Tag Archives: grafitti

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Germany, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Hostel 36

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Hostel 36
Window and entrance to Hostel 36, Heidelberg

Hostel 36. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Window and entrance to Hostel 36, Heidelberg

By now we have visited Heidelberg several times, spending a total of perhaps a couple of weeks there. We have relatives (Patty’s brother and sister-in-law) who live there, so we almost always include a visit when we are in that part of the world. By now we’ve wandered a bit around the city, especially the Altstadt area and its surroundings, but also on the other side of the hill that runs along the opposite of the Neckar.

The Altstadt is, of course, a bit of a tourist destination. It is an older area of the city, many of the streets are narrow enough that there is little or no vehicle traffic, it is filled with restaurants, hotels, and other things that attract visitors, with historic churches, a university, and a large castle in the hills above. I recall that the first visit took us right up one of those streets filled with shops and restaurants. We still go there, but we also wander away from the “main drag” and into some of the back streets. It was on one such walk that I spotted this scene, a hostel with an unusual color exterior color scheme.

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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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Photographs: France, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

La Maison Des Chats

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La Maison Des Chats
A woman walks through reflected light and past shops on a Paris street

La Maison Des Chats. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A woman walks through reflected light and past shops on a Paris street

Out for a morning walk, I made this photograph in a place that was hugely busy later in the day and in the evening… but which was almost deserted so early. I suppose it is a street scene that could occur in almost any big city with old buildings, but this one happens to be in Paris.

It is a bit hard to explain why I like photographs like this one, but I’ll try. Part of it is the complex and almost accidental structure of the scene with its complex combination of storefronts, windows, doors, angled shadows, and text ranging from store signage to street art and graffiti. (You’ll have to look closely to notice some of it.) This “landscape” is what first got me to look in this direction, but I felt that it would be more interesting if someone populated it, so I waited long enough for a few people to walk by. The woman in this version of the scene not only provided that all-important human figure, but she also walked some colors into the scene that tie in with the general color scheme created by the buildings and signage. (And the text found there also might be worth some consideration.)

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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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Photographs: France, Photographs: Urban/Street

je suis bleu

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Je Suis Bleu
Sidewalk, graffiti covered wall, and women (virtual and real) on a Paris street

Je suis bleu.. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Sidewalk, graffiti covered wall, and women (virtual and real) on a Paris street

Walking some streets somewhere in Paris — sorry, first visit, and I can’t name everything! — we passed through an area of narrow streets, shops (including many that seemed like high fashion stores), and lots of interesting old buildings and graffiti and more. These things, plus light that was changed due to broken clouds, made the area a photographer’s paradise.

Near a corner I saw this example of street art. By itself a photograph of it would not be much more than a record, but I stopped and waited to see who might walk into the frame. A bicycle and a scooter passed by on the street, along with a few solo walkers, but nothing too special. Then I saw the two women and the young girl coming up the street and I thought I might get something interesting. It was my lucky day — they stopped briefly just to the left of the figures on the wall and two of them turned back to my right to look at something. The red dress was a nice touch, too!

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Urban/Street

Ben Is Watching

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Ben Is Watching
A Brooklyn, New York wall

Ben Is Watching. December 21, 2015. Brooklyn, New York. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A Brooklyn, New York wall

I generally make it a rule to not photograph graffiti, though it is not quite a hard and fast rule. I almost never photograph a subject with someone’s vanity tag on it, and in a few cases when a larger subject as been compelling I have removed or defaced the tag in post. There are probably a range of reasons that one might write or scribble or draw on public and private property, ranging from a poor sense of social belonging to a desire to produce something like art — so the decision to show or not isn’t without context.

In this case, the wall seemed to be one that had become, likely by more or less popular agreement (or a concession?) a place where such public art is perhaps not only tolerated but also expected. While a simple tag doesn’t usually interest me, here there were layers of text and imagery that had been assembled over time and then modified by weather, wear, and perhaps later contributors. Eventually, the accidental juxtapositions seem to take on their own lives, as in this vignette featuring a worn dollar bill image of Benjamin Franklin, and oddly anthropomorphic red and white and green shape, bits and pieces of paint, and the underlying old brick wall. And, of course, this is all very temporary — and probably transformed or gone by now.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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