2010 Baker Artist Awards, Behind the Scenes at MPT

Back in April, I had the honor of photographing behind the scenes at Maryland Public Television for the announcement of the winners of the 2010 Baker Artist Awards.  "The William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fund established the Baker Artist Awards to recognize Baltimore’s artists and engage the public in supporting their work. The 2010 Baker Artist Awards consists of two separate prizes, the Mary Sawyers Baker Prize and Baltimore's Choice."  The Baker Award "B" trophy is given to winners of both categories, and is an excellent prop for photographic purposes:

Keveh Haerian, one of the recipients of the Baltimore's Choice Prize, with the Baker Award "B"

The innovative application process of the Baker Artist Awards is simple - you register at www.bakerartistawards.org, create a "profile", and upload samples of your artwork.  And that's it.  There are a few guidelines, for the most part that you be over 21 and live in Baltimore (and/or surrounding counties).  As any and all mediums are accepted, the website enables applicants to upload images, text, video, sound, etc.  The only limitations are on file size and the amount any one nominee can upload in a 24 hour period.     

Up to three Mary Sawyers Baker Prize winners are selected from the site's applicants (or "nominees") by a private jury and awarded up to $25,000 each, to be used at their discretion.  As in, they are in encouraged to spend it however they see fit.  As in, "You're a pretty amazing artist.  Here's a boat load of money for you.  Enjoy."  Pretty sweet.

The 2010 winners of the Mary Sawyers Baker Prize: Richard Cleaver , Karin Yasinsky , and Peter Minkler (click names to view nominations)

The Baltimore's Choice Prize is a $1,000 cash prize awarded to up to five artists.  The winner's are decided by a voting system through the Baker Artist Awards website.  Anyone who registers on the site is given a vote, and more votes can be earned through further participation on the website (ie: commenting, voting, nominating, etc.).

The 2010 Baltimore's Choice Prize winners: Steven Parke, Amanda Fair, Keveh Haerian, Kelly Walker, and Shodekeh Talifero

 
CLICK HERE to read more about the awards, and be sure to check out the some of the other nominations!

Maryland Life, August 2010

Check out the "Art" feature in this coming month's issue of Maryland Life Magazine for a piece I worked on showcasing Bob Moore, a master weaver of Nantucket baskets.

Bob was great to work with, such an interesting guy and clearly very skilled at his craft.  "The iconic baskets he creates date back to the early 1800's, when sailors would return from the Orient with reeds, rattan, and other materials...." (-Mary Medland, from the article).  Space was a little tight, so maneuvering lighting was a bit tricky, and above all I wanted to be sure to do justice to his work.  In the end, the piece looked great and I couldn't be happier with the results. 

Mad Men

Last night marked the season premiere of the fourth season of Mad Men, a television series on AMC which centers around characters working at an ad agency in the 1960's.  A few weeks ago some friends hosted a Mad Men theme party where everyone attending was dressed in 60's fashion and offered martini's, manhattan's, and other such potent potables of the era.  I brought along a Model 180 Polaroid Land Camera and spliced a sync cord to connect a flash.  Here's my favorite polaroid from the evening:

The flash didn't fire on the first attempt, so there's a faint double exposure

The party was a blast, and last nights episode of Mad Men was, of course, amazing.  Definitely check out the show if you haven't, and CLICK HERE for some great 1960's cocktail recipes.

Cheers!

Nelly at the dog park

Couldn't resist. What a rock star.

Best Daycare Centers in Baltimore

-"The Kids Are Alright" article, featuring the best child care centers in Greater Baltimore, Baltimore Magazine, July 2010-

Had a great time shooting for this piece!  The kids were great to work with and so much fun to photograph.  I would start off as a sort of fly on the wall, photographing them as they went about their normal routines, but would inevitably end up running around playing games and trying to keep up, pausing only to move a light or compose a shot.

Thanks again to all the daycare employee's who were so generous with their time, and especially those who ended up being impromptu assistants- couldn't have done it without you!! 

Not all of the following images were used in the article, but here are just a few of my favorites: