Category Archives: photography

Frost Flowers

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Some of the must beautiful art we see in this world is not created by famous painters, sculptors, or other artists, but by mother nature herself. The photo you see above is of a frost flower. Frost flowers are not real flowers, though but are formed by capillary action of an exposed stem of a plant when the air is below freezing but the ground is not. The stem of a plant will expand in the cold weather and crack, but water will still be continuously drawn up from the ground and will freeze into thin layers of ice when it is exposed to the air, forming frost flowers. As beautiful as they are though, frost flowers are extremely rare as they only form in specific conditions when temperatures are just right. The plants create them usually at night but they are extremely fragile and as the sun beams through the morning sky, they melt away. I hope to be able to see one one day but if you are ever lucky enough, make sure to take plenty of photos!!!

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NYC Public Parks

New York City’s public parks are one of the greatest things about out city. The type of socializing done there is so much better than the type of cyber-socializing everyone is encouraging nowadays. The parks offer a place to relieve oneself of all the pressures and little things that stress us out everyday. Here is a snapshot of the scenery found in my local neighborhood park. I was sitting there watching the children play their games, the birds singing their songs, and adults jogging and doing all sorts of different exercises. Everybody has their own way of finding peace,and sitting down on a bench here in this park makes you want to just breathe. Central Park, Astoria Park, Bryant Park, Madison Square Park, and so many others. The atmosphere at these public parks is like no other.

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Paradise on a Garage Door

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I felt like I was in paradise when I saw this on  a garage nearby our school, somewhere in between Lexington and Park Avenue. I always walk past all types of graffiti, but I completely came to a stop when  I saw this. It was too pretty to leave behind without capturing it. I looked at this picture and I thought about Florida, where I spent most of my childhood, mostly by the beach with the family on the afternoons. The best thing about Florida was the palm trees. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a palm tree anywhere else in the country. The other thing about this picture is that I can’t even say that its a form graffiti, because its just way too nice, and makes me feel like I need a vacation….quick!

NYC Squirrels

Why does it feel like the squirrel population in New York City is increasing? Everyday, I see more and more of them, and its freaking me out. I have always had problems with squirrels, partly because I hate rats, and I feel like squirrels have close connections with rats. So last summer, this squirrel below was just running around the rim on the top of the trash can. My friend and I were trying to walk across Union Square Park, until we saw the little show the squirrel was putting on for the public. I don’t know. Sometimes they’re cute. Sometimes they creep me out. I just hate when I’m trying to walk and they are in my way. Anyways, this one was definitely a creeper. Anybody else have issues with squirrels?

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Style is to Fashion what Graffiti is to Art

 

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Last weekend I went to Urban Outfitters with my friend and while I waited for her to try on clothes, a book caught my attention. The book was called “Street Fashion Photography” by Dyanna Dawson. This book was full of photographs of random New Yorkers that the author/photographer encountered and found interesting because of their outfits. All the participants had a street style that which I can’t really define. Street style can range from sneakers to heels and from Iooking preppy to looking really cool. I think street style is to fashion what graffiti is to art. its that underground movement that changed the common perception.

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Graffiti Decoded

I see graffiti everyday day, multiple times a day on the streets of New York. But there is a reason why this one needs to be discussed. First of all, I saw this and wanted to keep walking past it. However, I couldn’t, and eventually I came back to take a picture of it. The word written here on the garage is, from my understanding, ‘brethren.’ Gangs use graffiti to write messages demeaning one another. Most of the time, the language is coded and hard to decipher, and then when people come to interpret it in English, the meaning is usually a negative one. That’s not exactly the case with this word. The person writing the word here had something positive to say, about gangs in general. I felt like the message he/she tried to put out there was ” Hey! Let’s all just stop the violence, and think about what it is that we’re doing out here. Because in the end, we’re all brothers, or ‘brethren’. That’s what counts.”  Not only is the message in the word important, but also the style and handwriting of the person who spray-painted this garage. Isn’t that an art? You see, I always look at graffiti, and sit there trying to decipher the codes, but this time I think I’ve really done it. By the way, I should’ve wrote this earlier, but whatever: I saw this right outside of our school, somewhere between Park and Madison Avenues. All in all, I love the way this thing was written, and the possibility of it addressing the same meaning and definition I came up with thrills me as well.Brethren

Rox Gallery : Stories and Optical Illusions

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Ever walk into those elevators with mirrors on all 4 sides and see yourself infinitely from every angle. It can be slightly creepy, and I never thought that all the reflections could create an image such as this. The symmetry and aesthetic quality from this man simply standing in one place is quite remarkable.

The whole photograph serves as a sort of optical illusion – a photograph of initial light that descends into a three-dimensional darkness. Breaking it down, one aspect of this photo is the naked man surrounded by a bright light and white walls. The color white, the brightness of the photo, and the nude man are often symbols of purity. However, looking to either side of the reflections, the image of the man gets infinitely smaller until he is submerged into this black square, which I believe tells us a story of the mans change in his life, towards darkness. The color black is symbolic of the hidden and secretive. From this, I can assume that the man slowly becomes immersed by his lies and potential problems. I also see another perspective that contains a biblical allegory. The naked man symbolizes Adam and the start of the world and this black box symbolizes original sin. However, these are just two potential aspects of understanding this picture; but with art this vague, a lot is left to interpretation.

NYC Subways 1970s-1980s

There is something about NYC Subways circa 1970-1980 that amazes me. While I can’t speak from experience, (and perhaps those who do would disagree), I find these trains beautiful. Imagine your normal, mundane MTA train ride to wherever, amplified by colorful art and graffiti. Perhaps we’re not all fans, but I think it would give all of our usual commutes a newfound beauty and expression. No matter where we’d turn, there would be art to enjoy, and each day there’d be a new picture or tag to admire.

In these photographs by Bruce Davidson, those riding the trains don’t seem to pay much attention. However, the photographers do, and they acknowledge both the uniqueness and beauty of these trains. I am just grateful that they documented these pictures and allowed everyone to see how train commutes used to be.

 

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“Delusions”

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This past Tuesday, we visited “Delusions” at the Rox Gallery. This gallery was definitely different from all the other galleries we visited. The creator incorporated mental feelings in his work. When you look straight at the picture above, it looks like a regular piece of artwork. However, when you shift to the side, the portrait looks like it has 3D features(shown above-side view). This part of the portrait makes it look unique. It is hard to see in the picture above, but in real life, there are multiple women who seems like she’s standing on reflections of herself. This factor definitely corresponds with the “delusions” theme of the gallery.

In other pieces of artwork, the creators incorporated both nude and clothed models. In the picture above, the woman seems to be nude, but don’t worry she’s wearing nude-colored clothing. The mirrors on the side make it appear like there’s more than one person in the portrait, but it’s just the same person repeated. I wonder why the creator used mirrors.

I wonder what inspired the creator to place the model diagonally, almost like she’s in the air floating. I’m also curious about the color of the portrait. It’s a partially neon greenish-yellow and it stands out to me compared to other portraits. When I stopped by to ponder and look at it, I couldn’t bring myself to move away. The message behind the portrait is very deep and fits perfectly in the “delusions” theme. My favorite part of this photograph is that the viewpoints when you look straight ahead and from the side are completely different. From the side, it looks like there are two images. This blurriness makes the viewer feel “delusional.”

What other pieces of artwork stood out to you when we were in the Rox Galleries and made you feel “delusional”?

Lizards in NYC

Lizard in NYC

Wow, that’s really cool, Nick, because I’ve always wanted to see a caterpillar in real life, but I never got the chance. however, I did end up spotting a lizard near our college. My friend was going to squash the poor thing like a cockroach, but I stopped him. I felt like watching him move on the floor was a work of art in itself. As a matter of fact, the lizard was a work of art himself, because of the arrangement and beauty of the prints and designs on his skin.
When I used to live in Florida, I would see lizards like I see rats and roaches in New York. So in a way, I felt really happy to see the lizard, probably because I remembered the life I had as a kid back when I used to live in Florida. The lizard had swift movements, and it was difficult to take a snapshot of him, but I got him in the end.Afterwards, I thought about how quickly we destroy animals and little creatures like these, but do you think it’s fair that I didn’t let my friend squash the lizard, but allowed him to squash the roach or centipede we saw previously? The lizard was just too pretty to destroy. He’s considered exotic when in comes to city animals, so my friend and I just left him alone after I was done taking the picture.  I’m going to definitely watch out for more exotic creatures, and so should everybody else who got a chance to see this!