Above:
Devin by Rob Colgan
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Wednesday, January 5, 2022
Happy Birthday today January 6th
Discarded Spaces: Devin by Rob Colgan
They say that writers often write what they know. I don't think the same can necessarily be said for photographers and artists. Visual artists don't always capture just what they see, often, they chronicle how they want it to be seen. This is especially true for many of the photographers whose work I spotlight. Some of my favorite images, and some of my favorite artists, capture so much more than what's physically in front of them.
There are many photographers shooting perfect bodies and perfect faces on sunlit Florida beaches and in well equipped studios in Los Angeles and New York. Don't get me wrong, I love many of the images they create.. Sometimes however, these images don't have the same quantity of layers and depth of story a more personal connection can generate and create..
The images created by Rob Colgan are always visually layered. Although his models are the focus, part of their assignment, is to blend themselves into their environment, and use their faces and bodies to resurrect and reenergize abandoned locations, most, long forgotten by those around them. Over the years, I've been fortunate to feature many of Rob's shoots (HERE:) in a multitude of spaces that many who once inhabited them, have buried their beauty in rarely accessed old memories.
Although he now lives in Columbus, over the past two years Rob has been exploring his native city of Cleveland as a source for for figurative work. Rob shares that it's odd that he's avoided Cleveland for so long as now with every investigation, he finds more locations that stimulate fresh ideas and stirs more themes of social reflection. Anyone who follow's Rob's work knows that he's fascinated by the exploration of old buildings.
'The history and loneliness of these sites that used to bustle with life seem to emphasize the disposable nature of our society. Cleveland and all of her Rust Belt relatives continue to offer amazing opportunities. They also tug empathetically at my memories – the history of this part of the country that helped build the remainder of our land.'
Rob shot two models last year in Cleveland, Devin, the model featured in this piece, Rob first connected with on Model Mayhem. Rob had already photographed two other models in Buffalo's amazing abandonments but was searching for one more...
'Devin was about the only one who wasn't turned off by my weird location suggestions. I ended up photographing him in an old factory and was so pleased with the results that I asked if we could do one more shoot the following day in Buffalo's premier cemetery. The images were fantastic! He was such a nice guy. There was no hesitation when I suggested nudity. I think he actually did his homework and checked out my work online, so he knew my thematic needs.'
'Fortunately, we had a beautifully warm fall day and we were able to capture more shots. I always worry that demolition is not far behind my discovery of these places, so I was very happy to have had a wonderful model to accentuate them. In hindsight, I'm pleased with the quantity of great work we created from such a quickly planned session. And, once again, Devin has added his beautiful form to my projects.'
Just Because: The Proposal
'Well, now, do you prefer being called Margaret or Satan's mistress?'
Grandma Annie
Like so many of you, it seems that Betty White has always been a part of my life. I used to love watching The Golden Girls with my mother when I was a kid. It was one of her favorite shows, and it became a Saturday night tradition to watch together. I think I enjoyed watching her watch the show, more than the show itself.
I actually preferred White on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which I discovered when I got older. A retro channel used to air both MTM and Rhoda on Friday nights when I was in university. I was rarely home to watch them, but loved getting home late, usually buzzed with some leftover Chinese food, and watch them as I feel asleep.
I wasn't really sad hearing about White's death. In addition to being 99, she also lived a life so few achieve. Her success, especially later in life, was as much about who she was as it was the projects she appeared in. I loved White, but have yet to really watch a full episode of Hot In Cleveland. I've also not seen a lot of her early work. I did however, always try to catch her talk show appearances. There was something always so comforting about seeing her, and the memories of watching with my mother when I was a kid.
One of my favorite of her later roles was as Grandma Annie in 2009's The Proposal. The film wasn't by any means great, it was your paint by numbers romantic comedy. What sold it was the cast. White was adorable with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds and each of them sold every scene, no matter how formulaic the writing.
I watched a bit of the film on-demand this past weekend and was struck by how incredibly handsome Ryan Reynolds was in the film. Forgive the clunky segue from Betty White to male skin, but this is FH... For some odd reason, I wasn't really into Reynolds when I first saw this film. Sure, I thought he was cute, but I'd mostly seen him playing goofy frat guys. Even when he displayed a little on-screen nudity, like in Buying The Cow, I saw him more as cute and funny, more than sexy
'Why are you wet???'
Re-watching a bit of The Proposal set me straight. Dressed or undressed, he was so hot and engaging as Andrew. Even the clunky nude scene was sold by Reynolds and Bullock and I especially loved that 'wet splat' when their naked bodies smacked together. Thanks Betty White for inspiring a re-watch. Next on MTM!
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