A weekly celebration of the chair through photography
Title: Chair & Elephants
Photographer: Hiroshi Watanabe
Chair/designer: Unknown
Artist links: www.hiroshiwatanabe.com
(About Chair & - All Chair & photographs can be purchased online at the Meter Gallery)
I think this is my favorite so far. I could see it hanging somewhere in my house--probably near the computer, for good distraction. It reminds me of some of Chris Van Allsburg's very suggestive work.
This one begs for some associated story of mystique and exotic travels....
Yay, Chris Van Allsburg! RISD rules! Who-hoo!!
Chairmanji.
I agree. (I did meet him a couple of times at book events, and I did take one class at RISD.)
Libby - I think, following the Chris Van Allsburg thread, that you're supposed to make up your own. (The Mysteries of Harris Burdick.)
Love it! To date, my fave of the series too.
You are thinking of the flying nun picture, right? I thoroughly enjoy this photo. It is a suggestive work, and in a subtle way that is not like the Chair and Dead Wife photo (which we all enjoyed). I love a work that causes me to think of so many fun questions...and imagine the answers.
Flying nun! Exactly!
And in a minute, the elephants will come to life.
It reminds me of the narrative they've woven into the Maharajah Jungle Trek at Disney's Animal Kingdom, about two princes.
(okay, but the Virgo in me soooooo wants to straighten out that chair...)
this reminds me... of another photographer.
http://www.gardnermuseum.org/2005_exhibitions/chairs_ex.asp
but yes, i agree-- this is my favorite of the "Chairs &" series so far.
Well, this little Aries also wants to straighten out that chair, or move it so much more crookedly that it won't look crooked.
BUT ... that's probably the subtle little thing that gives energy to this otherwise potentially static composition. I also love the fact that I'm dead sure there's bound to be lots of colors in it, but the black-and-white lets you imagine what they may be, without forcing them on you like a travel poster.
But although I know it would hide the elephants' legs, my other temptation is to put a mattress down in that little alcove, and hang sheers behind the arches, and let the sound of them rustling in the wind lull me to sleep.
This is also my favourite so far, and I have to say it is pretty sexy in its own way.
This is not favorite but is up there. At first sight, I thought:Andalucia, Granada, Cordoba,the south of Spain and the Moors... then I saw the elephants...
You can fill this space with scenarios and sounds of maharajahs or emirs. P2, Enrique, Curtis, pphilipp (and some others) would have a field day decorating this space: one day moorish the next one indian...
i love arches & alcoves & stuff like that. also like the split-level thing going on there. in fact, i don't particularly care about the chair one way or the other. except for the fact that my first reaction (like a couple other people, apparently) was to straighten the chair, arghh!
I like this and would use with a collection of architectural photos or engravings or such. I don't want to straighten the chair--and P2, I'm a Virgo also.
As to the architecture: what is it? It's got a sort-of Moorish archway, sort-of Louis insets, gridded windows that are too large to be anything I've seen...I don't know what this is. Not anything from the Caliphate of Cordoba or anything Ummayyad; that's for sure.
BTW: I'm still most partial to the murder-in-the-kitchen photo.
I'm guessing that step-up/raised area is for a daybed sort of thing as Curtis describes, but (assuming it's big enough) I think it REALLY needs to be set with a table for two behind gauzy curtains.
OR... perhaps a baby grand piano and an great-looking person singing "Stranger in Paradise" from Kismet, and have a bunch of tables for two in front of the curtains, but only have a few of them occupied.