nicklewy (loit)

So so sad that the trip has ended and we are back here in marquette. I really wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into going on this trip to minneapolis with my classmates. I was on the verge of not going because the band minus the bear was in town but I knew this trip was not worth missing. This whole semester  has not been going as well as I had hoped it would be going but Im just glad to be graduating here at the end of april. I think this trip was just what I needed to keep me focused and really opened up my eyes on what makes me happy in the photography world. I don’t need to come out of college and necessarily become a shooter immediately and seeing Eric with his print studio and the kinds of things he is doing with fine art for a career really left me satisfied in knowing that there our jobs out there that would make me happy if I were doing them down the road.

Friday we had another early morning and it was another extremely fun and educational day. A great time on our last stop at the museum!  This group of students on the trip were able to take the serious educational side of this trip (a opportunity of a life time) and combined it with having some of the most fun I’ve had in along time and not let one side outweigh the other. We are all extremely fortunate to have gone on this trip and I cant thank Christine Flavin enough for the opportunities and exposure we were given. After all the things we learned about the industry from this trip one of the most important things I learned was the personal lives of most of the students in the class. We shared stories of our dreams, disasters, and everyday lives that occur outside of the classroom. Many of us became closer then I ever thought imaginable, the bonding time I shared with these friends I wouldn’t give up for anything. This minneapolis trip has been questionably the most influencial and enjoyable times of my college career and I’m extremely glad we all were on this together.

I did not take alot of digital photographs on this trip but I was able to shoot 90 photographs on my bronica. I hope to have the film sent out and developed so I can start scanning sometime early next week. I then hope to either create a book of our trip or print a few large as I usually do. Maybe will have a vote in class or something.

Here are just a few digital images that I actually did take on the trip.

 

Recovery and Analysis (Jordan Buzzy)

down and out

With a couple of days to recover and reflect I present my final post.

Liz decided her face may look better as a camera for the trip

When all is said and done, the galleries and studios, the downtown adventures, and the long liver busting nights behind, it was the conversations between like-minded art students that I found to be the most important. Having the time to really hear how my fellow students felt about the program we were in. Hearing the different backgrounds and future ambitions helped me to orient my own experiences.

I was particularly fortunate to meet up with some old friends on the final night. Eric, Spike, and TJ were some of the first kids I met as a freshman. They were “the older kids” in the group First Aid Productions which I am now president of. Both Eric and TJ are Art & Design Alumni from NMU.

(TJ Hanrahan)

TJ, a former woods student, who had been living back in Illinois with his parents and working an unskilled woods job, was beckoned by his friends who were starting to settle in Minneapolis. Now he is working with his hands again doing finishing work for a studio and hanging out with his best friends once again. Getting the chance to pick at these kids brains, not only about there developing careers in art, but also about the importance of friendship was easily my favorite experience of the trip. I hope our class will remember to use each and our friends as resources in the future.

Now we are back home with the  memories of tall buildings and Chipotle fading away. All that remains is our stories… and some photos:

 

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And that's how it ended.

More photos can be found here:  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=1363479164220&id=1148820328&aid=2038212

exhaustion. [liz danko]

I’m coming towards the end of my four years in college, cramming in full loads each semester trying to get all the squares filled. I’ve been given great opportunities to grow as an artist and be challenged in ways I could never have expected. And I am exhausted.

I woke up this morning, the day after our drive back from Minneapolis, and felt worse than I did yesterday morning, after a late night in the city. Worse as in, still exhausted. On our trip I only took 337 photographs, most of which were not even very good and despite how few images I have, it has taken me most of the afternoon to go through them.

I have come to the conclusion that I am just exhausted. Even with few photographs to prove it, my experiences in Minneapolis this week have given me the boost I need to make it through the next five weeks before graduation.

One of the things I found all the commercial photo studios we visited had in common was that they were located in industrial buildings, new and old. My dad buys, sells, leases and rents these sort of buildings in Charlotte, NC. It was my personal connection to these businesses; I was comfortable in them.

I am excited once again excited to be in a city environment. Friday night as we sat around drinking the last of our beer from the brewery we ate at, Eric (a Digital Cinema NMU alumni, who spent the evening hanging out with us) asked me, “So what do you think of Minneapolis?” I really wish we would’ve had more time to explore the city, then I could’ve answered him with an educated answer. I would really like to visit the area during the much warmer summer months and with more time to explore.

Each night we came home so completely wiped and starved…”hangry” is what we referred to the mood. Our main goal was to find food and find it quick. And it was so cold, we were not digging the idea of walking much more than a few blocks to find it.

I really appreciated the opportunity to hangout with a few of the art students that had graduated from NMU in the last couple of years. I am glad to hear that it is fun to be a broke assistant in a new city. I’ve made a few new friends, which could be help in the next few years.

Back to reality of the moment…homework. Only five more weeks. And it will come to an end.

Post IV [Courtny Howes]

Top five favorite highlights from the trip:

5. “Holla at ya boi/gurl ____!”   [insert anyone’s name in this blank who went on the trip or that we met].

4. Getting a copy of Francesca Woodman’s book; I finally own it!!

3. Seeing a friend unexpectedly, and talking and catching up with her.

2. Being in a city that I’ve never been to before.

1. Getting to know my classmates.Some of them I’ve know for a couple years, but I got to know them way better this weekend. Others I’ve never met before the start of this class, and it was the first time I’ve hung out with them outside of class. Consequently, I think these same people are also graduating in a few weeks, but it was good to get to know them before they are off. It was serious fun, and the classes we have left this semester are going to be good ones because of it.

 

I was a part of a few conversations about school (what was good, what could’ve been better), and what’s going to happen after school, and just about photography. They were conversations that we wouldn’t have had in class, or maybe outside of class, but they happened this weekend because we were together. It was one of the most important aspects of the trip for me. My old friends are scattered over the state, and none of them are art majors. My friends in Marquette are out of school, and my parents don’t really know what exactly is going on here at Northern for me. This weekend, I felt surrounded, and heard a lot of my own concerns, fears and hopes voiced by other people. There was some attempt at problem-solving, but mostly it was good just to talk. This weekend is going to stay close to me for a long time.

 

 

Post III [Courtny Howes]

Friday came fast; the first stop was Gamut One Studios. It was another commercial studio that housed four photographers who all worked for Gamut One. The business model was different from Fusebox in that regard, and that difference was reflected in the work produced. While walking around Fusebox, there were a lot of framed photos on the walls, and although there wasn’t any indication of who took which photo, I noticed several different styles. In Gamut One, however, their business had a cohesive portfolio of all four photographers, and their style was singular. It could’ve been any one of the shooters that took each shot, and even when Dewey, our guide that day, talked about the studio’s work I don’t remember him pointing out specific shots of his own.

I’m not interested in commercial photography, but I know I’d like to own or co-own a business someday. I think I’d be happier in a co-op situation like Fusebox, where each member contributes to business costs, but retains autonomy to produce work in their own style. Ben McKean was telling us how having other business partners allows you to rely on each other’s strengths, instead of having to do it all on your own. I can also see the advantages to Gamut One’s studio, because everyone is working towards to the same company image and goal, but it wouldn’t give me enough personal freedom.

Next, we had a break and went to the Minneapolis Art Hotel, which was a hotel/restaurant/small art gallery, with a bunch of sweet contemporary art lining the hallways and walls.

Art Hotel

The third event of the day was a visit to our last commercial studio, Jeff Johnson Studio. It was smaller compared to the others, but there were huge windows and lots of natural light. It looked like a fun place to work. Jeff was pretty laid back, and his studio and receiving area reflected his photography, which was great. I think all the studios had that theme going on; the buildings and decor and set-up gave you a good sense of the  business and the photographers. Jeff’s was my favorite.

Jeff Johnson Studio

Jeff explaining his books

From the receiving area of the studio

 

A visit to the Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) was our very last event of the trip. We met up with a photography curator, who pulled original prints from the MIA’s collection. I love going to museums and galleries to see prints in person, but this was a rare opportunity to see prints out of frames, off walls, and right on the table in front of me. It made me more appreciative of different photographic processes, from the calotype to daguerreotype to gelatin print, and to even note the difference between platinum paladium and silver printing.

The MIA was staggering in its size and collection. There was a lot of ancient and Renaissance art, but I didn’t mind skipping over those galleries to head to Angels Strassheim’s Evidence show that was up. The work was morbid, shocking, and utterly fascinating. It’s great to see what new photography is out there, and that it can fasten me to the floor for minutes to look at just a few pictures.

Another great show that was up was called “Facing the Lens: Portraits of Photographers.” I loved it! The work was split between portraiture and self-portraiture, and realistic and figurative representations. One of my favorite parts was a grouping of several photographers’ I.D. cards, ranging from passports to driver’s licenses. Alec Soth was there!

Soth's driver's license

There was also a Soth portrait, one he took of photographer William Eggelston as part of his Mississippi series. Another print that was great to see in person.

Soth's photo

Post II [Courtny Howes]

More from Thursday:

We visit the Walker Art Museum after Minneapolis Photo Center and a break. Eric Crosby, a curator there, gave us a quick tour of the contemporary photos on display throughout the museum. The highlight was probably Angela Strassheim’s “Evidence No. 6”, from her most recent series, Evidence. Another favorite of a lot of people was a slideshow by William E. Jones. It consisted of a collection of photographs taken for the Farm Security Administration that director Roy Striker did not want to include in the FSA’s collection, so to censor them, and ensure that they wouldn’t be published, a hole was punched in the middle of them. The photos flashed by, slowly and then faster until the imagery was just a blur, but the hole punch in the middle remained constantly. It was an interesting presentation of government censorship.

Censored FSA photographs at the Walker

The Walker Art Museum is huge! There was so much to look at, but the rooms had pieces spaced out well, and the white marble floors and big windows made it feel open and airy. It is a definite re-visit next time I’m in Minneapolis.

the Walker

Our last event of the day was a visit to Fusebox, a commercial photography studio that houses six photographers. We talked with Ben McKean, an NMU alumnus, who explained his rise in commercial photography and what he did to get there; work hard, be personable, and honest. His success was great to hear about, but I liked how he had time to meet with our group, and was excited to talk to us and share his time and experiences.

That night some of us had sushi (yum) and talked about school/post-school. I met up with a dear friend who relocated to the Twin City Area after leaving Marquette and Northern. Good to see ya Amy!

John Berry

Just got home after a fantastic three days in Minneapolis. Yesterday, our last day, was spent checking out 2 studios and a museum. All were very educational and inspiring. The museums we visited during our trip were more inspiring for me than visiting the commercial studios, mostly because the kind of Photography I intend to get into is more photojournalistic/fine art. I was almost wetting myself when we were viewing the first edition prints of my photographic heros, especially the Robert Frank Print. What really blew me away was seeing the light burn marks on the edges of Frank’s print. It gave me a lot of hope, because I love seeing imperfections like burn marks on the edge of a print. It lets me know that my photo heroes aren’t superheros, but human beings. After that awesome moment we booked it to the Angela Strassheim exhibit, which was eerie and oddly beautiful at times. One of her prints reminds me of being a young child and having glow-in-the-dark stars on my wall, only in the photo, those glistening specs were once blood. Morbid.

 

So overall this trip was inspiring and educational for me even though I’m not planning on going into commercial photography. It was nice to hear from a professional photographer’s perspective of working/living in a large city. Christine is a great professor with loads of patience, and I’m thankful for her dedication to us as students and taking the time to plan a trip like this.  So thanks to her for putting up with all of our crazy personalities for a few days. It was great to get to know everyone more in this class. It’s a really neat feeling to know that you’re learning/working with a group of people you know will end up doing great things with this field. I’ll miss those of you that are graduating, and ya’ll better keep in touch with me!

Chelsea Tripp

The trip to Minneapolis was such a great experience! We have had very valuable knowledge thrown at us over the past few days, something that I will not take for granted. Thank you Christine for such a wonderful opportunity. You helped prepare us for the future as well as bring us all closer!

just some kids i know now. [liz danko]

I appreciate the relationships that have grown on this trip. Looking back I wish I would’ve photographed more, however these are a couple shots of the people I’ve enjoyed getting to know better on this trip. I think what I love more than the fact I’ve met some rad shooters and printers, I look forward to the connections I have for the rest of my life, from this class. My secret fear, which has become less secret this trip is that when I move 1200 miles away, everyone is going to forget about me. Well, these kids reassure me that won’t be so.

Pat. Coffee. First Morning Here. Invisible Camera in Hand. Genuine Character in this Man.

Jordan. White Boy. Mixing it Up. Gentle Expressions.

Audrey Lewis

So after reading everyone else’s blog from last night I decided that I needed to step it up and do a better blog today. So here we go.

How come when I try to get up early at home I struggle so much and when I am on vacation I wake up before everyone, with the exception on Christine? With that being said, I forget how much I love the early morning. Yes I said it, I love waking up and seeing the sunrise, drinking coffee, listing to my ipod and photographing. Now I’m sitting in my bed editing the photos and writing this blog. Today looks like it will be an interesting day. That is all for now.

Latter on…
Gamut One was our first stop of the day. This studio was very nice and everything but what I found was the most helpful from this stop was that Dewey Koshenina, the man that gave us the tour and one of the owners, does medical photography. He suggested that if I just want to photograph to get into contact with a studio that does medical photography. I had been doing it all wrong! I have been doing job searches based of medical suppliers and hospitals in the areas I wanted to live. Now I ‘m going to be targeting photographing studios in the area.