Spring has finally “sprung” in Chicago… even if it’s just inside the Chicago Flower
& Garden Show at Navy Pier. It was such a great “retreat” from the cold with beautiful
colors, smells, patterns & textures! A sign that Spring may actually be on it’s way!

Not only were there tons of beautiful flowers… but there were also piles of tulips!!!
A full color palette of petals. Who knew there were so many different kinds of tulips?!

But one of my favorite things were the vertical wall gardens. Especially because there was
a lot of colors & textures all in one place… each vying for a special place in the sun!

When I stopped to take sunrise photos, there were thin sheets of ice “floating” delicately
on blades of grass. The lakefront path was glistening this morning as the sun came up…
with small crackling sounds as I walked through.

After I posted yesterday’s photos of the “frozen fissures” in Lake Michigan,
I received a link to this incredible YouTube video. Apparently, the oldest son
of “My Talented Friend” jeweler Amy Taylor lives in Antarctica and filmed this great
time-lapse video. Kinda makes my “frozen fissures” photos a bit anti-climactic?!
Here’s one of my photos…

And here’s the link to the time-lapse video, and some screen captures as a little teaser.
Some frozen fissures on a much grander scale.  Antarctica versus Lake Michigan?!
Click here to see the video… “Ice and Clouds”

Sometimes the sunrise is a little underwhelming. Like today.
Just kinda plain. Kinda hazy. Kinda boring. But if you wait a few minutes…
and add an organic silhouette, then you got something there and it makes all the difference!

It’s always fun during an art fair to make new artist friends…
especially when you like their work. And even more so when you trade!

Yep, this weekend at the Evanston Art Fair, I met a talented photographer and
his girlfriend as they stopped by my booth a couple times. Apparently, they’re
pottery fans. Lucky me. So when I finally had a chance to get out of my booth to
scan the tents, I ran across the booth of Josh Merrill… and his girlfriend “assistant.”
His photography is beautiful – much like the photos I’d like to take. So I was excited
when he offered up the “trade” opportunity… and I was in!!! Here are the three
photos I came home with… and I’m loving them!!!

So not only are his photographs beautiful, but I also like the fact that there’s a story
to go with every one of them! He can tell you exactly where & when he took the picture.
He’s passionate about his travels and capturing these beautiful images! He captures
nature in such a special way with incredible colors & composition. While his work focuses
mostly on beautiful nature shots, I was drawn to the urban decay of Gary, Indiana.

I totally trust that he has taken every image – unlike a lot of other art fair
photographers! C’mon… you know you’ve seen them… pictures from all over the
world, capturing images from every exotic destination, much like the images
you can easily & readily purchase online! And no “stories” to back them up.

Click here to check out more images from Josh Merrill Photography.

With my favorite metalsmith moving to Minneapolis, I found myself going to the
Evanston Lakeshore knowing that my favorite booth neighbor” wouldn’t be there.
Instead, Sarah Chapman would be showing her work at the Uptown Art Fair in
Minneapolis. So that also meant that I would be getting a new art fair neighbor!

Luckily, I had a very nice new neighbor who made some really incredible photos!
JD Dennision has this great technique of shooting much of his work at night with
a flash, and then inverting the image to give it a glowing, ethereal, unreal effect.
Many of them look similar to traditional Chinese calligraphy brush paintings!
Like the photo below… where the blue “flowers” are actually the green leaves, and the
yellow “sky” is actually the dark evening sky inverted. Crazy… but very cool.

It was a fun weekend. And having JD in the booth next to me was a pleasure.
He’s kinda “new” to the art fair circuit… and eager to pick my brain for stories, suggestions
and encouragement. This is his first summer doing art fairs, and he still has one more year
of college. I can’t wait to see how his career and photography grow & evolve in the years
to come. And I hope that he comes back to Evanston again next year so I know that I’ve
got a good booth neighbor!