Jennilee Marigomen

Jennilee Marigomen: Breathe !

She's not

I was looking NICH HANCE MCELROY's blog where I found some really interesting artworks. I especially discovered the photographer JENNILEE MARIGOMEN and I have to say that her work blew me away.

She doesn't take pictures to show how spectacular is the world, it is not about the intensity of the moment. She's not trying to damage your eyes permanently with crazy colors, she's not trying to show how great she is in using the subject only as a support of her genius.

Among talented photographers, sometime I suffocate

My viewpoint is encumbered by the aggressiveness of talented photographers.Among these one who have a really high level of technical skills like a NASA engineer in order to make spectacular images, or these other ones who have a complexity of concept that only an austere german philosopher can get, or these ones who are mentally disturbed and who are no ashamed to show it at the face of the world, among all of them I feel sometime like a tourist harassed by umbrella sellers in a rainy day....

Jennilee Marigomen: Breathe !

It is a real relief to look at Jennilee Marigomen's artwork, the simplicity of her pictures respect the ability of your heart in being touched by them. I like to be considered as a sensitive person who doesn't need saucy colors for being attracted and who doesn't need complex compositions to be pensive. There is enough space in her photographs to bring your own thoughts, your own mood and begin a conversation with Jennilee's thoughts. Finding the right balance between the extreme heat of the volcanic expression and the siberian coldness of the neutrality who has no soul is not an easy thing. In doing that you can easily be tepid which is the nightmare of the artist. In looking at Jennilee's pictures you can "sentir l' odeur de la pierre mouillée" (GUSTAVE FLAUBERT), you can feel the heat from a ray of sunshine during the spring, you can feel all these kind of delicate things that come when you give them time and space, and finally you can breathe !

Why I'm taking pictures

Temporary Art: Why am I taking pictures ?

About Sadhu

Is it what I wondered when I was walking in the street this morning looking for inspiration.

The sadhus in India work their willingness in deciding to do a really specific thing for a certain amount of years, like keep the hand closed for 6 years (until the nails goes trough the palm of the hand), or like standing for years even for sleeping... Sadhus are religious men so I was wondering the purpose of deciding crazy thing like these. I read somewhere the explanation, when they focus their attention on doing what they decided they don't waste their energy in doing something bad so they make sure that energy won't hurt nobody in being focused on one thing. I know it's crazy but it makes perfect sense to me and thinking that way takes a lot of pressure off, I don't photograph only for me. My being is not enough to motivate the 4 hours and a half I spent walking this morning in the marsh of my doubts. It is as I am I like to have a spiritual purpose in my photography because I was never able to feel it in prayers and in churches.

Temporary Art: Why am I taking pictures ?

Finally when I'm going out I'm taking vow of taking pictures. When you make a vow you expect nothing but you just do it, It is my way to live my spirituality.

http://www.sylvaindurandphotographer.com/#/temporaryart

Temporary Art

Temporary Art: A good picture is a temporary gift

Temporary Art: A good picture is a temporary gift

Today I went out to take some pictures and I wasn't inspired despite all the time I spent to make something happens. It's easy to be discouraged when its like that but I really forced myself thinking "there are some days with, there are some days without". When I have a day "with" it's like a gift and it's easy to take it for granted, but when nothing happens it remind you how much this gift is temporary. The excellent Elizabeth Gilbert talked about this topic in this excellent VIDEO.

Easy to make his life easier

I'm never sure about what will happen each day. Every day I have to be ready, I have the duty to do everything to make it, it is the only thing I'm sure about. 

My day can be completely spoiled by my expectations. When it happens I switch my mind, and better than focus on what I'm desiring, I focus on what I have to do, it makes suddenly my life so much easier.

http://www.sylvaindurandphotographer.com/#/temporaryart

Temporary Art

Temporary Art: Create with the Banal

My life in suburbs

I recently realized that I spent most of my life in suburbs. I'm a real mix with the city guy that my father WAS (now is living in the country) and my mom who was a pure country girl (LOZERE i'm sure nobody heard about this place in USA!)

Now I'm leaving in USA with my delicious boo in Bayside, a suburb in Qeens (NY.)

I think more and more people live in suburb in the world. Living downtown in the big cities is more and more expensive but it is still where there are most of the jobs.

Temporary Art: Create with the Banal

So I photograph suburb most of the time, because nothing is more banal than that. I always thought the challenge of creativity is creating with your closest environment. I judge the quality of a photographer by his ability to create with banality. I started to think that when I discover the PHOTOGRAPHER HENRI CARTIER BRESSON. Actually nothing is banal if you know to see the moment. You're going to tell me that I didn't take pictures of people that much lately, I will tell you that you have no idea how the most banal thing is sensitive to the changes of light. Sometimes I try to use the same ingredients thinking I will have something similar, it is never, NEVER the same.

Nothing is more constant than change

The artist it is someone crazy who has an obsession, all the time, he's going to go back again and again on his idea, re-doing the same work again and again. For people the artist seems to do the same thing, it is not, if a musician can play the same melody hundred times,

it's because he's hearing obvious differences  Actually nothing is more constant than change in the most tiny things, in the most banal things of this world, even in suburb.

Homage To Disorder

Homage To Disorder: How I find my Artistic Zone

 Copying your masters in order to make your personal art work

Here I would like to talk a little bit about my abstract artwork in Black and White on the disorder in ABANDONED NATURE. 

I was able to take a good picture for years when I began this personal artwork, but all my life of photographer I looked for a style makes recognizable my pictures.

Looking for the magic vibe

JEANLOUP SIEFF, HENRI CARTIER BRESSON were the examples to follow. I tried so hard to copy them but I never found in my pictures the magic vibe I felt in their artwork. It causes me lot pain, doubts. I was convinced that artistic creation was a path full of Christian pains. I was more working in being someone else than being myself. Most of guitarists start playing guitar with the image of JIMI HENDRIX in their mind. As well I was attracted by the image of the photo-journalist that CAPA completely made up for business purposes.

Homage To Disorder: How I find my Artistic Zone

6 years ago I decided to stop taking picture because I felt that I couldn't be great and I was thinking that my problem was my ambition and not my photography. I could never forget these 6 months I stop taking pictures because when I'm thinking about that, it makes me feel I was in a hospital bed not being able to move. I've been taking pictures since I'm 7, it is a big part of my life, acting like that it was like cut myself a part of my body.

When i took my camera again I was in the mood, for the first time of my life, in having fun, in not following stupid rules, just have the maximum fun, as possible. It worked !!!

All my life I took pictures in order to make good photographs, for the first time I took pictures of what I wanted, big difference !!!!!

Now I'm working everyday on finding my path, on staying far from the worth rules in the universe: rules created by habits! It's one of the reasons I'm doing this COLOR ARTWORK.

Temporary Art

Temporary Art: Make it Simple

Simple: Complex: Color: Black and White....

For years I took pictures of the complex shapes of the BUSHES, I worked on them hours and hours in post-production in order to find the good black and white. Now I take picture simple elements like fences, electric wires, everything in color with the minimum post-production as possible.

All roads lead to Rome, color AND black and white

 It seems to be 2 opposite approaches but more i'm writing more I'm thinking both ways came from the same logic. It is this desire to do great pictures with the less tools as possible, using simple process because I always thought that was a way to preserve the original energy of the inspiration.

I love using black and white because of its simplicity make stronger the expression. I'm discovering using color with pleasure because we see the world in colors and there is considerably less work of interpretation so it makes my capture more spontaneous.

Temporary Art: Make it Simple

Each practice has a level of simplicity and complexity. The goal is to find a process for the complex things to execute in order to be able to forget this part and play like crazy people in the area of the simplicity. The proof in the pictures with JEANLOUP SIEFF, REN HANG, and ME :-)

Ren Hang

Ren Hang: poetic and explosive "cock"tail of Araki and Lucien Clergue ?

Ren Hang

I was looking at a blog that I recently discover with a minimalist name as "///"  and I discovered the photographer REN HANG. It was something like 7:30pm when I took a really violent cocktail of milk and saké in my face. His website shows an incredible consistency of photographic style even you will see some pictures on the border to be porn, it depends how you defined porn, and some pictures with a real fresh poetry.

Ren Hang: Araki and Lucien Clergue ?

ARAKI is a Japanese photographer approximately 10 years older than a photographer like JEANLOUP SIEFF, he made lot of provocative pictures of bonded women. As well Ren Han as the same obsession about erected penises but don't be mistaken, his work is not only about that, you will see at the end of this article, one of his picture I present shows clearly an inspiration from LUCIEN CLERGUE.

Ren Hang: Explosive Cocktail

I have to be honest I'm not comfortable at all in looking at erected penises but it's impossible to deny his talent in taking pictures the bodies. If you're shocked by his pictures with naked people please try to take time to see the other ones, like these ones I show, some are pure jewelry of poetry.

Temporary Art

Temporary Art: The art of expanding the Present

The weight of the past

 I spent years on, what I call, the fundamental research  in photographic art which brought me to the black and white artwork on the BUSHES. I explored unknown photographic territories in order to find new photographic active properties. The more I explored the more I felt this pressure that empty my inspiration of "child" inspiration.

In the mean time of the research I met lot of Jazz musicians through MALA my tender wife and, little by little, it made me change my mind about creation.

I didn' t realize I brought lot of suitcases with all these times. They are full of memories, full of histories. There are enough things in these suitcases to stop somewhere and feel comfortable but when I was feeling to move I realized that everything seemed to be heavy, I also was tempted to think I can't move as I was younger.

 So I wanted to feel lighter, I put my suitcases and I defined a photographic process that give the maximum preeminence to the eye on the moment of capturing the picture. It's why I chose the color because I always thought there is less range for the interpretation unlike the black and white.

Temporary Art 

You can feel reduced when you take off your past and you blind yourself on your future,in doing that you' re actually giving a  chance to the present moment to expand. I felt horrified thinking about throwing away my pictures after one month for this PROJECT. In accepting this idea I felt so confident  to expand my present and, by this way, giving more space for life.

http://www.sylvaindurandphotographer.com/#/temporaryart

JeanLoup Sieff

JeanLoup Sieff: First inspiration, how this photographer made me who I am now.

JeanLoup Sieff & Chenz

I don't remember exactly how old I was, 7 or 9 years old, something like that. I was looking for erotic sensations via pictures of naked women in books. 

This is how I discovered the book, "LA PHOTO : PAR CHENZ ET JEANLOUP SIEFF". This is a reference book for beginners in photography. It was a kind of 2 books in one, CHENZ's approach was deeply technical, he was talking about the chemical and optical details of photography. JEANLOUP SIEFF's part was more focused on the image, he included some of his pictures, I guess he taught by example, I can tell you it worked for me.

Father Photographer

I was already taking pictures at this time, my FATHER taught me the technical photography bases really early. It makes me smile when I think about it because he had no doubts about the ability of a 7 year old boy to learn this knowledge.

However, my approach was more technical than artistic. I guess I wanted to do like my father in having my camera in my hands but I was not sure about knowing the purpose of this willingness.

JeanLoup Sieff: First inspiration

Everything became crystal clear when I saw this picture from JeanLoup Sieff in the book I just mentioned. It was a belly which had goose bumps, in the background it was a window probably (because it's been years since I saw this picture), the black and white chiaroscuro which makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I think about it. I'm not sure but I think it was a picture of his wife's early pregnancy. I'm not able to show this picture here despite the research I made on the net.

 Ever since seeing this picture I knew why I wanted to photograph, the real purpose of it. I wanted to find the same feeling I got with this picture in my own photography. I'm 36 years old and it is now more than ever the goal and the point of my life. JeanLoup Sieff's black and white has inspired my BLACK AND WHITE photography most of my life, and now I'm doing this COLOR PROJECT about temporary art. At this point I am so far from the original spring, my inspiration has increased with the influences from other photographers and now mostly from music, especially from my WIFE. Wherever my path takes me, I have my passion and his roots in my blood....Passionately

THANK YOU JEANLOUP !!!

Sonia Sieff

In writing this article I found out about SONIA SIEFF, who is JeanLoup Sieff's daughter, she is a really talented photographer as well. I was touched to see that the history of my mentor had a development through his daughter. I was really tempted to write something about her in this article but I resisted because I know how it can be heavy to be the son/daughter of someone famous. Before writing an article on her I would like to make sure I know her photography better. I would also like to take time to forget her father before considering her artwork, it is the minimum respect I owe to a talented photographer.....

Letter to my Dear Wife Mala

My Dear Wife and how she inspires me with her talent

Our improbable first meeting

While living in LYON, I gave up trying to find a way of practicing and improving my grade school English. One of my best friends Olivier, talked to me about a website called LIVEMOCHA. At this time there were already 1,000,000 people connected and ready to learn and teach foreign and native languages. Here I started  to chat with someone who wanted to learn French, Japanese, Italian, Spanish, and she had a bunch of "mochapoints." These points show  how involved you are in learning from and teaching  other people.

I have to say that, when I was small I was always in love with the best girl student of the classroom, it's probably why I decided to chat with her. 

So the first chat lasted more than 3 hours in English, I was proud and so happy, and I felt already she was special because she made me more intelligent. I came to visit her in New York and love made its work, and we continued to see each other, in France, in New York.....

Her name is MALA.

My muse brings me to my artistic zone

 She inspired me with hours and hours of conversation, I never spent that much time in front of a screen. I guess feelings don't care about the media but more about the words.

At this time I had just re-begun taking pictures after a 6-month stop. I just started a new project in BLACK AND WHITE, it was the most personal work I've ever made up until this point. I actually didn't really know what to think about that. MALA really helped me to consider the artistic value of what was happening. I really did understand what a big deal it was, I was finding my artistic zone. Because of her I didn't miss what would be the base for my next artistic production. Without her I wouldn't be the photographer I am now.

I also had the incredible chance to be the witness of the creation of wonderful songs she was writing. I was able to see how from nothing came the evidence of the music. All the things I heard and saw, this happiness in the freedom of creation inspired me more and more. It helped me to understand Jazz and it made my listening more intelligent, more sensitive. It brought me the acceptance of complete freedom in my own photographic field.

It is still happening again and again.

My Dear Wife

We're married now, it is the best thing that could happen to me. We never stop learning from each other about ourselves, about our creations. We are growing so fast, without the fears of the infinite sky's depth in which we want to dive.

From the abstract black and white to my CURRENT ARTWORK, MALA, you are the spring of my inspiration. Who knows where your artistic inspiration will bring us?

If you like my work you should definitely take a look at her WEBSITE to see the fairy who's inspiring me.

Thanks, God !!! It's a miracle being with the only woman who's able to fulfill my soul!

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Project Temporary Art

Temporary Art born from a crazy idea : Take pictures almost every day, publish them them at the end of the month, destroy them one month later.

Emerging photographer

I'm an emerging photographer in the art market but I've been taking pictures for almost 30 years.

My inspirations

I discover one of JEANLOUP SIEFF's book when I was 9, I was already practicing photography at his time but the meeting with his pictures was an extraordinary epiphany. it  clearly showed me the feeling I wanted to find in my own pictures. After I discovered the photography of Daido Moriyama, Henri Cartier Bresson, Giorgia Fiorio....

Temporary Art in Photography

My wife MALA WALDRON is a talented Jazz musician. The more I listened to her playing the more it nurtured the desire to feel this excitement provided by the improvisation on stage.

I realized what was missing in my photographic practice, was a sense of impermanence. I finally had this idea I could take pictures that I would destroy after a certain period of time. It took me a lot of time before accepting this idea. Feeling like a musician helped me in that way. Most of the time when a musician plays he has no recording of his performance .... I had to switch my mind and take pictures with more detachment than usual. There is no better mind in order to create right ? Take a look at my GALLERY

Affordable Pictures

I'm an outsider to the art market which I consider as the luxury market. In the meantime I always feel more comfortable in creating something new than reproducing the old recipes. It was for this reason I wanted to create a new market that involves every day people in my art.

 I deliberately chose a low price to make a real "pop art" meaning popular art, right? Is "popular" the antonym of "unique?" This is the idea I want to destroy in making each picture a unique piece. Check the PRICE.

http://www.sylvaindurandphotographer.com/#/temporaryart