blog post 1/

One realization I had from redoing every single blog post was that my first post, or what I intended my first post to be, was never published. This is the image I intended to start of my little blog. The first Pic of the Day. This is one of my favorite images from Henry Varnum Poor's home. The paint chips on the floor are especially good aren't they?

week of sharing/this is me

Actually this is me at my absolute happiest...discovering different worlds and people through making photographs. 

I just wanted to take today to declare myself to all of you. Handcrafted Modern is merely the start. At this point I have enough project ideas to keep me busy until I'm 90. Frankly, I can't stop myself. One of the best parts of this whole experience so far is sharing these amazing places and people with all of you. So thanks so much for your support and enthusiasm for what I do. I'll keep trusting my heart and my gut to take me to the right places. I hope you'll continue to join me. The best is yet to come!

henry varnum poor/crow house

not too many words today. I just love this picture. Especially all the rectangular rusted tins in a row on that shelf. 

peace and quiet/

So much is happening lately  and I find myself just craving some moments of quiet to contemplate the last few months of my life. I think my choice of images for the blog is reflecting that. Like this one from Henry Varnum Poor's house. I have paused on it before, but today, I want to climb in, peel back the curtain and just stare out the window awhile.

henry varnum poor/crow house

I was madly looking through all the images I shot for HC Modern for the self portraits I did in mirrors and such and I ran across this image. Some thing about it made me stop. Maybe it is the red chair or the quality of light coming in the window or those two lovely little pictures on the wall. Did I notice those when I shot this? I don't remember that sea scape, but how I love it now...

handcrafted modern/outtakes/esherick

Another outtake from Wharton Esherick's home. Most everything you see was made by Esherick wth the exception of the "portrait"ceramic plates made by his friend, Henry Varnum Poor.

the beauty of decay/

What is it about cobwebs? A few times I have shot in places that I was just covered in cobwebs at the end of the day. But the presence of the cobwebs makes it more special somehow. The knowledge that no one has touched a thing for so long makes each shot seem more important. A necessary document. This is another from HV Poor's Crow House.

the beauty of decay/

another from Henry Varnum Poor.

henry varnum poor/

Two details from HV Poor's studio today. Notice the cobwebs on this first one. Many of the places I shoot have not been tended to or touched for awhile so I am very well acquainted with cobwebs. Sometimes I kind of hate them...mainly when I am covered in them...but most of the time seeing the cobwebs in a house just makes me more excited to shoot it. I guess it tells me that time stopped in this place some time ago. No one has touched that beautiful little teapot in Poor's studio. Maybe he set it there himself...who knows. Seeing cobwebs just makes the narrative in my head run wild, and I love that.

henry varnum poor/

Another from HV Poor's studio. He clearly played a lot of darts....

henry varnum poor/

This is honestly one of my favorite pictures that I have ever taken. It is in HV Poor's studio looking out to a little chalet-like outbuilding on the property. The summer day I was there it had rained and although it was rather nice outside, the inside of the house and studio was a bit of a sauna. But I love the condensation that formed on the inside of this big window. I think it really adds to the feeling of this image.

henry varnum poor/

More from Henry Varnum Poor's Crow House this week. As I have said, this is a magical place. I think this image expresses that perfectly.

I ended up here on the suggestion of Wharton Esherick's daughter, Ruth. She remembered going to visit when she was a little girl (she made a special mention of the "crazy bathroom" as she put it). Wharton and Henry were friends and would spend a week or two at each other's place in the summer months. So Ruth gave Henry's son, Peter, a call to see if I could stop by and check it. Of course this was not on my shooting schedule and I was catching a plane later that day, but I ended up photographing the house that day for about two hours. At the time, it was about to be sold. I felt a sense of urgency about needing to document this house before it was gone. Happily it has now been saved, but those two hours that first day of shooting are really special in my memory. An unexpected gift....

henry varnum poor/

Another from Henry Varnum Poor's studio.

henry varnum poor/

What is it about a potter's studio? This is one of the shots I took of Henry Varnum Poor's home and studio in NY state. A magical place, even in its chaos.