Norman Rockwell

During a visit to the Norman Rockwell Museum, there was a gallery discussion in which the artists' techniques were presented. His characterizations were created by specifically posing his models with the positioning and expressions that he wanted to portray. During the modeling sessions, he would take hundreds of photos of the characters and then paint from the photos.

His pictures are so realistic, and detailed that they are a bit like photographs, except far more perfect than you could hope to capture in a candid picture. Here are some examples, I can't put any here directly due to copyright issues.

His studio (roof of the building pictured) was relocated intact from downtown Stockbridge to the grounds of the museum outside of the Massachusetts town. The inside was left just as it was when he last used it. And, in the basement of the museum were 100s of covers from the Saturday Evening Post that he did over the year. The original art was on display, and I was surprised by how large the paintings were (perhaps 4-5 feet high). This was so there would be room for all the details that he wanted to include.

Seeing all of the personality in the works, it made me want to take it as inspiration for some of my street photography and I will be trying to focus on special moments if I can. Looking through pictures I've taken previously, these are the ones that I think are most like a Norman Rockwell painting.


Old Gentlemen in Central Park


The Deal

Abandoned Mansion

This is a historical landmark, but I will not go into the specifics of what it is. I think it's more interesting to think of it more in the generic. A woman author from the early 1900s designs and builds a summer home where she can write. She keeps the home up for 10 years or so, and then moves on due to family circumstances (husband cheating on her). The home is sold, but proves too expensive to keep up over the years and is ultimately abandoned.

After years of neglect, the interior is partially restored and is opened to visitors. The grounds and gardens are returned to their original glory. Looking at the mansion today, makes one think of what it once was. Part of the building is restored, most of it, like the picture of the window here, is barren and reflects it's genre. The contrast of elegance and neglect is intriguing.

If you must know more, here is more detail.

Alleys

I discovered an alley I never noticed before. It might actually be a street. I decided to cut through and found a number of sites that homeless people had setup. There was a lot of character and a few people wandering around. It struck me as strange that on either end of the alley, life went on as usual. But, passing through this cut through was more like going through a 3rd world country.

Burying Pipe

Burying Pipe
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

The town of Harrison, New Jersey (located just across the river from Newark) is being completely redesigned. Harrison is an old factory town. Most of the old industrial buildings have now been abandoned. Broken windows, graffiti, weeds.

Harrison's claim to fame now is that it is a "park and ride" location for commuters who take the PATH train into Manhattan. It is a relatively painless 20 minute ride. And, the grounds of the factories have been used as parking lots for the travelers.

Harrison Factory before demolish
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

About four months ago, many of the parkers were displaced and had to move to lots 5-6 blocks further from the train. And, virtually all of the surrounding blocks were completely razed. There are now blocks and blocks of empty space. Starting to emerge is a new condo complex along the river and they will be building a new soccer stadium that will home of the Red Bulls professional team that now plays at Giants Stadium.

The first photo shows one large land mass that will be occupied by a complex that includes 30,000 square feet of retail stores. And, the giant pipe that the worker is standing on bring some sort of liquid to site (water?). This picture shows the pipe being buried, to be hidden for generations. I like the orange areas in the picture and the dirt falling behind the guy.

The second picture shows what used to be here. Ultimately the mile of land surrounding the train station will be built up with a new glistening town. I suspect then the commuters will have lots of company and will need to find a better place to use as a base.

Corner scene

There are three different sets of people in this photo. I was initially attracted to the man with his arm on the pillar. I took about 6 pictures of him as he put his arm up and down. Finally he got into a position that worked.

I didn't notice the girls approaching from the right when I took the shot. Their matching outfits work well in black and white. And, I didn't notice the guy with the pizzas who slipped in on the left. He doesn't look like a delivery guy, he looks more like a guy who has a big appetite.

The whole thing seems kind of European to me, although I'm not sure about pizza being delivered like this in Europe... and there is a US mailbox in there.

Body Art

Body Art
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

There is a lot of infrastructure construction happening on lower Broadway. Centers of streets are torn up and construction workers are digging holes and laying huge pipes. To separate this dangerous work from the average Joe, plastic barriers are constructed, sometimes with green mesh behind. The plastic is in bright yellow, green and orange colors. Holes let you see through (it's probably cheaper also as holes are free).

This photograph shows a spot where two of the colored plastic strips come together. This guy's arm and his striped shirt turned out to be a great compositional element. I like this on its standalone art value, it really means nothing so I would consider it an "abstract".

Top and Bottom

Traffic gloves
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

The traffic cop stands for hours at a time. He get ignored, passed by, and sometimes respected. Some are bored, aloof, or relaxed. I think this guy has all three of those traits.

The two shots here are the same guy. I originally thought they were taken from the same source photo. But, now that I have them up, you can see they were different shots (the other legs don't match). But, it is definitely the same guy.

Restless Legs Syndrome
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

There's the top of him above, and then there is the bottom of him.

Dramatic Look

Dramatic Look
Originally uploaded by jfraissi

I originally called this picture "Podiatry Man", but then as I started look at it further, I realized that it reminded me of a famous YouTube video called "Dramatic Look".

See the original video below. (Make sure your sound is turned on).

Smoking Women

It's not quite clear to me why, but I've noticed that the most popular pictures that I've posted on the Flickr site are related to women smoking cigarettes. Yes, there is a style and personality related to these women, but most of these are found by direct search by putting in searches for "Woman" and "Smoking", so they are being specifically sought out. These pictures jump statistically in the "view" statistics, and they have style but they are not necessarily more remarkable than other less "popular" photos.

Click the sideshow and see the ones that have gotten the most attention:

Preparing for 9/11

The park at Liberty Plaza is now a gathering ground and showplace for the annual September 11th ceremony. The park is just opposite from the World Trade Center site, and last year's activities for the families were held here. (This year, I think, the pit of the site is a little bit more prepared for visitors and they will be doing some or all of it down there). At any rate, last year, before the ceremonies a team of workers came to work on maintenance of the embedded lights that are part of the park's floor.

I noticed that the workers have returned, which reminded me that we are coming close to another 9/11 anniversary and another ceremony. Last year I emerged from the PATH train while the ceremony was in process and had this direct observation.