Sunday 29 March 2015

Around here

books on starting a creative business
I haven't written an entry on Around here for a while, but things are so hectic and exciting at the moment I can't wait to share it all with you. Last week I finally set my private hour rate as a photographer for the big commission I am already working on. I am totally aware that is not the best way to start a project, but it started to sudden and quick I had to improvise.  Last Friday I called the Chamber of Commerce to advise me how to deal with earning money next to my daytime job and the guy advised me to start a one-woman business. A one-woman business!! I am so excited I am about to burst out of my skin.
Yesterday I asked a friend who is a graphic designer that I would like her to design my logo, letterhead and business cards. Of course, she can only do that after I come up with a name for my new business. I drew a mind map with all the words that came into my mind that would cover my little business: contemplative photography, yoga classes and massage. The combination of photography and yoga of course is a little odd for the business world so I thought of keywords that form an umbrella over the actual services that I would offer: mindful, heart, sun, image, capture, creativity, fresh perceptions, inner peace, bliss, inspiration and so forth. Then I broke those words down in syllables and added more words to my selection like: inner, photo, DR, moment etc. At the moment I am playing around with the syllables and words, but if anyone thinks of a great name, please let me know. Coming Friday I have an appointment at the local office of the Chamber of Commerce to have my little business registered. Oh, this is SO cool!

Friday 27 March 2015

Kiwi-blueberry smoothie

kiwi-blueberry smoothie
Kiwis were on sale this week at my local Ekoplaza, a supermarket for organic produce and I bought a box. Since Spring has only officially started (it still feels like Winter) I thought I could do with an extra dose of vitamins. I probably should have made something hot, but I'd like to stay low on the carbs during the weekend. So this morning I used some of the kiwis for a smoothie:

3 kiwis
1 banana
1 avocado
1 handful of frozen blueberries
small cup of rice-cococut milk
1 spoonful of chiaseeds
1 spoonful of hemp
honey according to taste
bit of linseed
It felt so good starting the day with this powerful smoothie!

glass: HEMA
dishcloth: HAY

Monday 23 March 2015

Miksang Contemplative Photography, Practice day

It's been a while since I've been to a practice day and last Saturday was my first in many months. Actually I have not been practicing Miksang Contemplative photography that much this Winter. But as the days are becoming longer I have more energy and I am looking forward to spending more time out of the house  with my camera.
two sweets on a smooth surface
two sweets on a smooth surface
So last Saturday I gathered with a few other people in our teacher's home, we chatted about where we were in life concerning our visual awareness and our practice as contemplative photographers.
green leaf on sidewalk
green leaf on sidewalk
Our teacher explained again about Simplicity: the space around a specific form and a form in space. We have done this before and I didn't understand a bit of it, but after today it seemed that I finally got the gist of it. Sometimes it just takes time to let the words sink in.
nylon ropes
nylon ropes
Our teacher showed us some examples out of her own practice and it slowly started to dawn on me.
red curve in sidewalk
red curve in sidewalk
It really is about something on or in a certain surface, that can be a sidewalk, table, sand or a room. Since it was really about things this time (of course you can practice this with people, but they tend to move around a lot) we also practiced looking longer and deeper at the image we stopped for.
blue rope in sand
blue rope in sand
Looking longer at something gets the speed out of your thoughts & doings and makes you more appreciative of what you see.
four empty chairs in a waiting room
four empty chairs in a waiting room
The photo above of the four chairs was a risky one: I experienced the space around the chairs when I first saw it, but I was not sure if our teacher considered this Simplicity. She did. She has been investigating the quality of Simplicity herself for quite a while and she recognized the space around the chairs in this image.
concrete square in sand
concrete square in sand
a single tyre track in sand
a single tyre track in sand
two pigeons in sand
two pigeons in sand
Looking at one thing at the time gave room in my head, it made the world a little more organized. I live in such a fast, hectic world with a lot of stimuli but practicing Simplicity and looking longer took the speed out of myself and made me happy. Just looking at one thing at the time, it's as simple as that.

Saturday 21 March 2015

Other people's costumes

Oh my, and here are some costumes of other people we saw in Venice. These are just in pictures.
costumed couple on a bridge in Venice

costumed couple on San Marco square in Venice

couple in blue costume, Venice

couple in red costume, Venice

harlequin, Venice

costumed couple, Venice

costumed lady with candy hat, Venice

couple in blue costumes, Venice

young girl in green costume, Venice

two ladies in costume, Venice

two men in costume, Venice

man with yellow Elizabethan jacket, Venice

Friday 20 March 2015

Venice: photoshoot in costume

Really, I've taken so many photographs in Venice, you haven't seen the last of it yet. I hope you don't mind but if you do, just skip this post.
threesome in front of the Arsenale wall
I believe I wrote earlier that there was one day in Venice that the others went in costume and I went in my normal clothes. After two consecutive days I longed to be in normal clothes again, to be able to set one foot in front of the other when I wanted to and not having to stop for others because they wanted to take  a photo. Of course that is all very flattering, but I need to take it all that attention into smaller portions.
costumed couple on doorstep, Fondamente dei Forno
So on the third day I decided to cloth myself normally and to take my camera so that I could take pictures of the others in pretty parts of town. I mean, any part of Venice is pretty, but some are a bit prettier than others.
Miss V. in front of theatre La Fenice
Miss V. in front of theatre La Fenice
We walked around a bit, went to places we knew were photogenic, my friends posed for me and they posed for others. And hey, my friends love posing.
Take a look at some shots.
costumed couple playing with shadows
costumed couple playing with shadows
holding hands
holding hands
costumed lady and shadows close to the Arsenale
costumed lady and shadows close to the Arsenale
costumed man kneeling for woman
costumed man kneeling for woman
man and woman posing in front of pink wall with shadow of lamppost
man and woman posing in front of pink wall with shadow of lamppost
threesome against a bright blue sky
threesome against a bright blue sky
shadow play
shadow play
crossed legs of Miss V.
crossed legs of Miss V.
threesome posing in front of bridge
threesome posing in front of bridge
threesome waving on the boardwalk
threesome waving on the boardwalk
Enjoy your weekend!

Wednesday 18 March 2015

Exhibition: Mr Darcy meets Eline Vere


Last weekend my friend V. and I went to a costume exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague called 'Mr Darcy meets Eline Vere', a big exhibition about Romantic Fashions in the 19th century. We loved the exhibition: there is an amazing amount of beautiful costumes on display, the museum gives a lot of background information and there are some modern designs to look at. If you are into fashion and costume, you should definitely go and see it. It ends 22 March, 2015 so hurry.
costumes worn in Pride and Prejudice
Photograph above: costumes worn in TV series Pride and Prejudice (BBC 1995) by the characters of Mr Darcy (Colin Firth), Elizabeth Bennet (Jennifer Ehle) and Mr Bingley's two sisters.
cotton dresses, 1805-20
Cotton dresses: left ca. 1805, middle ca. 1816-20 and right ca. 1810-20. In the era after the French Revolution women's dress was simple and unadorned. The vogue was inspired by the world of classical antiquity, seen as the birthplace of democracy. Cotton fabrics were as fashionable as silk. Exquisite Empire-style dresses were embroidered white on white, reflecting the belief that the sculptures of the classical world had always been white. They were complimented by large cashmere shawls. Most of the dresses of this type shown in the museum were originally owned by Dutch families.
cotton summer dresses, ca 1885
cotton summer dresses, ca 1885
1880s: black gowns and suits
1880s: black gowns and suits
Thanks to steam trains and steam navigation, people became increasingly mobile. As the century wore on, social life moved increasingly outside the home even for women. There were more and more public places in which it was thought acceptable for them to move about freely and take part in the life of society.
fashion of Au bonheur des dames
Such places included shopping arcades, clothing shops, museums and libraries. Women could take part in sporting activities too, often even in mixed company. The 19th century was also the time of the great fashions shops and department stores. Customers could visit shopping arcades full of luxury goods, 'bazaars' and department stores operating on the basis of set prices and special offers. For the first time articles could be exchanged or returned. Women in the Netherlands could order clothing from Paris. They just had to take their measurements according to the instructions in the catalogue and place their orders.
left evening gowns, right Russian wedding dresses
Pictured above: on the left are two evening dresses ca. 1810 in cotton and silk. On the right: bridal gown and bridesmaid's dress of sister of the bride, cotton and silk, Sint Petersburg 1891.
Pictured above: on the left an evening dress ca. 1909-10 made from celluloid, glass, imitation jet and gold threat. On the right: Au Camélia (label), dress from Amsterdam ca. 1900 made from silk and cotton.
two silk ball gowns, ca. 1845-1860
two silk ball gowns, ca. 1845-1860
crinolines1865-75
crinolines 1865-75
The amount of historical dresses was astounding and they were mixed with costumes worn in films or TV series such as Pride and Prejudice and Downton Abbey.
two dresses from TV series Downton Abbey
two dresses from the TV series Downton Abbey
dress worn by Nicole Kidman, Portrait of a Lady
dress worn by Nicole Kidman in Portrait of a Lady, 1996
Also, a number of modern dresses were displayed made by modern fashion designers inspired by the days of Mr Darcy and Eline Vere.
evening dress Jan Taminiau, autumn/winter 2011
Above: photograph of an evening gown by Dutch fashion designer Jan Taminiau, collection 'Nature Extends' autumn/winter 2011. Photographer: Koen Hauser.
Yellow evening dress by Jan Taminiau, collection 'Nature Extends' autumn/winter 2011.
We as costume-freaks loved it, there was so much to see and we even learned a thing or two.

Text on costumes: by Gemeentemuseum, The Hague.
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