While You Were Sleeping: My Rock Star Adventures in Korea

Two weeks ago I flew halfway across the world to attend my first Dancers Among Us solo exhibition in Asia, and it blew my mind. The Savina Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul staged a flawless exhibit - three floors featuring 66 large-scale prints and two video rooms. Opening night was a lavish VIP affair, and I entertained the guests with a quick shoot featuring Korea National Ballet superstar ballerina Joo Won Kim and her partner, Jeong-yun Lee of National Dance Company of Korea.

Video of Opening Night

—

The media attention on Dancers Among Us surprised everyone. There have been over forty radio, television and magazine features in the Korean press thus far, and many more still to come. If you have time on your hands, you can see some of my favorite articles here: Korean Media.

TBS Radio

DongA Media

The Korea Times

—

I took a break from my rock star reception to photograph an actual rock star, Yoon Do Hyun, lead singer for YB, Korea's most popular band. Gathering the fans was the easy part - the crowd kept growing by the minute. We were finally stopped by security for causing a public disturbance.

—

My Korean publishers, Sigongsa, have done a phenomenal job promoting Dancers Among Us. When I entered Korea's largest bookstore, Kyobo Bookstore Gwanghwamun, I would have been excited just to see the book face out. I had no idea there would be a glowing neon shrine. I photographed four dancers from Seoul Ballet Theatre: Younghyo Ma, Miri Lee, Minguen Song and Junghyun Lee, while a huge crowd stood behind a rope line to observe.  

—

I hooked up again with Joo Won Kim, this time with a new partner, Jong Suk Park of Pennsylvania Ballet. We spent the day together (along with a production team, a stylist, makeup artists, hair designers, two trailers, and a van) to shoot a ten-page feature for the September issue of Noblesse Magazine.  

—

My final event was Seoul Dance Project, sponsored by Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture. I gave a talk and signed books before being welcomed with a three-story dance in my honor, ending on a rooftop garden. It was a perfect finale to a glorious week.

Thank you, Seoul. I've had my Beatles moment!

Where It All Began

Fifteen years ago I stood here, 1,500 feet above the sea at the top of Cadillac Mountain at Acadia National Park in Maine. 

I was holding a cheap camera and wondering how to take a nice photo of the landscape below. I had no idea, so I decided right then to enroll in my first photography course. It was the birth of an amazing journey that continues to this day. Last night, I returned to the spot where it all began, to shoot photographs fifteen years in the making.

This Little Girl Would Kick My Butt!

I met Ava Peterson this weekend in Chicago. She and her family drove several hours to see my presentation at Chicago Photography Center. Once I heard about Ava's journey, I asked if I could photograph her, which resulted in the image above. This is her story, as told by her mother:

That Ava is alive at all is no small wonder, let alone that she is a dancer. I learned during pregnancy Ava had a significant heart defect which would likely require open heart surgery upon birth.  When she was born we learned she had a few other defects:  missing kidney, underformed ears, malformed right hand, scoliosis, and we quickly learned she aspirated when she swallowed. She suffered a significant event at 8 weeks of age when she lost her heartbeat and respiration for over 45 minutes. Ava was fed by a stomach tube for the first five years of her life, has twice endured open-heart surgery, a tethered spinal cord surgery, and has a rod in her spine to correct her severe scoliosis. 

This, however, is not a tale of woe as this tiny dancer has not only survived all these events and more, she inspires many with her inner strength, unbelievable resilience and zest for living and dancing without looking back.

"I dance to express my individuality in all different directions. I know that we are here on earth for a reason so why not enjoy it? When you find something that speaks to you, seize it! That is exactly what I have done - I have a great passion for dance. Even when I'm not at the studio I am always moving... I just can't stop the rhythm! I am so glad I have found a beautiful way to express who I truly am inside. When you find an escape to cloud 9, pursue it! You will be glad!" - Ava Peterson, 13

Last year Ava began a project to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation because her friend suffers from the disease.  She has raised over $3000 leaping for sponsorships and plans to continue the project on an ongoing basis.  Check out her site:  https://www.facebook.com/CatchingAir

"Is she calling out to you, Daddy?"

My mind was preoccupied with finding my misplaced wallet. I was in my studio at home, rooting through drawers, utterly lost in thought. It was yesterday morning, and I had ten things to do at the same time.

A sound suddenly froze me. It was a flute, distant and scratchy, a beautiful and haunting memory from my childhood. I recognized the musician immediately. It was my mother. She died two years ago.

Salish, my three-year-old daughter, had discovered an old tape recorder under a pile of books and pressed the play button. I had gathered the books from my mother’s apartment, but I never had the courage to look through them. She died suddenly and unexpectedly, and our relationship was unresolved. The pain of her death was too intense, so I shut it off.

“What is this, Daddy?” Salish asked as she saw my face go white.

“It’s my mommy. She played music.”

“Where is she?”

“She died, Salish.”

We sat quietly and listened to the music. My eyes began to tear up. Salish wasn’t looking at me. She was staring intensely at the wall.

“Is she calling out to you, Daddy?” she asked.

The question was like a kick in the stomach. Where did she hear that phrase?

“I don’t know. I don’t know.” I said.

“Is she sad, Daddy? Is she crying?”

“I don’t think so, Salish.”

“Is she in pain? Is she okay?” Her face was filled with compassion.

“I don’t think she’s in pain anymore, Salish.”

“Is she calling out to you, Daddy?” she repeated.

I was silent. We listened to the dreamy melody until the refrain ended.  “It’s time to go now, Daddy. We need to go.” We left the studio together, and Salish grabbed my hand. “I love you, Daddy,” she said.

Three hours later I was driving to work, the earlier event a distant memory. I was once again spending the day wrapped up in tomorrow’s irrelevancies. I looked at my phone and went numb as I saw the date.

It was my mother’s 70^th birthday.

I suddenly recalled a conversation I had with her long ago, as I was setting up her email account.

“What would you like your name to be?” I asked.

She thought for a minute. “Flutist at rest,” she said, smiling.

grandmother and granddaughter

Goodbye to the Man Who Changed My Life

Peter Workman, founder of Workman Publishing, died yesterday morning. I did not know him well- we had a casual acquaintance- but I will be forever indebted to him.

Two years ago, he gave me a chance when nobody else would. He saw opportunity where others saw obstacles.

His prescient staff came to him with a novel idea- a dance photography book set in everyday life. He had reservations, but he did not close the door, as many had before him. Whereas other publishers loved the photos but felt a book would not sell, Peter felt a book would sell because he loved the photos. So he put Dancers Among Us on his list, and in the process he added yet another best-selling title to his distinguished record of achievement.

How many other authors will have similar words of praise in the days ahead? How many dreamers were given an opportunity that had been so elusive, simply due to Peter's innate ability to see clearly through the fog that so often blinded his contemporaries? Countless, I imagine.

There is a famous expression to describe corporate ineptitude: "A fish rots from the head down." If this is true, then the converse must apply as well. The staff at Workman Publishing is brilliant, enthusiastic, and resolutely unpretentious. The offices bustle with creative energy and uninhibited optimism. I'm sure these adjectives will be used to describe Peter as well.

This was Peter's favorite photo from the book, and one he seriously considered using on the cover. As I look at it now, I see a woman ascending to the heavens, bringing with her the beauty and simplicity she enjoyed in life. Those left behind have the satisfaction of knowing that her influence on their lives will be lasting and powerful.

Thank you, Peter.

Night on the Town

A Dancers Among Us Fantasy

 Jason and Steve were too cute to be alone,

Too sexy to stay at home.

"We can't just watch another episode of Girls," they moaned.

"That show gets us all riled up!" they groaned.

"Let's go find some girls of our own!"

Christina, Abby and Sarah were too cute to be alone,

Too sexy to stay at home.

"We can't just watch another episode of Hung," they moaned.

"That show gets us all riled up!" they groaned.

"Let's go find some boys of our own!"

Like dogs sniffing for a scent,

The boys would not relent.

They hit twenty bars that night,

Before they saw a most magnificent sight:

Three sirens waiting with delight.

Liquid courage is the name

For what you do when you got no game.

And with three girls and just two boys,

Even the coolest guys would lose their poise.

The girls were willing to wait around

For the boys to buy another round.

It was getting late and nobody looked better,

The only other dude at the bar was wearing a fraternity sweater.

The boys said little, and that was smart.

They didn't have the skill to melt a woman's heart.

Their bodies were great and their bearded faces pretty,

So who cares if their stories weren't very witty.

At least they would pay for a cab ride through the city!

www.dancersamongus.com

Dancers Abby Silva Gavezzoli, Christina Ilisije, Sarah Braverman, Steven Vaughn and Jason Macdonald of Parsons Dance

Lighting by Broncolor

Honoring the Heroes Who Save Lives

This photo, titled "Saving Lives", is featured in the WORKING chapter of Dancers Among Us.

My friend Kevin Ban is a doctor at Beth Israel Medical Center in Boston, and last year he got me access to their Emergency Department. Welcoming me with open arms were volunteers, nurses, residents and security personnel. I hoped to create an image that would honor their heroic work.

Fortunately, it was a slow night in the ER. I asked the staff for a triage room, a bunch of residents in scrubs, a heart monitor and a defibrillator. They made the room look completely authentic, down to the mess on the floor, the activity around the patient, and the placement of the defibrillators on his chest. 

"You want blood? There should be lots of blood on the floor!"

I drew the line at blood.

Jim Hennessey, a local photographer who was along for the ride, was kind enough to volunteer for heart failure. Duncan Lyle was a dancer with Boston Ballet who was about to move to American Ballet Theatre in New York City, so I allowed myself to dream- maybe he could do the impossible and jump high enough to seemingly levitate over the patient like a guardian angel.

Sometimes dreams come true.