the heat sounds brutal - surprisingly it is a bit cooler here in Louisville. Your images are wonderful, especially the portraits. Hopefully the Andrew Bird concert was enjoyable - I really like him, but he never seems to come to places in the mid west, at least the near me. Don't obsess about your age - it is increasingly irrelevant as you get older - my second half has been just as exciting as the first - probably more so (for the record I am 77)
Hey David! The Andrew Bird concert was incredible — it was the first concert I had been to in some time (since having young children, anyway), and it was a nice date night with Cait. He played the entirety of 'The Mysterious Production of Eggs' in honor of its 20th anniversary. For an encore, he played two of my absolute favorite songs, "Orpheo Looks Back" and "Pulaski at Night." Just amazing and transcendental. It's been in my mind all week.
On aging: I was talking to Angela Cappetta about this in NYC last weekend. I'm not one to obsess over age, but I will say that my thirties were markedly better than my twenties, and I'm having more fun nearing 40 than ever before. I feel more carefree and self-conscience than ever. I'm glad to hear your experience has been the same!
There's a lot to be said, and a lot I'm not gonna say in an internet comment. I'm sure you've noticed more than most (but not exclusively, I've been called out with celebration and concern in the same breath) that Philadelphia provides me with a lot more 'juice' when it comes to this particular artform more than any other place I've spent dedicated time with. Outside of the Bay Area, Baltimore held that crown previously. While I'll admit that I shot decent amounts when I lived in Portland in 2018, there's a lot of reasons I rarely celebrate or look back at what I was seeing then.
My approach to Philly is different, given the amount of time and desire to live there is very much grounded in a relationship that is one of those multiple decade long ones that strengthens rather than weakens. That relationship also had a pretty spicy, if humorous debate about the merits of New York City versus Philadelphia based on your latest series. Some of it was respective to both of our 'you gotta be serious' about our respective home regions and what they're compared to. Both the Bay and Philly get relentlessly compared to NYC for various reasons.
There is to be said that there's a level of social intimacy that reminds me of an 'era gone by' that Philadelphia possesses that, beyond the slight gruff exterior, there's often a warmth and tenderness of spirit under most (okay, well, don't end up in Roxborough or Manayunk) Philadelphians that is welcoming to well, sometimes downright sensual. The city is a Scorpio after all.
There's something about the innate beauty that Baltimore has, just on a larger, less socially pretensive/less bullshitty scale. For all of my love of Baltimore, it's still a southern city to me in that way. The social caste system of the American south still prevents it from fully embracing its own charms too often. Some of the Grand Guignol undertones of people's personal lives too often burble up in the image, sometimes making me wonder what I've stumbled into. If someone's having some moments in Philly, they gonna let you know. Chances are that 10 minutes spent is gonna lighten their load a little.
Suffice to say, a proxy gift to me is someone I know and am happy to know, clearly sees Philly as a lovely place like I do. Makes me feel far less alone in the world.
Excellent! A lovely bookend to your NYC newsletter ❤️
Fantastic work! Congrats.👏🖤📷
the heat sounds brutal - surprisingly it is a bit cooler here in Louisville. Your images are wonderful, especially the portraits. Hopefully the Andrew Bird concert was enjoyable - I really like him, but he never seems to come to places in the mid west, at least the near me. Don't obsess about your age - it is increasingly irrelevant as you get older - my second half has been just as exciting as the first - probably more so (for the record I am 77)
Hey David! The Andrew Bird concert was incredible — it was the first concert I had been to in some time (since having young children, anyway), and it was a nice date night with Cait. He played the entirety of 'The Mysterious Production of Eggs' in honor of its 20th anniversary. For an encore, he played two of my absolute favorite songs, "Orpheo Looks Back" and "Pulaski at Night." Just amazing and transcendental. It's been in my mind all week.
On aging: I was talking to Angela Cappetta about this in NYC last weekend. I'm not one to obsess over age, but I will say that my thirties were markedly better than my twenties, and I'm having more fun nearing 40 than ever before. I feel more carefree and self-conscience than ever. I'm glad to hear your experience has been the same!
Good stuff!
There's a lot to be said, and a lot I'm not gonna say in an internet comment. I'm sure you've noticed more than most (but not exclusively, I've been called out with celebration and concern in the same breath) that Philadelphia provides me with a lot more 'juice' when it comes to this particular artform more than any other place I've spent dedicated time with. Outside of the Bay Area, Baltimore held that crown previously. While I'll admit that I shot decent amounts when I lived in Portland in 2018, there's a lot of reasons I rarely celebrate or look back at what I was seeing then.
My approach to Philly is different, given the amount of time and desire to live there is very much grounded in a relationship that is one of those multiple decade long ones that strengthens rather than weakens. That relationship also had a pretty spicy, if humorous debate about the merits of New York City versus Philadelphia based on your latest series. Some of it was respective to both of our 'you gotta be serious' about our respective home regions and what they're compared to. Both the Bay and Philly get relentlessly compared to NYC for various reasons.
There is to be said that there's a level of social intimacy that reminds me of an 'era gone by' that Philadelphia possesses that, beyond the slight gruff exterior, there's often a warmth and tenderness of spirit under most (okay, well, don't end up in Roxborough or Manayunk) Philadelphians that is welcoming to well, sometimes downright sensual. The city is a Scorpio after all.
There's something about the innate beauty that Baltimore has, just on a larger, less socially pretensive/less bullshitty scale. For all of my love of Baltimore, it's still a southern city to me in that way. The social caste system of the American south still prevents it from fully embracing its own charms too often. Some of the Grand Guignol undertones of people's personal lives too often burble up in the image, sometimes making me wonder what I've stumbled into. If someone's having some moments in Philly, they gonna let you know. Chances are that 10 minutes spent is gonna lighten their load a little.
Suffice to say, a proxy gift to me is someone I know and am happy to know, clearly sees Philly as a lovely place like I do. Makes me feel far less alone in the world.