"THEY PLAY AND SING THE BLUES"
A
PHOTOGRAPHIC PORTRAIT
ESSAY
(continued)
Unlike a visual image,
such as a piece of sculpture, the live on-stage performance of a musician is
fleeting. It is there to be seen, heard, and responded to and then it is
over, possibly never to be replicated ever again.
A few archival photographs of Sonny Terry came into my hands, thanks to his
gracious widow. Again with my trusty computer I fulfilled the dream of
honoring this Blues icon and personal friend with some art pieces for the
series.
The incomparable Ansel Adams’ photographs have always drawn my aesthetic eye.
What does this have to do with my visual Blues essay? I studied how Adams was
known to lift a photographic landscape into a higher order, seeking to convey
something that was timeless.
Ansel Adams evolved straightforward compositions of masses of light and shade
juxtaposed to derive uncompromising harmony. My raw snap shots were also
altered and enhanced by computer hours (that turned into days, weeks and
months). The intent was to send the viewer’s eyes straight into the heart of
the piece, restraining complexity and commanding simplicity and commanding the
spirit to be revealed.
Our present-day world is
overflowing with complexity, therefore I see the Blues as providing, as one of
its most endearing elements, a simple honesty that comes vividly into an
aesthetic occasion for which there is no equal.
