Forthright

I took this photograph nine years ago on Main Street in Beacon, NY. In today's conditions the forthright attitude that this girl strikes is exactly what is required. It says, "We have to be alone to be safe. We do not know how long this state of life in isolation will last ― I will do it for as long as is necessary."

How the photograph came about: Our poster girl was with two of her friends. As soon as I saw the group I knew I only wanted to photograph her and would have to get rid of the others.  I did this by saying how wonderful they would look as a group. Then after I'd done the group, and they were all happy, I asked, "Could I just do one of you alone?".  I have used this subterfuge on a number of occasions and it has always worked.  

A real life conversation, banned until further notice

I have been saying how we should be talking to each other and not texting. Unhappily for the moment, this above, must stop or it will kill us. But, if you ask around, there is a thing that your phone does ― it makes telephone calls. These are audio conversations and they can be very enjoyable. Sometimes better than the real thing.

I think this photograph is of two guests at a wedding in Scotland, probably in the early 1970s. I wonder if these two were getting on, or were they breaking up? If they are still alive, and see this, I hope they will let me know.

Be alone

My only thought about it: All our attention must be paid to protecting ourselves, by so doing we protect others.

Before social distancing

                           Here is what we are now not allowed to do. Never mind, it will be
                           all the more fun to do it again when we are allowed to.

Lonely or happy to be alone

                   Many people may be feeling like this soon.
                   Photographed in a café in Devonshire, England in 1981.

Talking to people. A very pleasant pastime

                  Friends enjoying each other's company, Victoria station buffet, London, 1981

What to do when there is nothing to do? I have, like many people, shut down. There are four people I wanted to photograph but to reduce the chances of infecting or being infected, they will keep until the perils have past. There is no tennis as West Point, where I play regularly, is closed to visitors until further notice.

I have done our taxes and polished all my shoes. It is too early yet to tackle spring gardening.

I shall practice the piano more frequently than usual, read Chekhov's  My Life for the tenth time, and look for other works by him that I have not read. I will watch Polanski's films, make bread more often and sit behind the slit in our castle wall and shoot anybody with my bow and arrow coming up the drive. (Except for the plumber and carpenter who are working on keeping our castle from falling down.)

When I have read all of Chekhov I shall order a copy of William Boyd's latest novel and a mystery
by Sarah Caudwell from Split Rock Books in Cold Spring NY. For some reason there are a mass of English women who are very good at writing mysteries. From Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie and P.D. James in the early 20th century to a thousand and one others all the way to today's Ruth Ware who people say is terrific.

                       Conversation at Marlow and Sons, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY, 2011

Caroline and I will not starve nor shall we overspend on take out because I shall be trying new recipes from my favourite cookery books: French Provincial Cooking by Elizabeth David,  
Great Dishes of the World by Robert Carrier, Ou est le Garlic? by Len Deighton and  
The New York Times 60 Minute Gourmet by Pierre Franey. If I do not get round to trying more than one or two recipes I shall anyway read the books because they are all written by exceptionally good writers.

What I will not be doing is twittering or texting, because I never have and it drains away from what we should all be doing—talking to people! If any body wants to ring me, please do. I like talking to people. It is a very good way of passing the time!

Let's hope the warm weather will soon return and we can clear up the winter mess in the garden and spread compost on the soil. I dislike walking (I say this with due respect to Caroline and our dogs who are truly good companions) and there is no tennis, so I shall welcome the bending and stretching and the toing and froing of gardening.
 

    

Joziah and Tink Longo

The musicians Joziah and Tink Longo are the founding members of the band The Slambovian Circus of Dreams. The band began life in the late 1990s in Sleepy Hollow, NY as an art school project. They have successfully managed their own careers and brought up five children while touring and recording.

They live in a small house in Cold Spring where a guitar or cello or cornet or accordion leans against a wall or lies on a table in every room. Tink often plays the cello, accordion, flute and theremin on tour and recordings. She also helps manage the band, keeps house and makes sure that Joziah's mustache is perfectly trimmed and waxed on all occasions.

Basquiat's Presence Continues To Loom Large in Modern Art

Jean-Michel Basquiat by Dmitri Kasterine, copyright. Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. 1986. Acquired through the generosity of Norman and Beverly Cox in honor of their daughter Cara.

Basquiat’s Presence Continues To Loom Large in Modern Art

“I don’t think about art while I work. I try to think about life.”—Jean-Michel Basquiat

In a prolific yet short-lived career, Jean-Michel Basquiat (Dec. 22, 1960–Aug. 12, 1988) became a leading figure in the 1980s art world.
He ran away from home as a teenager, initially supporting himself by selling homemade postcards and sweatshirts on the street. He emerged as an underground celebrity in 1978, when he and a friend began spray-painting cryptic social messages all over Lower Manhattan. Working in a graffiti style, he moved into producing artworks that combined expressively drawn elements like figures and skulls with incisive words and phrases. Soon he was exhibiting at major galleries and museums and collaborating with Andy Warhol.
As a black man in a predominantly white art scene, he found himself increasingly caught between a desire for fame and a fear of being exploited by that world. Like his heroes Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, Basquiat burned bright but died young of a drug overdose.
Made in the context of New York City in the ’80s, his artwork resonates just as strongly today, highly desired by collectors and the subject of exhibitions worldwide.
See one of Basquiat’s artworks on the Smithsonian American Art Museum's website and learn more about him, his contemporaries, influence and legacy at Smithsonian’s Learning Lab.
This photo of Basquiat is in the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery; it is not on display.