Pittsburgh Food Not Bombs

Pittsburgh Food Not Bombs is a non-profit organizations that strives to help the hungry and raise awareness of the enormous waste caused in the current system.

Marshall Mangler

Participants in the Marshall Mangler 50k, 22.5k, and 8k, races run and walk through North Park.  The races began early in the morning of Sunday, Nov. 13 and continued through the afternoon.

election day, nov 8 2011

Natalie & Larry Kaplan voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011. Larry, who has voted for 62 years, said “I would like to see things improve, I do not like to see the two parties fighting, I wish there would be more consensus.”

Chris Weis, who voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011, would like to see more large corporations actually pay federal taxes instead of getting money from the federal government. He would also like more people to vote, and said, “voting is our civic duty, I have never missed election day.” 

Andy Parker has been voting since he was 18-years-old, and voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011. He hopes to see change in the library tax after this election, but think voting is always important, and said, “it’s important to be engaged with the voting process, it is every citizens duty.”

Michael A. Della Vecchia, a common pleas court judge, and his wife Elizabeth Della Vecchia voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011. “We vote in every election, it is the greatest right you have in a democracy, everyone should vote,” Michael said.

Christopher Hahn, who voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011, was born in South Africa and came to the U.S. in 1981. He was most concerned with the funding of the library, and said, “I always vote, it is important. How else can you ensure how you are governed?”

Alfred Blustein voted in Shadyside on Nov. 8, 2011. “I think it is everyone’s obligation to vote, I have been fulfilling my obligation since I was old enough,” he said. “It is important to have a say in who runs our government.”

Environmental Portraits

Stephen Grebinski, media specialist at Point Park University, familiarized himself with the school's darkroom during his first day of work, on October 24, 2011. He began his undergraduate degree, from Pitt, as a film major, but because of the “defining moments” and “time relationship” he became more interested in photography.

PPU concert

Jazz singer Carolyn Perteete performed in the Point Park University ballroom on Thursday, October 13, 2011. There was free food for students, and other fun activities including caricature drawings. This events was part of Point Park's weekly concert series.

Occupy Pittsburgh, oct 15

Citizens rally in Market Square on Oct. 15 in the first movement of the Occupy Pittsburgh movement.  The crowed chanted about equality, change, and "love everyone."

Pittsburgh Public Market

Dylan Zehr chopped apple slices for customer samples at the Pittsburgh Public Market on Sunday October 2. Zehr tended the Clarion River Organics booth, selling a large variety of produce.

Shoppers drift through the indoor Pittsburgh Public Market on October 2, 2011. Produce, craft, baked goods and many other vendors set up throughout the week on Smallman St. near 17^th St.

Cynthia Hill, founder and president of Third Day Organics, explained her newer products such as candles. She started making soaps in 2003, a few years later she started a business, and now she and her son work together to grow organic herbs which they use to make bath and body products.

Debbie Maier Jacknin, of Jenn's Jems, explained how she and her daughter make jewelry and other accessories and sell them together, at the Pittsburgh Public Market on October 2, 2011. Debbie said her daughter started the jewelry, and “she taught me. She'd make them, and I'd make little mommy suggestions,” adding that her daughter left for college and passed a lot of it on to Debbie although it is still a team effort.

Little Italy Days

Craig Quatman showed customers Steeler themed jewelry on Saturday, during Little Italy Days. He has been making jewelry since March, and he said “getting ready for this [Little Italy Days] I had to work 11 hours a days for two weeks.”

People strolled through Bloomfield, along vendor-lined Liberty Ave on Saturday afternoon. Food and craft booths were set up, and musicians played for Pittsburgh's Little Italy Days this past weekend.

Bocce Mafia members played a match on Saturday, during Bloomfield's Little Italy Days. The stage was set up just off Liberty Ave, and passers by crowed to watch the game.

Donald Keiper, employee of Mobile Mountain Inc., climbed the rock wall they set up for Little Italy Days, in Bloomfield. This was Mobile Mountain Inc.'s first year at Little Italy Days, although Keiper said they attend a lot of fairs, festivals, carnivals, and airshows.

Intimacy

All spring I worked on a photo project about intimacy. I did several photoshoots in the studio of couples and one girl on her own, and I plan to continue this project. I want it to include all different forms of intimacy.  
Here are a few of the images, along with quotes from some of the models.  My artist's statement is below.

“Someone knowing you intimately means they can also tear into you. It's pretty scary.” - Emma

 

“It's great having someone to spend time with, just to have them there. I really feel the best significant other is your best friend, that way you can do everything you do with your normal friends, but it's always acceptable to pull them close and steal a kiss.” - Jesse

“My favorite part of the relationship is Julia. She is the most incredible person that I have ever met!!!” -Glen

    Intimacy has many aspects and many meanings. I wanted this project to capture as many different forms of intimacy as I could, and to convey its meaning as completely as possible. This project is more personal than most photography and multifaceted. Inevitably it will evoke distinct and varied definitions of what intimacy is from the perspective of my models, the photographer's, my own, viewpoint, and that of the audience.

Portraits are my favorite photographic genre. I decided to take a step beyond pure portraiture and attempt to photograph not only people, faces, and personalities, but also a specific emotion and the beauty of the human body engaging in that emotion.

    I consciously tried for artistic images with some sophistication. I also wanted to take the viewer beyond the actual image, to include an element of mystery, leaving the viewer attempting to fill in a missing piece, as it were. My goal was also to make viewers slightly uncomfortable, without showing anything objectionable. I wanted my audience to feel that they should not be seeing such intimate moments (whether sexual or not), but also to draw the viewers into the story of the picture.

I shot all the photographs in the studio because I wanted to use lighting intentionally and artistically. I also wanted to control the background, keeping it clean and free of distractions.

    I intend to continue this project and make it more complete by encompassing more forms of intimacy. I hope that this is the first installment of photographs which, viewed as a group, will form a visual definition of intimacy.

First photography exhibit!

I just had my first photography exhibit! It is at Zenclay, a coffee shop- art gallery in Morgantown, WV.
My show is called "Seeds to Stew" and is an artistic view of the process of food production.  Below are a few sample images, and the rest will be on my Flickr soon! (www.flickr.com/photos/artaldona)

logo and gif

I just designed this logo and animated gif as part of a design package for my design class.  What do you think?