to find great art, whether it’s in a museum, a cafe, an artist’s studio, or out on the street.

Tag: Anyone who reads this can write their answers in the Comments area or write a post on your own blog with a link back :)

If you happen to be in or near San Francisco, there are only a few more weeks left to catch the Take Your Time: Olafur Eliasson exhibition at SFMOMA. It’s up until February 24th and it’s one of the better traveling exhibitions that this particular museum has put on in a long time. Go!

Don’t fret though. If you happen to be on or near the East Coast, New York City specifically, the same exhibition will be hosted at MoMA’s P.S.1 Contemporary in the spring from April 20th to June 30th.