'In the quiet moments, the discoveries are made.'
Most holidays tend to be loud, especially Independence Day celebrations. Between barbecues and parties, parades and those 4th of July fireworks, it's not a great day for those seeking quiet moments. Yet, it's those moments, that are often the most meaningful. When I think back to going to fireworks as a kid, I remember the split second of silence, before the firework explodes, and the second second of silence, following the ooh and aah chorus from the crowd.
I still love me some tacky Christmas ornaments, shiny Halloween pumpkins and loud fireworks, but over the last few years, I've grown to also love and seek out the quieter, subtle moments associated with holidays. I think that's one of the reasons I really love this series of images celebrating the Fourth of July from photographer John Mar.
It's not that I'd describe these images as quiet, but there is a powerful, yet delicate beauty in the way John visualized and captured the theme. Each image incorporates the red, white and blue, and the stars and stripes so intrinsically linked with Independence Day. As visually striking as John's images are, there is also beautiful calmness peaceful feel in the patriotic palette on display.
John chose the perfect creative collaborator in model Dawn Tang to help bring the concept to life. When I first connected with John in 2022 about featuring his work, it was his work with Dawn he suggested we feature. John and Dawn's artistic alliance has been a part of several of my favorite holiday posts over the last few years on the site. (HERE:)
John shares that for most of his themes, the inspiration comes from suggestions from others, friends, and often the models he's working with. Other times, especially for holiday shoots, there's an idea he's been thinking of for awhile, one bubbling just beneath the surface, waiting for the calendar to coincide with a shoot. For this holiday theme, John says that all of those factors came into play.
I love the body paint images with Dawn. He is a beautiful canvas and we decided not to do a literal translation of a flag onto his body, but to evoke a patriotic feel. I think it worked. I think my favorite part of our shoot was throwing concepts out to Dawn and batting them back and forth until we get the perfect images. I love collaborating with him.
I think my favorite look would be the glow in the dark shots, where I have red and blue glow in the dark stars on my collar bones.. Looking at the shots, I thought I looked like a super hero in the dark, trying to save the world I guess haha. I looked different than any of the other shots since the lighting is different and it felt like my skin was glowing in the dark.
Dawn also loves the collaborative relationship he and John have created. Dawn had a lot of input into the shoot right down to the placement of stars and the angles used to capture his body. He and John discussed the positioning and intensity of the body paint, and Dawn loved the way it turned out in the final images. Dawn's favorite moment was using the star confetti. Dawn shares that it was challenging as they only had a few seconds to seize the moment as the confetti literally popped in air. In addition to being fun, for Dawn, the patriotic theme was also especially meaningful given his heritage.
'The patriotic theme means a lot to me as an Asian American. To represent the community with my own aesthetics, culture and values. Being a person with color is not always easy, you always have to work extra hard to get to a place that others seem to have an easier tie achieving.'
As for how they're spending the forth. For Dawn, it's attending a barbecue party hosted by a local gay Asian American community, and celebrating with his folks. For John, the fourth usually including heading to beach with friends early in the day. Then, in the evening, John enjoys the quiet moments, especially after spending much of his night trying to keep his little dog calm amidst the noise and the fireworks.
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