Kanazawa Ghosts

This photo has always scared me. I took it on Shintate-machi street, about 12 years ago, with a Holga that I just bought from Benly's. It was the 2nd floor of a Kimono rental shop, that has since been torn down and turned into a parking lot.

The three figures are suspended in some kind of a dream world, especially with the clouds reflected in the window.


Sometimes I think that my family unit, Moe, Zen and I, are in our own world.

Winter Walks 2012

I have been spending some time in the darkroom, working on the negatives I exposed during my almost daily walks during winter. I think I enjoyed the actually walking more than the photography.

I would bundle up in several layers and stuff my overcoat pockets with snacks, notebooks, pens, extra-film, and get out and walk. The overcoat also allowed me to tuck my camera inside of it, to conceal it like a pistol. I could walk around and not feel like a tourist, which for some reason was a good thing. It helped me get lost within the solitude of the walk, to forget about the camera while my eyes searched for something. The grey days of Kanazawa’s winter didn’t call for to much technical fiddling, so I could just pull out the camera and know that I was close to the correct exposure if I need to shoot something quickly.

I preferred bad weather. Snow and rain in black and white appeal to me. I walked on the nice days, but didn’t shoot as much. The morning, as usual for me, was the best time, especially if there was fog or mist in the air.

The walks were good for me, to find the solitude that I need sometimes. My thoughts ran free while my feet just kept going. Winter in the past has been such an ordeal for me. I drank my way through it, longing for it to end quickly. This winter was different. I stayed away from the Guinness. I accepted the cold and darkness as it slowed everything down, and I was able to get a good grip on a few things that I have been struggling with.

Never thought it would be so, but I am looking forward to the next winter.

Paul Smith in Kanazawa

I have gotten into the habit of walking aimlessly around Kanazawa, with my camera. I don’t develop the film until I have exposed 10 or more rolls. I try to forget what I have photographed, otherwise I start to build up the image in my mind before I have seen the negative, which usually leads to disappointment. By reducing the expectation, I can see the image for what it is, and not for what it is not.

On my last roll before developing, last week, I was on my way home and waiting for the light in from of Kenrokuen garden. About 200 yards away, in front of the 21 Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, I saw a group of school children standing out front. This is a common sight, but what I noticed was a man with grey hair towering over the kids. There was a photographer and a group adults watching. I figured that he must be someone important, so my curiosity lead me in his direction.

As I walked, he went inside the museum, along with his entourage, leaving the kids outside. He bowed several times, and the kids gave him a round of applause. I was still too far away to see his face. His group went into the museum inner galleries, which were closed to the general public that day as they were hanging a new show. I did catch a glimpse of the museum general manager, who I have met a few times.

I waited a little bit, and even asked the girl at the ticket counter who the person was, but she didn’t know. I had no idea when or where they would exit, so I was about to leave. I walked across the grounds and looked back once. That is when I saw the group emerge from the “Swimming Pool” courtyard. I turned right and caught the group as they were turning the corner.

I still had no idea who the person was, but I got my camera out and got ready to shoot. Then the man made eye-contact with me. He smiled. He came right up to the window where I was standing and put his hands on the glass. I snapped. I bowed. He bowed and waved goodbye.

Still I had no idea who this guy was. Yesterday I developed the film and posted the photo on facebook. In minutes, a Kanazawa College of Art student commented and told me that it was the famous Paul Smith, Sir Paul Smith that is, the fashion designer.

Of course I knew his name, and his fashion. He is a legend in Japan. However I never was interested in the man behind the name. Last night I spent some time watching interviews on Youtube and reading some articles. What a beautiful person. His creativity and energy and just plain good nature is incredible. It seems like he is not pretentious at all, which is probably why he came over and posed for me.

Thank you Paul Smith.

Still here

Hand tinted black and white. Taken with a Lomo 8 Shot toy camera.

My son, Zen, will be starting elementary school in a few months. He is growing up fast, as all kids do.

Being a father suits me...I think. There are times when I see couples without kids and I envy their freedom. I sometimes wish that I had the option of just taking off around the world to make photographs. I get emailed special campaign promotions from KLM Airlines and get the urge to just book a flight to Europe, but I can't. I have to be a responsible father, save my money for the orthodontist and for college tuition, not to mention a house that we may someday buy.

This is all right, though. At least for now. Zen needs me around as his fellow goofball. Maybe when he gets older, and if I somehow figure out how to afford (or better yet, have somebody pick up the tab) traveling again, I will be able to get back in the groove.

In the meantime, I will keep doing my best to find things to shoot in Kanazawa. I have been working with the snow this winter (as usual) but have not yet developed anything. I want to forget the exposures so I can eliminate some of the disipointment. I often think I have something great, but by building it up in my mind before it is developed, it turns out not as good as I thought. Sometimes the really good ones are taking without much thought, so I have no expectations.

Once I have something to show, I will post them here.

Now back to being daddy.

Chestnut Eyes

Summer vacation is officially over for me tomorrow. Back to teaching the 2nd semester. We are having chestnut-rice tonight. Oh baby.

Show starts today

Whippersnapper is now officially open. This is the front of the building where the gallery is. My friend Yasuo Suzuki did all the work for the prints and title text on the window.

Monster prints

The show is just around the corner. Last night my good friend Yasuo Suzuki dropped off the four big prints we are going to use in the display windows of the gallery. They are HUGE! 2 x 2 meters.

Whippersnapper

Starting next Tuesday (September 20th) until November 11th, I will be holding an exhibition of my photographs of children. Yeah, Zen is in it of course, and also kids from Italy and the USA.

The show is at the Hokkoku Gin Gallery in Toiya-machi. Here is a map if you plan to go.
Here is a googlemap link. Or find it for yourself at:北陸銀行・金沢問屋町, 金沢市問屋町１丁目５５
It is inside a bank, so the hours are 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday. There are 15 photos inside, and 4 massive photos in the show windows of the bank. My main man Yasuo Suzuki is printing them up for me. Rock and Roll.

Shine the light on me

I found this old foggy Polaroid that I took with a self timer when I was living in Seattle in 1991. I think that the year I spent in Seattle, just before coming to Japan, was a bit of a transitional phase for me. I spent a lot of time alone.

Maybe spending time alone is a good thing sometimes. Now, with a wife and a 6 year old boy running around the house, it is hard to get my solitude. I think I am in some kind of transition now, maybe mid-life, and just being alone helps me sometimes.

I may take some time, but I hope to eventually get through these blues and get back to making photographs and keeping this blog up to date.

One more

Still thinking about how great it would be in the marina in Riomaggoire.

Riomaggiore, Italy

I miss Riomaggiore. I spent 5 great summers there. I made great friends and spent the days at the beach or on their motor boats. The baby in the photo is probably about 10 years old now, but I bet the town hasn't changed much.

Recently, a few people have complemented this photograph. Thank you very much.

Summer Time

We light a few fireworks off in front of our house. Zen is just crazy about fireworks. It started getting windy, so we are saving the rest for tomorrow night.

Yoyo just sleeps all day in the coolest place she can find. She is also shedding hair like crazy.

Nothing but the blues

I have finally come to grips with the fact that the college students I teach (mostly freshmen) and I share a huge generation gap. It wasn't always that way. When I first came, in 1992, I was 26, and I could relate to college kids very easily. Now I am 45 (middle age!) and I have kind of given up trying to be cool. The kids these days have never seen a record player, or a black and white TV, and most have never shot film in a camera before. They download music, they don't go to the record shop (are there any record shops left in Kanazawa?).

I am not blaming them, nor am I trying to dis technology, for I too have an ipod that I download tunes onto. But there is just something missing in popular culture. It seems so shallow and market-tested. There is no edge to the music that my students like. Or maybe I am too old and crusty to feel the edge, either that or I need to make more of an attempt to listen to more J-pop before I can be critical.

I am still deeply into the blues. The blues makes me feel human. Even though the blues can also be commercial or touristy in Chicago, it is still the blues if you close you eyes and feel it...well sometimes. I heard Willie Kent, who played steady gigs at Blue Chicago, many times. When he sang, especially the slower numbers, that was straight from the Delta where he was born. I miss Willie Kent, and I miss Chicago blues clubs. I hope they never die out, even if they do have to sell t-shirts and stuff to keep going.

New Phillies Shirt

Nice presents in the mail yesterday from my mom, including a brand new Phillies tshirt for Zen. I am sure he will be living in this all summer. Thanks Mom.

Himuro Photo Exhibition

It has been a long time, but on July 1st to the 3rd, I am going to have a small exhibition along with my friend Shinobu Hashimoto.

It will be held at The Center for Art and Architecture (CAAK), which is in Teramachi, a short walk from my house. The theme is Himuro, which is a the storage cellar for snow, in the old Kanazawa tradition, which is opened up on July 1st. Our concept is to remind people, in the middle of summer, that winter is just as extreme. Maybe you can cool off from the July heat by looking at winter photographs?

On the first day we plan to serve the traditional Kanazawa sweet, Himuro-manju. First come, first serve

The show is only for 3 days, from 12 noon to 7pm. I hope you can stop by.

The Tin Man

Check out the silly guy at Brazil-ya Coffee in Teramachi. The shop owner always lets Zen put the beans in the bag, which is why is behind the counter with the funnel.

Looks like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz.

Birthday Zen

Count them candles! Zen is 6 years old today.

Golden Week

Golden Week is coming to a close. The first half was spent in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka-ken, for my brother-in-law's wedding. We had a good time and Zen was cute in his little suit. The only bummer was coming home in the traffic jam from hell, about 8 hours of stop and go.The 2nd half of Golden Week brought the bad news that 2 of my friends were hospitalized, one with heart trouble and the other with back pain so bad that an ambulance was called. I hope both get well soon.

I am glad to be getting back to work. Having the long break of February and March, a short one week off is not so special. I feel better with purpose in my daily routine. I say that now...I bet in a few weeks I will be wishing for a week off.

Uchuken Shokudo

When I first came to Kanazawa, back in 1992, I had no idea where to eat. For a few weeks I ate McDonalds, or Hachi Ban Ramen, or food from Daiwa Department Store.

One night one of my students took me to Uchuken Shokudo, in Katamachi. They have good, cheap food. The special of the house is Tonbara, or pork belly. They also have great curry, and the blue fish slow-cooked in miso is great, as is the suki-yaki, and holy smokes, I love the liver.

I went there so often that I became a regular, and even went golfing with the master once, way back when.

So if you are in Katamachi, stop by and tell the master Mark sent you.

Saigawa Ohashi

This is an old photo that I took back in 1998, when I first started printing my own negatives in the darkroom at Kanazawa College of Art. I think the fog in the lower corners were a mistake in development, but over time I have forgotten my miss and the print looks more purposefully mysterious than just a darkroom mistake. In the back round is my favorite Kanazawa bridge, the Saigawa Ohashi.

Mistakes should be forgiven, over time. I have screwed up many times in my life, but time heals all wounds.

Cherry Blossom Picnic

On the spur of the moment, we took our dinner outside and sat under the cherry blossoms that are now in full bloom. This is the most beautiful time of the year and it was great to hang out at the Saigawa. Zen was running around,up to his normal monkey business of jumping around. Here he is trying to grab a handful of petals.
I feel great about getting back to work. Spring brings a new fresh perspective, and I feel happy to have so many good things going for me.

Dusty CDs

I love my iPod nano, I even take it when I go out jogging. In the house we listen to iTunes instead of actually putting a CD in the drive. Matter of fact, we don't even have a CD player anymore.

Listening habits are now 100% shuffle. I buy songs individually now, which I really like. Times have changed. I remember in the old days, before I was married, my buddy Jim and I would drop lots of cash at Record Jungle, a shop in Kanazawa, near Omicho Market. I think more than half of my collection came from there. Once we "discovered" Amazon.com we stopped going so much.

In them days you couldn't burn CDs, or at least we couldn't. I used to make cassette tapes for the guys in my band. I thought I was slick with a 12 CD changer in my car.

Pinetop Perkins

A few weeks ago, the blues piano legend, Pinetop Perkins, died at the age of 97. He was well known as Muddy Water's piano man after Otis Span left in the 60s. He also played in the Legendary Blues Band, with former member of Muddy's band. He is the oldest person to every receive a Grammy, at age 97, just a month before he died.

I saw him about ten years ago in New York. My Uncle Josh took me there. It was a good show and I took this photo.

Drinks from abroad

This year looks to be a non-traveling one, which means I will be in Japan the whole time. I don't mind so much, as I got to make two trips last year. I do sometimes miss the small pleasures of international travel. I really want to have a real espresso, the kind you can only get in Italy. The Italians do not spend much time slowly drinking it, they whip it down in one or two gulps. Most of my Italian friends drink espresso standing up.

I also love Chocomel, which you can get in The Netherlands. In the USA there is YooHoo, but Chocomel is so much better. It is like drinking a chocolate bar.

I love their logo.

One of my all-time favorites is Ting, from Jamaica. I have no idea why Ting is not an international hit. It is a grapefruit soda that has the perfect touch of being tart and sweet.
Here is their newly designed bottle

I like the old design better.

Robert Crumb Siregraph

We have a lot of framed art and photos hanging on the walls of our house. The most recent addition is a very special Robert Crumb serigraph. Crumb does not sign very often, and this is a limited number edition (we got 115/150). I caused a bit of friction when I bought it last January. I guess I should have asked my wife first before spending so much. Too late now...he he he.

The print is huge, here is Zen to give some size perspective.

The Heroes of the Blues means a lot to me, especially Charley Patton, Blind Willie Johnson, and Blind Willie McTell. They are truly heroes to me.

Cool Site

I got a nice comment about my photography by Hiroki Oya. He has a cool blog. Check it out. Of course it is OK to link to me!

Yoyo-chan

Not a bad photo, taken by Zen. Yoyo has been a bit of a crabby face lately. I think Spring is in the air, she must be feeling frisky.

Afrika Bambaataa, Planet Rock

I remember the first time I heard Afrika Bambaataa. It was 1982. I was at the local 7-11, drinking a cherry Slurpie. Out of nowhere, a kid walked up with a huge boombox. He went inside to buy some batteries. When he came out he put them and and then BAM! This song came on. I just about drooled my Slurpie all over my shirt.

In Praise of Amsterdam

A while ago I wrote a little about the solitude that I find when I visit Amsterdam. That got me thinking about these photos, taken with a Zenza Bronica camera. I got the camera from a friend whose father had died. The friend wanted to pass the camera on to somebody who would use it, so it found its way into my hands. I shot about 15 rolls in Amsterdam, during the winter of 2005. I went alone, and as usual, I didn't talk very much, I just walked and walked.

I remember it being cold, and operating the Bronica was hard. I had to meter with my 35mm Nikon FM2, and then use that reading for the Bronica. It is impossible to use the dials on both cameras with a gloved hand, so I was bare handed a lot. That was harsh in the Amsterdam winter with the cold wind blowing off the canals.


This is the Citroen DS, circa 1960. The car is getting more rare to spot every time I go to Amsterdam. I haven't been in 4 years now, I wonder how many are left.

Amsterdam houses have the greatest windows in the whole world.

An other wonderful Citoren.
This was near the Van Gogh museum. In the summer the place is packed, but in the cold months there was hardly anybody on the grounds


Bikes parked outside of the central train station.