My Visit with D-Tension

This month, David Iverson’s piece on The Last Safe & Deposit Company, on Merrimack Street in Lowell, in the Merrimack Valley Magazine, will soon be at news stands. The club’s owner, Steve Perez, AKA D-Tension, had me show up early so that I could get shots of him and the club before the band started and the crowd appeared. Come to the back door, he said. If you haven’t been there, the front door is no less disguised, but be persistent and note that the club is downstairs and shares its entrance with Sweet Lydia’s, another downtown Lowell institution. The Last Safe & Deposit Company is uniquely Lowell, and inspiring, to mangle a marketing phrase. Do check out the article in a week or so when it hits the street!

This Was 2014

Stop me if I have said this before, but I really find the many end-of-the-year lists very tiresome. So naturally, I thought it would be a swell idea to do one myself and to review my year for you. Mine will be exciting though. Really! There will be lots of local interest, beautiful people, amazing food... Ok, so you're bored already... I will get right to it. Enjoy!

Oh, and Happy New Year!

---

The day in January of 2014 when the Lydia and Francey, the entrepreneurs from Mill City Grows came to my studio.

Sopheak Sam at Harvard Business School for a Boston Global photo shoot. It was COLD that day!

Stephanie graciously agreed to do some available light testing too.

Before the weather became arctic, I worked with a local band called Trusting Fate - at a farm!

The stunning Caitie tested for some available light portraits.

Photographing food is always a joy with a food stylist like Carolyn Grieco. Thank you for the cover Merrimack Valley Magazine!

Neal, from Concept in Dracut was my cover shot for CEPro in April 2014.

The cover of the May/June issue of Merrimack Valley Magazine was all about author Andre Dubus III; a very nice guy!

You can't see him, but Steve, the Merrimack Valley Magazine's creative directory is hanging on to a softbox on a stand, hoping he won't become airborne out at this dirt road location shoot.

I enjoyed photographing and profiling several other authors, artists and artisans this year for the Merrimack Valley Magazine too. Clockwise, from the top left in this group, is one about author Holly Robinson, shot at Plumb Island. Next is ceramic artist Yary Livan, shot at his studio at Western Avenue Studios, in Lowell, MA. And last, I spent a morning learning about the coffee roasting that Rosie's Cafe does, also in Lowell.

Then there was the vacation! We spend almost a week in Santa Fe, which was the first time for Amy and me in the South West. 

The fantastic wedding and portrait photographer, Melissa Desjardins, who used to assist for me and now lives near Richmond, VA. She loves to be photographed!

Very happy to be asked to be the first photographer from Lowell, MA to be featured on the home page slide show of lowell.org!

Liz Cardoso, my assistant for the day and an emerging photographer as well, accompanied me to Portland, ME for this cover story about Rob Simopoulos, of Advance Technology.

What can I say about Thaddeus Miles? Director of Public Safety for MassHousing, photographer, public speaker, proud father, founder of several initiatives, the most recent being Hood Fit, which is "an effort to feature the most positive attributes of community building through a focus on health/wellness of the mind, body and soul." Thank you for asking me to photograph you!

Yum! Angelina's in Tewsbury, MA.

Part of my photoshoot for Jeanne D'Arc Credit Union's new ad campaign. This one of Mark S. Cochran, President & CEO at the Owl Diner, is one for the wall! (see insert - billboard seen on the VFW Highway, in Lowell)

And just a little over a week ago, I had fun working with my stylist Grace Moschetto of Grace Professional Cosmetics, models Christa and Monika, and Ani for some fashion work to market her store, Humanity Lowell.

Perseverance and Faith

So what do you say when another photographer who you respect asks you to create their portrait? You do it, of course! Thaddeus Miles, who happens to live in the next building, asked me to do just that. I was incredibly flattered, and immediately asked if, rather than a fee, I could be paid with a print of one of his photographs, and if I could make some photos of him that were beyond what he was looking for.

Thaddeus is an amazing photographer. Quite a while ago he began one of those 365 projects that some photographers embark on (note that I said “some”… I have never had the discipline...) in which they shoot something every day for a year. Well the last photo in his blog is day number 977! See his work here : http://thaddeusmiles365.wordpress.com

A couple of his other passions are his Hood Fit initiative and his Men of Color Photoshoot, the first phase of which took place last week. Check out both on his blog, and here as well: https://www.instagram.com/hoodfitma

Thaddeus was actually trying to get a new photo of himself for “an award”, as he phrased it. That award, which is no small thing, and which will be presented to him today, October 28, 2014, is called the Lilla G. Frederick award, named for Mrs. Frederick, who helped found and then served as the President and Chair of Project RIGHT, Inc. (Rebuild and Improve Grove Hall Together), which presents this award. Congratulations Thaddeus!

Thaddeus emailed the press release the other day, which appears below, after the photos.

I am just privileged to know him and extremely happy to have had the opportunity to photograph him for this blog.

Thaddeus Miles

Subject: FW: Thaddeus Miles will be presented the Lilla Frederick award on October 28, 2014
 

(please distribute to the appropriate contacts and have those interested in coming, to contact me regarding tickets at 617.541.5451.x102)
 
You are invited to join Project RIGHT at its annual dinner and celebration on Tuesday, October 28th, 2014 from 6 PM – 9 PM at Russell Memorial Auditorium (70 Talbot Ave, Dorchester).  Project RIGHT was formed in 1991 and organizes residents and young people on addressing public safety and quality of life issues while improving access to resources and positive opportunities in the Grove Hall neighborhood.
  

This year, PRI is presenting Thaddeus Miles, MassHousing’s Director of Public Safety with its Lilla Frederick award.  Mr. Miles has been responsible for launching several innovative violence prevention initiatives and partnerships that has made a significant difference in the Grove Hall neighborhood, the City of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a whole.  

Mr. Miles launched the Grove Hall Multi Unit Housing Initiative that comprised of tenant associations, Boston Police, property owners, management companies, security companies, MassHousing and community organizations that has successfully addressed public safety issues in these apartment buildings.  Mr. Miles helped to found the Grove Hall Youth Outreach Connection comprised of Project RIGHT, several Grove Hall Tenant Associations, MassHousing, Boston Police and Lilla Frederick Pilot Middle School which has received significant funding by the Charles Hayden Foundation to increase the youth outreach worker and prevention capacity in the Grove Hall neighborhood.  Mr. Miles has also provided ongoing training for a variety of Grove Hall representatives to understand both the community impact of violence and the toll of trauma, but also to address the personal toll that occurs upon us.

Being an innovator in challenging the barriers and disparities facing Grove Hall and other neighborhoods, Mr. Miles launched HoodFit, a community led movement which focuses on bringing out the most positive attributes of community building, health and wellness highlighting the mind, body and soul that shows us day by day on how to overcome issues such as trauma.  Mr. Miles also founded “Think Big Dream Big”, a youth driven initiative to jumpstart young people on the journey to a positive future, the fulfillment of their goals and dreams.  

Much like the late Ms. Lilla Frederick (Devon Street resident and Project RIGHT’s Board President), Mr. Miles goes block by block, identifies problems, takes actions, doesn’t take no for an answer and achieves results.  They both go out of their way to avoid publicity or self promotion, but they rather just do the work to make changes that systematically improve the lives of residents and young people. 

If you have any questions, or wish to come to Project RIGHT’s annual dinner and celebration, please contact Michael Kozu, Community Coordinator (m_kozu@hotmail.com and 617.541.5451.x102).

Andre Dubus III for the Cover of Merrimack Valley Magazine

Back in February it seemed, depending upon the day, as if the winter was about to wind down. That didn’t quite work out. The day that we had scheduled to photograph Andre Dubus III, the noted writer who grew up in the Valley, for the cover brought more snow, albeit the light fluffy stuff. Publisher Glenn Prezzano, writer Emilie-Noelle Provost and I arrived at the writer’s home and were quickly welcomed in to get warm by a roaring fireplace. The UMass Lowell faculty member and author of "The House of Sand and Fog”, "Townie: A Memoir" and many other works, was accommodating, helpful and very generous with his time, which makes our job much easier. An encounter that will remain a bright spot in an otherwise bleak winter.

Andre Dubus III for the Cover of Merrimack Valley Magazine

Andre Dubus III

Andre Dubus III

Part of Our Rich Fabric

I had the privilege again of photographing Yary Livan, my neighbor at Western Avenue Studios, this time for Merrimack Valley Magazine. I created a portrait of him in my “Basic” series of black and white images. I spent a little time in his studio with him back in October for the story and he gave me some insight into his process, from inspiration to his sketches, sculpting and firing. To say that his story is an interesting one does not do him justice, so see David Iverson’s excellent story in the magazine.

Art and Technology

I haven’t blogged in a while, so publishing some tear sheets is way overdue. 

This spring’s Merrimack Valley Home Magazine features a story about Lowell’s Whistler House Museum of Art. It’s located right downtown in Lowell, on Worthen Street, and features a nicely kept historic building and grounds, in addition to lots of classic art work.

Neil Boissonneault and his staff at CON-CEPT are the cover story of this month’s CE Pro Magazine, a locally-published techie magazine. In addition to the cover, I had the run of his showroom in order to get lots of gear shots. In the 50s through the 70s, my father had a television store, so I enjoyed talking with Neil about some of the old products and how they compare to today’s technology.

Joe Hungler Meets the Big Doors

Joe Hungler and I recently discovered that we have a connection that neither of us were aware of. Joe grew up in Manchester, NH, and was a close friend of my nephew when they were both in grammar school. It’s the kind of thing that we seem to only discover from social media when there are friends or followers in common.

Joe is one of the many Lowellians who is committed to making life better for those with less. He is currently the Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell and on the board of directors of the Cultural Organization of Lowell. Originally from Manchester, having grown up in the Boys & Girls club there, where he worked for 10 years on the Program staff, Joe came to Lowell by way of clubs in Nashua, Waltham and Worcester. Get him started on talking about his work and you will soon see why his enthusiasm leads to his success. 

Please visit their web site. What they offer kids and the cost will probably surprise you! From their web site: “The membership fee for the school year is $26. No child is turned away due to inability to pay – scholarships are offered to children who could not otherwise afford membership.“

Joe Hungler - Executive Director at Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell

Happy 2014!

Every year at this time I whine about how tiresome all of the end-of-year lists and retrospectives are, so it seems only natural that I do one myself. 2013 has been a very good year for me. I have had a number of rewarding commercial photography successes, as well as some really interesting editorial ones. As important for my sanity though have been my self-assigned portrait projects that have allowed me to get to know many interesting people who I wouldn’t necessarily have had the opportunity to spend time with. Thank you to everyone who has helped too: my wife Amy (and reluctant keeper of the books), my son and new daughter-in-law, my assistants Melissa and Liz, my stylist Grace, Western Avenue Studios, and my loyal and supportive clients and fans. I know I am forgetting someone, so please accept my apology in advance! Thank you again and have a very Happy New Year!

Adrien

2013 in Pictures

Full Circle

Yovani and I were following each other on Twitter before we had actually met. I remember meeting her at the first Tweetup that I attended and was a little shocked that she and a couple of other people came up to introduce themselves as followers. The power of social media sort of hit me at that moment, but that’s another story. 

Yovani is a native Lowellian. She told me that she went to college in Maine, so I had to Google Farmington, Maine. It’s up there. Zipping around with StreetView, it looks where I grew up, but more so. Yovani came back to the Valley though, getting her masters at UMass Lowell, working for a state senator and then for several years in Lawrence, at Lawrence Community Works, managing rehab and other construction projects. She now works for the City of Lowell, which she really enjoys.

The Big Doors were calling though. Yovani seemed psyched to be photographed in front of the famous landmark. I think it worked.

Look Around and See the Good

I met Geoff Foster at Lowell’s United Teen Equity Center (UTEC) in 2012 while documenting the important work that the dedicated personal at UTEC does. Geoff, a youth organizer, is UTEC’s Associate Director of Political Action and is well known in the community for championing the Vote 17 initiative, and state-wide for overseeing the Teens Leading the Way coalition, among other things.

What is striking about Geoff is his unrestrained enthusiasm for what he does. To see him in action with a group of young people is truly inspiring. So as I have invited different personalities for the area to allow me photograph them, several of them insisted that I should extend the invitation to Geoff as well. He was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule yesterday afternoon to come by. It was incredibly interesting and uplifting to talk with him and experience his contagious enthusiasm, but I got to photograph him too!

Geoff Foster

Geoff Foster, United Teen Equality Center, Lowell, Massachusetts