Play the Part for the Purpose of Art

Guest post by A. Owen Layne

Images by Irakly Shanidze

There comes a time in every photographer's life when he must step away from behind the camera, and assist his friends in their concepts.  Sometimes it's with lighting, sometimes with location scouting or makeup, and sometimes it's for playing a character in their visual madness.  Now it's not uncommon for the female friends I embrace to take on these many roles, but it comes about as something extra special when I see a gentleman thrown into the picture.  I, have been that person, more times than I think I wanted.    

"Strip Chess"

 Shot at 3:30 am during Tres de Mayo party

Models: DVS, Siddella, AOL and SM Layne

Now those who know me, know that I am pretty much a game player for anything, assuming it's MY concept, MY role as photographer, and my friends who are my pawns.  And then I met Irakly Shanidze.  What started as a simple need for help with location, ended up being a last minute "Ok, Adam I need you.  Please put this costume on" or "Wait Adam, before you leave I need you to lay down over there next to that naked woman and expose your buttox".  If you only knew the numerous times I whined and protested, before realizing that this is what I demand of others.  Play the part for the purpose of art.  Irakly started out with simple concepts:  Me being dead, Me being Santa, Me being... dead again.  After a while I was dodging him during his setup, and saying I was going out for something, but there he was asking "Adam, before you leave, can you assist me for a moment?"

"Naughty Santa"

Models:  The Women of Avalon...Unbearable Lightness, Iris Dassault and RJ Berry and AOL

I suppose the humility is good for a photographer to know what each model goes through.  Even though I am far from your typical model, in height, appearance or even the ability to know how to pose myself with fluidity,  I do it for the experience, the laughter, and the joy of self-loathing and mockery.  I have no interest in setting up a port of my images to solicit TFP, or god forbid, paid requests ($12/hour anyone?), but I will embrace my friends and help them if they insist.  One photographer friend came to me and said he had this idea for a sexy devil and angel who are fighting over a leprachaun, and he asked if I would play the little green man.  I remember giving a wry face like he was crazy, and then thought again and said "Sure, why not?  But dontchu be messin' with me lucky charms!" 

"Back from Eden"

After the other model cancelled at the last minute Irakly took 30 minutes to convince me to put on a corset.  I kicked and screamed and eventually convinced myself that I was wearing a 1903 men's bathing suit.

Models:  AOL and Iris Dassault

Sincerely, 

Mister of Avalon

Seeing red

Image by Spilt XO Sugar

Post by RJ Berry

It is interesting how certain terms we use in our everyday language can affect how we think of words within the saying.  An example being the title of this blog, "Seeing red."  When I use that particular saying, I'm referring to being extremely angry.  So much so that my blood pressure rises, my face turns red and my heart starts hammering.  Luckily, that doesn't happen too often to me.  It truly takes quite a lot to make me "see red."  

When I think of the color red, the word red, I think not only of anger, but also of blood,  of vitality and sometimes naughtiness.  Each of the images in this post evoke such amazingly different emotions and thoughts from me.   As did each of the photo sessions that the images came from.

The top image of me in a whirlpool bath with the red and yellow rose petals seems so romantic and sweet.  It holds a very special place in my heart because it was taken by one the first female photographers that I have had the pleasure to work with...and also call friend.  I was surrounded by many friends that day and was so relaxed laying back amongst the rose petals.  Definitely a pleasurable experience for me.  

Image by Joe Crachiola

Joe and I shot this image at our dear friend Mary40's house.   This was only the second time that I had come up to Detroit to shoot with my newest posse.  It was a crazy, fun filled trip that produced many wonderful images.   I bought this red bra/panty set especially for this weekend.  I never buy red.  But I did.  And I'm glad.  Here red made me feel rather sexy and bit naughty, I'll admit.
Image by Andrew J Baran

When I headed back to Omaha a few weeks ago, Andrew told me about a condo he had access to and was thinking of doing a particular series there with me.  When I walked into this small sitting room, all I could see was red.  Red walls, red leather sofa...wow.  I threw off my robe and jumped in.  The contrast of my dark hair, light skin and all that red was so enticing.  I tried several positions, but this one with me in fetal position was easily the winner hands down.  This time the red was so welcoming, almost womb-like with me posing this way.  Warm and inviting.  Calm.
Image by Aestus Imaging

This last image was taken several months back during my very first trip to Detroit.  When Ken talked to me about this series and when I saw all the faerie images at his house, I really had no idea what the results would turn out like.  Dark and angst or light and joy.   Now as I look at it, I see turmoil.  The red tone with the Bible verses swirling around make me conflicted.  As a Christian, I'm not 100% comfortable with this image, but still very drawn to it.   I find it beautiful yet disconcerting.  

Four images, four photographers and four very distinct reactions.  This truly is the joy of working with a wide range of artists.  They can bring out so many different sides and emotions from one model.  And none of them made me "see red" in the way I normally do.

Of course, a song:

Red-- Already Over

Un-BEAR-able Lightness

Post by Unbearable Lightness
Polar bear image by GaryM

Life would be un-bear-able if we couldn't laugh at ourselves.

“And let that day be lost to us on which we did not dance once! And let that wisdom be false to us that brought no laughter with it!”
--Friedrich Nietzsche

It has been a tough summer for me because of a family problem (I will write about that more specifically in a future post). For today, I would like to spread some lightness and remember moments when all cares took a back seat to laughter.

"I don't do a lot of 'humorous' shots," admits GaryM in an interview (see the full text here). "I appreciate people like A. Owen Layne and B. T. Charles who somewhat specialize in them and do such a great job. While I like to think I have a good (if peculiar) sense of humor, I don't tend to translate it too much into my photos. If something presents itself spontaneously, like the polar bear, I'll take the detour, but I generally won't stage a shoot around it. Some models are tremendously funny, and we may end up doing more outrageous stuff, but that goes back to trying to capture the model's personality during the shoot."

Wet T-shirt by Rebellious Dreamer

On her Mayhem site, Rebellious Dreamer says, "My approach to photography is the same as my approach to love and cooking: I mix it up until it tastes right." When we did a shoot recently in the garden at her home, we went for the wet T-shirt look. But oh I did not expect the water to be that cold!!!

Earlier in the summer, Joe Crachiola and I joined Rebellious Dreamer to shoot at her home. OK, I got a little carried away with the Kool Aid spoon I found in a drawer. In a previous post, Joe reflected on his fright when the lady with the stocking hanging down attacked his camera with a happy face spoon.

Anna Magnani by Joseph Crachiola

Just in case you wonder about my modeling name (since I punned it today, and I do get asked about it occasionally), it comes from Milan Kundera's novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being. In the tradition of East European literature and thought, Kundera blends comedy, mostly irony, with tragedy. This is to be expected for the novel teaches the philosophies of Nietzsche.

At one point, Kundera writes, "People derived too much pleasure from seeing their fellow man humiliated to spoil that pleasure by hearing out an explanation."

So I rest my case. Here are the images.

A summer of abandonment

Image by John Emrys

Models:  RJ Berry and Iris Dassault

As this summer is coming to a close, I've been reflecting back to the shoots I've been a part of that involved abandoned and vacant buildings.  This top image was taken in May when John Emrys and his fabulous MUA/hairstylist, JoHanne came from Canada to work with Iris, MandyK and me.  This shot was taken on the third day and was the very last of our work for the weekend.  We were cold and exhausted at this point, but in many ways I think it was one of very best of this series.
Image by RebelliousDreamer

Immediately after finishing the Emrys shoot from above, I met up with my friends RebelliousDreamer and Joe Crachiola at his studio in the Russell Building.  After a glass of wine, cheese and bread, the three of us went up to an unused part of the building to shoot there.  Both of them captured some fantastic images and Joe won two MM Pictures of the Day 18+ awards from this shoot.  Not to mention my all time favorite non nude glamour picture on my port.  In only a half hour we were able to produce some fantastic images, have a great visit and share some laughs.   And yes, I did get very dirty again.

Images by Andrew J. Baran

These last two images I just recently received from Andrew when I headed out to shoot with him last month.  We worked together two different times within three weeks and during the last shoot we headed up to the top floor of his building to work in the vacant area.  The top image is actually an old elevator shaft that had scaffolding across to step on.  Being the daring girl that I am I was instantly drawn to it and the light that was coming in from the side.  Andrew wasn't very comfortable with me climbing in there, but once he made sure it was safe, we got to work.  This image is a favorite of mine not only for the background and the lighting, but for the strength it portrays.  

My very last image from my summer of abandonment series.  I was amazed at the colors on the wall.  So very vibrant.  When I looked up I saw a metal pipe hanging down, I grabbed it and pulled.  Andrew immediately started shooting.  It is one of my favorite images from this shoot.  And there were many, many incredible images from our work together.

Next week I'm off again to Chicago to meet up with Iris and work with some new photographers.  I look forward to what this fall brings.  In the last year I've learned so much about modeling and can see the growth within the progression of the images.  Thank you to everyone who has worked with me, followed along and supported me on this journey.  I'm excited to see what the future holds.  It can only get better.

Mrs. Robinson, M*LF, or Cougar?

Post by Unbearable Lightness
Image by Jim Young

Another model and I were set to shoot with someone at the end of this month when the photographer dropped this bombshell. Although he had initially said the shoot would be TF, he decided he would have to charge us because "why would he want to do this TF when he could get 20-year-old models anytime he wants?"

Honestly, sometimes I coast along without thinking of age. Iris's M*LF post reminded me models are not allowed to forget their age. It categorizes them. Whether someone discounts you for a shoot because you're "kinda old" or whether someone wants to photograph you just because you are, I have come to realize I will not escape the number after my name on my Mayhem site.

Would you do a "Cougar" shoot? asked one of the first photographers who contacted me when I put up my shingle on Mayhem last fall. Fortunately, I had watched a 2007 episode of How I Met Your Mother. It featured Jane Seymour as a "hot" professor in her 50s who attracted the college boys she taught; she was a new breed of M*LF, the "Cougar."

In a TV commercial around the same time, two young women worried about a "Cougar" hitting on a boyfriend. A "cougar" is actually a mountain lion, a creature of prey. Apparently young men hope to be stalked and eaten alive by the big old cat.

Case in point: A few years ago, when I was suddenly on my own again, young men began to seek me out. I asked them why they were interested in someone my age, and the answer was "M*LF." I was told to watch American Pie. Stifler's mom (the M*LF) is the most confident person in the landmark film. She knows what she wants, takes it, and moves on. As the film's mythic character, she appears in the last footage of both American Pie and its sequel. Her power contrasts the awkwardness and lack of self esteem of the youth in the movie.

Jennifer Coolidge, the mythic Stifler's Mom in American Pie 2, and her young prey (but who is stalking whom?)

Before M*LF, there was Anne Bancroft's Mrs. Robinson (The Graduate) and before that Deborah Kerr's Laura (Tea and Sympathy). Young men have fantasized through the ages about older women. Mrs. Robinson, M*LF, and the Cougar appropriate the goddesses of ancient mythology. The fantasy reflects what an older woman has to offer.

It was news to me the adult industry has a M*LF category or that the acronym brings up online porn sites. Instead of such use of the term, I had viewed M*LF as the idea men find older women sexually desirable. This seems preferable to the idea you're dead to modeling at 30. Obviously, the M*LF acronym is crude, but nothing is more crude than saying models should pay to be photographed when they are no longer in their 20s.

M*LF comes from the vernacular of a younger generation. Having taught them for decades, I know their world is different from mine, their language is different, but we share the same human nature. The crudities in this acronym also exist in the works of Chaucer, Shakespeare, and D. H. Lawrence. Some things are timeless.

Mrs. Robinson, M*LF, Cougar: all express an idea about the sexual power of older women. Women can accept it or not accept it, take it or leave it, like the occasional whistle from a construction worker. One thing I know for sure. When the whistles stop, the reason will not be respect.

Words, words, words and reflections

Post by Iris Dassault
Images by Phillip Ritchie - Reflections in Marble


I'd like to thank everybody who made the effort to comment on my previous post! It provided some interesting perspectives and I will attempt to summarize them in one of my next posts. I always love hearing people's opinions, more than expressing my own (more on that below the image). Right now, I'm not much in the mood for writing a whole lot. I have a whole list of modeling related topics I want to tackle here, but that will have to wait until the mood strikes.

My images will always be my main focus. They are more important to me than the words I post here. The moment the pendulum on that swings, I will no longer be able to justify my efforts to myself, because the images are my ultimate objective: exploring the limits of modeling and photography, stretching my boundaries, both physically as well as creatively. Not a thousand fancy words can make up for work that doesn't live up to my personal expectations, or for that matter, the expectations of the photographer. If I had the choice between creating one image that captured all of the things I wanted to express and reflect, or writing 10 novels about it, no matter how eloquent, I'd go for the image. I'm 95% model, 5% writer, and not a very good one either, but that's OK, writing never was my objective.
Do words add to the image? Or does a good image not require any words? When you look at a painting, as a viewer, do you want to build your own interpretation around the painting, or do you need the artist to explain how, what and why? I don't know, I guess it is a very subjective thing. No right, no wrong, just different perspectives.

That being said, I enjoy reading other model's and photographer's thoughts on their art, it provides some interesting perspectives on our motivation to model. I admire people who know how to write in way that is compelling, personable and humorous (Lin's posts being the perfect example of that). But when it comes to me, I'm closed up and unable to do it well. Besides, I'd much rather listen to other people talk, than talk about myself - other people are so much more interesting to me, and that sentiment is becoming stronger each year.

It figures...

Post by RJ Berry

Images by Andrew J Baran

Almost six years ago at the ripe age of 35 years, I woke to find myself unable to get out of bed.  After many trips to the doctor, emergency room and finally a rheumatologist, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune arthritis:  ankylosing spondylitis.

In a nutshell, it is a chronic inflammation of the spine and the lower spine.  Over time, chronic spinal inflammation (spondylitis) can lead to a complete cementing together (fusion) of the vertebrae, a process referred to as ankylosis. Ankylosis leads to loss of mobility of the spine.

Luckily for me, this type of arthritis can go into remission once the inflammation is controlled by several types of treatment options:  use of medications to reduce inflammation and/or suppress immunity, physical therapy, and exercise. Medications decrease inflammation in the spine and other joints and organs. Physical therapy and exercise help improve posture, spine mobility, and lung capacity.

Since being diagnosed I have had two flare ups.  They occur approximately every three years.  Once it occurs I am immobile for weeks at a time.   Exercise has been the most important part of my treatment routine.  I have successfully avoided taking the drugs so far, but know that one day I will no longer have the ability to keep the pain and fusion at bay by stretching and working out.

Until then, which could be any day, as another three year mark is close to coming up, I will keep working hard at keeping my joints strong and flexible.   I will keep modeling to prove that I can fight this battle with my own body.  I know that in the end this disease will eventually win.  When it does I will have these images to look back upon and remember what my body could once do.

Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush - Don't Give Up