View allAll Photos Tagged CulturalEvents
Meet Kai and Brighton, my No. 15 submission to The Human Family group www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily/.
Kai is a message therapist and young mother. She was wearing a cotton candy blue wig, a flower fascinator headpiece, glittery eye makeup, and skeleton accessories to complete her calavera attire. Brighton, her 22 month-old daughter, was wearing a black jumpsuit printed on the front with human skeleton bones.
At this event, I was joined by my own daughter and my sister and niece who were coincidentally visiting from the eastcoast. We had a girls' afternoon together. The bonus for me was that my sister is a capable child-minder and photo wingwoman. I was able to take advantage of so many photo opportunities, like this one with Kai.
We were in the playground area letting our tots run and burn off steam. I saw this woman in calavera attire, and my sister knew to take over keeping an eye on our children so I could approach.
Kai and I spoke for a few minutes comparing notes on mommy meet-up groups in the local area. During our conversation she began to tickle her daughter's chin, which got her to stick out her tongue. It was a perfect moment for a closeup.
The afternoon at the Albuquerque community celebration for Dia de los Muertos was one of my favorite days during this year to meet and photograph strangers like this mother and daughter.
I have a few more portraits from this event to add to The Human Family group. I did more "collecting" than is my usual.
Part of what I enjoyed about the event was the colorful makeup and attire on so many. I also gained a deeper appreciation for seeing faces painted as skeletons (calaveras). The manner of most was highly stylized in a beautiful, glamorous way to celebrate people's deceased loved ones. Or at least the dead. There was nothing macabre about it at all.
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captured at paseo del borne during a book fair, this photo depicts a woman engrossed in a book amidst a display of lamps and books. Booksellers had set up their stalls along the promenade, offering a wide variety of books for sale. The woman, with sunglasses perched on her head and tattoos on her arms, reads intently, immersing herself in the literary world around her. The black and white tones of the image enhance the timeless atmosphere and the quiet moment of contemplation and escape into the world of books.
Ukrainian Culture at Liberty Square in Poznan (at Orthodox Easter, Христос воскрес із мертвих). The refugees: women and children appeared in concert to help the fighting Ukraine. The concert “We are from Ukraine, Ми з України, Jesteśmy z Ukrainy” was organized to support Ukrainian soldiers and to thank Poles for their help.
tenpoznan.pl/poznan-ukraina-na-placu-wolnosci-zdjecia/
photos.app.goo.gl/g8aHoVw1P2CuxjXS6 photo album
Yúcale Giramondi Virtlantis is a project by Bacoo Balut and Samum combining Second Life's cultural opportunities, e.g. gatherings of creatives, live music, exhibitions, author readings, language activities, workshops and a book store.
Located at a south Italian and fantasy themed sim Yúcale Giramondi Virtlantis will open it's doors on Saturday, 04. May 2019.
The program so far:
ART
Exhibitions by:
Balbera Sunrise
Xirana Oximoxi
Jaëlle Faerye
Belice Benoir
POEMS
Jens Gehres & Marc Späni
MUSIC
PORT / CIRCUS STAGE
7pm cet Aminius Writer (Live Music)
8pm cet: Mike Carnell (Live Music)
9pm cet: Wolem Wobbit (Live Music)
10pm cet Nuvole Theatre (Brecht Theatre play)
VIRTLANTIS CATHEDRAL STAGE
7pm cet Aeriya (DJ Set)
BATH HOUSE STAGE
8pm cet Oliver Loew
MARKETPLACE STAGE
9pm cet Bacoo Balut
After Hour Party:
BATH HOUSE STAGE
11pm cet Bacoo Balut (DJ Set)
A photo of me sitting inside one of the two pieces of rope used for the annual Naha Tug-of-war in 2004. I pulled for the west side, because that was where I was standing, and the west won.
The Naha Tug of war (那覇大綱挽) is an event at the annual festival held in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. Its roots may be traced back to the 17th century. Held on Route 58, it is a battle between the East and West teams. This correlates with the competition between two rulers in the Naha area in days of old. The main rope, over two meters in diameter, has many of smaller diameter, but very long ropes extending from it, and the participants pull these during the contest. The contest lasts 30 minutes and the challenge is to pull the other team a total of 15 meters. If neither side pulls the other the 15 meters, whichever side has pulled the other the furthest wins. The rope used in the event – 200 meters long, 156 cms in diameter, weighing 43 tons is made from harvested rice straw. The rope is recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest rope. Naha giant tug -of -war is the greatest traditional cultural event in Okinawa is to pray for the prosperity of Okinawa, and to wish for the good health of all people. After the end of the contest, everyone cuts off a piece of the rope. The custom, Okinawans say, is that the families of those who cut off and take home a piece of the rope will find happiness and be in good health for the year — a custom that also may explain why the pulling ropes are replaced every year.
A Look of Amusement, Garden Springboard, HUDORA® Garden Trampolines (diverse range) on the Artistic Market Square
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The Music Concourse, nestled between the de Young Museum and the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, is a historic open-air plaza that has served as a cultural and social gathering space since its creation in the late 19th century. Designed as part of the 1894 Midwinter Exposition, this sunken, tree-lined concourse remains a beloved destination for visitors seeking art, music, and nature.
The concourse is marked by its rows of neatly pruned pollarded trees, creating a formal yet inviting atmosphere. These trees provide much-needed shade and complement the European-inspired design of the plaza. At the heart of the concourse stands a grand fountain, providing a tranquil backdrop to the bustling life of the park. Surrounding the concourse are numerous green benches, offering a perfect spot for contemplation, people-watching, or simply enjoying the ambiance.
Architecturally, the Music Concourse is anchored by the iconic Spreckels Temple of Music, a grand Beaux-Arts style bandstand that has hosted countless performances, from classical music concerts to community events. Donated by sugar magnate Claus Spreckels in 1899, the temple is an enduring symbol of San Francisco’s commitment to the arts.
The plaza’s central location, flanked by two of the city's most important cultural institutions, underscores its historical importance as a cultural hub in Golden Gate Park. Today, the Music Concourse continues to be a vibrant space, where locals and tourists alike can enjoy performances, art, and the beauty of this meticulously designed public space.
The Naha Tug of war (那覇大綱挽) is an event at the annual festival held in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. Its roots may be traced back to the 17th century. Held on Route 58, it is a battle between the East and West teams. This correlates with the competition between two rulers in the Naha area in days of old. The main rope, over two meters in diameter, has many of smaller diameter, but very long ropes extending from it, and the participants pull these during the contest. The contest lasts 30 minutes and the challenge is to pull the other team a total of 15 meters. If neither side pulls the other the 15 meters, whichever side has pulled the other the furthest wins. The rope used in the event – 200 meters long, 156 cms in diameter, weighing 43 tons is made from harvested rice straw. The rope is recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest rope. Naha giant tug -of -war is the greatest traditional cultural event in Okinawa is to pray for the prosperity of Okinawa, and to wish for the good health of all people. After the end of the contest, everyone cuts off a piece of the rope. The custom, Okinawans say, is that the families of those who cut off and take home a piece of the rope will find happiness and be in good health for the year — a custom that also may explain why the pulling ropes are replaced every year.
this was palma during semana santa. not the polished view from postcards, but the moments in between – when the procession pauses, when a glance escapes the robe, when the mask slips just a bit. behind every tradition are people, gestures, breath. i wandered, asked, waited. sometimes they noticed, sometimes they didn’t. but i felt the weight of ritual brushing against the mundane.
Hurdy-gurdy Man, Artistic Market Square, Entertainment World in the Historic Marketplace, Land Days. The hurdy-gurdy man played the organ grinder on the west side. We were very enthusiastic about going to him because we have a sense of fun. Our market square is so beautiful!
After dark, Golden Gate Park becomes something quieter and more immersive. Lightscape transforms familiar paths and plantings into a sequence of slow reveals—color, shadow, and rhythm layered carefully onto the landscape rather than imposed on it. The experience rewards attention. Light is treated as a material, not a spectacle: violet and blue tones skim leaves and trunks, fine points of warm white trace overhead canopies, and distant beams fracture through foliage like refracted starlight.
What makes Lightscape work here is restraint. The installations respect the park’s scale and darkness, allowing negative space to do as much work as illumination. Trees remain trees, understory remains understory; the intervention is temporary, precise, and intentionally fleeting. Movement through the route feels almost musical—dense passages give way to breath, then build again—encouraging visitors to slow down and look, not just photograph.
These scenes capture that balance. The color is bold but controlled, the compositions anchored by natural forms rather than novelty. Leaves become silhouettes, stems read as calligraphy, and strings of light recede into depth, guiding the eye forward. It’s an event designed for walking pace and winter nights, where the park’s familiar geography dissolves briefly into something contemplative before returning, unchanged, by morning.
The 23rd of April - International Book's Day / Ziua Internationala a Cartii
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After dark, Golden Gate Park becomes something else entirely. Paths dissolve into shadow, familiar trees slip their daytime identities, and light takes over as the dominant architectural material. Lightscape transforms the park into a slow, immersive procession where color, rhythm, and scale replace signage and sound.
These scenes unfold at walking speed. Ground-level points of warm light map the terrain like a constellation pressed into grass, guiding visitors forward without urgency. Elsewhere, trees are traced in saturated reds, blues, greens, and golds, their branching structures revealed as living diagrams—part nervous system, part skyline. Fog and mist catch beams of white light and fracture them into drifting planes, turning air itself into something sculptural and temporary.
What makes Lightscape work here is restraint. The installations don’t compete with the landscape; they collaborate with it. Mature trees become vertical canvases. Open lawns become fields of measured repetition. Darkness is not erased but carefully preserved, allowing color to feel earned rather than overwhelming. Even the presence of people recedes, absorbed into silhouette and motion, reinforcing the sense that the park itself is the primary subject.
Seen together, these moments form a quiet argument for public space as experience rather than spectacle. Lightscape doesn’t ask to be consumed quickly or photographed once and forgotten. It invites lingering, recalibration, and a renewed awareness of Golden Gate Park as one of San Francisco’s most adaptable—and most poetic—urban environments.
A spontaneous portrait series of a young woman immersed in the colors and energy of Maailman kylässä / World Village Festival, Helsinki, Spring 2025.
This was one of many beautifully human moments from the day.
Shot with: Canon EOS-1D X Mark II + EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM.