"Subterraneous 1" (Photo and copyright by Charles Grogg, http://www.charlesgroggphotography.net/)

January 23, 2012

RIGHT NOW

Portland jazz pianist/composer/arranger Gordon Lee hurls the art form beyond the traditional toward a unique sensibility all his own. In an area of the country that for decades has been home to a host of jazz greats, clearly Gordon is one of them.

Read my Conversation with Gordon, here. And you can watch this YouTube of him playing his original composition, “Loss is Freedom,” recorded by Brad Winter at my Velvet Sofa Salon event, “Evening in the Key of Lee,” held in my home the other night, on January 21.

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ALSO . . .

Photographer Edgar Angelone steps into darkness where he emerges from the light. Over 50 of his platinum and silver gelatin photos fill the 74 pages of his new hardcover book, Beyond Darkness and Light (Aperture F64 Editions, 2011), just released. The book includes my essay of the same title, which you can read right here right now on the Velvet Sofa. Look for my in-depth profile on Edgar in the February 2012 issue of Photographer’s Forum magazine.

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IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO . . .

Her legs shove their weight into bike pedals, the wind whipping her face. Her arms muscle through miles of water. Her feet hurtle the pavement, wearing out the soles of her shoes in a matter of months. But Cherie Gruenfeld‘s many triathlon wins aren’t what this 67-year-old amateur Ironman World Champion is most proud of. They’re the kids she coaches in something called Exceeding Expectations. Look for my Conversation with Cherie talking about at-risk children who beat the odds, how she gets through the last of those 140.6 racing miles and what it takes for anyone to win at whatever they set out to achieve.

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WHO WANTS TO PLOP DOWN ON THE VELVET SOFA?

I welcome all ideas for Conversations (my Q&A interviews).

Artists and scientists.
Innovative thinkers and social changers.
Boundary-breakers and impact-makers.

Please contact me here.

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CONVERSATIONS (My Q&A Interviews)

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FRESH FARE (Writings by me and others)

(Photo and copyright by Gayle Marechal)

(Photo & Copyright by Edmund P. Klein)

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PAGES (Books)

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VIEWS (Photographers)

Self-portrait (Photo and copyright by Edmund P. Klein)

"Ocean Clouds I: Passing over the beach at Pacific City" (Photo and copyright by Edmund P. Klein)

Photo and copyright by Sally Mann

"Moth" 2009 (Photo and copyright by Paul Loney)

"A Lost World, from Nisky Cemetery, Bethlehem, PA" (Photo and copyright by Rodger Kingston)

Photo and copyright by Horace Sykes

"Wallingford Snow" (Photo and copyright by Paul Dorpat)

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Who is this woman anyway?

Please visit my website, at www.sykeswrites.com.

© Claire Sykes. All rights reserved.