Preservation photos by Blake Little

Photographer Blake Little has shot a series of humans and animals covered with honey. The images were created for his book and exhibition at the Kopeikin Gallery last Spring Mar.7- Apr.18, 2015. The Preservation Book was edited by Bil Yoelin

Here is the video of his shoot, keep in mind that some of the bodies are nude.

Movie Monday: Sebastião Salgado

A few weeks ago my daughter Eve sent me an e-mail with a link and the words "This looks great!" After watching the trailer I clicked on a link to a Ted Talk that came up directly after which I am sharing just below. I've watched it about four times so far and am so incredibly moved by this mans glorious aesthetic, creativity, talent and most of all commitment to the environment and humanity. It is quite a feat to have all those gifts in one human working together at such a high level. I am in awe and quite humbled.

Here is the trailer for the upcoming film "Salt of the Earth" made by Wim Wenders about Sebastião Salgado. Delicious eye candy, provocative ideas and lots of food for thought....at least for the conscious beings.

Opening photo of Sebastião Salgado found here.

Summer Breeze

At the end of May we set up two photo shoots with two different models. The first was with one of my "Summer" color tribe sisters Sophie Fletcher and the second was a second shoot with Savanah. Regrettably the secondary shoot didn't happen, but the good news is we did a follow up session with Sophie and between the two days have loads of imagery to work with.

Above is a sneak peak, more arriving as soon!

Photo: Greg Spalenka

Model: Sophie Fletcher

Flowers: Rebecca from Flower Power Studio

Location: The Agoura Antique Mart

Perfume Locket: Roxana Illuminated Perfume

Friend Infusion

This past weekend was infused with lots of friends. Friday night we attended a dinner party our newly arrived friends hosted at their new home in Topanga. Then on Sunday, after Eve and I had did a quick early morning hunt at the Topanga Vintage Market we headed to the Getty Center to meet up with Gregs long time friend Michelle among others.

As with most meet ups at the Getty, we began with a bite at the cafe, which doesn't seem to have the same great cuisine as when it first opened, its become very mediocre cafeteria food in my opinion. Then with full bellies we drifted toward the museum. First on my agenda was the Heaven and Earth: Byzantine Illumination at the Cultural Crossroads, the best part being a very old liturgical scroll from Greece that was only partially viewed.

At that point in the visit our group dispersed a bit as everyone traveled to different galleries. Eve and I headed toward the garden by way of the European collection stopping briefly to gaze at Spring by Alma Tadema (a perennial favorite pictured above), a few Davids and a beautiful pastel and graphite on paper by Odilon Redon.

From there we wondered over to the Ansel Adams photography exhibit, then out the door into the sunshine to the garden!

After a bit of tea and New York in the 80's stories we said goodbye to our friends and headed back into Topanga. We arrived at our destination, greeted by an enormous amorphous head sculpture, to a Summer Solstice party hosted by more art buddies who live and work deep in the oak woods. 

Art image via the Getty blog and exhibitions page.

Musing

I had intended on attending a trade show today but couldn't get a pass, thus my day was fairly open and then the muse walked in. She arrives very spontaneously and usually leaves a trail of art and disaster since creativity is, after all, a bit like a hurricane.

There's a nice article about creativity at the Huffington Post which describes the attributes of creative thinkers. Some of them are how Greg and I function, very out of the box and in the circular warm embrace of the Goddess.

18 Things Highly Creative People Do:
They day dream
They observe everything
They work the hours that work for them
They take time for solitude
They turn life's obstacles around
They seek out new experiences
They fail up
They ask the big questions
They people-watch
They take risks
They view all of life as an opportunity for self-expression
They follow their true passions
They get out of their own heads
They lose track of time
They surround themselves with beauty
They connect the dots
They constantly shake things up
They make time for mindfulness

What resulted from the presence of the Muse today was a continuation of the Cabinet of Curiosity type photos. The ones I took today are more of a sketch, as I'd like to get more conceptual with them. I loved the process of losing myself in the flow of creating, this is much more do-able in the visual arts than the aromatics. In perfume work I am constantly taking notes and documenting what I am doing, which encages both the linear and circular thinking, where as drawing, photography, etc. is much more round and lush.

I turned my studio, the kitchen, the living room (which is already a second studio space for me) the computer studio upside down looking for herbs, leaves, roots, letterpress paraphernalia, ribbons, sea shells, etc. Time to go do some clean up before tackling more blending this evening...although I'd really like to go see The Grand Budapest Hotel film debuting this weekend.

By the way both Hedera helix and Gracing the Dawn are melding quite nicely, expect to see them back next week with a report. Besides the muse leaving a mess in her wake I also discovered a jasmin sambac bloom in the garden, which means Blossom will be arriving back shortly.

Movie Monday: Gregory Crewdson Brief Encounters

Glorious light, exquisite compositions and a heavy scoop of mood are some of the elemental building blocks that go into the narrative photos of Gregory Crewdson. When I was first introduced to theses elaborately, composed photo images Edward hooper came to mind instantly.

After watching the documentary, titled Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters, where I had the opportunity to experience the photographers work more intimately, a few other artists have come to mind. The focused and deliberate lighting of the imagery visionary and influential Matt Mahurin from the 1980's came to mind, although Gregory's work is much more saturated in color. I also feel like the photographs are akin to the shadow side of Norman Rockwell illustrations.

These meticulously constructed photos stand on their own and express so vividly the loneliness and solitude of existence in the modern computer tech world of the 21st century.

He works both on location, usually in Pittsfield at twilight and a sound stage building imagined realities which he may conjure while swimming.

Gregory appears very focused with a quiet, introspective melancholy about him in the documentary which is so clearly embodied in the characters he creates within his narratives. One of the fun, synchronistic parts of his background is that he was a musician early on before he became interested in photography. Here is a video of his band, The Speedies with their hit song "Let Me Take Your Photo", which aired on MTV in the late 70's / early 80's. Very glam rock.

Gregory Crewdson and Timothy Walker are part of tribe of photographers that focus on narratives set in theatrical, somewhat surreal imagery. Walker, famous for his work in fashion, has begun making films. The image above is from "The Lost Explorer" made in 2010 but does not seem to have been released. There is a Peter Greenaway quality to it.

Scent Posies Post Card

I had some postcards printed up of the photograph I call Scent Posies.The image is of Eve holding a bundle of the little solid perfume mini compacts. I remember when I decided to take this photo because I liked how the ovals on her dress mimicked the shape of the brass cases.

The Image has been printed by MOO on a premium 32pt Mohawk paper which has been sandwiched together to produce a stiff, luxurious 600gsm postcard.

As a special, from now until Valentines day I will add one of these postcards in with orders of $100 or more from either the website or E-shop.

If there is an image you'd like to see as a postcard or greeting card please leave a comment or send me a note.

Movie Monday: Chasing Ice

Here is a film which makes is a visual feast combined with an extremely powerful look at reality. This film has everything I adore: Beauty, particularly the kin found in nature; Great photography and an Artist doing one of the very best social commentary pieces in the world.

He meticulously did the research, documented what is actually happening and shows us evidence which many choose to ignore. The only ones NOT ignoring this is the top scientific experts on climate change through out the world. It's really incredible to me how the oil companies and genetically modified organism corporations are so good at making vasts numbers of the population numb and ignorant.

My intention, as always, is that this film will crack the glacier of greed and artifice that is skillfully blinding humans.

We watched it via Netflix, highly, highly recommend. Here's the trailer.

LYRA as the Muse

"Rich, full-bodied, sweetly tinged amber, floral fragrance, warm sensuality, hint of licorice." 
~ V.Austin, Sniffapalooza Magazine

A few weeks ago we assembled four beautiful young people here in the woodland to do some perfume photos. The image above, to the right is one of those. The model is Gwen Cunningham, she is wearing an antique, silk nightgown from the family treasure trove in Argentina.

When Greg showed me the photo I thought it would work well for Lyra given her femininity and the pale pink hues. I've paired it with a flacon and the gift box with vintage French woven ribbon and milliner ephemera. The intention with this composition and more arriving shortly, is to evoke the mood of the fragrance, in this case the sweet, floral, amber quality of Lyra, whether its a solid or liquid natural perfume.

Instagram

Yesterday, after brunch, I installed Instagram on the I-pad just before heading out to work in the garden. Instagram is a free photo app fun that lets you add a filter to transform the image, something I normally do in photoshop.

I had thought that it was only available to those who had smart phones, until I realized that the I-pad will accept the app, even though its not a phone. Hooray! The only thing that I am a bit skeptical about is that I've heard that Instagram keeps all rights to your images, that sucks and thus will require some mindfulness with using it.

Illuminating the dark and mysterious

Figure 1: Noir was introduced at the San Francisco Artisan Fragrance event last month. Although the fragrance has not been formerly launched with the press release samples are already in the shop and reviews from happy noses are sprinkled throughout this post. Most importantly, and the reason for this post today, is the fantastic imagery that has been created for this new botanical perfume. The opening image above is the "official" illumination for Figure 1: Noir created by Greg Spalenka with his exquisite model Jessica Lough.

"A primal, feral animal, searching the blackest night. His fur damp and musky, his paws dirty with earth, dug up roots, and the faint aroma of trodden berries. This is the image that Noir conjured in my mind. Fig. 1: Noir is heavy, earthy, strong and long-lasting. And utterly beautiful. The sweet berry notes that emerge soon after application are subtle, but when under the shadow of this intoxicating patchouli they mingle together so well. This is a true blessing for patchouli lovers."
                             ~ Sam (In reference to the liquid)

The photo shoot took place in Seattle while Greg was up that way doing an Artist as Brand workshop. At some point Greg will be publishing more specifics about it with photos over at the Spalenka blog. Prior to photo session I had given Greg some keywords about the fragrance, informed him that the color harmony would be black and a bit about the feel I was looking to convey.

"I've been wearing the Noir liquid everyday now for a few days as I'm continually drawn to it. I love the deep earthyness and enjoy the liquid on its own for awhile before applying the solid to give it some extra staying power. It has a mystery to it, for me anyway as I can't pin down the botanicals in terms of recognition as I can with your other fragrances (other than the patchouli). So I have surrended to it and find it extremely balancing and grounding"
                             ~ Karen

I also commissioned Lucy Snowe to do some photography after I saw the beautiful still life shots she had added to her E-shop recently. There are still a few more shots to be done which I will get to work on as soon as the coyote skull I ordered arrives.

Figure 1: Noir was first one of the chocolate solid perfumes which originated in December of 2009. The fragrances in this series had simple names beginning with the term Figure and a number as a reference to botanical illustrations.

"It's is a striking fragrance, Unbelievably earthy and musky--very unusual for a pure botanical perfume."  ~ Heather (In reference to the solid)

Greg is offering the Figure 1: Noir illumination as a print for sale at his E-shop.

Ebb and Flow

I'm focusing on the positives of ebb and flow today, although, I much prefer flow. Flow being more aligned with water element where as ebb is part of elemental earth. Both have their benefits, its just a matter of where one is standing and perceiving. After all, perception is an act of creation. Oh...and how auspicious, my favorite fragrance lately has been Chiaroscuro, which is all about the dark and the light. Gee, Spirit must be telling me something.

I normally shoot my photos in the early morning and/or late afternoon next to the big window in the living room. During the holidays that spot was taken for the Christmas tree so I had to look for other options, like the studio where the top and two bottom images were taken.

The other day on a whim I did some shots on the other side of the living room next to the big sliding glass doors, on one of the big "fulfillment" tables that were brought into the space in October. So, this is my new favorite spot, which is fabulous because there is lots of space and the northern light is pretty good all day long.

The palette of essences I work is constantly in danger and thus the fragrances will shift depending mostly on what I can get a hold of at any given time. Sometimes essences disappear off the market completely, while at other times its just a matter of hunting them down and having the resources to purchase large amounts.

A huge box of aromatics I recently ordered arrived at the door today. It's filled to the brim with a plethora of essential oils, absolutes and C02 extracts from all parts of the planet. Many of them are to make existing perfumes, some of which have been out of stock, like Aurora liquid and Gracing the Dawn. Others are for upcoming deliciousness yet to be unveiled.

Last night I ordered yet another huge batch of essences. I've been a little in terror at the amount of money that I've been spending on raw materials lately. It's great to get things in larger amounts because they are less expensive and then you have them, without having to re-order all the time. However, I'm no bank. This living on the edge, ebb phase of the year, like winter wears thin, I can't seem to get use to it.

Now that the sun is out, I'm warm and have had lots of good news today I'm feeling much better about everything. Although the ebb phase might be part of the reality at least I can shift my mind into a different gear.

La Luce

As I sat at my drafting table this morning, with the light pouring in from the window, I was struck by the way beauty of the light as it illuminated the bottles filled with jojoba oil and perfumers alcohol. I'm sure there was a clarity to the electromagnetic radiation, visible light, from the recent rain. I started really paying attention to light while in art school, when all kinds of visual perception on a whole reached new heights.

It was mostly drawing, painting and photography classes that stimulated this new awareness. We would look at sources, quality and color of light. How light affects mood and most importantly that color is produced by light. In art history classes we learned about the artists who mastered different aspects of light and color from Caravaggio to one of my personal favorites Rothko.

 When I met my husband Greg he was constantly talking about light, which expanded my horizon even more. Greg often points out the differences in the color of light when we go on walks or travel, noting how California often has the same "pink" light that is found in Venice. Lately he has been turning me onto how color is used in films. As I have mentioned here before the 1998 version of Great Expectations has glorious use of color.



Some of my other favorites include "Amelie", "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover", and the "The Matrix".  If I were to choose one for use of light I'd say "Barry Lyndon". How about you, which films do you feel use color really effectively?

In the Studio

It's been crazy busy here with the launching of the new Jasmine perfume, the LA Fragrance Salon this Sunday and some upcoming features.

Rebecca Fishman, a professional photographer and friend, was here shooting photos of me in the studio, garden and with the bees. Greg documented some parts of the session.

The new perfume will launch Saturday for the Autumn Equinox and will be featured at the LA Fragrance Salon on Sunday. Until then, I'm keeping things hush-hush.

A Locket in Your Pocket

Eve is leaving on Sunday, thus I have been taking advantage and shooting some photos before then. We have another photo session planned this evening, during magic hour. Here's a shot from last week with the solid natural perfume mini compacts in her hands laid over one of Martha's crochet flowers.
I've also been shooting photos of her for Martha's shop TwoKnit.

Pictorialism

During the late 1800's there was a group of photographers who made a conscious effort to focus their work on the artistic quality and aesthetics of an image, rather than be representational. This photographic movement was termed pictorialism.


The imagery portrayed was often very similar to the trends in painting at the time, specifically the symbolist movement and the Pre-Raphaelite painters of Britain. Photographic prints were manipulated in the darkroom, printed on special papers and sometimes engraved. These techniques disrupted the smooth surface of the imagery further distancing themselves from the traditional photography.


Alfred Stieglitz an American photographer was influenced and part of early movement of pictorialism in America. The group managed to have photography established as a legitimate art form in 1910, before that time photography was seen only as a tool not an art form.


I was introduced to this genre of photography by my husband Greg who has a collection of these works as well as many books on the subject. I adore the dreamy, poetic and romantic quality of the imagery. The Vespertina illustrated novel Greg has been working on has been influenced by the pictorialists.

Images
Opener:The Bubble by Clarence H. White (American, 1871–1925)
"Speed", by Robert Demachy
"The Dirigible" by Alfred Stieglitz
William of Northampton by Greg Spalenka