Check out the fun beets from my garden. Design in nature!!!!

Gobble

Thanksgiving is the one holiday that does not involve gift giving. I like it. I love the simple pleasures of cooking, talking, chilling and then feasting to the best meal of the year. Yes! What is your tradition? I love my mother's gravy. Every year we make one new thing. This year we are incorporating a 'root roast'. Parsnips, beets, and rainbow carrots from the garden with some olive oil and herbs. My mother is making a pumpkin pie with mascarpone for dessert. Our stuffing is a recipe from my Grandfather, which is made with dried apricots and sausage. Did I mention the green beans poached in white wine? ooooh...then we get to hang out by the fireplace until the eye lids fall. yes.

WBA

I did some promo photography for WBA, and here are a few of them. The lighting in the recording studio is so naturally beautiful, I couldn't resist doing some of the portraits in there, as well as some at sunset. When shooting subjects with a fill flash just after the sun has gone down, you get the sunset-as-wallpaper effect. A way to take beach photos that aren't too soft and cliche. When taking the individual portraits, I wanted to create a sense of realness, with a splash of subtle intimacy. Erlend suggested that they try to read the tiny writing on the lens as a way to really look into the camera. That instigated some piercing looks that translated nicely.

Packing Up

I'm packing my things up, and will be heading to the airport at 3. The last few days have been a whirlwind: A less-than-24-hour trip to Guadalajara for the opening of 'La Planta' Contemporary Art Museum (the owner of 'omnilife', Mexico's 'herbalife' and richest dude, is the man behind the museum, and the party had thousands of massive stacks of blank pill bottles as it's decor) and the WBA show, snorkeling at sunset, margaritas, mariachis, and camerones in Punta Mita, and lots of photography in between.
As for the studio progress, they have cut the tropical wood planks in preparation for the control room windows, the built in bench is looking glorious underneath the huge window that frames the elegant coconut palms behind.

family portraits

I wouldn't normally feel the impulse to publish a portrait of myself on my foto-journal, but Adrian took a nice portrait of me that reminds me a lot of the photographs taken of my Grandmother by Genthe. I've also included a shot of Adrian and one of Simone's hand.
We are off to Guadalajara today for two events. One is the big opening party of the Contemporary Art Musuem, and the other is to see the Whitest Boy Alive play. They were asked to play the opening as well, but they can't do two shows in one night. It's such a small world out there, because my one art contact from Mexico City (Jose Garcia, Proyectos Monclova Gallery, Celeste Magazine ed-n-chief) will be there and is travelling with Erlend's friend. We have been in touch because I'm looking for a gallery in Mexico that could potentially house the work that comes from Casa Rincon's creative forces (artist's in residence). I think something incredible will happen over time with this creative space.

Report from Adrian #2

We're seeing some striking progress now in The Glass Cube. The walls have a beautiful, smooth layer of plaster, the "banco" (built-in sofa-bench) is fully formed, the floors are floating. The glass brick window is in; I can hardly believe the precision, less than a quarter inch of mortar between bricks. The deep reveals are doing their thing. Alberto, the electrician, has put the fans up and installed the no-noise dimmers that Danielle brought from the US. Also worth mentioning that danielle saved me from buying some hideous fans and instead we have some cream colored tropicalia ventiladoras. Mark and I are starting to enjoy some more carpentry. We hung a window and a door today and checked in with Donato, the carpenter who is making us the "puertas gruesas" (fat doors) and a big, small-paned window. We'll get a drawing up of the window soon.

Still managing to get some sunrise waves and sunsets too when not overly busy. Seeing the tail end of a heaving overhead swell. Late season? Early season? I don't know, haven't checked a surf forecast site in over a month. Here, it's called looking out the window. (For the snerds out there, I'm elated daily by my 6' 10" and 7'10" Duncan/Wilderness Stubbies.)

During the week, Adrian and Mark have been tending to the studio, on the weekends we CHILL. The workers on hire have been moving fast, and have been doing beautiful work. All the fans are up, the walls done, the electrical outlets in place, and the glass bricks have been laid. It was so satifying to watch the last one go in...we clapped and whistled for Bernard.

They poured the concrete floor in the control room today, and tomorrow they will poor the floor in the band room. After the floors are set, they will burn and polish them. The result will be a rich dark charcoal color. These photos are from the in between moments. During the weekends, the Whitest Boy Alive boyz have been playing various shows and festivals around Mexico. The goal is to have the studio ready by Thanksgiving, so the WBA can record their second record in the brand new studio digs. So far - we are on track!

Back On

Due to a beach fire, our internet was down for 5 days. I think it was a good thing, as everyone sort of resorted to slipping into reading, talking, cooking, and basically slowing down for a spell. We are back on now, so I will start uploading photos from the last few days of beach moments and the progress of the recording studio.

On November 1st, we set up our ofrenda for Dia de los Muertos - the candles burned for 3 days and the food magically disappeared.