Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/01/21
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Sounds like an excellent trip with a great exhibit and photo discussions with some interesting people. IMHO, that's what makes a community of photographers so enjoyable...an opportunity to share and learn and be with fascinating folks. Sal..was it you who was planning the get together at the pub near Union Station in DC next week? If not, my apologies but I was thinking about driving down from Lancaster, PA for the get together. Robert Clark Lancaster, PA "Sal DiMarco, Jr." wrote: > On board the Amtrak "Pennsylvanian" heading East. > Fellow Luggers & Leggers, > Well, the Pilgrimage to Pittsburgh to see the W. Eugene Smith show at > the Carnegie Museum of Art is almost over. > It was a very worthwhile experience..... > The train ride from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh was enjoyable and the > time just flew. > After I arrived and checked into the hotel. I met Mervin Stewart and > Stan Yoder, both Pittsburgh Luggers and LHSAers Setsuko and Jim Martin and > Vahan Shahinian from the Detroit area. They made the Pilgrimage by car. > The first order of business was to ride up the Duquesne Incline and > shoot > a dramatic photo of the Three Rivers area of Pittsburgh. > Well, the trip up and down was great fun, but picture wise, a bust. The > weather failed to co-operate. The snow and rain created enough of a haze to > make picture taking worthless. > After we came down the incline, it was off to dinner at the Station > Square Restaurant. > The Station Square Restaurant originally was the Pennsylvania Railroad's > Pittsburgh train station. With ten story-ish high ceilings, marvelous tall > columns, the building was restored to its originally turn of the century > elegance and the food was great too..... > Earlier, Mervin asked me to bring some pictures along. So after dinner > we adjourned to my hotel room for a good rummage through my camera bag, a > small slide show of the photos from my recent show in the Oscar Barnack Room > of the Leica Gallery in New York City and a tray of Mervin's wonderful > photos from around the world including some almost fifty year-old > Kodachromes > which were as good today as they were shot. > Sunday after breakfast it was time to head off the Carnegie...... > Mervin met us at the Museum and used his status as a member of the museum to > get us in as his guests. Thanks Mervin > Walking into "Dream Street- W. Eugene Smith's Pittsburgh Project," I > found my breath taken away by the awesome beauty of the show. > As you go though the show you see the mind of this troubled genius at > work. > We are even treated to a look at his project proposal to the Guggenheim > Foundation > for a grant, some other related to the project, and a copy of his letter of > resignation from LIFE magazine after the publication of his Albert > Schweitzer story. > Most of us have probably seen most of the photos in the show, but there > may have been a few new photos. One, I found interesting came from the same > take as the small black boy hanging on the Pride Street street sign. It was > a wider view with several kids watching the boy climb up the pole. > Looking at W. Eugene Smith original prints reminded me of how great a > printer he was. > Another thing I found interesting was the inclusion of some contacts > sheets to see how Smith "worked" a situation. Smith never showed editors > raw contact sheets. > The third and last room was, for me the most interesting. On one wall > they showed you his 5x7 work prints. and some of his early layouts.These > "work" prints were what he showed editors. Well, the work prints were > beautiful too. > On another table, were photo copies of the photos from the Pop Photo > Annual layout and you were invited to create your own Pittsburgh layout. > Lastly, on a table were laminated copies of some of Gene Smith's > greatest photo essays, The Nurse Midwife, The Country Doctor, The Spanish > Village, and the Albert Schweitzer- Man of Mercy story. Also a copy of the > 1959 Pop Photo Annual eighty plus page Pittsburgh page layout. > As almost a counter point to Smith Pittsburgh work were laminated copies > of other Pittsburgh stories, a LIFE magazine story by Margaret Bourke-White > (5/14/50), a Fortune Magazine piece using Pittsburgh handout photos (June > 1952) and a National Geographic story on the city (July 1949). > While, personally I have never felt W. Eugene Smith's Pittsburgh essay > showed his sensitivity and compassion as well some other work, this exhibit > proves me wrong. > The show will close on February 10, 2002. It is a purely Pittsburgh show > and will not be shown anywhere else. It is a MUST see...... > Again my sincerest thanks to Stan Yoder and Mervin Stewart. > Happy Snaps, > Sal DiMarco, Jr. > Philadelphia, PA > > -- > To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html