As I write, millions upon millions of Americans are munching on epic amounts of nachos, chips, buffalo wings, pizza, and assorted other snacks, and washing them down with a variety of mostly "adult" beverages.  It is, after all, Superbowl Sunday.  There are quite a few Americans who are doing other things, including working to provide the pizzas and wings, not to mention security for the big game.  For us, it is pretty much like any other day - doing some preemptive laundry before the snowy week ahead (when there will be less solar gain) and working with photographs and wool.   The extent of our participation will be to check out the game commercials on YouTube tomorrow.

February is that limbo time of year when the ground is still frozen and the only evidence of spring waiting in the wings is wind.  Thus, many people choose to explore warmer climates.  Here are some shots from the island of Santorini, Greece, scanned from slides, full of warmth, color, and complexity, in the event you are in need.

This shot reminds me of an architectural model.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image

Comparative archaeology

There are a number of amazing ideas and creations that seem to have been generated spontaneously throughout history.  Flatbread comes to mind.  From pita to tortillas, it is simple, wonderful, and highly transportable.  Fermented liquids such as beer and wine are quite old, and the formulas for these were probably"brewing" at the same time in different places.  Architectural elements including arches and towers seem to fall into this category.  Most things are born of necessity.  Some spread with religion.  The question of whether creations are spontaneously generated, or whether migration and human contact promoted their development may never be answered.  But it does not diminish the fascinating similarities found around the globe.

Doors and hardware.  The first photograph of a door in Costilla Plaza, New Mexico...

...and a door from the island of Crete.

A shrine outside the Catholic church in San Francisco, New Mexico, roughly the size of a playhouse...

...and a roadside shrine or iconostasis on Crete, about the size of a large mailbox, similar to a descanso marking the death of someone along a highway in New Mexico. 

embrace the similarities

until next Monday,

DB

 a passion for the image

Doors

As we slowly shift seasons from winter to spring, with the change that is constant in life, I think of doors and the allegories they represent.

Doors of some sort have been used by humans (and other animals) to keep the cold and heat in or out, to protect food and material goods, and to keep predators from entering.  Doors hold mystery and uncertainty, as in reality, one does not know what lies beyond a strange door.  In movies, protagonists are locking doors behind them, but frequently leave doors open, which invariably allows the villain to enter.  In modern society, one of the most common references or sayings is "one door closes and another opens."   So doors also represent excitement and possibilities.

Every time I photograph a door, a story unfolds in my mind and I want to enter.  The first two are from beautiful Brugge or Bruges (Dutch and French spellings), in Belgium.

I was really mystified by the door below on the Greek island of Crete.  

The door at the Japanese Tea Gardens in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park and the doorway in Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico are incredible demonstrations of modern and ancient form and function.

A wooden doorway at Fort Ross State Historic Park in northern California, opens to a magnificent view of the Pacific Ocean.

What stories doors hold!

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image