Drama

When I'm taking pictures I always see in terms of paintings 

I might want to make. Big ass paintings. Oh, not so long 

that I have to run with a brush from one end to the other, but enough that whoever looks at them can feel involved in the gesture the trunk 

makes against the background, and the way the leaves shimmer.

When I take a picture, I don't want anyone to see "tree," 

"building" or "rocks," but just beautiful color and gesture.

At this point, the trees do a better job of that

than I will ever be able to accomplish.

I gotta long way to go.

Another Gray Weekend

Although I'm resigned to the reality of winter's coming,

I try to remember that each season has its own colors

and to look forward to the season's muted tones.

Here, on a gray November day, the last of fall's

golden leaves illuminate the afternoon.

Back to Church

Last night was my second visit to the Indiana Landmarks Center.

I went to hear a presentation by the architect and engineer responsible 

for the restoration of Victory, the statue atop the Indianapolis

Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument. I was surprised to find that the

talk was also an AIA continuing education program.

I took a seat below the rotunda just so I could take the picture above.

The top picture was taken during the day and shows the ceiling's white

paint with gold trim. When it was restored, lighting was installed

to allow for changes according to the kind of event or 

wishes of the client. Last night, it was pink and gold although

I'd also seen blue and green. The painted decoration is a neutral scheme

which seems to adapt well to whichever lighting is selected.

This is the main entrance to the ILC's Cook Grand Theater, 

made up of three doors, the one shown being the largest.

Painstaking attention was paid to the entire building, 

with a lot of effort going into the restoration of the 

pipe organ, built in 1892 by Thomas Prentiss Sanborn.

The main sanctuary of the former Central Avenue Methodist Church

has been rechristened as the Cook Grand Theater and is available

for meetings, concerts and weddings. (Anybody up for a pink and gold

wedding with a beautiful pipe organ to provide the music?)

Sadly, not many pictures I took last night of the speakers 

were any good, but here is Tory Emery, the project

engineer in charge of Victory's restoration. She is employed by

Arsee Engineers, Incorporated of Fishers Indiana, which has 

long experience in the preservation of historic buildings.

Anybody got a statue they want shifted for repairs?

Turning on A Light

I went to a lecture earlier this evening at the 

Indiana Landmarks Center. I arrived in the dark and left a

bit more enlightened. Like these pictures, however, my newly 

acquired information is a bit fuzzy and somewhat shaky.

This photo was taken looking southwest from 

Fort Wayne Avenue towards the downtown area.

Somehow, the cold, crisp air makes the lights 

in the buildings look all twinkly and innocent, 

while the offices within are primarily the lairs 

of bankers, investment firms and lawyers.

Totally Brutal

The pictures above and below are of the Minton-Capehart Federal Building 

in downtown Indianapolis. Named after two members of the United States Senate, Sherman Minton (D) and Homer Capehart(R), the building was constructed in 1974, in the Brutalist style. The style got its name from the French for "raw concrete," beton brut, an accurate description for both the building's material and it's appearance. 

Among older structures in the surrounding area,

the building appears to be a fortress. This may be appropriate

in that it houses offices for the Social Security Administration, 

the Internal Revenue Service, and the Federal Bureau of 

Investigation, among others. The building is easy to navigate; 

its layout is almost intuitive and offices are easy to find.

However, given all the concrete and narrow windows, 

it is claustrophobic to work there as the 

only windows are on the outer perimeter.

(Guess which workers have the best offices?)

When the huge, yellow ochre inverted ziggaurat was dedicated, 

people were outspoken about the stark expanse of the baby-doo

colored exterior. In response, world-renowned graphic designer

Milton Glaser was commissioned to design a mural that

spans the 600-foot wall at the main entrance. This was in 1974, 

just as Glaser was beginning his stellar career.

It may also be ironic that the "big business of bureaucracy" 

is housed in a building the style of which was initially associated 

with a philosophy of socialist urban ideology.

Mauve Asphalt

One evening this fall, just after a storm, I went outside to take pictures 

of a lovely sunset. I turned back towards home and noticed the drive 

was reflecting the purples and pinks of the clouds above.

That day, if anyone had asked me what color the pavement was

I'm sure I'd have said "mauve."  It certainly wasn't black.

Back at the creek, a few brightly hued leaves turned into 

jewels against the muddy taupe-colored rocks.

Textured Tuesday: Scraped Asphalt

Sometimes I think anyone who saw me angling for a picture 

would think I was stalking shadows. In effect, I am. 

Prowling around the patch of scrapes in the parking lot next door 

or standing under a tree gazing through the leaves, 

I'm looking for the shape or bit of light 

that caught my eye in the first place. 

My cat chases leaves. I chase scratches in the pavement.

Sometimey it works, sometimey it don't.