the wishing fairy ...

just because ....

sad flag

from our sad lowered flag for our tragic deaths and loss of homes and businesses in Christchurch New Zealand in the February 22 2011 earthquake

 to even further and worse destruction on the same ring of fire in Japan 11 March 2011 

... I send good wishes to all our close neighbours and friends across the sea...

oddness...

odd

beautiful timing (or not)

alot of weirdness right now...

however ...
I have just finished the most beautiful campaign for the wonderous Trelise Cooper of New Zealand and I am so happy with the final works ...

and then ....
my professional photography monumental website and archive of all my work and exhibitions history and its Italian designers have disappeared into the ether ...
and at the same time I am temporarily here in the disaster zone
Christchurch New Zealand and earthquake after earthquake ...... since the Feb 22 2011 disastrous and all my camera gear is munted (as they say here ) and unusable ...
it is quite bizarre and must mean it is time for some dramatic changes ...


I am very particular ...but if you are up for a web design challenge for a fashion photographer/creative director with 25 years professional experience ...visit my agents sites and see my work there
www.internationalrescue.com/#/photographers/francesmelhop/_overview
www.paolasciarretta.com/ 

then let me know your ideas ....
and a quote ...


meanwhile ...latest works ... for Trelise Cooper NZ 

a most FAB designer
 

january... 2011 .......

waiting and waiting .........

for photographic darkroom equipment....  

only one set of multigrade lighting filters still to arrive ...

sigh ...

****************************

I have however, tested my favourite recipe ... 

and now is the time to send out the secret discovered in the depths of the south of the heel of the boot....

it is ... very very good.

but only my project backers will ever know....

tomorrow 22 january 2011 at 11.20pm NZ pacific mean time ... I will let the secret concoction from the Italian Nonnas out ......

........ :)   aaaaaaaaaarrrghhh lovely ...

a very very happy Christmas ...

I just want to wish all my friends, family and supporters of my Ancient Olive tree  project a very beautiful and Happy Christmas ...

and mention the progress to date...

Today I pick up my new darkroom equipment found on Trademe NZ , our own version of Ebay...
in the next week the replacement silver gelatin Fibre based photographic paper arrives from the UK, and another piece of equipment from the USA , so hopefully once I rebuild the darkroom I found here, I will be happily printing away the limited edition works on the first day of January !!!!

so looking forward

meanwhile best wishes for Christmas and the New Year to everyone !!!!!

 and lots and lots of presents under the tree for everyone!!!!!

ancient olive project continuing stoooory...

so now the hunting, finding, shooting of the Ancient Olive trees has come to an end and I have returned to New Zealand with the material and am working very hard on the final printwork for all my amazing project supporters...

I am having some problems finding a black and white darkroom to use for the limited edition print run...but I will find a way ...

the colour printwork is what I am working on this week...and the choosing of the best recipe .... 

I did end up having grannies fighting to give me recipes in the supermarket just before I left :) ... and rushing to their houses to get the food so I could try it ... got to love that !

I particularly liked the sagne incannulate ...but there was one risotto that I could eat every day of my life ... hmmmm

at this point I would like to thank another series of backers and supporters...

thank you so very much to

Amy J McCray

Gofenshefer she makes lovely accessories inspired by the natural world

Solvita Danevica who makes sweet jewellery and miniature pinback buttons 

Erica Kremenak

thank you to Inge you can find her here at cri-cricurieux

thank you also to Elsa Dorfman who is a wonderful photographer from the USA who shoots with one of the only 7 giant polaroid rail cameras .... the camera is so huge it needs a few people to move it and she makes giant polaroids 20x24 inches... 

thanks to Vincent Corona-Evans

Marleen De Troyer

Bonnie Jones , another photographer (I particularly like her teapot house picture!!!)

my new lovely sis Lynn Evans and her husband Zeke

and my dear friend Peter Towers ... a genius architecture photographer that I used to assist when I was just a baby photo-kid

Leone

still reeling

with the events of the last days

here is yesterday ...

milan-brindisi-bari-lecce-martignano-lecce-martignano-trepuzzi-lecce-martignano-lecce-martignano-lizzanello-martignano... 

 darkroom death life creation travel  food drink friends work art

yesterday was my last day to get into the darkroom and print more of the limited edition series ... it has been an endless struggle as the giant professional enlargers they have there no longer have lamps, and the lamps are no longer produced ... so after a month of searching the Director of photography at the Academy found a lamp that had a fitting that could be used. It turns out to be neon and the quantity of light produced each time is different as well as the colour temperature , which in turn changes the image that is produced on the paper ie: lightness darkness contrast etc....

I had just made what I thought were the perfect prints and two men rushed into the darkroom turned all the lights on and told me I had to leave

the Director of the Academy has died

all my printwork was destroyed by light and I had 10 minutes to get myself out of there 

he was one of the most beautiful men I have ever met..

a gentleman ,the perfect Grandad

gave us everything
he is who gave me full reign over the darkroom as he was sad it was not being used anymore

he gave us our show
he organised it all
he removed all the bureaucratic stumble-blocks
he allowed us to do as we wished
his door was always open for all students and visitors
inside his office old antique Narnia furniture with faces of fauns and devils looking out of heavy carved doors and desks
he wanted only to move art forward in a generous way without any recompense


it was he who organised for his friends son to be my shadow to see how the old school photographers worked ...

it was he who saw creative desire and allowed it to go 
even if we had nothing to do with the Academy

a true forward thinker
an Architect, he studied at the university of Florence
he brought the Accademia delle Belle Arte Lecce to the height it is now, on a par with the Milan-Brera and Bologna schools of fine art and recognised as one of the very best in all of Italy

I went to do the "visita del morte"
I have now seen my first dead body in a coffin
his name is Giacinto Leone

this means

Hyacinth Lion

and he was exactly that 

all his students are crying