Mypiki wishes you a Warmer Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 

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Photographer: Tiago Silva

Model: Jéssica Mota (Models Factory)

Without a doubt one of my favorite things to eat are tacos, especially on Día de los Muertos. I swear I probably eat tacos once a week and not just on Tuesdays. I ate these tacos for dinner last night. These have soft shredded roast beef in them, lettuce, tomatoes, jack/cheddar cheese, some sour cream, fresh lime and a little Tapatio hot sauce.

 

So you can only imagine, given my proclivity for tacos how much I was looking forward to Jordana Rothman's new taco book, "Tacos, Recipes and Provocations." It showed up from Amazon Friday. goo.gl/nBshTz It's a fantastic book full of everything you ever wanted to know about tacos, great recipes and beautiful photographs. The perfect gift for that taco lover in your life. Congrats Jordana on the book, it's wonderful.

my annual provocation to Mike's winter!

Model: Kathi

 

Setup:

Striplight from left front, Softbox (reduced) from the right, yellow spot on the background.

Here are some shots of Hrefna finding her way to the city of Markarth after having hunted among the jagged peaks of the reach, fierce forsworn, ancient nords awakened and a Thalmor patrol foolish enough to attack her without provocation having fallen to her crimson feathered arrows. The hunger for battle of the shadow within her mind sated for the moment, chased away by her strong will.

 

Somber 3 ENB

Posters | FB | Soundcloud | Insta | Twitter | G+ | Blog | Ben Heine

 

Final picture coming soon. Recent project of mine with customized black stickers (model: Zhuzhu). Please subscribe to my Instagram page to see more. Find a selection of my best photos here.

 

PS: All my images are copyrighted, please do not use them without permission, thank you.

 

For more info about my projects, contact: info@benheine.com

Nikon D200, nikkor 180mm f/2.8 AF D

“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions”

-Rainer Maria Rilke

 

"Patience and Fortitude conquer all things.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

"Patience is bitter but it's fruit is sweet."

-Jean-Jacques Rousseau

 

**********

My friend Matt sent me a New Year message stating that he was not going to have any New Year's Resolutions this year, instead he would choose one word to help define his year. He chose "FOCUS" to be his word, and asked me to come up with one word myself. After being asked that, well...that took some real thought. I mean, what word could I come up with that truly would be something I need to focus in on for my year?

 

It was challenging because in general...I'm focused, driven, goal-oriented, kind, giving...I persevere, show fortitude, not a quitter. All things that I try to live my life out each day and pretty much do. So, when asked...I had to take three days to come up with one word and once I did, it made quite a lot of sense to me.

 

The word I came up with was PATIENCE.

 

It's defined as:

l. Marked by or exhibiting calm endurance of pain, difficulty, provocation, or annoyance

ll. Capable of calmly awaiting an outcome or result; not hasty or impulsive

 

What I tend to lack most in life right now is patience. I have a hard time with making it through the difficult times in life and awaiting for the better outcome. What weighs on my heart and mind the most is my inability to change where I'm at in life fast enough. I want changes NOW, not TOMORROW...but NOW. Change where I'm living; how I'm living; my financial state of being; whether I'm with someone or if I'm going to remain alone; whether I'll finally be happy with ALL things presented before me in life. All of this taxes on my mind repeatedly and somewhere I have to reach deep within to find a place where I'm at peace with where I'm at in life. Until I reach this peace, it's going to keep me up at night and keep me more worried than I need to be. Perhaps with patience...all things will fall into place. "All good things come to those who wait." ...right, right?

 

So, the word I'm going to use and work towards making my year go better is patience. I will need to find ways to really focus in on relaxing myself during difficult times or the times when I struggle with where I'm at. I'm not sure how to do this, but I will try to say each day that "I will be patient, I will show patience."...and see where life takes me.

 

PATIENCE.

Mistaken identity is a defense in criminal law which claims the actual innocence of the criminal defendant, and attempts to undermine evidence of guilt by asserting that any eyewitness to the crime incorrectly thought that they saw the defendant, when in fact the person seen by the witness was someone else. The defendant may question both the memory of the witness (suggesting, for example, that the identification is the result of a false memory), and the perception of the witness (suggesting, for example, that the witness had poor eyesight, or that the crime occurred in a poorly lit place).

 

Because the prosecution in a criminal case must prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendant must convince the jury that there is reasonable doubt about whether the witness actually saw what the witness claims to have seen, or recalls having seen. Although scientific studies have shown that mistaken identity is a common phenomenon, jurors give very strong credence to eyewitness testimony, particularly where the eyewitness is resolute in believing that their identification of the defendant was correct.

"Before you stands a sports car of flesh and blood. Boasting a voluminous 4.0-litre six-cylinder horizontally opposed and naturally aspirated engine packing 383 kW (520 hp), mounted in the rear.

 

Its race track chassis will show you what it means to confront the tarmac head on. Eye for an eye. Lap after lap. The fixed rear wing is a flagrant provocation to do battle. To the opponent. And to the opposing headwind. The rear silencer as well as the tailpipes in titanium are a visible sign of what the new 911 GT3 RS is promising: unadulterated sound, pure performance, and a challenge that nobody whose heart beats for sports cars can shy away from..."

  

Source: Porsche

  

Photographed at TT Circuit Assen during 402automotive Supercar Sunday.

  

____________________________________________________

  

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Lumix GX7, Panasonic Lumix G 20mm f/1.7 II

Yesterday, took place the Tel-Aviv's Pride Parade.

I am not sure every member of the LGBT community would feel comfortable with this way of expressing the liberation of the community; but, I can, also, understand why a few members of it need these provocations and exhibitionism.

 

Photographer could certainly find their (spiritual) satisfaction there…

 

Amstelveen - Cobra Museum.

 

Exposition: We Kiss the Earth - Danish Modern Art 1934-1948.

 

Artist: Henry Heerup.

 

The Danish artists who started Cobra in 1948 had a lot of influence on the much younger Dutch and Belgian Cobra members. The focus is on developments in Danish modern art from the 1930s and 1940s, with important themes such as sexual freedom, politics, provocation, experimentation and spontaneity. Themes that would later have such a great influence on Cobra.

They belong to a very small and extreme stream among the Ultra-Orthodox Jews, that does not recognize the state of Israel (does not pay taxes, does not get national insurance or health insurance). They argue Jews should wait for the Messiah, and not establish a state before that. One of them was, even, 'The Minister of Jews' in Arafat's government. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neturei_Karta)

 

I see this act as is a kind of a childish provocation they perform from time to time. Though I admit in senses it is also thrilling: how much is the flag only a fabric? Or a symbol? And what does it mean to burn this symbol?

 

Pride and Prejudice... Turn the other cheek?

 

I haven't seen Myles around much in the last weeks, but I’ll use one of his catchphrases 'brain fart' to describe the following, I’m sure he’d approve, and it's perfect to describe this bit of warm air that I would rather not have smelt in the first place.

 

So..... Someone farted in my general direction, and I feel the need to respond, and sticking with the windy / arse metaphors I know that by taking the bait, you run the risk of ending up sounding worse than the provocation that got to you in the first place. And I've had a laugh with and at any of my flickr contacts caught throwing hissy-fits in the past, so i'm also aware i'm setting myself up here by rambling on about it.

 

But I don't rant much, and for reasons that will become clear, I’m going to say my piece anyway. I’ve ignored most of the annoying provocations that come from sharing yourself via you art to a global audience (Including actual photo-theft where I found someone blatantly downloading and re-posting my pictures, and being told that i shouldn't use a lensbaby or photoshop to have fun with my work) usually preferring to let my pictures do the talking, and realising that they are only pictures, meant to be enjoyed and any negative energy created is missing the point.

 

So rather than wasting an hour of my life here just expressing annoyance, I thought I’d try and turn it into a positive discussion and maybe learn something from it, I always enjoy hearing the thoughts that these sort of 'brain farts' provoke, and I’ve come to respect the opinions of many of you who provide them.

 

---------------------------

 

So what p*ssed me off?

 

Finding a comment on a photo i posted last week, that led me to a discussion thread, where someone was implying my shot was artistic theft because he had posted a shot with the same subject and composition days before, and that after seeing his photo I had deliberately rushed out to copy him.

 

You can probably tell by now that it did annoy me, but many things in life annoy me and I let them go, life’s too short and I’ve had painful reminders of that fact this year.

 

But I read on (of course you would too, it's only natural to be curious) and got even more irked when I read that 'I see it all the time from people with 'their digi-cams' , OK, so now I’m a thief and it's only to be expected because I use a digital camera (for the record, I use both, and sometimes a pencil if we want to get really Luddite about it)

 

And the final straw was reading that he said "I’m trying to capture the island I live on in a unique way. I'm looking for shots that help me stand out from the crowd and let people see the island in a different way away from all of the touristy type pictures.". So now I’m a thief, not a proper photographer because it wasn't using film, and I’m taking tourist snapshots in an un-unique way :)

 

All this about a *subject and composition I’ve already shot many times before, in a photo that i had publicly expressed admiration for.

 

That's a lot of cheeks to turn, and my inner kick-boxer pushed my inner Gandhi aside and decided to respond. I'll probably link to this from the thread (if I’m allowed in the group) and mail the person in question inviting him to read this, I’ll let you know if the response gets all Medieval and we end up duelling with pistols at dawn, some of you can come and take photos, now that would be artistic!

 

---------

 

Pride or Prejudice?

 

The bible says it’s a sin, a popular expression has it 'coming before a fall', but I think there can be also be a positive side to it, and as an artist I believe it’s good to have pride in your work.

 

So, the suggestion of 'artistic theft' is enough to get my back up (and its probably slanderous too, I make my living as a creative and I’m thinking that might qualify as professional defamation of character or something similar, I’ll have my lawyers look into it :)

 

But the main reason for writing all this is to recognise the annoyance and anger that made me have dark thoughts of retribution when i thought he was talking about me (there's a small primeval part of me that is still favouring this route as I know and enjoy the honesty and satisfaction that you get from a good fight from studying Kick-boxing, but that’s only cool when equally matched, consenting people do it in a dojo/boxing ring) so having a brain-fart to stop it taking up space in my head seems like a good choice, life is too short to hang onto negative vibes like this. And of course I know that 'Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent' and I should adopt the hippy / Gandhi / Kenny Rogers approach of turning the other cheek, because I’m also a father, and I need to lead by example, and what kind of example is it to react with anger to the words of a stranger, especially in the climate we have here in the UK right now where people are stabbed every day because they 'disrespected' someone.

 

--------

 

Some background

 

For about the last 15 years I’ve been 'documenting' life on the cliffs in the west wight, in pencil, oil, acrylic, water-colour, gouache, mosaic, and with both film and digital photography. I'd guess more than a third of the 1,099 shots I’ve posted to flickr in the last few years have in some way been part of that process and exploring that theme, but as flickr only amounts to less than 1% of the shots I keep it would be a conservative guess to say I have hundreds of shots on the theme already.

 

Subjects include the geography and geology of the cliffs, the relationship with the waves that pound against them, everything that happens up there, the people, the things they do there (from para-gliding to sitting, thinking, watching sailing, checking the surf) the signs and monuments, lighthouses and buildings they erect, the plants that grow wild there and the animals that also call it home (cows being a favourite and very popular subject)

 

Last week I posted a picture of cows on the edge of the cliff at Compton Farm,

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2633778922/

 

to my mind a not particularly good or noteworthy shot ( I quite liked the dramatic sky in the background but wasn’t really happy with the position of the cows themselves, but they don't really co-operate and stand where you might like.) But it was ok in the context of previous shots, particularly 'take care cliff edges are dangerous' and in the midst of life we are in death'

 

www.flickr.com/search/?w=24424426@N00&q=take+care.+cl...

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2293827778/

 

or maybe even as an update of the many I’ve taken of the same cows in the same field.

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/289690355/

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2324964692/

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/514427794/

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/517460396/

 

This one with the same compositional idea

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2323807106/

 

or sheep in the same composition

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/493415465/

 

or a human silhouette in the same spot

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/510539952/

 

or a para-glider above the same spot

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2610230368/

 

or the way they're falling into the sea

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/2428671420/

 

or the wildflowers that grow upon them

 

www.flickr.com/photos/s0ulsurfing/874461347/

 

I could literally do this for hours......

 

This might be getting boring now, bit I’m also discovering just how much of a recurring theme it has been as I write this (this is the worthwhile bit for me, I’m seeing my own motivations more clearly as a result of saying all this crap) and how no matter how hard you try, you can't avoid clichés and re-treading common ground.

 

To many, including myself, we delight in working our way through all the photographic clichés, and having seen this as a subject from all over the world and MANY times on the island and in my own stream already, I think it’s almost up there with the puppies and kittens in shoes and the classic spiral staircase shot, not really that unique or thought provoking, but interesting in the small details of the way you choose to present the familiar.

 

------------

 

Owning ideas?

 

If you had an idea to document the cows living near the edge, a good idea, would you think it was exclusively yours, or you were the first, and deserved to be the last to explore that theme, as I’ve said above, I’ve been doing it for 15 years, and I think there were hundreds if not thousands doing it before me, no doubt there will be many after. Do you think a person can own an idea? or that your attempts are more valid because you're shooting film* in B&W (yep, the snide comments about digi-camera users definitely haven't gone unnoticed this time :)

 

*btw, and its a slight digression, what I’ve seen many times is how some (and only a certain special few) people with film cameras seem to think it makes their pov and photographic work somehow more worthy and important than a shot taken with a digital camera, why is that? I find that pretty funny. It's not the cameras or type of people, it's just a mindset that can exist, and its not a reverse prejudice or envy on my part (it's great to use a cliche like this :) because some of my best friends are film photographers :) and if anything i have a great respect for those that work that way, and the skills and techniques required

 

Anyway, the discussion thread contains many brilliant and funny responses, puncturing the main argument far better than I could, and even some supporting it, including some telling him he's brilliant and I’m just trying to be like him (emulation) so there's no need to repeat them all again here, and opinions are like *ssholes, everyone's got one, I just thought it fair to have my say too seeing as so many strangers were passing judgement on me and the accuser hadn't felt like including me in the discussion up to now.

 

------------

 

So what started out as me liking a shot from someone else on flickr, taking the time to comment and say so (before the photo was deleted and then re-posted) and then having the good fortune to finally have an interesting sky as a backdrop when exploring my familiar theme during my regular walk on the cliffs, ends up in me being labelled a thief.

 

But, the interesting part for me is the idea of inspirations and how they evolve, and because of this I got to read many funny and Illuminating responses (my favourite was.... ideas are the spermatozoa of cultural evolution, breeding in the minds of others. )

 

Isn’t that one of the reasons we all take part in the social network, and put our pictures on flickr open to the preying photo-thieves and commercial bloggers who do it for the adsense revenue. To be inspired by the other work we see and to grow our own understanding of the medium, composition and techniques (I started a set a few months back especially for that exact purpose, recognising those on flickr who have genuinely been an inspiration to me, funnily enough, the first one was a film photographer)

 

I think it's easy to take yourself too seriously as an artist? and I’m pretty sure I’m taking myself too seriously by getting involved in replying with this brain fart....doh!

 

Who knows, maybe this will be read, taken in the right spirit, apologies will be made and we'll become best of friends, or maybe a load of film photographers will try and beat me up for shooting on their turf, it’s a funny old world; I wonder what the cows would make of it all, probably just keep on chewing the cud and enjoying the view.

 

Love peace and bananas

J.

  

Street art is visual art created in public locations, usually unsanctioned artwork executed outside of the context of traditional art venues. The term gained popularity during the graffiti art boom of the early 1980s and continues to be applied to subsequent incarnations. Stencil graffiti, wheatpasted poster art or sticker art, and street installation or sculpture are common forms of modern street art. Video projection, yarn bombing and Lock On sculpture became popularized at the turn of the 21st century.

The terms "urban art", "guerrilla art", "post-graffiti" and "neo-graffiti" are also sometimes used when referring to artwork created in these contexts.[1] Traditional spray-painted graffiti artwork itself is often included in this category, excluding territorial graffiti or pure vandalism.

Street art is often motivated by a preference on the part of the artist to communicate directly with the public at large, free from perceived confines of the formal art world.[2] Street artists sometimes present socially relevant content infused with esthetic value, to attract attention to a cause or as a form of "art provocation".[3]

Street artists often travel between countries to spread their designs. Some artists have gained cult-followings, media and art world attention, and have gone on to work commercially in the styles which made their work known on the streets.

photo by Jessica Stewart - www.romephotoblog.com Public Provocation: www.colab-gallery.com/ June - October

the walking with a young guy

my neighbor, and friend, Kate. a photo from November, re-worked.

  

Model: Melanie

Rock Strangers by Arne Quinze divide opinion in Oostende.

 

Bold, orange, and impossible to ignore, they loom over the promenade like visitors who stayed longer than expected. Many locals call them an eyesore. Others see a provocation. That tension feels deliberate. Public art rarely earns consensus, and perhaps that is the point. If it sparks debate, it is doing some work.

 

Love them or loathe them, they refuse to blend in.

1/ Yusupov’s Magnificent Soirée was dominated by the return of the Empress’ recently replaced ex-favourite (and rumoured secret husband) Knyaz Potemkin. Dashkova, who has publicly expressed discontent with the Empress’ choice of favourites, employed several non-verbal provocation strategies to seem superior.

 

Potemkin did not seem to mind or respond to said provocation, except for apparent loss of appetite which was quickly recovered after Dashkova left the dining table!

 

Learn more about our "Royal Treatment" plotline (#21): docs.google.com/presentation/d/11w07wRtM64aT-slNCqxzs_0p8...

Learn more about our "Sheremetev in Love" plotline (#15): docs.google.com/presentation/d/1S1L8JesWESwnS1_1ehXmTyc3k...

Face in coffee grounds .

Visage dans le marc de café .

cyanotype on brown iron

tonned

A4 canson montval

Provocation #2

Naviglio Grande, Milano

 

In the stillness of the night

Whispers of desire take flight

Silken words, a tempting sight

Sensual provocation, burning bright

In the whispers of the night, we find our release

Sensual provocation, our eternal peace

 

In her eyes, a sultry fire burns,

A seductive dance, her body yearns.

The very essence of desire,

In her touch, a burning fire.

 

In every move, a playful tease,

Her lips, a hint of sweet release.

She whispers secrets in the night,

A symphony of passion, taking flight.

Mural entitled “Navi Waiting in the Shadows” by Ivan Roque aka @ivanjroque for Wynwood Mural Fest, seen in the Wynwood Arts District of Miami, Florida.

 

The artist states: (this) "depicts my inner faults and flaws depicted in the form of a hyena with glowing yellow eyes and a mandrake flower which represent evil. The piece is meant to evoke a feeling of provocation as you get lost and challenged by Navi or otherwise the demon that lurks within me."

 

Photo by James aka @urbanmuralhunter on that other photo site.

 

Edit by Teee.

Nikon D600, nikkor 180mm f/2.8 AF D

Nikon D200, nikkor AF 180mm f/2.8 D ED

photo by Jessica Stewart - www.romephotoblog.com Public Provocation: www.colab-gallery.com/ June - October

Kr_19-10-19 17-04-05

An American Pika (Ochotona princeps) pauses for a moment in a scree field beside Cascade Creek, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.

 

This is the first pika I’ve ever managed to photograph at all reasonably, as most times they are frantically moving and skittering amongst the rocks, and don’t take too kindly to two-legged invasion of their space - they will dash for cover at the slightest provocation. This particular species lives in holes and crannies in the rocks at high elevation in North America and does not hibernate. To make it through the winter, it collects vegetation into ‘hay piles’ that it then eats once the fresh food sources die and the temperatures drop. We now know that the composition of these hay piles is not random, and that pika will intersperse tannin-rich plants throughout the piles, likely to help preserve their fodder and stave off molding and decomposition.

 

Pika are lagomorphs, related to hares and rabbits, and all lagomorphs differ from rodents in that they have twice as many incisors, and these incisors sport enamel on both sides (rodents only have iron-rich enamel on one side, which causes rodent teeth to appear orange and wear unevenly). Moreover, lagomorphs are vegetarians and obligate caecotrophes, meaning they produce two different types of faeces - normal faeces that are eliminated and hopefully forgotten about, and ’night faeces’ which require immediate attention. These latter faeces must be re-ingested and passed through the digestive system a second time. Similar to other vegetarian mammals, lagomorphs lack the enzymes necessary to digest cellulose and so miss out on most of the energetic value of the food they eat the first time it passes through the gut. To deal with this problem, on its first trip through food is fermented in the hindgut by a suite of microorganisms that convert the cellulose to sugar. After the primary elimination, this fermented mixture is then eaten again so that the animal can extract the newly released sugars that were inaccessible the first time through. A digestive kludge, to be sure...