Odin-Odeon Cinema Fragment One

Eric — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 08:43:23 +0000

Several monoprints from the same intaglio plate.

Each Wednesday (Woden’s Day) night this Spring, when possible, I would go over to the studio and make prints. I had several etched plates lying about, each of them suggestive of image, while not quite readable without interpretation. The ways in which an intaglio plate can be inked, and stroked into art, are infinite. Each of these shuffling images is a “reading” of the same etched printing plate. You can see the traces of a common origin, if you care to pause and look for a moment. If this is no interest, if this kind of transformation isn’t your cup of tea, well, then, by all means, you’d best move along and not waste any more of your time here. I like this kind of thing, though, and if you do, too, don’t be shy about leaving a comment. A moment’s attention means a lot to me, in a busy world.

Early Abstractions has gone to the Getty.

Eric — Sat, 01 May 2010 00:19:01 +0000

I had Harry Smith’s own 16mm print of Early Abstractions for about 20 years, since he got it out from under the bed at his little apartment on the Naropa Institute grounds. I just passed it off to Rani Singh of the Getty Museum and Harry Smith Archive. Sad to see it go, as it’s a relic from one of the people who has meant the most to me. It’s a treasure, though, and it deserves a better archival situation than I can provide. The Getty is comparing all the available prints to the 60-year-old original hand-painted 35mm film (and the later parts) and making a “definitive” new restored version. Rani took great care of Harry during his last years, and I know the movie is safe under her guard. In any case, the color and condition are far better than the print used for the Getty’s current working DVD version, which I recently saw for the first time. Hopefully, my print (Harry’s print) will make the restored version better than it would have been. That’s better than having it in my closet for an occasional screening, and waiting for vinegar syndrome to bloom. I miss you, Harry. Thanks for trusting me with your movie for a while.

Eric Waldemar? » Harry Smith

Odin-Odeon Cinema Fragment One

Early Abstractions has gone to the Getty.