My bootie made the cut

Last week was SXSW in Austin. My sister flew down from Seattle to hang out. We saw Big Boi at the Austin Power Plant, Foo Fighters and TV on the Radio at Stubbs, and Wu Tang Clang with Erykah Badu at the Austin Music Hall.

I received a call a couple of weeks ago from a good friend Ben Kutchins asking if I knew anyone in Austin who does videography. I referred him to half a dozen local filmmakers, editors and videographers I've met in the last year. The job was for SPIN magazine for a SXSW feature. Although they didn't need a photographer, it felt really good to be able to pass on work to friends. The day before the shoot Ben called to let me know that their main photographer cancelled. They booked me for three days of portraits.

The shoot was set up in a side building/storage shed at Stubbs, a huge venue in downtown Austin. They turned the room into a country store sort of set up with a bar, rocking chairs, wooden barrels scattered about, and taxidermy and wagon wheels on the walls. Artist would come in, do an interview with the head of SPIN.com and then I would pull them to the side to shoot a quick portrait.

I am pretty lucky because I can never remember who anybody is. I don't remember quotes from movies, the names of bands, actors or celebrities. I can't remember what most famous people look like and I can't recall songs unless you sing them to me. This minimizes any starstruck-ness.

First up was two members from Explosions in the Sky. I pulled them aside after the interview and introduced myself. "I know you!" Munaf Rayani said. Turns out he is an Austin local and frequents the same coffee shop as me- where I just hung my photo show. He recognized my name and my bookmark. How cool is that?

Next up was Gayngs, The Bangles, Duran Duran (who gave a killer interview), Little Dragon (a Swedish band who has a member that I'm in luv with), Surfer Blood (whose lead singer acted like he was too good to answer questions that Duran Duran answered), and Chromeo (who I've danced naked to a dozen times).

The second day we shot Wild Flag (later I was told that one of the chicks was from Sleater-Kinney, who I would have totally girl-crush-gushed over... but I didn't recognize her), then Moby (who I thought was black... ¿ ... he's not), B.o.B., and Bob Geldof (who said I was a beautiful girl. I don't know who he is but I think I'm in love), and Cisco Adler... not thong song Cisco. My favorite quote of the day was from Cisco- "I came out of the vagina ready to rock some shows." awesome.

The third day we shot Panic at the Disco, Black Lips, Pentagram, Liz Phair (who was super rad to shoot and inspired additional creativity), Diplo (who is more intelligent than his twitter feed would let on to), and Theophilus London who presence seeps timeless class into the air. My bootie made the Thephilus London video. Holler.

You can watch the videos here.

New York Times

I got a call while I was in California from the New York Times asking me to scout some location shots for them in Vallejo. Of course I said yes... it's the New York Times...but I don't generally scout. Regardless, it's the New York Times.

He said he loved my landscapes (which I like to hear because I don't feel like it's my strongest arena, though I really enjoy doing it) and gave me a list of things they needed shot. Before we got off the phone I asked how he found me. He said from a photo assistant website, they looked at San Francisco based assistants and I popped up. I told him that was great, I don't generally scout and haven't assisted in a couple years, but was stoked that they found me and would love to do it.

Vallejo is a super cute little town. Though, I don't think they will use my images for the article since they probably already have a photographer hired, it is still really great to get my images in front of they NYT.

Two super talented photographer/artist friends Sean Franzen , and his lovely wife Jeremy live in Vallejo. We met for lunch then drove around Mare Island taking photos. We stopped at the One of a Kind Altered Barbie shop. Oh. My. God. I am in love with this woman Lavonne Salle. Her dolls are the kind of dark pop humour that I love. There was a separate room for all of the 'adult content' creations. Seriously incredibly creative and fun stuff. I guess christian residents got all up in arms because she painted nipples on the barbies... as if children don't know nipples exist.





















And here is some of the shots from around Vallejo and Mare Island.

Rob.

Rob was one of my awesome Kickstarter benefactors. We took these images out in west Marin, the Presidio and at his house. I am always so nervous about shooting in the rain (ruining my camera), but I loved it. It was totally fun and not half as scary as I imagined... of course it was just fog and drizzle. Rob is now traveling Brasil and South America. Soaking up the rays.

Tom the Great

Click here to read my story of meeting Tom.

...and we're off!

Hello Lovelies!

The opening was a huge success. I sold 6 prints and have had inquiries about 4 more. The show will be up in San Rafael CA at 1122 Fourth Street until February 20th. Go check it out! Make a date night of it. There is a great Puerto Rican restaurant called Sol Food, or there is hippy awesome food at Cafe Gratitude. (Food is one of the things Marin does particularly well.) The cafe is right next to the Rafael Theater, so stop in there for a flick, then hop over and check out the my photos.

So, for the opening I ordered bookmarks to handout that offered up a description of what Saturn Return is and some tips for surviving it... unfortunately they did not arrive in time. I requested super fast delivery however, the printer made a mistake and sent them ground.

Of course I realized this at 3 am the day of the opening. In a panic I called my friend Nano, he works at a local print shop in San Francisco-. He wasn't at work, but told me to call his co-worker, Ken, and let him know that I was Nano's friend. Ken said "No problem! Send the files to Joe, tell him you're Nano's friend, and we will push them through." Of course I wasn't near internet access... AND I wanted to redesign the bookmarks to match the flier I posted on my last update... so on the drive into to city (to go to therapy) I was on my laptop hustling to redesigning the bookmarks (don't worry, my friend Lila was driving). I got the files sent and within two hours the bookmarks were done. It was magical. My friend Kari picked them up, paid for them, and delivered them to the show, which was over the top sweet.

The opening went great. I showed up around 4:30 with my Grandparents to do a walk through before it got too crowded. It was really nice to have them see my career on display, and have an opportunity to show them the various places I have traveled and people I have shot. It gave context to why I am always running out the door or on my computer retouching/writing. (My Grandma is very depression era wired. The thought of having a freelance career seems ridiculous and unreliable to her. Even though she loves my photos and thinks I'm talented, she has suggested, on more than a few occasions, that I look into a career at Peets Coffee or Rite Aid. I know the intention is Sweet. She just wants me to be able to eat.)

After the Grands left, I went to the art supply store a few doors down from the cafe and bought a guest book and a second little book to record what images sold and what the prices were. I mentioned before that I was a little afraid that it wouldn't feel like an opening because the cafe didn't want outside food/beverages or music. Luckily that was not the case. At about 6:30 a steady flow of people began trickling in. From family, to friends that have known me for years, to acquaintances of my Aunt's, to fellow photographers and local artists, to friends in recovery, to ex-boyfriends, to friends of friends and so on. It was great. All in all there were about 200 people in attendance throughout the evening. I was really happy to have bookmarks to give out. They were a great conversation starter... then Kari pointed out that I misspelled... PHOTOGRGRAPHY. Ha. Oh well. I love them anyways.

I designed a set of 4 postcards which are arriving next week at my apartment in Austin and my photo book is going into production starting the 12th. I have a dear friend who is helping me design the book. I'm hoping it will be finished by Valentines Day-ish.

A few days before my opening I saw that a gallery in San Rafael was packed with people. The art looked tactile and interesting so I went in to check it out and quiz the gallery owner on the fine art world. The art was awesome- hundreds of Self Help books had been taken apart and re-stitched together to create all sorts of ridiculous magicalness. The spines of the books were cut up and reworded to make up some Outstanding new titles and the dedication pages were cut up and sewed back together to make what looked like a 4' tall cream coloured tear drop. Check it out if you are in the Bay Area. http://www.donnaseagergallery.com/current_exhibition/index.htm

I ended up telling the woman at the gallery (who turned out to be Donna Seager herself) that I was living in Austin, which led to the question many Bay Area people have- Why? Which more or less resulted in me telling her an abbreviated version of my my life story. (I left out a lot of the more interesting details as I am learning to do...I need to keep the memoir in mind.) Long story short, it turns out her husband knows my Aunt through the Grateful Dead scene and I went to high school with her son (who I may or may not have sold acid to). She seemed to be very intrigued by me. She asked to see my website, however her gallery doesn't show photography. She wrote down a list of galleries and people she thinks would be interested in my work. It was great.

SO, for the rest of my week in SF I will be ordering prints, shipping rewards, checking out galleries, going to meetings and spending time with the Grands, friends and the therapist. Got to keep the head checked.

So much love,

Frankie

Also, feel free to check out my other blog to read more about my brain- http://LittleMissAddict.com

the first Opening

I'm Hung! (And currently in NYC)

Hello!

So the show is officially up at it's first stop- Cafe Aroma in San Rafael. The artist who was showing before me was extremely specific in the placement of his images, using a carpenter and level to get everything just right, so I asked him if he could just leave his nails up for me. This saved a lot of time. We got to the cafe at around 9am, ordered coffee and started the process of bringing things in. About an hour into the process I posted a photo of us working on Facebook and within a half hour two different friends showed up to help out. I have known David since I was 15 working at a video store. His kids are my age and he is probably the most present adult male in my life. He is particularly talented in technical and traditionally manly matters. My friend Miguel worked with me at a boutique camera store when I was 20. He is a talented fine artist with a lot of experience hanging shows. Having them there sped up the process greatly.

At about noon my friends Justine and Sam showed up. Justine is also a super talented free spirited artist. Having her input was great. We moved things around a bit and swapped a few images out. It felt like everyone was there at the perfect moment. Higher timing. Livia offered the spine of the show keeping me on track, David offered all of the other bones to make up the structure, Miguel offered the flesh and Justine offered the final wrapping of the package- the skin. I suppose if I were to be a body part in this analogy, I'd be the heart. It was all perfect.

And! I was so grateful that 80% of images were printed on the high gloss. The owner of the lab was absolutely correct. They are stunning. The sheer ones are also outstanding but they need so much additional light to make them pop in the same way. The high gloss is definitely desirable. I am really grateful for that *mistake*. They look edible and delicious.

The next day Livia left for New York and I left for Austin. I was only there for 3 days... because I impulsively bought a plane ticket to NYC for $67. So, Saturday I hopped on a plane to go to the Big Apple, which is where I am now. I am staying with my cousin Ian and his wife Alexa in Brooklyn. They are so very sweet. We went our first night to a beard contest that one of my backers was judging. (I have now met 3 of my backers in person!) The beard contest was outstanding. I was not expecting to be met with the outstanding caliber of facial hair that was present. Unfortunately I was starving and tired so we left before the winners were announced. (Which, honestly is probably better. Who wants to see dejected drunk bearded men? They will stay on stage, impressive and confident in my mind.)

The following day I met up with Livia to go to the Levis Photo Workshops where two friends (one being the beard judge) were working. I was confused as to what the Levis Photo Workshops were. Apparently it is a huge, brilliant, marketing idea. They are offering free use of 5 studio shooting bays with top of the line camera and lighting equipment, access to 8 Mac computers with the latest image editing software, high quality photo printers and a t-shirt printer. It's pretty wild. It seemed like there must be a catch. The only obvious catch is that everyone and their mother wants to be there. Great marketing. It's a very nice idea and a very nice space.

So now I am in NYC. One of my goals while I am here are to find a place to have the show... which I am debating: cafe or gallery? I don't even know if I could get into a gallery, but the images are really nice. The other thing is that, even though it is less *prestigious*, I kind of prefer the lowbrow atmosphere and steady flow of people that a cafe show offers. Hmm...

Also while I am in town I have a meeting with someone from a major publishing house who has requested pages from my book a couple times. I have spent the last few days polishing up some a few chapters. I am very excited and anxious about this. Monday is my meeting, wish me luck!