They are back!

We call them “sand dollars”.
But by experts they are known as Clypeasteroide.
And they can explain that this beautiful object we find on the beach is in fact the skeleton of an animal.


A sea urchin that lives in the sand and eats crustacean larvae, small copepods, algae and deritus.
When alive, the sand dollar is covered with fine hair and it can move slowly.
When it dies it can wash on the beach without any covering anymore.
And then one sees something exceptionally perfect and astounding.
Something that is perfect in its design, in its symmetry, in its decoration.



In the past, on the beach of El Triple, sand dollars were frequently found.
And always brought back to the encampment.
Because of their beauty and perfectness, no wonder they managed to play a role in many of the sequences, VISTA pictures and the images of the PS-series.








But over the last few years less and less sand dollars were found.
It became exceptional to find one.

Until this time of retreat.
In the last seven days five beautiful sand dollars have been found.
Somehow they are back.

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An exceptional coincidence

July 20, 2008 the photo book “The PS-series” was published.
Showing images made at “El Triple” in Baja California, Mexico.

Some of the pictures from the “PS-series” show fishing boats that appeared close to the beach at El Triple certain times of the year.

Now, the Fuso Szulc is back at El Triple and the neighbour is Juaquin, the guard of the resort under construction nearby.

Because Juaquin has nothing to do, he was borrowed the photo book “The PS-series”.
So he would be entertained by images made on a beach right in front of him.

Two days later Juaquin comes to the Fuso Szulc totally delighted.
In his hands the photo book “The PS-series”.

He says: “Look at page 45!!!”.
We see a fishing boat speeding by and in the back ground a huge cactus flower.



OK, Juaquin, and?

Do you realize, he says, that the fishing boat has the name: “Flor de Mar”?
(Flower of the sea).

Yes, that is quite a coincidence.
When that image was made, no awareness of the name of that fishing boat was present.

But, Juaquin, how do you know?
Because, he says with shining eyes, that man in the picture steering the fishing boat, that is me!

And damned if it is not the truth, indeed, the captain of the boat was the current neighbour Juaquin!

At the time when the picture was made, no construction of a resort was going on at El Triple.
Juaquin worked then as a fisherman with his boat “Flor de Mar”.

How deep can coincidences go?

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A preview of the photo book "The PS-series" can be seen at:
http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/301597
where it also can be ordered.



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How to get "The PS-series" photo book for free !!!

In the past more than 10 photo books have been published.

The procedure was to have first a whole set of images and next, to find a publisher.

Once a publisher was found who had faith in the project, additional sponsoring had to be found.
A dragging and long-time procedure of approaching sponsors or applying for subsidies.
Once it would be clear that a strong financial floor was in the project, the designer of the book would get involved.
With own ideas and plans not always in harmony with the photographer.
Another step to make was to try to get an exhibition in a reputed place to have the opening coincide with the publication of the book.
For this, exhibition curators had to be seen and shown the work.
To have to deal with their personal preferences and tastes, their financial trouble and schedule problems.

Once the publication of the photo book and the exhibition was secured, the next step was to get the press involved.
To have journalists come to the exhibition or to send them a copy of the book, massaging them into writing a story in the newspaper or a magazine.
To get the publicity to get visitors to the exhibition and to have people buy the book.

All in all, was it a nice experience to publish a book?
No.
Never.
Absolutely not.

Each time it was trouble, problems, frustration, disappointment, conflicts and irritation.
There was never much beauty in it at all.

This is why there was a complete new approach to publish “The PS-series”.
Life is not meant to repeat what is not beautiful.
What is not giving beauty and joy.
Hence, this time publishers, sponsors, financiers, foundation managers, designers, and journalists: they were all left aside.
They were not invited to get involved in the making, production, distribution and promotion of the book in any way.



“The PS-series” is therefore a happy book.
The images were made with tremendous joy and excitement.
With great pleasure.
With sincere happiness.
And with beautiful bliss.
It has been a unique and unbelievable great and interesting challenge to select the images, to design the book and to write the texts without any unpleasant confrontation or disturbance.
It was fascinating and educative, resulting in feeling sincerely proud and deeply satisfied with the result.
Feelings never experienced before with the books from the past.

This has all been possible because of making use of the modern techniques.
These days it is possible to produce and distribute a photo book as a one-man band.
No complicated procedures, as there were in the past, are necessary anymore.

Now the photo book “the PS-series” is out.
There is no exhibition and no PR-fuss.
No hoopla.
It is there and who wants it can purchase a copy.
To share not only this photo book but also the beauty of the way it has come into existence.

It might be not a bad idea to become a proud owner of “the PS-series” photo-book.
In the past, two photo-books of the conceptual work have been published.
“Sequences” and “The first twenty years”.
Both photo books are sold out and not available anymore.
They have become collector’s items.
Sometimes they are offered at book auctions and they sell for very high prices.

Probably the best is to order now two copies of “the PS-series” photo-book.
One to keep and the other to eventually sell.
In this smart way one has “the PS-series” photo-book for free.

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To order your copies of the photo book "The PS-series", click on:

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/301597





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flying friends singing

While living at El Triple, right next to the ocean, there was the constant sound of the waves breaking on the beach and the rocks of the cliffs.
Sometimes this sound would be so strong that it would disturb sleeping.

At the lagoon it is different.
Because the Fuso Szulc is behind a row of dunes, the sound of the waves of the ocean is dampened and softened.
It is a peaceful background sound.

Of course the lagoon is not making any sound, as it is more of a muddy swamp.
But this makes it an excellent feeding ground for hundreds of birds.
And these birds sing.
Constantly they are making themselves heard.
It seems that their collective conscious is updated constantly through sound.

Sometimes though this constant bird singing, that is one of the most beautiful things one can hear, changes into shrieks of panic.
This means a large bird has arrived who basically has no business showing up above the lagoon except for maybe snatching a small bird for breakfast.
This is a hobby of large birds like a “man of war”, also known as the “frigate bird”.


But once this magnificent bird shows up above the lagoon, some of the largest swamp birds go airborne and always as a pair fly towards the “frigate bird”.
While they are relatively small they attack the huge bird and always manage to chase him away.
The defenders return to the lagoon, peace is restored and the constant chatting of the birds resume.

Meanwhile the production of the new photo book “The PS-series” progresses.
Several fervent and loyal blog readers have edited the text and the birds of the lagoon sing specially for them today.
Now also the cover of the new photo book is ready and fervent and loyal blog readers are kindly offered the opportunity today to have a sneak preview.

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To learn more about the frigate bird, click on:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frigatebird







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Blissful blinking

The daily walk is always a good opportunity for the mind to reflect and philosophize.
While the daily running offers the possibility to the mind to express anger and aggression.

In any case, during yesterday’s post siesta walk the thought came to mind that in fact many hours of the day we do not see.
During the hours we sleep but also every moment we close our eyes.
And each time when we blink.
This thought we can carry further by calculating how many years of a life is spent not seeing.
For this we take a person that will reach the age of 75.
75 years is 27.375 days.
Let’s say that on average that person sleeps 8 hours a night.
That makes the person not see for 219.000 hours.
9.125 days spent in a lifetime not seeing.

Next is the blinking.
On average, a person blinks 14 times a minute.
If we take half a second as the time during a blink the eyes are not seeing, we can conclude that 7 seconds a minute of darkness is 1,86 hours a day.
In other words, in a lifetime a person spends over 51.ooo hours not seeing.
Almost 6 years of the life spent in the darkness of blinking.


This is an amazing result of a fact finding research.
But it is not true that we would see more in a lifetime if we would not need to blink.
The fact is that when eyes are open, they not necessarily see.
From the eyes cables go to the brains where the conscious is housed.
It is in the conscious where we actually see.
Where we realize what is in front of us using the eyes.

This is one of the issues that comes up in the current preface that is in the process of being written for the new book.
The new book shows the most recent conceptual photography and is titled “The PS-Series”.
To be published next month.

This book is about what we possibly can see.
In other words, what is there during those 51 hours of our blinking.

Fervent and loyal blog readers are now going to be able to already read this preface of the book “The PS-series”.
And are invited to respond.
To be the editor of this text.
Every person who responds with constructive and sense making criticism will be mentioned in the book.

What makes people interested to look at an image?
How can an image make someone reflect and feel?

Usually in photography interesting images are the result of a photographer documenting an important, surprising or exceptional event.
Such event is translated by the photographer into an intriguing image.

In fact, the job of photographers for the most part is to organize themselves into remarkable situations.
The additional specific characteristics of their style of photography are important but not essential.

What happens though when a photographer, on purpose, chooses to work on a location where nothing is happening?
Where nothing notable can be photographed?
With the ambition to return with interesting images anyway.
What will happen is, that because nothing is coming from the location to the photographer as a reason to make pictures, everything needs to come from within the photographer himself.
He gets the full responsibility for the important, unique or exceptional events to take place for the audience later to be interested in.

The location therefore becomes like a mirror.
Because only the own imagination, fantasy and creativity are instrumental to create the noteworthy events.
The location becomes a screen on which the projections coming from within the photographer are seen and next made into an image for the audience to share.

The images of the PS-series are icons of dreams and hallucinations.
What one sees is possibly not true.
But then maybe it is.
The images are a very personal interpretation of reality.
A version of reality never imagined.
Becoming a reality within the reality.
Stretching the imagination and opening wider the doors of perception.

Most of the ideas for the images of the PS-series were born in one place.
El Triple: a deserted bay with a long and sandy beach on Mexico’s west coast.
The pictures for these ideas were made at El Triple as well.
But the actual creation of the final images took place in Nowy Sacz, Poland in 2007 and Punta Boca del Salado, Mexico in 2008. (dit kun je wellicht nog toelichten )

The PS-series has its name for two reasons.

PS stands for Photoshop, the Adobe software program used in making the images in this book.
But PS also stands for post scriptum.
Because the beautiful bay of El Triple, Mexico, has been bought by an American developer and the construction of a holiday resort has started.









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When a mother looses her son

It is getting warm here.
Some would call it hot.
During the day almost 35 degrees Centigrade (95 Fahrenheit) and during the night 24 degrees (75 F).
With hardly any cooling wind from the Sea of Cortez.

Time to leave the east coast of the Baja California peninsula and move to the west side.
To Punta Marquez to continue the work on the PS-series.
Over there temperatures are lower due to the cooling influence of the Pacific Ocean.

The transfer has to wait until after Sunday though.
When is the final of the European Soccer Championships.
Germany playing Spain.
The match will be seen on the small TV of the Gonzales family.
Who are hardly interested.
In fact they even sacrifice because they are completely hooked to their soap operas.
That they have to interrupt during two hours for a soccer match.

The whole day their TV is showing all kinds of soap operas like “Tormenta en el Paraiso”.
“Storm in paradise”.
Cheaply made TV-films.
To reduce costs hardly any scene is on location but everything is filmed in the TV-studio.
Because they produce at high speed the actors and actresses have no time to learn by heart all the texts.
So often you can see them look away obviously reading their words from text boards.

But for the Gonzales the cheapness is not sabotaging them to believe in what they see.
In fact, the main characters are having the personal concern of the Gonzales and if a Gonzales family member has missed an episode the others will do a briefing.
As if it is of any relevance.
But for the Gonzales it has.

These soap operas, called in Spanish “Telenovellas”, are not exactly lifting up one’s spirit.
It is all tragedy, misery, misfortune, suffering and sadness.
A square pipe deposing only negativity of the worst kind into the viewer’s heart.

Somehow this is addictive to people like the Gonzales and millions of others in Mexico.
They not only love to follow the Telenovellas, they are hooked and addicted to them.

In a way that is surprising.
In their lives the Gonzales have their own shares of storms in paradise.

About 5 years ago they lost their son Angelito due to a kidney disease and grief is still strong.

Ketcha’s brother in law in San Diego, USA, is very ill and is unable to finance his medical costs.
He needs frequent medication that costs each time $ 100 and this he doesn’t have.
That is quite a storm in paradise if someone needs medication one cannot afford with all its mortal physical consequences.

One would think that these storms would disrupt enough a happy life.
But no, more is added by watching Telenovellas on TV.

There is a theory that by watching misery on TV, but presented in the rather fairy tale way as Telenovellas do, make people forget their own misery.
Hence, the actual misery of a person can be measured by the time the person is watching Telenovellas.
If half an hour of “Tormenta en el paraiso” will do, the personal misery is rather limited.
But if the TV is showing Telenovellas the whole day, the personal misery must be gigantic.

It is a mother who lost her son.

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To learn more about the soap opera "Tormenta en el Paraiso", click on:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tormenta_en_el_Paraiso






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Beautiful images

A day of printing with master printer Peter Paul Huf in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
The second group of conceptual images made this Spring in Baja California, Mexico.

It always seems an easy job that will be done in a short time.
But rarely are the occasions that not some complication or hurdle is met that asks time and technical wisdom to be solved.

To print 10 images took 4 hours.

But then they are of very high quality and achievable.
To go to Galerie Baudoin Lebon in Paris, France.

© Misia Guicherit

© Misia Guicherit

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Shoot it down.

It is true that on this blog images have been published that are rather unbelievable.
This means that things were seen here by the fervent and loyal blog readers beyond the current standards of what is considered reality.

This might be unusual or even unsettling and for sure alienating.
But we must realize that reality, as we like to perceive it is limited.
It is made by each of us of dimensions and characteristics that make our lives liveable and manageable.
The reality though is much more spectacular than we usually think.
Hence, a boat going to mount a huge rising in the sea is unusual but not necessarily impossible.



Imagine this version of reality.

Out in space, circling the Earth, is a US spy satellite.
US 193
It is as big as a bus.
5.000 pounds.
And its tanks are filled with 1.000 pounds of the highly toxic liquid Hydrazine.
Immediately after its launch in December 2006 the spy satellite malfunctioned.
And now it is heading for earth to crash onto our planet endangering people and the environment.
The military have come up with the plan to shoot to pieces the failing satellite while still in orbit.

This is a good subject and storyline for a Science Fiction book.
But it is as with the images of the PS-series: it all sounds like ludicrous but it is the hard reality.

"We have modified three SM-3 missiles aboard Aegis ships to strike the satellite," said James E Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.



Unfortunately, the spy satellite is right above Ireland.


If it crashes above this beautiful island, the population knows now that contact with hydrazine can cause coughing, irritated throat and lungs, convulsions, tremors or seizures, and long-term exposure can damage the liver, kidney and reproductive organs.
Hydrazine is similar to chlorine or ammonia in that it affects lung tissue.
People inhaling it would feel a burning sensation.
“If you stay close to it and inhale a lot of it, it could be deadly,” said James E Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.


There is an 80 % chance the solution of James E Cartwright is successful.
But even then.
Once the satellite is hit, officials expect 50 percent of the debris will come to Earth in the first two orbits and the rest shortly thereafter.
Computer models show that roughly 2,800 pounds would survive re-entry.

In case a fervent and loyal blog reader has not already heard of this amazing story, it can be checked at the website of the newspaper The Belfast Telegraph.

Like the PS-series, what seems impossible and unusual and out of the question has been predicted in the arts long before.

This whole story of US spy satellite US 194 is as a subject very close to Stanley Kubrick’s film “Dr. Strangelove”.
The military organizing defence that obviously gets out of control.
They do their best but are so spastic about it that it becomes counterproductive.

For artists this is great.
It gives the freedom to let the creativity, imagination and fantasy go in the wildest directions knowing that one day Dr. Strangelove becomes James E Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

To learn more about US spy satellite 193 crashing on Earth, click on:
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/article3434509.ece#

To learn more about Hydrazine, click on:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrazine

To learn more about the film of Stanley Kubrick called "Dr. Strangelove", click on:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057012/
Dr. Strangelove Stanley Kubrick

http://www.amazon.com/Strangelove-Learned-Stop-Worrying-Special/dp/B000055Y0X

http://pages.prodigy.com/kubrick/kubds.htm







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© Michel Szulc Krzyzanowski 2008







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© Michel Szulc Krzyzanowski 2008












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To be what to be

People are seeing paintings or pictures and either they like them, love them or hate them.
That is an easy position.
Just see results of hard work and have an opinion.

What never is taken into consideration is how the artist managed to produce the work.
And that is the way it should be.
It is of no importance what were the circumstances in which art was made when having an opinion about its artistic value.

Nevertheless, the circumstances, although not often getting attention, are extremely vital.
Every good artist is in the first place a person who manages to create favourable circumstances to produce art.
There are plenty of talented persons who potentially could create fabulous art but who lack the skills to create the right circumstances to produce their artistic work.
Or who live in societies where favourable circumstances to create art are simply impossible to organize.
It is not very likely we will see paintings in a New York gallery from a painter living in Tchad, Africa or from Baghdad, Iraq.

Artists should realize this.
That it is a privilege to be able to make art.
A lot comes from the initiative of the artist.
And of persistence, ambition, talent and passion.
But it all starts by where an artist is born.

As had been planned months ago, these weeks are dedicated to create images based on pictures made at El Triple, Baja California, Mexico, last summer.
Knowing that the circumstances would be perfect to give all the attention to this part of the photography.
How great it is that it is working out as expected.
It is peaceful at Punta Boca del Salado.
No big events taking the attention away from the main task.
Nothing upsetting the emotional system.
All other activities, like preparing the trip to Europe and India next month, going smoothly.
Most important, being in very good health with daily exercises, running, simple but healthy food and no drugs nor alcohol.
This is how the mind, the imagination, creativity and fantasy are placed in a good position to get the ideas needed to create unique and fascinating images.
To discover new ways of seeing reality.

This successful time of being peaceful and creative, seeing astonishing images as a result, is the best in life.
Absorbed fully by the creative process, everything focused and centred on it, each minute, each heartbeat, it is a situation of feeling to belong.
To be what to be.

As a courtesy to the fervent and loyal blog readers, another recent image of the “PS-series” is published here.

© Michel Szulc Krzyzanowski, 2008

To obtain an original of this image, large size printed on watercolour paper with archival inks in a limited edition of 5, contact Galerie Baudoin Lebon in Paris, France .

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To contact Galerie Baudoin Lebon, click on:
www.baudoin-lebon.com








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55 MPH in a Ferrari

One of the dangers of composing new images with the software program Adobe Photoshop for the new “PS-series” is, that easily it is overdone.
Like driving alone in a Hummer to a supermarket to buy a beer.

An image can be so manipulated that the result is looking most at what Photoshop is able to do.
It becomes all so far away of our own world of perception that we feel lost in some weird and cheap SF paperback.
The objective therefore is to create images where nobody even thinks for a split second of Photoshop and computers and digital manipulation.
This is not a simple thing to do.
How to drive at 55 miles per hour in a Ferrari?

Recently things went very berserk.
Often the morning is spent simply playing with the images in Photoshop.
Without a specific plan.
Without really rationally thinking.
Simply letting things go and have it their way.
Changing from being the captain of the ship into the water surrounding it letting the boat go where it wants.
During that process there are moments of critically looking checking if it is going anywhere.
And even if the assessment is not positive the boat in the water is allowed to flow nevertheless.
Better not disturb the river nor the boat.
One never knows at what beautiful place it will end up anyway.

This gamble sometimes results in images that excite.
Powering to continue and make more.
But sometimes the results are so bad, the protagonist looses instantly every ounce of self-confidence and concludes his days as a famous artist are over.
It is that dramatic.

Awful and bad results are needed to sometimes produce the opposite.
Hence, nothing wrong with falling down sometimes as one can easily stand up again and continue the adventures on the exciting track.
Like a player of ice hockey.
If he had a problem with falling down, his career would not be very long.

Bad results are no problem.
But what is typical is that the audience never gets to see them.
The artist dumps the unacceptable and awful result in the garbage can and nobody ever will know about it.
The audience only sees the spectacular and convincing results.
In this way the artist creates the false impression he or she is only good.

Today an exceptional event will take place on this blog.
An image will be published that is an example how an artist can stumble and fall down sometimes.
To show how things can go wrong.
Excessively Photoshopped.
And bombastically moralistic.










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A successfull birdbath

Many fervent and loyal blog readers have probably been worrying about yesterday’s posting.
Their favourite blogwriter circling among lost souls of decayed bodies only because of fear to perform and deliver as a photographer.

Long time fervent and loyal blog readers know that every long jump starts with running as fast as one can.
Followed by the actual jump and victorious landing.
A procedure similar for artists about to create new work.
The running was yesterday in the posting.

When birds see a pool they sometimes get into it to cover themselves with water.
A birdbath.
When they come out they shake their body and their wings as a method to get dry.
The drops of water shoot in all directions.

The artist is like the bird.
There is need to clean and shake and throw everything blocking the creativity as far away as possible.

Yesterday the work has started on the new images for the “PS-series”.
A first idea was materialized.

Now it is simply a matter of discipline and getting deeper and deeper in what could almost be called a temporary obsession.

Usually the results of new “PS-series” images are not published.
They are printed on special paper with special inks in a limited edition of 5.
These go to the gallery in Paris, France, representing exclusively the work of this artist-photographer.
Collectors have the opportunity to make an appointment to see the work and purchase it.

But today we are going to make an exception.
On the posting of today the image will be published that is the first of the 2008 results of the “PS-series”.

Copyright Michel Szulc Krzyzanowski
© 2008

Many fervent and loyal blog readers will realize that this is the first image of hopefully many more.
It does help every artist to get support, backup, encouragement, sales, flowers, applause, critique, insults, attention and love.
Hence, the doors are open for all fervent and loyal readers to respond.

While the hard working artist starts working quickly now making more new images.

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To learn more about the gallery representing the work of Michel Szulc Krzyzanowski, click on:
www.baudoin-lebon.com







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