Tanya Marcuse : The Body (part 1)

Tanya Marcuse, an internationally exhibited photographer whose work centers on the body and historical objects related to it, taught this weekend’s workshop. She received her MFA from Yale and soon after was granted a Guggenheim Fellowship. Despite the fact that she has many other fellowships and publications under her belt, she is one of the most personable and down to earth artists I’ve met. Kelsea and I had an incredibly honest conversation with her at the Len Prince and Jesse Mann opening at Photosensualis. She gave us some really great advice about what it means to be a female artist in today’s world. We discussed the difference between having a career, having a life, and having both.

This was my first time dealing with nude models in photography…so I was a bit unsure about the weekend. Tanya made everything very comfortable and interesting. I haven’t ever truly had an interest in photographing nudes, but I now appreciate and understand many aspects of the theory and symbolism behind it. We had some good conversations about how a small piece of clothing can sometimes mean more than none, how environment greatly affects the image, and how to approach a model. Tanya was a really great teacher.

Because I shot so many images from this weekend, I thought I would post them in two separate posts...1 with my documentation of the students and locations and 1 with the images I shot as a workshop participant. The workshop was structured so that we spent the morning at CPW going over student work and the afternoon on location shooting a handful of different models. The houses we went to were really wonderful, one with an amazing yard and another with an inside that you could photograph for years without capturing it all…

The group discussing their approach before we began shooting

Tanya advising Michael on his shot

Ray and our wonderful model, Amanda

Apparently I wasn’t able to deal with the nudes yet…so I bonded with the bunny =)

And Liz (my boss!) bonded with Bella

The second day we went to a house with an unbelievable amount of character. I admit, I abandoned my intern duties for a little bit in order to capture some of the uniqueness about it…

The owners had an incredible amount of books...there were literally rooms with every wall lined with full bookshelves...I would love to live there...

So it looks like this is possibly the only true documentation image I have from this day!

This is where I sleep...

I've had a couple requests to see photos of where I live, so here they are!


My house is an old converted barn so it is very open and has lots of character.
The first room is a large screened porch, where I spend lots of time reading...upon entering the house you are met with this door - it is from the original barn :


I haven't gotten a chance to photograph the downstairs quite yet, but I will add photos of those as I get them. Its very open, retaining some of the original layout.
Once you go up the stairs, you have my balcony:


Then a little open area where I keep my photography stuff - sorry, its kinda messy:


If you turn around from there, the little purple stairs lead into my room. On the right is my makeshift closet:


And on the left would be my tiny little bathroom:


Seeing as the walls are slanted, this is the best shot I could get as a broad overview of my room...yep, living out of those white storage bins, a mattress on the floor, and makeshift cardboard box tables:


...and the views from my window:

Elinor Carucci & Alan Rapp : Publishing a Photographic Book

Last weekend’s workshop was packed with information about what goes in to getting your own photography book published. While I am very far from being ready to publish anything, I still took a handful of really great points out of it. This workshop was a good example of something that I never thought I’d be interested in, but still managed to learn a lot from.

Elinor Carucci is an Israeli born photographer, currently based in NYC. She told us an incredibly endearing story of how she went about publishing her first book. After getting her BFA in Jerusalem, she moved to the city with the intention of staying for 3 months in order to get a book published. She made a maquette, which is basically a mock-up book of what you envision for your work, and went around the city trying to get a meeting. After lots of work, she met Alan Rapp of Chronicle Books. He believed in her project and eventually got everything into the works - 8 months later, the book came to fruition. Throughout the weekend, Elinor constantly reminded us that she just needed one person to believe in her (= Alan). The two of them were a perfect balance of technical, professional advice and the heartfelt, emotional journey.

Elinor has been exhibited around the world from NYC to Israel, London to Prague. She is currently living in NYC and teaching at the School of Visual Arts. Her first book, Closer, is a collection of intimate photographs of her and her family in the most honest, emotional way. After her Saturday night lecture, the other interns and I all agreed that her raw honesty is really appreciated. Her photographs prove that she is open about everything that happens in her life. When asked “how far is too far?” she responded saying for her nothing is too far. If it is real, how can it be too much?




A lot of the workshop was spent going over very specific questions about publishing. This group was a little more advanced and wanted to know more detailed answers than broad questions. One of the more interesting parts to me was when Alan went over the different parts involved in the proposal to a publisher. In order to propose your idea, you need to know a lot about the business and competition behind your project. It seemed to me as though proposing your idea to a publisher is a similar act to how the publisher will sell your book to the public. Alan has more than 15 years of experience in publishing and has worked with a number of well-known photographers.


We spent part of both days giving everyone a chance to show their work and get specific advice on what might be a good next step. It was really interesting to compare Elinor’s comments on the project concept and quality versus Alan’s advice on ideation for a book.





We also went over a lot of self-publishing options such as blurb, lulu, etc. Alan brought along a lot of examples so we were able to pass around each one and compare print quality, size, paper type, and more.


It was really great to meet Elinor, someone whose work I’ve admired for years, and Alan, someone with a lot of experience and valuable real world advice. They were very relaxed and excited about how well the workshop went. Even though I might have to hold on to this information for years until it is personally useful, it was still a great weekend.

My Barista Job

While being an unpaid intern, it was necessary for me to look for a flexible, low-stress job while I’m living in New York. When I came out to interview, I spent a little bit of time at a local coffee shop getting a bite to eat and picking the barista’s brain about the town. I noticed that they were hiring, so I filled out a presumptuous application and told the manager that I’d be in touch…
Upon getting the internship position, I contacted the café, and was offered a position there (over email, strangely). Having a job lined up before I even moved to the city was an immense relief!

I was really excited to get my hands back on an espresso machine. Once you’ve been trained as intensely as we were by Christopher at Espresso Christoph, it’s often hard to go to another café and watch (or listen to) them make your drink. Being able to make myself a drink was something seriously missed…(for those not in that unique EC family, its fine for you to think I’m a little crazy right now – totally acceptable. For those who are, you understand…)

For starters, the atmosphere of the shop is truly lovely. It is on the second floor, so it has a nice little view of the main street. There are skylights, a couple couches, a variety of tables, and a few seats at the counter. Considering my bedroom here has one small window and a bed as my only seating option, the café is much appreciated by me.



Another nice part is that the coffee is self-serve, so no more asking “would you like room for cream??” Just give them the cup & let them figure it out…

(sorry, not a very exciting image)

Another perk, we only have 3 syrups and 2 sauces! I’m sure the original ECers can remember when we had, what…25 different flavors? more?? It definitely makes cleaning syrup pumps go much quicker. It also makes those ordering a gross flavored latte decide in under 10 seconds (especially since they aren't listed on the menus?).


Unfortunately, our only grinder is similar to the old EC decaf one – meaning, it is much slower, doses off center, and isn’t super consistent. Because of its slowness, the accepted practice here is to let it grind until the chamber is about ½ full and have the espresso sit until you need it…for example, when I opened today, the chamber was about ¼ full of last nights grinds that were intended to get me through the first hour or two of my shift. (Go ahead, ECers, you can cringe).


Our café is responsible for all of the coffee and alcoholic drinks for the restaurant, so I’ve slowly been learning how to bartend. It has been really nice because it allows me to learn without actually having to make drinks right in front of the customer. I’ve definitely had to consult the recipe book a couple of times to teach myself how to make a certain drink…but no complaints so far! Alcohol tends to bring in more tips than coffee, and apparently people in tourist towns tip well, so I’ve made between $15 and $20 during a 5 hour day shift. Not bad when you’re used to a dollar or $2 extra…


Alright…and now the moment of truth…please, ECers, grab a drink, a tissue, a cigarette, whatever you may need to get through this…


Yes, its true…we “proudly” serve Starbucks…
I was surprisingly able to drink it just fine the first few shifts I had. Now, however, I can barely stomach the smell when it is brewing. LUCKILY my manager is great and she had been working on getting a local roastery involved. As of a week or two ago, we serve Starbucks regular, Starbucks decaf, and one Green Mountain brew (local). From what I’ve heard word of mouth, he roasts flavored coffees, but instead of using flavorings or syrups, he will actually throw whole almonds or hazelnuts or cinnamon sticks into the mix. The one we served last week was “Snickerdoodle” (yep…); we also have a Cinnamon-Hazelnut on hand. I chose to brew the Sumatra for my last 2 shifts and it is definitely good. Its not Intelligentsia amazing, but it is much better than Starbucks and its fresh (not as flavorful as a Sumatra should be, but a good cup nonetheless).

Because we serve Starbucks, they insist that we have a certain brand & model espresso machine. Here she is, in all her (pitiful) glory…


Unfortunately, my coffee snob comes out in full force when I talk about this machine. At this café, we are taught to judge the temperature of the milk “according to the sound it makes” instead of thermometers or touch. However, the water pressure in the building is dependent on the kitchen and the dishwasher, so you can’t actually count on a consistent steam. I thankfully revert to my EC ways and rely on touch much more than sound. On top of that, we have one steam wand designated for milk & half and half, the other designated for soy and chai. (hmm…) Also, when i presented my technique with foam, no bubbles, thick but with a glossy sheen, I was told that "people in woodstock prefer bubbly foam."

As far as shots, they have one portafilter for a single shot, one for a double, and one for decaf (single shot only). This means, when you tamp a single shot, you aren’t on an even surface because it only has one spout. Also the tamper is entirely manual, no pressure sensitivity like I’m used to. And now, I have two options, you can choose which one is worse…

A) Our double shots pour at 8 SECONDS.

B) Our decaf espresso comes from PODS.
(I truly never though I would utter that word)

For those with some knowledge, I shot a detail of the “shot timer panel”…

KEY = ½ shot…full shot…2 ½ shots…2 full shots…manual flow (for “cleaning”)

I’m still working out how my morals relate to this concept. We also pour into little silver cups, so you can’t really tell the volume or crema. I miss my clear shot glasses…

To end on a positive note, my coworkers are pretty great. There are only 5 of us that work there and we are generally single-staffed = nice for tips, not great for relationships. We get a free meal after every shift (an amazing perk because the food is ridiculously good!) so I’ve had a little time to chat with each co-worker while I’m eating, but it’s not the quality bonding time I was used to at EC =) Here’s Frank, our lone male employee, super happy to be at work!


It feels good to be back in coffee again...

(as a disclaimer, I decided after writing this post to omit the name of the café…after all, they are currently my only form of income…)

oh, woodstock...

This is the scene at the building next to CPW last weekend. Just another day in Woodstock…

Fawn Potash & Danielle Correia : Encaustics & Photography

(just to warn you, this post is kinda crazy with photos, but they all seemed necessary!)

Our Encaustics workshop was a small, intensive, 4-day class with an amazing group of people. Our teachers, Danielle Correia and Fawn Potash, are wonderful teachers and artists who have been involved in encaustics for years.

Until a few weeks ago, I had no idea what “encaustics” were. The process involves applying and painting with hot wax and pigments. Our workshop was “Encaustics & Photography,” so the majority of our pieces started with a base image. We began the weekend at the Center making cyanotypes, preparing digital negatives, printing straight images, and prepping panels to use as the basis for our encaustic projects. Here are Jill and Daly hand-coloring some photos to use as the background for a panel:


And our cyanotypes! It was great because we were able to spend time working outside. The process involves coated paper (prepped by the interns), a negative, UV light, and water (and peroxide, if you want to bump up the contrast of the print).



We also went over toning of cyanotypes. An original produces a range of blue tones, but Fawn taught us how you can use chemicals and varying orders to turn them to red, purple, brown, etc…


On Monday and Tuesday we met at R&F’s building in Kingston, NY.
We spent the majority of those days in this room:



Having a small class was nice because it gave us all enough room to spread out. Jill and John, however, chose to share a table together. They came to this CPW Workshop as a gift to themselves, celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary. They were an amazingly adorable team the entire time – they printed together, prepped together, and encaustic-ed (hmm…that’s probably not a word) together. For each panel, John would coat, Jill would work on it, John would give his input & work a little, and then she would refine. Everyone loved seeing their constant encouragement and cooperation.


Against a separate wall was the coating station. Each panel begins with a few coats of wax fused with heat guns. This helps protect the image from deteriorating once you start painting and carving into it.


I loved how the simple process of applying wax and fusing it to get a smooth surface looked on a straight photograph. The smaller your panel, the easier it is to get a smooth surface. I used these two 5 x 7 inch photographs to try that technique. I was really surprised at how different an image can look with just a few layers of wax:


Danielle was the representative from R&F that coordinated the demonstrations at their studio. Here she is teaching them the basics of applying and fusing layers.


She demonstrated a ridiculous number of techniques and tools, basically showing how almost anything is possible to experiment with. This shot is just a handful of tools that I found on Danielle’s workstation.


And here, she is demonstrating how to dip an image:


I really loved how the dipped paper looked, too – it takes on this translucent quality and makes the paper stiff enough to work with, but still fragile enough to maintain the quality of paper without being attached to a board. When it comes to encaustics, apparently I’m a bit of a purist. I did one copy of each image in a recent project...i hope to go back and stitch into them:


Being a workshop, we were all encouraged to at least try every technique we learned about. Another technique is combining pigment sticks with encaustics. These oil-based pigment sticks give a much bolder look and let you paint directly on the surface – kind of like a big crayon. Here are just a sampling of the colors they had available:


I tried it in two different applications. First, by carving into a wax coated panel while painting with encaustic:


…and on a dipped paper, which is obviously much more delicate. I’m not saying it’s a work of art, but this is how that one turned out:


I was really impressed with how well Daly incorporated both aspects into her panels – and her workstation definitely proved it:



Nikki, on the other hand, got really into using photos as a base and using the encaustics as a straight painting method.


At the end of the last day we spent some time going around the room and seeing how everyone’s tests turned out. I was shocked at how good everything turned out! Here is Daniella, my table partner and an R&F instructor in California, showing the class and instructors all of her experimentation:


Laula created one of my favorite pieces from the weekend. She kept it very simple, just using the pigments sticks with encaustic to draw over an original photograph:


It was a great 4 days – everyone was really excited to learn and play around with all the new material. We really couldn’t have asked for a better group to take this workshop. It was really cool to learn it myself, too. Encaustic is not a very well known form of art, but it is growing in popularity and recognition. The natural materials and process made it even more interesting to my tastes. And now that I have had time to try the methods on my own, I have even more respect for those who practice it professionally!

(The two happy interns for the workshop, Nikki Tappa and myself)