San Antonio and the black ants

Yesterday we drove out to the marketplace in San Antonio Aguas Calientes to soak up the small town vibe and get some last minute gifts. Also because Olin is fascinated by the bright colors of huipiles and other native weavings and objects.

As they always do in Guatemala, our twin babies created quite a stir around them.  Women drifted over from their stalls to have a peek at them, others even got up from their looms mid-weaving.

One woman confided in me that her brother and his wife had twins born to them: a boy and a girl.  Tragically, the girl passed away twenty days later.  The young couple looked towards religion for solace.  The surviving baby boy would sometimes sigh and tear up unexpectedly and the whole family would follow suit and wail with grief. 

Following Kak’Chiquel tradition, they planted carnations in a pot and helped the infant water and care for them, giving him a companion to grow up with in her absence.  A sense of peace was gradually restored to the household.

She also cautioned me that when you get angry with or scold a twin, they have the power to summon ants from the ground to bite your skin.

***

And a little postscript: this afternoon I was sitting with Olin on my lap and teased him about his trousers fitting a bit too snuggly.Next thing I know, a big black ant appeared on my forearm! 

New Publication: “Lenguajes de Luz”

“Lenguajes de Luz” is a recently published anthology of Guatemalan photography. Its timeline stretches from the earliest days after the invention of the medium to its state-of-the-art contemporary manifestations. My work is represented with this image from YONKEROS.

“Lenguajes de Luz” es una antología sobre la fotografía en Guatemala. Su cronología abarca desde los primeros días de la invención del medio hasta sus manifestaciones contemporáneas más recientes. Mi trabajo está representado por esta imagen de la serie YONKEROS.

Con magnífica ironía

A beautiful photograph of Borges in his library in Buenos Aires by Eduardo Comesaña, 1971.  For the past several months, and as an extension of my project “Olmedini El Mago”, I’ve been researching the ways blindness is represented in art, particularly in photography.  The results of my inquiry are posted to my instagram account: @jaime_permuth

 “Nadie rebaje a lágrima o reproche

esta declaración de la maestría

de Dios, que con magnífica ironía

me dio a la vez los libros y la noche”.

Ferry across the island

A few days ago, Olmedini mentioned how he often used to take the Staten Island Ferry in the days before he lost his sight. He also said that trying to do magic onboard was a waste of time because everybody was so enamored by the views of Manhattan.

So I asked him to join me for a boat ride, after I was done teaching for the day at New York Film Academy, right down the street from the Ferry Terminal.

A single focus, two paths.

Through the many years of my professional practice, I have never before done a long-term documentary project that focused on a single individual.

Inevitably, this means that there are two different roads that stretch into the future: one is the path of the project, which extends as long as there are photos to be made; the second one is the path of friendship, which continues as long as there are words and moments to be shared.

To be 95

I spent my Friday afternoon sitting with three Chinese seniors in a small cafe on Pell Street.  The youngest one was in his late 80s; the oldest one 95.

The guys were twice my age and had known each other longer than I’ve been alive.  I asked Mr. Ling (95) how long he’d lived in the neighborhood.  They looked at each other with sheepish grins.  Then one of the friends laughed and said: “He’s Chinatown #1”.

They ordered plates of steamed chicken feet, sautéed snow peas with thick cut bacon and Cantonese sticky rice.  One of the guys brought out a pint bottle of Hennessy cognac in a brown bag and we drank straight glasses of that with the meal.  Toothpicks and cigarettes after that. 

Now I know what I want my life to look like when I’m in my 90s.

A few simple rules

When you think about it, there's only a handful of fundamental rules in photography. They have to do with the optics of lenses, the physics of light and the mechanics of photographic machines. All things being equal, when I teach I prefer to illustrate these simple principles with masterful photographs. That way, students pay them due respect and begin to realize the expressive and creative potential they hold.

Earlier this week, I revisited some of my favorite photographs by Jim Nachtwey during class. It was not a lecture about the ethics of photojournalism or a considered survey of Jim’s work. Nothing like that. My lesson plan called for an overview of aperture and depht of field. 

Like any photojournalist worth his salt, Nachtwey has stopping power. But unlike most of his colleagues, Nachtwey makes me linger within the frame and re-imagine the crude world he shows me: what that same street would have felt like to a child walking to the corner store for a quart of milk or a loaf of fresh bread; how that particular room would have welcomed a couple undressing for the night; how a woman’s smile would light up her eyes before violence and cataclysm took over.

Nachtwey’s moral gravitas is found there: in this strange impulse to rewind history. As viewers, we are confronted with tragedy and in the same instant experience the deepest regret for it. But we don’t stop there. The photograph urges us to consider if this was the only possible outcome or if somehow this moment in time was preventible.

First snow

First snow of the season.

Walking around the East Village, Leica in hand, the first snow coming early, it was impossible not to feel Saul’s spirit nearby. New York is still his city too.

So here’s my modest, heartfelt tribute to the great Saul Leiter

Suwon International Photo Festival

Set in Guatemala, a country utterly torn-apart by violence, El Sistema is a photographic document of symphonic youth orchestras and how the fellowship and discipline of learning classical music brings hope, self-esteem and the joy of culture to the lives of thousands of children who so desperately need it.

I am thrilled that a selection of 25 images from the project will be on view in Seoul, Korea as part of the Suwon International Photo Festival.

Day 1 :: Antidote Photo Retreat

Good morning, Taos! We started the day off with waffles, coffee and a little Coltrane.  Farmers market in Taos next.  Now a two hour mountain hike before lunch.  This afternoon students get individual half hour portfolio review sessions with the instructors.  Then some down time before another one of Jonathan’s amazing home cooked festive dinners.  Day one at Antidote Retreat.

The Meaning of Life according to #Instagram

The Meaning of Life according to Instagram:

#love     1,374,073,054
#hate     6,732,467
#hunger 1,204,553
#thirst  1,209,136
#hot 117,643,278
#cold 36,226,922
#high 12,714,045
#low 5,100,306
#friends 327,052, 786
#family 275,778,492
#home 104,724,492
#foe 2,336,545
#nature 344,158,164
#city 62,312,443
#job 16,457,859
#school 37,480,035
#soldier 2,954,696
#farm 10,221,827
#hands 4,785,269
#face 30,872,625
#tears 2,854,540
#laughter 4,053,562
#sky 176,923,972
#ocean 49,016,165
#mountains 49,018,069
#river 25,308,187
#snow 72,905,742
#flowers 129,930,024
#tree 45,445,443
#moonlight 5,066,763
#solitude 1,320,641
#poetry 22,489,239
#joy 19,575,990
#pain 9,421,365
#celebrate 11,367,147
#wedding 122,454,908
#funeral 522,641
#children 20,979,444
#war 4,969,215
#peace 61,777,106
#speed 12,203,536
#anxiety 8,808,445
#desire 2,413,078
#kiss 33,696,142
#morning 84,818,656
#sunset 184,190,231
#fly 14,275,518
#art 391,873,183
#public 1,191,773
#private 1,718,801
#sex 11,968,605
#toys 12,007,945
#photography 284,111,173
#writing 11,375,094
#puppies 20,999,161
#kitten 32,790,781
#bath 6,864,252
#coffee 93,914,804
#food 288,192,230
#drinks 32,792,556
#music 207,793,053
#dance 65,345,960
#party 134,248,741
#girls 139,310,602
#guys 11,899,949
#icecream 32,266,656
#fame 2,795,575
#fortune 1,284,580
#birthday 91,218,613
#death 7,433, 349
#lonely 6,058,649
#god 30,618,842
#blue 111,845,633

Photography Workshop for Teens at NY Film Academy

I spent last week with a group of fifteen talented and precocious teenagers at NYFA Photography. 

We had an amazing workshop in and out of the studio.  Participants had a chance to try their hand at street portraiture, street photography, urban landscapes and studio lighting. 

Here’s a portrait of Briana by Marygrace using a single, continuous light source.  I’ll definitely be missing these young men and women.

Private workshop in New York!

Last week I had the great pleasure of welcoming Yana Nosenko, a young photographer from Moscow for an intensive one-on-one photography workshop.  We focused mainly on street and documentary practice, including one really fun, experimental day using off-camera flash and wireless triggers. 

📷 Yana Nosenko

Caption

 “Immigrants practicing their tightrope skills on the 4th of July”.

That’s how I might caption this photograph.

Life providing comment on the state of the nation.

I swear, you could never script the stuff you see in the real world.

Day 2 / Private Workshop

Day 2  /  Private Workshop

July 4th, who will save us?

Destination: Central Park, the great green heart of New York City.  Could the park - its meadows, boulders, lush trees and its flock of humanity - help us get a pulse on the mood of the city?

Celebration or lamentation?

Something in between?

Day 1 / Private Workshop

Day 1 / Private Workshop

Yana, a young photographer from Moscow arrived yesterday in New York to pursue a week-long intensive workshop under my guidance.  After corresponding for the past month, this morning we met over coffee at La Colombe to discuss her specific goals and objectives in greater depth and together determine how best to achieve them. 

Despite her jet lag and the grueling heat wave, Yana and I had a blast shooting in the East Village.  We crashed a picnic or two and met some fascinating New Yorkers along the way.  To get some of our strength back, we wrapped things up with a late lunch of roast chicken, rice and beans at "El Rinconcito" on 10th St and Ave C.

Feel free to DM me if you’d like more information on how to study privately with me in New York City.

Finalist Getxo Photo 2018

So pleased to be among the Finalists of the GetxoPhoto Open Call "Post Conflict Reframing a Dialogue" with my series "The Street Becomes".  The winner will be announced next week in Getxo, Pais Vasco, Spain.

Private Photography Workshops and Mentorship

Aside from serving as a Faculty member at the School of Visual Arts and at New York Film Academy, starting this summer I'll be offering private workshops and one-on-one mentoring.
New York City is an unforgettable destination to experience through the lens.  It is also fascinating and endlessly stimulating as a cultural mecca.

The workshops are specifically tailored to the individual needs of each student and the goals they wish to accomplish.  Instruction includes hands-on shooting sessions, critique of images, developing editing skills, conceptualizing personal projects and visits to galleries and museums.

I have a student coming in from Moscow for a week-long workshop in July and I will also be teaching at Antidote Photo Retreat in Taos, New Mexico the second week in August.
Other than that, drop me a line and we can discuss in more detail.

PHOTOGRAPH magazine

Photograph magazine is the bible for the industry.
So nice to see "Harlem Perspectives" at Faction Art Projects listed with one of my images. Exhibition closes May 13th!

Artist Talk :: Faction Art Projects, NYC

Save the date!

I’m giving an Artist Talk this coming Sunday 2PM at Faction Art Projects.
A second talk follows mine, by the always fascinating and provocative Renee Cox.

Free and open to the public.