The Wizard's Apprentice

The Wizard’s Apprentice ©2018 - I began this piece with an image of the Raritan River I captured from under a bridge on Old York Rd just outside of Readington Township, NJ. There were some interesting bare trees along the bank that were leaning precariously toward the water in almost a domino effect. Between two of them, looming in the distance, I placed a graceful, white house from Belvidere, NJ. The tall, elegant heron standing calmly in the water as well as the two turtles basking in the moonlight on a piece of floating wood, are from the area of Princeton, NJ. My little wizard mouse is in reality one of my Halloween decorations who normally carries a small skull in his hands. For this adventure however, I fashioned a magic wand for him by photographing the handle of an antique, silver hand mirror and a crystal charm from a necklace. The wolf, faithful guide, protector and familiar to the wizard, was photographed at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, NJ and the young “apprentice” is from my vintage photo collection. A crescent moon, crows, and a dragonfly were added to complete the composition. Texture, color and filters were used to blend the final image and create the atmosphere I envisioned for my traveling trio as they discover what is unveiled at the end of their journey.

 “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”  - Roald Dahl, novelist, poet and screenwriter

The Picnic

The Picnic ©2016 - "I'll affect you slowly as if you were having a picnic in a dream. There will be no ants. It won't rain." -Richard Brautigan, Loading Mercury With a Pitchfork 1976.

I began working on this piece at the end of December 2015, put it away in May 2016 and finally deemed it finished in September 2016. I'm not sure why that happens sometimes when other pieces come together a lot more quickly. After considerable trial and error, I decided to take a break and not so much as take a peek at it for several months. When I looked at it again, with a few minor tweaks, everything fell easily into place and it finally felt right. So, back to the beginning. This montage is a combination of images dating from 2010 to 2015. The background started with a grassy field and a small abandoned building I captured in Sussex County just outside of Lafayette, NJ. The trees in the rear, filled with a large flock of blackbirds, were shot from my front yard as the birds were gathering to fly south for the winter. The lovely lady hosting the picnic is friend and model Maryanne Christiano Mistretta from a photo session we did together in 2010. For the "picnic blanket", I set up and photographed a still life consisting of a vintage table cover laden with fruits and nuts. The guests include a dragonfly, a honeybee and a chipmunk from my backyard along with several crows and a vulture from my travels. Various tones, textures and filters were added for mood and blending to complete "The Picnic".

A Meeting of Minds

A Meeting of Minds ©2015 - This montage began with an image I captured in the area of Califon, NJ of a magnificent crow. He was perched on the gate of a large property and when I focused my camera on him, the resulting image had wonderful bokeh in the background. In photographic terms, "bokeh" has been defined as "the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light". It was softly out of focus with beautiful orbs of light floating all around. I added a field of swampy grasses with a few cattails from Warren county around Belivedere, NJ. In the distance, I placed a photograph I captured of the lovely Mansion Inn in New Hope, PA. Charles Crook, a local businessman, had the house designed and built for his wife in 1865. The intricate Victorian scroll work gives it a magical air that fit the composition perfectly. When I blended the images together, the orbs of the bokeh seemed to be emanating from the house like spirits dancing in the moonlight. Last but not least, a graceful dragonfly I found sitting atop a plant just outside my back door was added and, hopefully, is having "A Meeting of Minds" with the crow regarding sharing the dance floor.

Catch a Falling Star

Catch a Falling Star ©2015 - The camera is an amazing tool, but it can be magical when the unexpected happens. I was in Stanhope, NJ just around sunset one evening  photographing a flock of 13 vultures (6 of which are included in this piece). They were gathering in a cluster of bare limbed trees to roost for the night. When I downloaded the images, I noticed a streak of light in one just above the trees. Thinking it must be the trailing of a jet plane, I was surprised and thrilled when I enlarged it to see it was a round, glowing object with a faint, textured center. I had inadvertently captured a meteoroid entering the earth's atmosphere! Knowing I had to use it in a piece, I chose a background image of a sloping field with a wooden rail fence and lovely evening light from Stockton, NJ. I removed the tall, wooded area that was beyond the fence and replaced it with a sky of rolling clouds to showcase the star. I came across the little red tricycle at an antique shop in Red Bank, NJ. It was a little impractical to purchase as a prop, but I did sneak a couple of shots that turned out to be usable. I placed it, along with the young gentleman (from my vintage photo collection), and the landing vulture in the field. I then added color inspired by one of William Heath Robinson's watery, pastel paintings to try to attain the soft, golden glow that evenings have at the end of summer along with some texture from a daguerreotype. One legend has it that seeing a shooting star can mean bad luck or even death. Another says good luck and a wish made upon it will come true. I prefer to believe the latter and feel lucky that I was able to "Catch a Falling Star".

Let's Play a Game

Let's Play a Game ©2015 - The base image for this piece was captured in the area of Stockton and Sargentsville, NJ. This gnarled and weather beaten old tree had such a magical feel about it, like something you would see in an illustration for Grimm's Fairytales. It provided just the right setting for the composition I had in mind. The vintage gentleman was part of a group photo but I decided he worked best alone for my purposes. He was in just the right position for holding a photo of my Ouija board that I've owned since the early 1970's. Ouija boards have their roots in a spiritualist movement in the 1840's led by mediums who claimed to be intermediaries between the living and the dead. In 1886, newspapers reported on a new "talking board" marked with letters of the alphabet, number 0-9, the words "yes", "no", "hello" and "goodbye" along with other symbols. Participants place their fingers on a small, heart-shaped piece of wood or plastic called a planchette. It then moves around the board to indicate a spirit's message. It was patented in 1891 by Elijah Bond and in1901, an employee, William Fuld, took over the production under the name "Ouija", a combination of the French and German worlds for "yes". It was popularized as a parlor game and remains so until today. However you feel about Ouija boards, they are always fascinating. Just ask the little girl who seems to have been summoned to play the game. 

The Puppeteer

The Puppeteer ©2015 - This piece is a montage of 7 different images.  It began with the base photo of a graceful, bare tree in a grassy field against a stark sky captured on a trip to The Great Swamp near Meyersville, NJ.  Located in Morris County, this national wildlife refuge was established in 1960 and declared a National Landmark in 1966.  I added some additional grasses shot the same day to the foreground to create a perfect setting for the young man from my vintage photo collection.  The church nestled in the background is St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Spotswood, NJ.  It is one of the oldest churches in the diocese of New Jersey, dating to around 1758.  Some circling crows and a texture were added to create the atmosphere I was looking for, but the finishing touch that brought it all together is the quirky little clown puppet I picked up at an antique show.  He has a certain quality that straddles the fence between "good clown" and "evil clown" I needed to complete "The Puppeteer".

"The Boating Party" showing at Hamilton Street Gallery

Very pleased to be included in this show!

All the Pretty Little Horses

All the Pretty Little Horses ©2014 - This montage started with the vintage photo of the little boy circa 1900s that I picked up at an antique show.  He had a rather odd ethereal quality about him, blond, rather pale and dressed all in white.  He brought to mind a white horse I had captured in 2008 prancing and frolicking in a field as other horses stood by watching.  The two fit together perfectly.  I then added a stately, white columned abandoned mansion I photographed in the village of Port Colden, NJ located in Washington Township along the Morris canal.  Built in the 1840's, it served as a finishing school for girls, a private home, and a hotel called the "Port Colden Manor" among other things over the years.  At a dark point in it's early history, it was said to be active during the underground railroad as a stopover for slaves being returned to the south.  Supposedly, some of the shackles and chains remain in the building.  Not surprisingly, It is also said to be haunted.  The vulture flying gracefully off into the distance, I photographed in Millford, NJ.  I placed them all in a field from a recent road trip to Pennsylvania, added a cloudy horizon and some texture from an old daguerreotype.  The title came from a haunting lullaby from the 1800's,  "All the Pretty Little Horses."

New show opens Oct. 6 at the Metuchen Inn in NJ!

"Anatomy of a Chair", Hamilton Street Gallery

"Remains of the Day" was accepted into the "Anatomy of a Chair" exhibit at the Hamilton Street Gallery in Bound Brook, NJ!  Should be a really interesting show!  Opening reception Sunday, Sept 22, 2-6 PM!  Stop by if you can!

The Birthday Party

The Birthday Party ©2013 - This montage was created for RSI Bank's Annual Artist's Contest with a theme of "Celebration".  When considering my entry for the show, none of my current work seemed to fit the theme so I came up with this slightly off beat version of a birthday celebration with a hint of the Alice in Wonderland tea party.  "The Birthday Party" is comprised of 25 different photos, one of which is a vintage family photo of me blowing out the candles on my birthday cake as my friend watches from behind.  The other "guests" all currently live in my house (with the exception of my backyard blackbirds and the hawk flying overhead).  The base photo is an amazing 600 year old white oak tree located in the cemetery of the Presbyterian Church in Basking Ridge, NJ.  All the historic headstones beneath the tree were incredible to walk through and read but unfortunately, didn't quite fit my composition so I added a field of grasses from another image instead and "The Birthday Party" came together.  And lucky for me,  it was accepted into the show!  If you're in the area of Rahway, NJ, the opening reception for "Celebration" is Sunday, June 2 from 11 AM to 4 PM at RSI Bank, 1500 Irving St, Rahway, NJ.  The show runs from June 2 thru June 29, 2013.