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Short Film – Never Told
Shot this footage this passed summer at River Bank State Park. Not knowing exactly what wanted to do with it, i let it sit on the shelf until an idea/opportunity brought it self up. This piece was inspired by my Symposium Take Photo class with professor G. Slota. The objective was to choose a medium and create a silhouette out of it. The first thing that came to mind was this long lost summer time fun footage (although it may not look that way) . I was definitely going for a dark and dreamy like nightmare feel.
Weegee : Naked City & Vivian Maier Exhibit at Steven Kasher Gallery
As I walked in i was mesmerized by the authenticity of Weegge’s work. His photographs represent the real world with shots taken in the city in the center of it all. Relatively dark blacks and grays complimented with great facial expressions of his candid shots defiantly show how intense of a street photographer he was. Vivian Maier was completely different; it was more of an elegant feel to street photography, as appose to Weegee’s graphic photographs. Having their work shown in the same gallery made the experience much more interesting because their work compliment each other based on its differences.
HelpRuben Exhibition Opening Reception at La Sala 78 Cafe/ Art Gallery
The HelpRuben campaign was launched in August 2011 to subsidize my pursuit of a BFA of Photography at the School of Visual Arts. Since then I’ve been featured on the Daily News, Huffintong Post, Manhattan Times, Ahora Hispana and various blogs. Most importantly, I successfully completed my first semester at SVA.
I’m very excited to present to you the first of HelpRuben exhibition. This showcase features prints that were taken with film and were processed and developed by me. Come meet me and take a first hand look at my progress. Get involved and participate in this life long adventure of developing myself as an artist and sharing it with you.
Fall 2011 Semester assessment at SVA
With the blink of an eye my Fall semester has come to an end. I am excited to report that my Spring semester has officially begun! Sheesh! Time does fly.
My first semester at the School of Visual Arts was challenging and satisfying. Most of my professors are currently working artists and have been great instructors. They were always available to answer all of my questions. My favorite class was workshop. Considering that this was my first time ever shooting film, I had a love/hate relationship with the medium. From the start I had many issues processing film. Some of the challenges I faced ranged from contacting film to accidentely putting in the wrong chemicals at the wrong time. I picked it up fairly quickly, but had other challenges. Some of them were developing prints, properly setting up the easel and proper exposures. There were a lot of firsts this semester, and one that I am most proud of is that I worked for the first time with actual film. I processed and developed my own film. The first time I used Tri-ax 400 film I had no idea I had to rewind my film before taking it out. I felt like such an idiot. One day I remember being frustrated and leaving early because I couldn’t come up with a single decent print. The next week my professor pulled me aside and told me not be afraid of failure. That conversation made a difference later into the semester. I was having a difficult time printing. However, I didn’t panic this time and with patience eventually created one of my favorite prints.
One of the most amazing things about SVA is the huge amount of resources they offer. For example, I can borrow extremely expensive equipment anytime I want. This is equipment that without SVA I would never be able to take out for a “test-drive.” The first time I went to the cage (a borrowing station) I asked the person who worked there, “So your telling me I can borrow any of the equipment listed on this sheet?” He gave me a blank stare as if to say, “Of course you can. You are a photo major.” It felt great to have an enormous amount of resources at my fingertips.
Six short months ago I launched helpruben.com, and now I am entering my second semester. I am pleased of how far I have come and what I have learned.
Without your support, the guidance of my professors, andthe emotional support of my family I would be able to have such wonderful experiences to share with you. I am extremely grateful for this opportunity.
Vivian Maier Exhibit at Howard Greenberg Gallery
Usually I do not like to believe the hype. Vivian Maier lived up to it. It was a solid variety of different types of shots. None of the photographs in this exhibit appeared similar to each other. My favorite photograph is the shot of what appears to be a father walking with his children as their reflection appears on a puddle of water. I also like the depth of filed of this shot.
Disappointed that many of the photographs I viewed online where not at the exhibit (Most likely sold). Nonetheless it is refreshing to see a wide rage of her work in person. Click here to view additional photographs by Vivian Maier.
First of the semester
Shooting Kodak Porta 400 135-36 color Negative film, first of the semester! Tomorrow we will be learning how to contact and print our color film negatives. EXITED!
