Thursday, April 30, 2009
just call me cupid
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
monogamy went out in the 90s, along with bad perms & the spice girls.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
wu-tang fashion clan?
i'll take cocaine to-go please.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Little Miss Harvard
1. How were you first selected/approached to compose the sculpture for Downtown Phoenix?
I think there were hundreds of artists reviewed for this project, and about half a dozen artist finalists brought in for interview from around the world, including Jaume Plensa from Spain (the artist whose work is in Millenium Park in Chicago), and several from New York including Dennis Oppenheim, etc. I believe I was the youngest among them, and perhaps the only woman (not sure). After the finalist interviews by their committee, I was selected and asked to begin design on the project.
2. How long did it take you to design the project?
More than two years from start to finish
3. Did anybody help you with the creation/design?
I had an incredible team of engineers, lighting designers, architects, landscape architects, without whom I could never have accomplished this.
4. Were you given any certain requirements in terms of the Civic Plaza's "Green Effect"?
It was my idea that the sculpture should not take up space on the ground, as I believe all the other finalists were proposing, but that the artwork be placed up in the air, with the glorious Arizona sky as its backdrop.
5. What made you choose to name your masterpiece after legendary poet Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem, "Her Secret is Patience"?
Adopt the pace of nature... that seemed to explain to me how plants in the desert not only survive but flourish. and then i began to feel it was appropriate for the ambitious for a newly vital downtown Phoenix.
6. What made you first get into art?
It was the thing I most wanted to do- After college, I figured I could always make compromises later, but I should at least try for what I really wanted first. And I just kept going. In college, I was studying the life of Henri Natisse, an impressionist painter who became confined to his bed after he turned seventy, at which point he invented an entirely new way of image-making (hispaper cut outs, like the swimming pool series). I liked the fact that art-making as a career was something that would always be challenging, something where I would always be learning , and you can't get fired or be forced to retire.
7. What did you study at Harvard?
I started out as a History Major, then found something called "Visual and Environmental Studies", where I began making documentary film. I considered journalism as a career and did several internships at newspapers and a television news programs. I took one semester or drawing and one semester of painting and finally decided that the independent work of being a visual artist was what i really wanted to do.
8. What was it like pursuing art in the exotic land of Bali after graduating college?
9. Out of all of the pieces you've done (and there's been a lot) what would you say was your biggest accomplishment and why?
Her secret is patience. It was such an ethereal experience the night of the inauguration standing beneath it, speaking to Phoenix residents about the work, and looking up to see it gently billow in the wind.
Anything else you would like to add...
I cannot thank the impressive team from the City of Phoenix, and the many supporters from Phoenix who came out and invoked their political process. Without them, this sculpture would most surely have been canceled as finances grew tight. It is to them I dedicate the sculpture, the people who have worked to create a sense of place, of beauty, for their city.
When it comes to the Downtown Civic Space Park, artist Janet Echelman’s floating sculpture masterpiece is without a doubt the main attraction.
The sculpture, titled “Her Secret Is Patience”, was designed by Echelman, who is infamous for reshaping urban airspace with monumental public sculptures that tend to respond to and work in synch with environmental forces including water, wind, and sunlight.
“Her Secret Is Patience” stand 100-feet-tall and makes the patter of the Arizona desert winds visible to the human eye. It even has the ability to produce detailed shadow drawings onto the grounds surrounding the sculpture.
Back in 2007 an uproar of controversy almost caused a complete cancellation of the epic art design that now float’s above Downtown Phoenix. Some felt that the “flimsy sculpture” should not cost the city of Phoenix $2.4 million. It was eventually decided that despite the disagreement the sculpture would go up after all.
Some feel that the sculpture resembles a flower, a jellyfish, or even a uterus perhaps. What some may not know is that the title, “Her Secret Is Patience” was in fact derived from a quote from the legendary poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.”
The flexible netting will be launched 38 feet above the ground supported by a framework of steel rings, cables and poles. The structure has the capability of being risen to a maximum height of 100 feet and reach a width of 100 feet at the top. Gorgeous lighting allows the sculpture to be visible as a landmark even at night.
Although the job is all finished now and stands beautifully scraping the Phoenician skies, it was in fact a complicated work of engineering and was even rewarded with the Excellence in Structural Engineering Award from the Arizona Structural Engineers Association.
Residents instantly fell in love with the floating sculpture. After all, what other public landmarks does Phoenix really have? It is not New York City. Phoenix is not currently crawling with art-loving tourists, but perhaps thanks to Echelman, maybe that will change.
Echelman’s next project is for the Richmond Olympic Oval, the official venue for the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. The project will cost $1.2 million yet will take the run-off water from the building’s roof and produce a water garden decorated with red curved pedestrian bridges, “water-drawing” aeration fountains, and red and orange, netted “sky lanterns” that respond to the wind.
The artist’s work has been represented all over the world in areas including Madrid, Venice, Bombay, Jakarta, Hong Kong, Kyoto, and New York City.
Echelman is a Harvard graduate. After college she spent 1988-1993 living as an artist on the tropical island of Bali, Indonesia before moving to New York City. She currently resides in Brookline, Massachusetts with her family.
“I am a sculptor who shapes urban space. I prefer the immediacy and challenge of transforming sites that are either unnoticed infrastructure that have faded from public memory, or iconic landmarks that have are so overexposed they become habitual background.”
-Janet Echelman
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
back to men.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Michael Franco
Its a true rarity in life to find someone who has been blessed with what it takes to make it in the fashion industry as either a model, a photographer, a stylist, a makeup artist, or an agent. It takes not only talent and originality, but also a strong backbone to be able to handle the inevitable rejection that comes along with the territory. It’s even more unlikely to find a person who has worked successfully in almost all areas of the business, but leave it to Michael Franco to defeat those odds.
Growing up Franco was always fascinated by the fashion industry. With the normal post-high school pressures of going to college and pinpointing a career path Michael decided he would take a safer path and go to school for photography, but he secretly had other plans in mind.
Shortly after high school Franco moved out to Santa Barbara, California with plans to attend a photography school because he knew his parents would never support his plan of moving all the way to Los Angeles just to become a male model. Soon after relocating he decided to ditch the idea of photography and found his way down to L.A. with determination to make it as a full-time model. Even though Franco was in the best shape of his life, life as a model in the highly-competitive L.A. market was not exactly easy.
“Of course I felt pressure,” Franco said. “Modeling is all about your looks. Your face, your body, your hair, your skin. Those are your ‘talents’. Especially in a big market like L.A. It was definitely a lot of pressure to kind of keep up with everyone else I was up against. It was a huge struggle.”
Franco continued to live his life traveling frequently between L.A. and Arizona for the next four years. He worked all types of jobs including runway, commercial work, editorials, and campaigns.
“I would say my favorite part about modeling was being around creative minds,” Franco said. “I was always interested in imagery, even when I was young. I loved to be apart of the process to make a beautiful image. That was the best part to me. The industry itself was my dislike, the politics, and some of the shady characters in the industry.”
After noticing the impurities of the modeling world Franco’s mind quickly began to return to his original plan, a career in photography.
“I always loved photography,” said Franco. “That was always my first love. After I was kind of over and done with my modeling days. It seemed like a natural transition for me.”
Although Franco did go out to California at first to pursue photography school, as of today at 25-years-old he remains entirely self-taught.
“I mean, I took photo classes in high school, but I never went to school in Santa Barbara,” Franco said. “I literally bought a camera one day and pressed every single button until I knew what it all did! I am still learning everyday.”
Those who are familiar with Franco’s work know that he is proficient in multiple ways both in front of and behind the camera.
Valerie Gonzales, 20, has been a fan of the fashion industry for quite sometime. It comes as a natural hobby for her considering her best friend is a stylist and she has a few other friends who model. She attended Scottsdale Fashion Week this year and really appreciates original and unique high-fashion photography.
“I am familiar with Michael’s work,” Gonzales said. “I think he is a very talented photographer and I have a lot of respect for him. It amazes me that he hasn’t had any schooling, not to mention that he does all his own styling, makeup, hair and editing. Not to mention he is easy on the eyes”
Franco credits his areas of expertise to needing to be in control. “I feel like my work sets me apart from others because everything about the photograph is usually done by me,” Franco said.
“I always do my own makeup and hair, which is rare for a photographer. I mean, there are a ton of of ‘photographers’ out there who own a nice camera and shoot hot chicks and call it art. But to me, beauty is my art. And when I’m taking a photo, everything about it has to be beautiful to me. Whether its something high fashion or just a random headshot. I always try to bring out the beauty in people. Whether its with the makeup and hair, or just beautiful lighting.”
As a child Franco spent a lot of time painting. He relates his makeup obsession with his adolescent joy of painting faces.
“While I was bored in school I kind of just sketched out faces that I saw in magazines and whatnot,” Franco said. “So I guess to me, someone’s face is sort of like a canvas. It’s never overwhelming for me. What would be overwhelming is if I had other makeup artists or hair stylists involved! I like to be involved 100 percent of every detail in my shoots.”
Models who have worked with Franco not only find love in his photography, but also enjoy his company.
John Kolic, 21, a model signed with Agency Arizona said, “Michael was very professional, easy to work with, and he was also really great at making the models feel comfortable with himself and each other.”
Franco actually also helped jump start Kolic’s career and after their initial contact Franco had him signed with an agency the very next day.
Levi Workman, 20, began modeling around six months ago and was recommended to Franco for his first shoot after signing with S.I.M. Agency.
“At first I was a little worried because I knew he was gonna be taking provocative pictures of me, but once I got there he made me feel really comfortable and he even cut my hair,” Workman said. “It was the best hair cut I ever had. Then we started shooting. He gave me great tips and told me how to pose. The pictures turned out great. I still use a couple of them for my agency’s web site. He even invited me to a party afterwards where he made this girl kiss me and took pictures during our kiss like it was a real scandalous shoot for some fancy magazine. So all in all, I love Mikey!”
Perhaps the most significant accomplishment for Franco is his privilege of having the opportunity to photograph numerous celebrities, yet not even that makes him nervous.
“To me everyone is the same,” Franco said. “Whether they are famous or not! I come into the shoot with the same attitude. The person as my canvas and me as the artist.”
Franco has worked with Erin Tietsort from the reality show “Sunset Tan” as well as “Girlicious” singer and Chris Brown’s new rumored love interest Natalie Mejia.
There must be something in the Franco genes that entangles a passion for beauty, fashion, and talent. Both Franco’s cousin Bianca and his sister Theresa are models in the industry.
“Having family in the industry actually helps them out more than me!” Franco laughed. “No, but on a serious note it definitely doesn’t hurt.”
It is hard to pinpoint what exactly it is that actually inspires Franco. He explained that his motivation comes from all aspects of life.
“It’s hard to just say one thing that inspires me,” Franco said. “Lots of things. Sometimes I see a picture of an iconic figure and that will inspire me, a makeup and hair idea, or someone with an interesting look.”
He may derive influence from others, but it is definitely a two-way street. Arizona State University sophomore Maura Gaughan, 20, was introduced to Franco’s work somewhat recently and quickly felt an impulse to combine their behind the camera talents and document one of his shoots.
“I had this great idea for my videography class about using one of Michael’s shoots for my film project,” Gaughan said. “Once I saw his work I had my mind set on working with him. He has this remarkable way of making everyone look ultra sexy. We haven’t had the pleasure of working together yet, but one day...one day I am determined!”
Between his talent and undeniable charisma it is impossible not to fall in love with his work and him as well. The fact that he has perfectly tanned skin, chiseled cheek bones, and piercing blue eyes might also help that out.
Aside from his diverse abilities in the creative department Franco also described five minor details that sum him up pretty well.
“I can’t go a day without having an Iced Green Tea with a splash of half-and-half from Starbucks,” Franco said. “I’m addicted to my Blackberry, I’m deathly afraid of heights, when I was a kid I had a weird obsession with Bart Simpson, and my favorite color is black.”
When it comes to his future the bar is set far from low. Franco hopes to one day have his own makeup line as well as photograph someone iconic like Britney Spears or Madonna.
“My goals for the future are that I just want more of the world to see my work and my vision,” says Franco.
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April
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- just call me cupid
- monogamy went out in the 90s, along with bad perms...
- spring has sprung
- No title
- wu-tang fashion clan?
- i'll take cocaine to-go please.
- Little Miss Harvard
- back to men.
- Michael Franco
- Controversy
- best dressed
- Latika for Sale?
- tennis heart throb ties the knot
- haters
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- the things that excite me
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- FREE T.I.
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- Obama gets his TV on, too.
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- Over-Rated
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