Suburbia

For years, my family and I have lived in the burbs. During most of those years, we went to and from work or school in vehicles—cars, buses, and trains—and rarely stopped to look around. People have their stuff hidden away from the streets, and those things are easily missed from a vehicle.

My grandfather was a builder. Besides homes, in one case with his brother-in-law, my great uncle, he built at least two pretty incredible churches in these same suburbs of Boston. This was a century ago when building materials were moved into place with horses, and hammers and saws required a significant physical investment. So when I find things that I missed a long time ago in my own towns that required thought, skill, and labor to create, I imagine the people and circumstances that led them to take on these projects. How long did it take to construct that wall or that fieldstone garage?

I am learning to look, think, and imagine. It’s a work-in-progress.

Let it be resolved

A couple of days have passed since that long night. Sadness, anger, and trepidation seem to envelope me, and almost everyone I know, love, and respect. For me, the depression of the morning after gave way to a deep sense of loss—a loss of so much potential for good—a tragic missed opportunity. In almost every conversation that I have, I have to force myself to avoid succumbing to the anger and disappointment that I feel.

In a democracy, we have power—the power to vote for people and ideas. That's technically true, but in my 52 years of voting, I have come to the realization that I, as an individual, have very little power in the absence of a collective of like-minded others. It's a hard lesson, and I hope that first-time voters, especially, do not lose hope but know that together, people can and have affected positive change.

I know that a lot of us, in dealing with our emotions, are resolving to make personal changes—to do things that will have a positive effect—and avoid the attraction to negativity. I know from my own household that starting the day by pouring over the news, while informative, is a prescription for a really bad start to the day. That is one habit that has already changed here.

For my part, the lead-up to election day was an enormous distraction. As a result, I hadn't shared art online in months. Reversing that trend will be my resolution, and one that I hope to live up to. I have no say about how the world works. I don't even have a say as to how my condo association works, let alone the country. What I can do though is to create and share and to somehow hope that the universe can be positively influenced, one person at a time.

The photographer and writer Robert Adams has written: “It is the responsibility of artists to pay attention to the world, pleasant or otherwise, and to help us live respectfully in it.”

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The Griffin Museum of Photography's 14th Annual Photobook Exhibition

We took down my show, “The lawn was like a hay field,” at the ALL Gallery in Lowell last weekend. The month really flew by! But a lot of you had a chance to see it, for which I am truly grateful. Of course, much of the work is viewable on my web site here, and the soft-cover edition of my book is available here.

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Speaking of my book, I am really happy to share that the first edition, which I printed and bound by hand in an edition of 18, has been selected to be shown at this year's 14th Annual Photobook Exhibition, at the Griffin Museum of Photography, in Winchester, Massachusetts. There's more information about the show here, and it runs from June 13th to September 1st. There will also be three artist talks in which all of the creators have been invited to take part. I will be participating on June 25 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. This talk is a "virtual event," aKA on Zoom, so there is more info here.

As always, thank you for your support and interest!

Photo by Amy Bisson

Thank you!

A big “thank you” to everyone who came to the opening reception for “The lawn was like a hay field” this past Saturday; we had an amazing turnout! And even if you were not able to make it, thanks so much for your support! Thanks especially to Amy for always being there for me, even when it came to organizing and serving all of the refreshments; to Emily Belz for her guidance and inspiration on this project and the show; and to Kevin Harkins for his support, friendship, and indispensable help in hanging the show, as well as being there to take reception pictures without being asked! Finally, thanks to the Arts League of Lowell and all of the gallery sitters for welcoming my show to the Greenwald Gallery. And finally, thank you to everyone who purchased my book before, during, or after the reception, especially if I was not able to speak to you personally to thank you. I like to think that the show complements the book, and vice versa.

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I finally got around to making some installation photos, below. Following those are a few of Kevin Harkins shots from the opening reception.

The show will be on display until May 19th, so there is plenty of time to see it, Wednesdays through Sundays, from noon to 4 p.m.

Thank you again for these event photos Kevin!

Harkins Photography

Harkins Photography

Harkins Photography

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Stay in the Wagon

My older brother is an Eagle Scout. I think he really enjoyed being a Boy Scout. His younger brother did not, which I think disappointed my parents. The adult leaders in the troop who knew my brother seemed surprised that I wasn't like my brother. Before I was a Boy Scout though, my brother and I embarked on an adventure that lives on in our family lore to this day.

I don't know how old I was the day that he and I set out on a hike into the woods, but I was young enough that he was pulling me behind him in a red wagon. In those days, if you were to cross the road in front of our house and start walking into the brush, it would have been a straight 2-mile shot through the woods to where our grandparents lived. I'm not sure what his intent was, but after a while, I felt like we were lost. I think he would say that we were simply late in arriving, but I'm not sure we were even expected at our grandparents. And for a while on that hike, he was pulling me and the wagon through some fairly deep, muddy water, admonishing me to "stay in the wagon!".

Our front yard in the 1970s

I don't know how old I was, and it's quite likely that my memories of that adventure contain more than a few embellishments. I do know that our absence was noticed, causing quite a bit of concern on both sides of that wilderness. Maybe panic is a better word. We eventually popped out of the woods on the other side, only a few yards from our grandparents' house, who by this time were waiting anxiously. The ride home was probably pretty uncomfortable for one of us.

"The lawn was like a hay field" at the ALL's Greenwald Gallery

Exciting news! My project, "The lawn was like a hay field," will be showcased at the Arts League of Lowell's Greenwald Gallery starting on April 24th! Join us for the opening reception on Saturday, April 27th, at 3pm. The reception is of course free and open to the public. 

I'm presenting photographs that I created when I was a teenager in the small town in which I was born and raised, juxtaposed with ones that I made there in the last couple of years. It’s a story filled with memories of growing up in that time and place, and how we've both changed and stayed the same.

As I was working on my book, "The lawn was like a hay field", I knew that I would eventually want to show this work in a gallery setting. So when the Greenwald Gallery opportunity presented itself I knew that it would be a perfect fit. The Greenwald, an intimate space within the encompassing Arts League of Lowell's bright and airy coop gallery, allows the viewer to interact with the art on a very personal basis.

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At the reception, and for the run of the show, the soft-cover edition of my book, The lawn was like a hay field, will be available from the gallery. It’s also available here.

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Where is the Arts League of Lowell?

307 Market Street, Lowell, MA 01852

From Route 3 North or South, or from I-495: Take the Lowell Connector to Thorndike Street. (Exit 5B). Follow Thorndike and continue on Dutton Street. Turn left on Market Street.
The ALL is on the right in the red brick Gates Block building. The gallery is just inside the main entrance. 

 (click here for a map)

Parking

There is some on-street, metered parking near the gallery, but the HCID Parking Facility, at 350A Dutton Street is a 6 minute walk. To get to the gallery from there, follow the signs toward, and past the National Park Visitor's Center, then turn left onto Market Street. Cross Dutton Street at the light and the ALL is the second building on the right.

(click here for a map to this garage)

About ALL

ALL was founded in the Fall of 2003 and held its first monthly meeting in January of 2004. With the help of its members, sponsors, and patrons, ALL fosters and celebrates creativity and artistic expression in Lowell and the surrounding areas. Click here to learn more.

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The Book. Available in Softcover!

The softcover version of my photography book, The lawn was like a hay field, is now available through my online store. Click here to go to the store!

I was both happy and sad when I announced my first edition, as it was a limited one, and while it sold out in the first day, there were also people who missed out. This new softcover edition is commercially printed so I anticipate having plenty of copies available.

The lawn was like a hay field is my photography book recalling life growing up in a small town in New Hampshire. It is a project that has been a long time in the making. It began in 2022 with my revisiting old photographs from my archive, making new ones in that town, and writing some of my memories from that period in my life. It’s a story of my growing up in that time and place, and how we both have changed in some ways, and both have stayed the same.

You can read about the story of my book’s creation in the last few editions of my blog:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

It's a sort of (very) good news, (not so) bad news thing...

First the good news: The hand-made, first-edition of my book, "the lawn was like a hay field", sold out on the first day that I announced its availability!

I am extremely grateful for all of the interest!

So the bad news is that they're gone. I am truly sorry if anyone was disappointed because they were not able to snag a copy.

The news may not be SO bad though. I am actively researching commercial printing options for a 2nd edition. I really enjoyed printing and hand-binding each of the books in the 1st edition, but it is really an investment in time and materials, so “limiting” the number is essential. A commercially-printed edition would obviously be more like a mass-produced art book than a hand-made one, but it would not be a limited one.

This idea is currently just that, an idea. A 2nd edition doesn't yet exist, so my ramblings here are not a commitment. Today though I would like to conduct an extremely unscientific survey. As many of you know, my blog posts feature a "like" button at the bottom of each post (it looks like a heart). You don't have to log into anything to register your opinion and I cannot see who presses the button. I only see a number of clicks. (You can always leave a comment for me though) But if you like the idea of more books being available, especially if you think you would like to purchase one, I would ask that you press the "like" button in today’s blog (look for the heart). There would be no commitment on your part either, but the raw numbers would be a fairly useful data point for me.

Thank you again for all of your interest in, and support of my work!!!

Adrien

The Book. It's available!

My book is now available for purchase!

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The book, "the lawn was like a hay field", is a limited, first-edition, hand-made photography book recalling my life growing up in a small town in New Hampshire.

Each copy of this hand-crafted book has been designed and hand-sewn by me. All of the book's 72 pages of my photographs and writings are archival ink-jet-printed, so the images in the book are actually high-quality photographic prints; the images are not reproductions.

Currently available as a limited first-edition of 18, each book has been numbered and can be signed by the artist.

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This project has been a long time in the making. It began about a year ago with selecting old photographs from my archive, making new ones in the town, writing my recollections, designing the layout of the book, studying how to make the books, practicing, sourcing tools, and the materials for the books themselves. Even launching the online-store has been an adventure.

If you’d like to see the progress, from early December, please see my previous 4 blog posts. (click on any of these 4 images to read more)

The Book, Part 1

The Book, Part 2

The Book, Part 3

The Book, Part 4

The Book, Part 4

All 18 copies of my limited edition, hand-made photo book, "the lawn was like a hay field", are finished!

The books are 8.5 x 8.5 inch, 72-page, hand-made, hard-cover books, and the pages are all ink-jet-printed, so the photographs are just that, not reproductions.

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The content, design, and printing of this piece is something that I have been working on for more than a year; in a way, actually for 55 years. Some of the photographs in the book are ones that I had created when I was a teenager in the small town in which I grew up, sequenced along with ones that I made there in the last couple of years. It’s a story of my growing up in that time and place, and how we both have changed in some ways, and both have stayed the same.

I have a few more logistical details to work out, but in the coming days I will have some of the edition available for purchase through my web site.

I will post the link once the page is live.

Today I am also publishing a new gallery containing some of the images from the project here on the web site. You can view the gallery here: https://adrienbisson.com/the-lawn-was-like-a-hay-field

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