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Shoulder and movie update

Hello Everyone,

As I mentioned in a previous post, during this wonderful snow we have had in Philadelphia I had the misfortune of slipping  on an area of black ice. The area should have been salted and made safe, but more on that at another time.

Regrettably the result of the fall is a total tear of my rotator cuff that requires surgery. It is something I am not looking forward to. It is a painful procedure with a recuperation time of 3-6 weeks of complete immobility in a sling, and 1-3 months of physical therapy. What is equally disappointing is that I am forced to cancel my up coming shows for at least March, April, May, and June, as well as not being able to photograph. There is a chance that there may be a few local shows that I can do with assistants, but that will depend on what my doctor thinks is best. I remain hopeful.

I have a part time assistant on call  so I will be available for the duration of the healing process. So if you would like to visit my studio or have a purchase in mind please contact me, I will gladly be of service. I hope to see you all sooner than.

now about the  movies:

Alice and I have resisted seeing Young Victoria because the previews were not very interesting. But since we were running out of movies to go to we opted for it. What a pleasant surprise. The story was interesting, the acting very good and the cinematography wonderful. But what I enjoyed the most was the effect the English country side and gardens had on me.

If you look at my work you will see that one of my favorite subjects are natural settings that exemplify the interaction of man and nature. Whether it be my Point Reyes photographs or my photographs of Rittenhouse Square, nothing pays homage to the Divine as much as the splendor of the interaction of man and nature at its best.

I have photographed southwest landscapes, beautiful seascapes, Volcanoes, mountain ranges and lightening storms; all to have and share a glimpse of the Divine. When I see through my viewfinder a composition that epitomizes the exquisite relationship possible between man and nature, I do glimpse  the Divine. Young Victoria reminded me why I photograph.

Best Wishes,

Armond Scavo
www.earthlightimages.com
armond@earthlightimages.com
215.592.8832

My shoulder injury , movies and mediocre pizza

Well to update everyone on my slip and fall injury I have a substantial tear in my right arm’s rotator cuff. If is painful and my range of motion is limited. This is a concern because my show season starts in the middle of March. I am hoping it s healed enough to set up and break down my exhibition. If not I will be putting out a call for an assistant for the shows. If you are interested please let me know.

This week I saw two movies; the Last Station and Fish Tank. The last Station was about Tolstoy. It was extraordinary. The opening scene had a warm romantic glow that I strongly favor in my own work. The movie only got better. Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren seemed to channel their characters. The story, the characters and the cinematography; all superb. I loved every frame.

On the other hand the Fish Tank was gritty and hard. It is about a 15 year old Mia. Even though the character is unsympathetic in the beginning her youth and warmth emerge as she tries to find her way through a maze of debilitating situations. It was OK. I am still deciding whether I thought it was a good movie or not.

To highlight the movies we had dinner at two our favorite restaurants. Panini’s on third and market is a small Italian restaurant with extremely fair prices for very good southern Italian dishes. simple but worth every penny. The second was Farmicia located on third just below market. This restaurant is special. Everything about it is thoughtful and well done. As we sat there finishing our dinner which consisted of appetizer portions of the capillini and tofu, which could not be more delicious and plentiful, we noted how comfortable and inviting the restaurant was. It took effort to leave such a warm and inviting place to go out into the winter night. We go there often and it has never wavered. It is one of my favorites.

Now to the  pizza. Last night( Saturday) Alice and I went with two close friends to Stella, a Steven Star Pizzeria on 2nd and Lombard. We arrived around 6:30. As we walked into the restaurant we hit a wall of noise that was so thick that I almost had to catch my breath. If Alice and I were alone we would have left. We were seated quickly as far in a corner as possible. Even though  we were able to get away from the noisy part of the restaurant we were not able to escape the conversation killing, and deafening drone of the music.

We order a Margaretta, a Spinach, and a Pistachio pizza; two salads and an espresso.

The pizzas were small ( good for 1 person),  bland with some hints of seasoning strongest in the pistachio, and $14.00. It was not near gourmet enough for that price. The best part of the pizza was a wonderfully baked thin crust. It was regrettable that the toppings were not as well done.

The salads were skimpy with hints of the promised cheese ingredient. The double espresso came up short. When we commented how little espresso was in a double the server commented ” you should see how small the single is”. Not very good customer relations!!

There are too many other places to go not only for better pizza but for a better value.

More later

Icy,snowy, mishaps and lemonade

I have walked everyday enjoying the snow. I have photographed it while it was happening and I look forward to producing some exquisite images for all to see. It has been a wonderful period; until this past Monday.

I was able to survive how the city handled the icy streets and the mounds of snow. What I wasn’t prepared for is how some people handled their own properties. So many did nothing about the melted snow turning to a most dangerous surface, black ice.  Well folks, I have become a victim to it. Last Monday I slipped on black ice. My feet went out from under me and I landed on my right side, hitting my head and right shoulder. It took me about 10 minutes to realize that my shoulder was badly hurt. The physical therapist I  saw suspects it is a damaged rotator cuff. We are waiting for the MRI report. It is painful, and my arm movement is limited.

I also read on face book that my friend Lisa had her car side swiped. Unfortunately the person left the seen.

This last week, many of my friends have found it very difficult to negotiate the city streets. Black ice, uncleared corners and bus stops, rude and inpatient drivers, and neglected sidewalks turned a wonderful wintry time to one of caution. Many of my own neighbors as well as most others did great jobs. The few need to do better.

But I was able to turn a lemon into lemonade. Being somewhat restricted I have a lot of time on my hands. So, I was able to start my new project. Using many of my photographs, especially of Philadelphia, I am developing a line of gifts and small prints that will be available through my website, and my online gift shop hosted by cafe press. I am very excited about this new branch of Earth Light Images. I look forward to sharing it with you. I will let all of you know when the grand opening will be. Spread the word!

More later.

Mayor Nutter and the city drops the snow ball

After doing such a good job clearing the streets of the 28 inches of light fluffy snow, the Mayor dropped the proverbial snow ball during the 2nd storm of wet heavy snow. On Early Friday I heard Council woman Blackwell criticize the mayor for cutting back on the trucks being used for salt and plowing.

After spending Thursday night in center city I walked home on Friday morning to the 900 block of south 7th street in Bella Vista . After arriving home at about 9:00 am It took 2 minutes for me to realize how right Council woman Blackwell was. Even before I entered my house I watched car after car get stuck on slick, ice coated ruts with boiler plates that were as hard as rocks and 6-8 inches high. I called the police and 311 all day with no city response. Police cars, oil trucks, FedEx and UPS trucks, 4 wheel drive and suvs all got stuck. a neighbor’s cars got side swiped. My car was inches away from the same fate.

Friday night a police car that was taking a gun shot victim to Jefferson hospital emergency room got stuck. To quote one police officer; the only cars that have chains are emergency vehicles. The police can’t even get around.

This went on for two days and peaked last night when Septa, without supervisors investigating the routes ( complaints by three separate bus drivers) put the 47 in service. The first bus got stuck right in front of my house. I called 911 and the police came. I talked to the officer about the problem and she complained herself that even the police requests for plow and salt trucks for her beat went unanswered by the mayor the city and all else in charge. The city was literally ignoring South Philly; even toni Bella Vista. The first bus had to back out of the block and go up carpenter street. It took well over an hour. Two later buses had to do the same. Then about 10 o’clock another bus was stuck for almost 2 hours. In between, the constant sound of wheels spinning filled the night.

My last comment is that I can’t believe that my block is the only one being ignored or that it is worse than any other. This dropping the ball by the city has to have hurt the businesses who depend on deliveries.

If the police department can’t get the mayor, the city and the streets department to help with these conditions, what can we do?

Maybe we should have performance based salaries for all city officials.

Happy Valintine’s Day From Philadelphia

Hello Everyone,
I just wanted to wish everyone a happy Valentine’s day from the City of Brotherly love with  a new photograph with the same title. It is from a series I took last Saturday during our 28.5″ Snow Storm.

City of Brotherly Love @ 2010

It felt great to get out in the storms this week and photograph under my favorite conditions.

I hope you are all having a wonderful winter. I hope to see you all very soon.

Best Wishes,

Armond Scavo
www.earthlightimages.com

Philadelphia Winter and How I am spending it

With all the snow you might think I had tons of time to write my blog. Even though I spent a lot of time shoveling snow, I did manage to see two movies, three concerts, attend Lisa’s photography salon, get hooked on Lost via Hulu, walk a lot, and photograph Washington Square, League Island, the Love sculpture and various other philadelphia scenes.

I also started shooting Philadelphia with a nikon 360 Nikon digital camera, hand held. This is unusual for me because I almost always use a tripod, and until now always film. It has a large enough file size for prints up to 6×9 which is perfect. This will enable me to walk the streets of Philadelphia more freely and expand my already existing portfolio for my new Philadelphia online gift shop. I am evaluating the results for sharpness and quality. So far so good.

My Philadelphia online gift shop will include affordable gift items-utilizing my Philadelphia photographs-through Cafe Press, my own 8×10 and 11×14 matted and framed prints, keepsakes, and several unusual items that I fell in love with.

The online gift shop is being built at this very moment by my dearest friend, computer angel, and a extraordinary artist Burnell YOW!      http://www.ravenswingstudio.com/

I am very excited about this new project. I have a strong  affection and appreciation for Philadelphia and its history. Over my past 25 years of experience I have developed an approach to the city that is unique and personal and expresses my affection and appreciation.

My primary objective for my Philadelphia online gift shop is to share my love and affection for Philadelphia by offering gift items of high quality, with a personalized approach and good value to all who love and have a special interest in this very special place.

I will keep you posted on its progress!!

More later

around my Philadelphia

As I mentioned in the last entry during my layoff from blogging I attended several concerts. The first one was exceptional. It was the Curtis Institute Orchestra’s Graduation Recital with Joshua Gersen as conductor. The performance was exhilarating with Mr. Gersen’s conducting only matched by the energy of the orchestra. Any time you can see a Curtis Performance do it!!

Another concert I attended was AVA performing Norma at the Kimmel center, with a special appearance by Angela Meade. As always I love what AVA does. This night was no exception.

Tomorrow I will tell you about the movies.

Around My Philadelphia

It has been a while since my last post. I apologize for the absence.

During the past two weeks I have seen two concerts, 1 movie, had a house guest, created new art pieces, and did the 10 day home show at the Philadelphia Convention center.

My friend Jeff,  who I met in the mid 60’s and have been close and best friends ever since, was visiting from Denver this weekend. It has been several years since his last visit. What was wonderful was taking him around the city and hear him ooh an ahh about the changes Philly is making. It is almost enough to lore him back.

One of his requests was to get a Philly style roast pork. To get the best he thought we should go to  Geno’s or Pat’s; but there were several other places I thought were the best to choose from. I convinced him to try one of my three favorites so we went to Dinics Roast Pork and Beef (spelling?) in the reading terminal. I chose it both for the food and the experience. It was Friday afternoon at 12:30 and the crowds were huge. We were fortunate enough to get seats at the counter next to a great couple from Buffalo who were in town for a sporting event. I ordered an Italian style pulled pork with provolone, broccoli rabe and hot peppers. Jeff went for the regular. Jeff was VERY happy with my choice. FYI the other two in order of my preference is the Pork at Fitzwater Cafe at 7th and Fitzwater. This is my favorite. The second best is Johnny’s at front and Snyder behind Lowe’s. Actually It may be a virtual tie. I guess it depends on my mood.

I will post more about the last 2 weeks tomorrow, especially about the new additions to my Imaginary Landscapes series:

http://www.earthlightimages.com/docs/galleries/imaginaryland.html

Around My Philadelphia 1.9.10

Last night Alice and I were invited to have dinner with Betsy Alexander and Burnell YOW! at the Smile Cafe. They are both artists recognized in their own right for their work, but at this present time they are probably known better as Nora the piano playing cat’s parents. http://www.ravenswingstudio.com/NoraWeb/nora_home.html

After dinner we attended an opening of a show of assemblages and collage at the Smiles Gallery which is on the second floor of the smiles Restaurant (22nd street off of Chestnut). If I am not mistaken it is a satellite of the DaVinci Art Alliance. The three artists on exhibit are Burnell YOW!, Carl B. Johnson and Carol Wisker. The curator was Deb Miller. Each artist with their own approach, materials and style were distinct from and complimentary to each other. If you are interested in assemblage and collage this is a must see show.

The dinner at The Smile cafe was delicious and plentiful, enough to share. Alice and I eat Thai and Loatian cuisine often. We wanted to compare this restaurant to what we were used to. We ordered a cabbage salad and Pad Thai. We also tasted Burnell’s pineapple fried rice. The food was a bit sweeter and less spicy than what we are used to, which was refreshing. It is definitely one of the better Thai restaurants at reasonable prices. We spent about $10 each including tip.

Something happened at the opening that illustrated the importance of the viewer, and the audience for art work.

While looking at a particular piece I noticed that it had what I thought were the bristles of an old shaving brush. I misread the artist’s name as Carl Wisker. I thought it was clever to include this shaving brush, which was actually a piece of fur, with the last name of Wisker. I eventually met the artist, Carol Wisker not Carl ( gender specific shaving brush) and told her about my observation that most of her pieces had “wiskers” incorporated into them. To both of our surprise she was unaware of this.

This reaffirmed my belief in the importance of the viewer and what they experience.

Around My Philadelphia 1.8.10

Last night I was lucky enough to attend  a reception at the University of Pennsylvania’s renowned Wistar Institute. it was for the winners of Nikon’s Small World photo competition. This competition is restricted to photographs taken through a microscope. There were  demonstrations of the equipment, an awards ceremony and a short talk about the evolution of the competition.

I was truly inspired.  Images titled Beer bubbles, Stop Watch, Thale Cress and Iodized Water Vapor were among my favorites. Go to the website; words are not enough. http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/. And what was most interesting to me was how reminiscent many of the images were of my Imaginary landscape series.

The reception was crowded with scientists, art lovers and other interested parties. The fare was catered by the 12 street Cantina which we all should know is one of the finest eateries in the Reading Terminal. The finger food consisted of Lamb chops, crab cakes, lobster salad on endive leafs, mushrooms in puff pastries as well as the traditional pig in the blanket. The food and drink were exceptional.

Another great night with freinds


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