Pictures of Ukraine

Through a newspaper exchange program, I had the opportunity to visit Ukraine in November 2011.

I was prepared for bitter cold, but that part of the world was experiencing record highs for that time of year, which was fine with me.

The newspaper is in Slavyansk, a city in the Donetsk Oblast (state), which borders Russia. We offered some journalistic insight from our American point of view, and our hosts showed as all around their area before we proceeded to the capital city of Kyiv (Kiev). Along the way, we visited a monastery built into a chalk mountain; a salt mine that has hosted symphony orchestras; a traditional Ukrainian village; and various museums pertaining to art, music and the disaster at Chernobyl.

We also saw a ballet and opera, both exquisitely performed. Unfortunately, because of the toll of travel, I dozed off during both performances …

Anyway, I shot hundreds of images during the visit and when all was said and done, I narrowed them down to this Master Gallery. Enjoy!

Snow day

I had to run a few errand today and took my Canon PowerShot SX20 along for the ride.

On the way back home, I hopped out of the Hyundai and snapped some photos before frostbite started to set in.

We’ve had a mild winter so far here in Western Pennsylvania, but in the middle of February, it usually looks something like this.

I’m hoping these types of days are few and far between the closer we get to spring.

Teenie Harris video

I’ve posted my interview with the Carnegie Museum of Art fine arts curator involving “Teenie Harris, Photographer: An American Story,” the exhibition at the library through April 7.

Click here if you’re interested in seeing the resulting video. Louise, the curator, does a great job of explaining what the exhibition is all about.

And by all means, visit! I plan to go back when I have the opportunity to spend, oh, like all day there.

People Take Pictures of Each Other

The other day I had the honor of interviewing Louise Lippincott, curator of fine arts for the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh.

The topic was the exhibition “Teenie Harris, Photographer: An American Story,” which runs through April 7 at the museum. Louise spoke at length about the project, and I used her narrative for a video showing Mr. Harris’ work.

I’d heard of Teenie Harris long ago through his work with the Pittsburgh Courier shooting the Homestead Grays, Pittsburgh Crawfords and other Negro League teams. Later, when I moved to Western Pennsylvania, I lerned more about him and came to respect him as a pre-eminent chronicler of history.

If you live within driving distance of The Carnegie, or even beyond, you’ll do yourself a favor by visiting the exhibition. And plan to stay for a long while.

I’ll be posting my video on Monday, in commemoration of Martin Luther King Day, as Dr. King was the subject of quite a few of Mr. Harris’ photos.

Associated listening: “The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society” (1968)

Shout out: I received word from my Twitter buddy and fellow journalist Lici from Mississippi that she’d mentioned me in her newspaper column. Thanks, Lici!!!
We are encouraging each other to blog more consistently in the New Year! Her blog is Ramblin’ Prose, and I highly encourage you to check out her work. ‘Cause Lici is a much better writer.