Spokane Skyline
In which Dan remembers to look up and see the less-seen.
I used to live in Spokane. Cool town.
The town made its money in mining and logging, and that money shows in many of its buildings from that era. A gew are newer but they still do a good job of filling the skyline.
I’ll double-check but most of these buildings are on the Spokane Register of Historic Places. I’m a sucker for places on that list.
Commerce Tower - Kansas City
Just before my departure from Kansas City, I was granted permission to shoot from high atop the roof of the historic Commerce Tower. What a treat!
The Commerce Tower has a fantastic history and because of its uniqueness as an example of architecture, it has managed to get itself protected status. For the few months that I lived in Kansas City recently, I was able to work at this gem and was lucky enough to be granted access to the (very scary) roof of this gem.
Located in the heart of KC's old financial district, the tower now exists as modestly-priced apartments and condos. You can walk to all the coolest spots in the area and the streetcar will take you to even more fun neighborhoods. That's cool and all ... but that view!
My friend, Shella, and I (go check out her awesome Instagram page) went up there in there in the early evening so we could make certain to get plenty of light for the views but also to ensure we would get great sunset imagery. I think we succeeded.
From the top, we could see far into Kansas, miles and miles of Big Muddy, the super cool River Market neighborhood, and we got an eyeful of the many, swell art deco elements on the nearby buildings.
I've lived in and moved away from Kansas City enough times to know that it's not the kind of town for me to live in long-term, but I also know that the place is chock full of American history and in its present form is a fantastic destination for visitors. For residents, the art and entertainment scene is top notch and I'm grateful that KC is making huge steps to create a pedestrian/bicycle friendly downtown.
... but that view!
A Trip to Orrick, Mo - Part II
Sometimes pictures are easy to edit. Sometimes they're not and they take a bit longer. These pictures from my visit to Orrick, Mo took a bit longer because they deserved it.
Sometimes, I can go through a few hundred images and easily find the best images and get them edited right away in a fit of energy and inspiration. Then again, sometimes, I find ones that require more time and effort to parse and find the best possible edits for. That;s the case with these images. I hope that you feel they're worth the extra time.
Just north of Big Muddy and about 30 minutes east of Kansas City sits a farm town named Orrick, Mo., named in honor of W. W. Orrick who had drawn up the plat. Despite the addition of railroads, a grain silo, and a modest downtown, I don't suspect too much has changed with the land since it was incorporated in 1873.
On my Youtube channel, you'll see an aerial view of the Orrick area filmed with the new drone. You'll also see more images from the trip in the first blog post about Orrick.
A Trip to Orrick, Mo
Just 30 minutes outside of Kansas City ... but a hundred years apart.
Just north of Big Muddy and about 30 minutes east of Kansas City sits a farm town named Orrick, Mo., named in honor of W. W. Orrick who had drawn up the plat. Despite the addition of railroads, a grain silo, and a modest downtown, I don't suspect too much has changed with the land since it was incorporated in 1873.
Very soon, on my Youtube channel, you'll see the video that I created with the drone and I'll also soon be releasing the architectural pictures ... but those will take a bit.
Street Art of San Jose
I love me some great street art. Not sh#tty vandalism but the real good stuff that has artistic quality and a social message. The dudes in San Jose have their game on point!
Street art is visual art created in public locations, usually unsanctioned artwork executed outside of the context of traditional art venues. Other terms for this type of art can be "urban art", "guerrilla art", "independent public art", "post-graffiti",
and "neo-graffiti".
That's all a very nice way to go and say "F*ck you!" to the man and be able to get away with it. Some cities, though, are forward thinking and progressive enough to dedicate some of its public spaces to just this type of art. That's the case in San Jose, Costa Rica. On government-controlled walls near the main judicial and legislative offices, you'll find loads of sanctioned art. Near the train station, underpasses and other urban spcaces in that area, it seems that the area has become a Mecca for public art.
click any image to embiggen
I think they're a litmus test of sorts. Do you see disrespect towards the system or to authority? Do you see just the art or just a distasteful message?
Y'all KNOW I dig the graffiti art in San Antonio but this stuff is amazing. Upon my return to town, I'll have to go to some of SA's other well-known street art collections and see what's what. Until then, and I'm proven wrong, I gotta say that San Jose, CR has got better game at this point.
click any image to embiggen
The Doors and Portals of San Jose, Costa Rica
Whether it's San Antonio, Texas or San Jose, Costa Rica, the best way to see a place is by getting out and walking. On this trip, I've been amazed at the diversity of entryways. Cool stuff!
As I walked the streets in and around downtown San Jose, Costa Rica, I was amazed at both the diversity and similarities of the various entryways and portals in the town. What is a common theme is that almost all of the homes feature an outer wall or gate almost directly along the sidewalk. That's often followed by a small courtyard, parking space or patio and then you get to the home. I love it.
It seems to be a fine way of making peace with living in a crowded city. As I've already mentioned, this set-up seems very European as I've seen similar structures in the big cities of Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. All densely populated places but examples of where design makes that impact less.
Some of the doors that caught my eye were inside ones, portals that led to a patio or kitchen. The simplicity of their purpose didn't make them less striking. Others were the main door or gateway facing the street. What a way to announce your home to the world.
OK. It's not all doors and windows. Many of the outer walls are decorated with intricate masonry, detailed textures or, in the case of my favorite wall, these painted tiles. I'll do my best to find out more about this place and update this but for now, just look at the beauty and try to imagine the tale they're trying to tell.
Before my visit to Costa Rica, I looked at some of the guidebooks and websites to get an idea of the highlights. Yes, of course, the beaches and jungles are always winners but in my life, I've never had a traditional vacation where I sit and sip cocktails or tour museums. Nothing wrong with those pastimes but it's a truism that for me, there is no better way to see and feel a pace than by walking. Get away from the well-traveled paths, keep the guidebook in your pack, and get your feet on the street.
As is often the case, I see the differences in how things are done here versus back home but I see the similarities, too. Folks all around the world just want to work, support their families, live in a nice home, play the way they want to play, and live the way they want to live. Here, they just happen to live with awesome doorways, windows, textures and living spaces.
A safety disclaimer - As for following the paths less traveled, I'm also a tall and stout fella that still walks like a soldier. That certainly helps me make the choice to walk off the beaten path. Don't be dumb. Make good and safe chices.
MiraFlores, hidden in plain sight
Hidden in plain sight, this historic gem harkens us back to the best moments of our cultural history!
THIS is why I love walking! More times than I can count, I've stumbled across artistic, architectural, or historic gems like this; MiraFlores.
I've walked and run around Brackenridge Park enough times that you'd think I'd have seen this by now. Nope! Never. It was only when I decided to extend my run a bit by trying a new path that I found this. It's not exactly hidden and the gates to the place are rich, ornate, and smack dab along the side of a busy street.
I literally stopped in my tracks as I passed the main gate and finally noticed this gem. Where had it been hiding these past months? There were no signs in front so I didn't yet know what I was looking at.
Most importantly, as there seemed to be no unlocked portal to the street, how do I get in?
It didn't take me too long to figure out that its only open entrance was from inside Brackenridge Park.
The amount of coolness near that entrance is another story altogether. Once inside, I didn't see the placard explaining things until I had already explored most of the place.
I wandered around ignorant of the true beginnings of this place and its artifacts and my mind reeled at the potential origins of these incredible artifacts.
Statues and towers and benches and tiles and fountains. A treasure trove!
After finally finding the sign explaining things a bit more, I was determined to go home and do more research into the place and make an in-depth blog post about it. Not surprisingly, a bit of surfing led me to an incredibly well-written article in The Rivard Report about Mira Flores.
On a small piece of land near the headwaters of the San Antonio River sits a sizeable stone marker, upon which are inscribed the words: “1716 Aqui se celebró la primera misa” – the first mass was celebrated here. This proclamation sits quietly in Miraflores, a former property of Dr. Aureliano Urrutia, an accomplished physician who came to San Antonio from Mexico in 1914.
I encourage you all to click over HERE to read the complete article. As it's written by descendants of the good Doctor, they have a love for the place that shines through in the writing.
Go for a walk. Then, walk some more and never stop exploring. See things, travel, read! The world is a massive place filled with thousands of colors and flavors, countless languages and dialects, and enough artifacts like these to remind us that we're all specks of dust!
A Foggy Morning Walk
Since my arrival in San Antonio, the weather has been mostly sunny and warm. Yes, a few good rainstorms but never fog. It was lovely!
I have moved around a bunch and have lived in many different regions. Some of those residences have been in areas where the weather can often be unfriendly; on the cold side. Northern Germany, Idaho, Eastern Washington and Alaska. All wonderful and their changing seasons always pleased me.
Since my arrival in San Antonio, while there have been a few epic rainstorms, the weather has leaned towards, hot, sunny and humid. I'm not against those things, of course, but the frequency of the hot days and days in which I sweat too much come far too often for my taste. When the recent chilly days passed through and brought some early morning fog, I headed to the downtown canyons to take a peek.
Had I gotten downtown earlier, I'm certain that the fog and mist would have been even stronger. Despite my tardiness, it was still a treat to see the tops of the bigger buildings obscured by the low clouds. With such shallow cover, city noises seemed to be dampened. There's a strange type of echo where the noises roll a bit then get swallowed up by the void. It's eerily comforting.
I'm not certain if it was this phenomenon that kept the city's visitors speaking in hushed tones or simply the less-than-postcard-perfect weather but those that were out in the morning light seemed almost reverential to nature.
You'd think it odd coming from a California boy but too much sun bogs me down. I get headaches from the light flares, I don't handle prolonged heat well and, this is unproven, there's something about living in harsh, cold environments that toughens people up and weeds out the weak and silly. Where you find heat and sunshine, you'll find more people. Where you find chill, fog and sleet, you'll cross paths with folks that either HAVE to be out in it or WANT to be in it. I want to be in it.
Now, a bit of fog on a 53 degree morning isn't like haddock fishing in Alaska but it was sufficiently out of the ordinary that it seemed reason enough to make a trip to the concrete canyons of downtown San Antonio
And what canyons they are. It seems that as the city grew, the low, flat plains made it more worthwhile to build the newer, taller buildings outside of the city center. It seems that most of the buildings from the early part of the 20th Century have been left intact and the ones added to it seem to have a similar feel and look to them. Everywhere you look, you see the familiar orange stones. Very seldom will you see sleek marble or shiny steel. Sure, here and there but it seems rather tastefully done.
I dare to say that many of these buildings are on historic registers. There is certainly a large number of history plaques about, more per Sq/ft than I've seen in the US. Seeing as the city is approaching its 300th anniversary, that's understandable. So much richness!
And lastly ... don't forget to look up!
2016 Lilac City ComiCon
Come for the comics. Stay for the information on eCommerce, order fulfillment and drop shipping!
My disclaimer ... I am not a fan of comics. I like the superhero movies and I used to collect the books when I was younger but I lack the fervor for them that the attendees of the 2016 Lilac City Comicon have. I come to these (and it's only my 2nd such 'con) because I'm a fan of devotees, artists and entrepreneurs that put so much effort and vigor into making this culture fun and vibrant!
Rebecca Cook was here to chat up the super cool web-series of which she's a part. Music of the Spheres, a live-action Virtual Reality series.
Several of my friends and acquaintances either had booths here or participated in the various discussion events. It's always cool to see friends engaged in the furthering of their art and passion!
Karl Schafer, the top guy from Z Nation made a fun announcement during the discussion. He said that in addition to the show still being filmed in Spokane, Season 3 will actually show the characters in Spokane in the show.
Shaun Springer leads a discussion with folks from Z Nation. Russell Hodgkinson (Doc), Karl Schafer (Z Nation Show Runner) and Kevin Cook (Z Nation Gaffer)
My dear friend, Jeremy Whittington, was here showing off both his cool originals and the Fan Art that has his distinct look and feel. Additionally, as he's the creator of all the season artwork for The Modern Theater's 2016-17 Season, he had all those posters displayed and he did a fine job of telling folks about all the upcoming shows.
Jeremy works on a piece of commissioned art for a Comicon patron.
In addition to the artists that I already knew and follow, I found a few new ones that I really liked.
Travis Bundy from Creator's Edge
Antonio J.B. Dela Cruz
Noah Kroese
These guys and their art leapt out at me. In a sea of great comic art and design, their work had a simpleness and cleanliness to it that I found appealing, Noah's especially. I was only able to chat with them for a few minutes but it's cool to see folks get animated when they talk about what they love doing.
Plus, Adam the Woo was there. That was unexpected! He has such cool videos and is a super successful YouTuber!
My inner nerd did make an appearance, after all. It wasn't for all the cosplay girls or cool costumes or characters. It was, oddly enough, in finding out all the different ways that artists are monetizing their work. All of them sold items at the convention. That's expected. What impressed me, though, was all the various ways that they sold their goods online. There are many different ways to do it ... and some of the folks seem to do it quite poorly, but others had their stuff together.
I found a few with sites that handled all the ordering, printing and shipping. All the artists had to do was set up the initial printing and sales parameters and all the rest was handled by a third party. I admit that that's a silly thing to geek out about but it's a topic that near and dear to me because of the changing landscape of photography and how to succeed in that world. A very illuminating day!
Anyways ... I'm a dork! Thank you very much to Nathan OBrien, the Founder of the event, for being such a cool host.
Bing by iPhone
Spokane is lucky to have such a spectacular gem in the heart of its Entertainment District! Every corner of it is stunning!
The Bing Crosby Theater in Spokane, Wa has a spectacular history. Though it’s previous owner allowed it to get run down a bit, the current owner, Jery Dicker, has spared no expense to bring the place back to its full glory. In addition to just upgrading infrastructure, the new team has added so many flourishes of art and color and style. I dare say that The Bing is more glorious now than it has ever been. I’m lucky to have been allowed the chance to visit the place during off hours in order to capture these images.
It seems that you can’t go anywhere in the building without finding a beautiful angle or color or shape. A walk around the exterior of the building will show you plenty of texture and detail of the bygone days. Lamps, stairways and even walls seem to capture light and shed color in return. Oh, and they have concerts, too.
Do yourself a favor. Go to their event page, find a show you’d like to see and arrive early. Take a walking tour of the place and look for more hidden gems.
The Doors and Windows of Railroad Alley
Broken, boarded up, bricked over, replaced and some even still in use! Take a walk along Railroad Alley and you'll see all manner of portals into Spokane's history
Behind, you guessed it, Scratch.
Railroad Alley is actually 2 different alleyways, one north and the other south. It's the northern one that has more access to it, more daily use. The southern one has many areas that are blocked off or are now private areas. That's OK, there is still plenty of territory to cover. With the exception of one block, the portion between Howard and Wall Streets, one has a straight walk from Washington St westward to Adams St.
Along that path, you'll find bits of our mining and logging history in the form of offices and building that formerly housed those offices, stylish new condos and lofts, modernly renovated offices and ones that look as if they're still from the early part of the previous century. You'll also find countless portals that go between the open alleyway and the inside of the buildings
Many of the doors and windows have been replaced yet many seem to be the originals from their era. Many others have been covered in one way or another. Where the paint is chipping, you can see the numerous layers and the different colors attempted over the many years. On the bare brick, the scars of graffiti and its removal ... and RE-vandalism show. How many taggers have "owned" part of the alley at one point or another?
This isn't some quiet back alley, though. It's an active thoroughfare for folks getting from the street to the business to make deliveries and for the many tenants that make their homes in the cool lofts and condos that dot the path.
Every color and texture imaginable is on the walls. Brick, wood, stucco, concrete all have their space in this gallery. Though the newer designs are present, the bulk of the doors and windows harken to older days. There doesn't seem much point in replacing the old ones with newer designs. They're still quite functional and have lasted this long. Thank goodness because, like many things from past eras, they're much more interesting to look at than a solid collection of new steel and glass.
Go on! Go take a walk and what you can see!
Halloween at The Baby Bar
Halloween at The Baby Bar - 2015
You may have noticed that it's getting quite Halloween-ish around town. My friend, Dan Anderson, asked me to help capture the ghoulish faces of the Baby Bar staff for their Halloween season festivities. He liked the work that I did for he and his mates in Glengarry Glen Ross a few months back and I was flattered that he called on me to help with this project.
He did an awesome job of gathering all the parts needed: hair, make-up, subjects .... all the legwork needed to make a shoot like this go smoothly. Smoothest shoot ever. Fun, too. I think I mentioned all the artists in each picture but to be sure, a shout out to Nirvana Marie, Amy Calkins from Wild Angel FX Make-UP, Dani Wiyrich from Thunder Kiss Makeup and Art, and Elizabeth from Strata Salon Spokane for their excellent artistry.
All these images are up on the walls of the Baby Bar through October. Go see them in all their gory glory!
The Trade Winds Motel
What was once an ultra-cool travel lodge is now, well ..... a sh#thole!
From the Spokesman-Review:
Once a fashionable motel, built when the country loved Tiki-style architecture, the Trade Winds in recent years became a rent-by-the-month apartment complex for Spokane’s hard-luck crowd.
Well, yes. It has become, how should I say this ...... a shithole ..... but it's a shithole with amazing textures and colors to it. In a different world, it should be brought back to its motor-lodge glory and made a hub of hipster coolness. I suspect that's not going to happen, though. Too many strikes against it. Shame. It's cool to look at so I'll enjoy it while I can.
