Tag Archives: museum

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Detail, Atrium

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Detail, Atrium
Architectural details of atrium of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

Detail, Atrium. San Francisco, California. January 3, 2016. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Architectural details of atrium of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

When I visit museums I often photograph them. I don’t usually photograph the displays, but I do photograph the architecture, people, and sometimes the structural abstractions I can locate. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a favorite museum — for its collection, its temporary installations (Right now go see William Kentridge’s “The Refusal of Time!”)

The museum was recently remodeled and expanded, with a new wing added to the original structure. The original centerpiece of the interior architecture was the atrium, a tall central open space topped by a “turret gallery” with a catwalk. The atrium remains following the remodel, and the light in this space is often spectacular, ranging from shade to bright sunshine. During this visit the light was softened by rainy conditions outside, and the colors ranged from the warmth of electrical lighting to the cool blues of the cloud-muted light coming in through the windows.

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: Architecture, Photographs: France

Musée d’Orsay, Interior

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Musée d'Orsay, Interior
The main interior area of the Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Musée d’Orsay, Interior. Paris, France. August 12, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The main interior area of the Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Even though we had almost a week in Paris this past summer, there was simply too much to see — not that this was a surprise! We knew that there were certain things that we simply had to see, and we knew that we wanted to visit several museums, some small and some large. We visit a small photography museum one day, and we visited a portion of the Louvre on another, but there were other things to see and do as well.

All of this is to explain our unfortunately brief visit to Musée d’Orsay, which we only managed to get to near the end of our trip, and then on an afternoon when the place was only going to be open a few more hours. We went in and rushed to see at least a few things that we knew we did not want to miss, and I found time to make just a few photographs, including this one of the airy interior of the building just before it closed.

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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Commentary, Photographs: England, Photographs: Urban/Street

Rain, Fallen Leaves, Reflections

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Rain, Fallen Leaves, Reflections
A pedestrian walks post a small garden in the rain near the Tate Modern, London

Rain, Fallen Leaves, Reflections. London, England. August 2, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A pedestrian walks post a small garden in the rain near the Tate Modern, London

It may be a bit hard to see in this small version of the photograph, but the walkway, made dark and reflective by light rain, is covered by a universe of small leaves that have fallen from the row of trees that stretches to the right and out of the frame. I was also attracted by the complementary red and green colors of reflections and leaves.

The location is not far from the end of London’s Millennium Bridge and at the entrance to the Tate Modern, where we went to see a wonderful exhibit of Georgia O’Keeffe paintings. (And, yes, it did seem slightly strange to be visiting the exhibit of this American painter in a British museum.)

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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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: France, Photographs: Urban/Street

Escalator, Windows

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Escalator, Windows
Afternoon light from nearby windows on an escalator, the Louvre

Escalator, Windows. The Louvre, Paris. August 11, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Afternoon light from nearby windows on an escalator, the Louvre

We spent the better part of a day during our recent Paris visit at the Louvre. Anyone who has been there knows that a day is far from sufficient time to really see the place and the art that is housed there. We managed one full floor of one (of three) wings and a bit of one or two other areas. Clearly we have no choice but to return to Paris!

It is no secret that I, like lots of other photographs, am entranced by geometric shapes, effects of light, angles, and juxtapositions. Sometimes there is time to see these things and carefully consider how best to photograph them, but sometimes we don’t have the luxury. In this case, I had very little time, as the view is from a moving escalator! Fortunately, I had my camera in hand as we rode down to a lower level, so I was able to quickly raise the camera and make a few quick exposures of this view as it evolved and rolled past.

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

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.