February 11, 2006

• SATURDAY PHOTO
  (See sidebar for others)

  Helen Keller (Hands)

  by Yousuf Karsh
  1948, gelatin silver print, 46.0 x 36.7 cm.

  Yousuf Karsh died in 2002 at the age of 94, having become one of the world’s most famous portrait photographers. Click here and you will almost surely see one you’ve seen somewhere in your life. His image of Winston Churchill is said to be the most reproduced portrait in photographic history. (More about that here thanks to JacquiRashawna).  In this photo of Helen Keller’s hands you can see one thing he did with studio lights which was to light a person’s hands separately. He was born in Turkey (which was then called Armenia) and, like Lotte Jacobi (the photographer from the last Saturday Photo I posted), he had to flee his homeland because of persecution. He wound up being sent to live with his uncle in Canada, who was a photographer and who eventually had him apprentice with a famous portrait photgrapher in Boston. After four years he returned to Canada and set up a studio near the Prime Minister’s Office. As luck would have it, the Prime Minister discovered him there, took a liking to him and started introducing him to visiting dignitaries who sat for portraits. And eventually Churchill came to town, and the rest is history. Of the 100 people named by the International Who’s Who [2000] as the most notable people of the century, Karsh had photographed 51. Karsh himself was the only Canadian to make the list. Karsh said “My chief joy is to photograph the great in heart, in mind, and in spirit, whether they be famous or humble.” And boy did he ever.

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  Deep Thought: “Instead of a trap door, what about an area of the floor that just shoots up real quick and smashes the guy against the ceiling?”
  Today I am grateful for: Weather forecasts (especially when they’re not blizzards like is happening to our east coast members)
  Guess the Movie: “You tell God the Father it was a kindness you done. I know you hurtin’ and worryin’, I can feel it on you, but you oughta quit on it now. Because I want it over and done. I do. I’m tired, boss. Tired of bein’ on the road, lonely as a sparrow in the rain. Tired of not ever having me a buddy to be with, or tell me where we’s coming from or going to, or why. Mostly I’m tired of people being ugly to each other. I’m tired of all the pain I feel and hear in the world everyday. There’s too much of it. It’s like pieces of glass in my head all the time. Can you understand?” Answer: The Green Mile, 1999. Winner: Eliminate_the_Impossible.
  On Fear, Lizard Brains, and 1984
  by Arianna Huffington
  I spent much of yesterday having people try to scare the hell out of me. In the morning it was President Bush. At night it was Big Brother. At times, it wasn’t easy telling them apart. Let me explain: (Rest of
  article here.)

  • 9:44 pm
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