Poetry Northwest approached Instagramers Seattle and We Are Juxt earlier this year with an idea – So, we are collaborating for the rest of the year on a simple contest: To see how people respond to poems visually. Monthly, we post a poem and you have roughly thirty days to respond to it by making an image with your mobile device. At the end of the month we pick our favorite snapshot and the winner receives a year-long subscription to Poetry Northwest.
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Some deer move redly from out of the shadows,
stretch greenly down their neck vertebrae
between their front hooves
to lip the blades.
Those lines come from Sierra Nelson’s poem “Postcard Photo: Garden of Kasuga Shrine,” our September mobile photography + poetry challenge. Read the poem in its entirety via the link above. What does it look like to you? We want to see it.
Challenge Rules
From September 1 – September 30 we challenge you to respond to “Postcard Photo: Garden of Kasuga Shrine” however you see fit. Any element of the poem is up for interpretation. Here are the particulars:
Instagram: #KasugaPoem
Post a photo to Instagram and tag it with #KasugaPoem in order to be considered
1. Poetry Northwest, Instagramers Seattle & JUXT will pick the winner who will receive a year-long subscription (2 issues) to Poetry Northwest
2. Submit as often as you like in the month of September
3. Photos posted after the close of the challenge will not be considered
4. Poetry Northwest and Instagramers Seattle & JUXT reserve the right to flag or disqualify any photo deemed inappropriate
5. By participating, you understand that Poetry Northwest, Instagramers Seattle, & JUXT may reproduce and display your photo at future events and you will be notified in advance if we intend to do so
We are excited to see what you see in your #KasugaPoem submissions!
Poetry Northwest approached Instagramers Seattle and We Are Juxt to see how people would respond to poems visually and are working together for the rest of the year on a simple contest: monthly we post a poem and you have roughly thirty days to respond to it visually. At the end of the month we pick our favorite snapshot and the winner receives a year long subscription to Poetry Northwest.
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You’d catch yourself in a certain light, wrapped in the corner canting your own name, a pale hero in a slim chronicle of madness.
Those lines come from Heather Altfeld’s poem “Snapshot” part of our August mobile photography + poetry challenge. What does it look like to you? We want to see it.
Challenge Rules
From August 1 to August 31 we challenge you to respond to “Snapshot” however you see fit. Any element of the poem is up for interpretation. Here are the particulars:Instagram: #PoetrySnapshot1. Post a photo to Instagram and tag it with #PoetrySnapshot and #ponwphoto in order to be considered
1. Poetry Northwest, Instagramers Seattle & JUXT will pick the winner who will receive a year long subscription (2 issues) to Poetry Northwest
2. Submit as often as you like in the month of August
3. Any photos posted after the close of the challenge will not be considered
4. Poetry Northwest and Instagramers Seattle & JUXT reserve the right to flag or disqualify any photo deemed inappropriate
5. By participating, you understand that Poetry Northwest, Instagramers Seattle, & JUXT may reproduce and display your photo at future events and you will be notified in advance if we intend to do so
We are excited to see what you see in your #PoetrySnapshot
Recently, I had the privilege of attending one of the most fascinating and enjoyable lectures in my recent memory – author Richard Cahan and collector Jeffrey Goldstein spoke about the life and works of Vivian Maier. Maier remains one of the most mysterious street and documentary photographers of the mid 20th Century – she was a complete unknown until the time of her death in 2009. If you’re unfamiliar with her work or the story of her accidental discovery, I’m happy to introduce you to this prolific talent.
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
Vivian Maier’s work was first discovered in Chicago in 2007 when boxes of 3000+ prints, 100,000+ negatives and hundreds of undeveloped rolls of film, hidden within several abandoned storage units, were sold at auction in separate lots. In 2009, Maier died at the age of 83 before her work was ever publically recognized or exhibited. This was also the year that the world was first introduced to Maier’s work by John Maloof. Over the next few years, the near totality of her prints, negatives and film were purchased by a few collectors. The most well known anthologies of Maier’s work are the John Maloof Collection and the Jeffrey Goldstein Collection. Her work is undeniably evocative, nostalgic, and inspiring.
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
Vivian Maier initially became recognized for her Chicago street photography. She captured the essence and vibrance of her surroundings, particularly in the city. Maier’s work is particularly evocative for those who grew up in the 50’s and 60’s because she seemed to stare deep into the soul of the time and preserve the everyday experience of the people. She ventured outside the comfortable homes and picturesque residential neighborhoods of her employers to document all segments of life in and around the big city.
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
My first introduction to Maier was through her “looking glass” self-portraits and came via my good friend across the seas – photographer Gavin Gordon, who has since instigated #vivianmaierportrait appreciation projects on Instagram and Google+. The moment I laid eyes on Maier’s work, I was hooked. Maier was a fiercely private person and in the majority of her perfectly composed self-portraits, she appears stoic.
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
Since that first encounter, I’ve enjoyed shooting myself in the occasional “Viv” style. Naturally, the exhibition of her work was an appropriate venue for a couple ‘Viv in Viv’ portraits 🙂
Inside Inspiration :: by Rachel Sawyer
Born in New York, Maier spent much of her youth in France. Starting in the late 1940s, she shot an average of a roll of film a day. She moved to Chicago in the mid-1950s, and spent the next 40 years working as a nanny. Maier shot many of her most iconic pictures while working for various suburban Chicago families – including Phil Donahue – a job that allowed her to periodically travel both domestically and abroad, as shown in her photographs of New York, South Dakota, Florida, California, as well as the rural pastures of Southern France.
Vivian Maier – Goldstein Collection
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
Maier’s camera was her diary, and the biographers who have studied her life and work believe this could be why she rarely shared her photographs with anyone. She was an extremely private person and most people who were acquainted with her, didn’t really know who Vivian Maier was. She left no family, no partner, not even her employers knew the depth of Maier’s photographic talents or her inspiration.
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
And so, her life’s work – negatives, film, prints – remained hidden from the world until now. Maier has been likened to Emily Dickinson in that her work was shared with the world posthumously and outside of the author/artists original intent.
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
If you’re one of my fellow Seattleites, don’t sleep! Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows will be on the walls at Photo Center Northwest until March 23rd and is well worth the trip to Capitol Hill. For you lucky Chicagoans – the Vivian Maier’s Chicago exhibition is currently on display at the Chicago History Museum and will be open through Summer 2013.
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
There is so much to admire in work of this mysterious and gifted human being. If you feel as compelled by these images as I was, I encourage you to discover more about the work of Vivian Maier. Within this article are a number of links to more information about Maier, and I encourage you to visit them and come back here to share your thoughts in the comments.
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
I’ll leave you now with the same words Richard Cahan left with me after our brief conversation about Vivian Maier’s legacy:
Be inspired!
Vivian Maier :: Goldstein Collection
More about the Photo Center Northwest Exhibition in Seattle, WA:
Photo Center NW hosts an exhibition of photographs by Vivian Maier from the Jeffrey Goldstein Collection, featuring posthumous, 12”x12” silver gelatin prints produced in editions of 15 and signed on the verso by Jeffrey Goldstein and by master gelatin silver printers, Ron Gordon and Sandra Steinbrecher. All prints are selected from the book, Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows, by Richard Cahan and Michael Williams of City Files Press. The exhibition puts Maier’s work in the context of her life during her highly creative period from the 1950s through the 1970s. In addition to her known street photography, this exhibit features a prolific selection of images that show an artist with relentless curiosity that worked in a vast range of subjects and styles.
“We went far in documenting Vivian’s life, but she loved being a woman of mystery,” said Richard Cahan, co-author of the book. “Even her photographs—clear, forthright images—only go so far in revealing her. That’s what great photographers do.”
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Thanks to Ann Pallesen and Photo Center Northwest for bringing Richard and Jeffrey to Seattle, and for facilitating this tangible experience of Maier’s work.
Over the past couple years, I’ve occasionally shared a series of #iwifeinhistory posts on Instagram. I love getting down to the DNA of my favorite places, and it’s just fun to learn more about my hometown and stuff I take for granted. This particular series was significant for me because the experience was intensely visceral: way up there in a teeny tiny helicopter, simultaneously fearing for my life and overcome with glee. (I’ve been petrified of flying all my life) In hindsight, it was like riding the coolest most intense carnival ride of all time…
~ Seattle pioneer Thomas Mercer (1813-1898) was the first to point out the benefits of building a navigable passage between the fresh waters of Lake Washington and the saltwater of Puget Sound to the Pacific beyond.
~ At a village celebration on July 4, 1854, Mercer proposed the name Union for the lake lying between Salmon Bay on the west and Lake Washington on the east, in the full confidence that a canal would eventually connect these waters. Eighty years passed before this vision was fully realized. • The Lake Washington Ship Canal has connected Seattle’s largest freshwater lakes to the Puget Sound since the early 1900s. (You can just make out the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks below…)
~ Hiram M. Chittenden had command of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Seattle in 1906, and worked tirelessly to ensure completion of the canal against financial and political odds. By the time the Lake Washington Ship Canal’s Government Locks opened in 1917, a stroke had confined Hiram Chittenden to a wheel chair. He died on October 9, 1917. Then, in 1956, the Corps of Engineers renamed the Ballard locks to honor his memory.” [historical narrative excerpts courtesy of HistoryLink.org]
As children, my parents brought us to the Locks regularly where we marveled at the fish ladder and watched for hours as the boats raised and lowered on their passage to and from the Sound. They instilled in me a deep admiration and respect for the many facets of our maritime heritage. One of my favorite places to shoot is at Golden Gardens Park just south of the Shilshole Bay Marina which is pictured above)
I feel very fortunate to live in such a beautiful city, surrounded by water…
Experiencing my city from above inspired a deeper appreciation for just how beautiful this place is that I call home. While I was sorry the ride had to end, I practically kissed the ground when we landed. 😉 Would I do it again? Absolutely.
•• all images were shot by me in August 2012 using Hipstamatic: Wonder lens + W40 film ••
Our Instagramers Seattle community was invited to document and share our experience at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s‘Family Day’ celebration this past weekend.
photo by @barbro
The Visitor Center doors were opened to families and the space was filled with free hands-on art making experiences designed to help inspire attendees to make a difference in their worlds. We were encouraged to explore the Visitor Center’s interactive exhibits and photograph families engaging with the activities and with each other.
photo by @dankhole
photo by Rebecca @rtext
Kids could hand-sew a plushy doll for a friend in need of cheer, use gaming to solve world problems, design a bracelet that shares a cause meaningful to them, share their feelings about global issues via a live-streaming wall display and more.
photo by Rachel @iwife
It was inspirational to see how engaged the kids were, and how excited their parents were to witness that level of engagement.
photo by Dorian @nairodream
photo by Alan @_shadesofgray_
WHAT’S THE GIVE EFFECT? – The Give Effect is one answer to a frequently asked question at the Gates Foundation Visitor Center: “How can we give back to our community?” The Foundation collected 250 wishes from local groups that serve youth and families. Throughout the month of December, visitors were invited to choose a card from the “Giving Tree.” Each gift helped a family or young person in need.
According to Martha Choe, Chief Administrative Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: “Giving and gratitude are core values at the foundation, and our mission at the Visitor Center is to educate and inspire our local neighbors to embrace them as well. The Give Effect campaign is an exciting way for families to experience the joy of giving back, and come together as a community to make a difference.” [as reported by the Queen Anne View blog]
photo by Dorian @nairodream
WHAT’S THE BILL & MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION? – The Gates Foundation has a long history of philanthropy at local, national and worldwide levels. The Foundation teams up with partners around the world to take on some tough problems: extreme poverty and poor health in developing countries, the failures of America’s education system. They focus on only a few issues because they think that’s the best way to have great impact, and they focus on these issues in particular because they think these are the biggest barriers that prevent people from making the most of their lives. At the Visitor Center, interactive installations provide a hands-on experience for learning about where needs are being met in the world and what challenges remain.
photo by @bridgettesxo
photo by Amara @amarainseattle
“For each issue the Foundation works on, wefund innovative ideas that could help remove barriers: new techniques to help farmers in developing countries grow more food and earn more money; new tools to prevent and treat deadly diseases; new methods to help students and teachers in the classroom. Some of the projects we fund will fail. We not only accept that, we expect it—because we think an essential role of philanthropy is to make bets on promising solutions that governments and businesses can’t afford to make.
photo by Alan @metroseattle
“As we learn which bets pay off, we adjust our strategies and share the results so everyone can benefit. The Gates family believe that by doing these things—focusing on a few big goals and working with their partners on innovative solutions—they can help every person get the chance to live a healthy, productive life.” – The Gates Foundation
photo by Nilesh @nileshsoni
Instagramers Seattle would like to thank The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Jori Saeger for inviting us to this great community event, for being so gracious and for the opportunity to spotlight what good work the foundation is doing for communities near and far.
