Something different

I’ve been quiet here for the last couple of years.

I was still working on my “Chiaroscuro” series when the pandemic hit, and that put a damper on intimate photo shoots in controlled lighting. I also dealt with a major health issue, which I’ll talk about eventually. I hope it’s behind me now. We’ll see what the coming months and years bring.

One thing I did not do during this time is stop taking pictures. Here are some.

Funky pic of my daughter, filtered and overlaid using the Polish app.

This colorful spatula image was manipulated and filtered using the Polish app. I like the painterly quality.

Daughter Emily enjoying a lovely summer day last year with some interesting graffiti.

Father’s Day during COVID. We traditionally do a Father’s Day photo session with Emily’s dad every year. The pandemic didn’t keep us from having a socially-distanced outing.

Happy birthday, Suzanne Muldowney, supreme interpreter of Underdog

Suzanne Muldowney is a special breed of performance artist. For over 40 years, she has been creating and performing interpretive dances based on historical, fictional, and original figures and characters. The most famous of these is her portrayal of Underdog, not as a bumbling idiot, but as a heroic archetype.

Suzanne Muldowney July 27, 2019, Manhattan. Image copyright Amy Frushour Kelly. All rights reserved.

I first met Suzanne in 1991 or 1992 at a live taping of “Beyond Vaudeville” at Caroline’s Comedy Club in New York City. Though she was already known derisively as “Underdog Lady” from her ill-fated appearances on Howard Stern, I found her fascinating and moving. Since then, we’ve maintained a sporadic friendship, often through our mutual friend Phil Dejean of the Manhattan Neighborhood Network program “Checkerboard Kids.” (If you’re a ska fan, check it out.)

Last month, Phil and Suzanne invited me to a taping of her performance and Q&A for “Checkerboard Kids” in honor of the 55th anniversary of Underdog’s premiere. I got some good shots of Suzanne in action, as well as some good selfies. We had lunch before the taping, and Phil got a couple photos of me with Sue after the show as well.

If you’ve only encountered Suzanne Muldowney as “Underdog Lady,” I hope you’ll take a look at her face and the controlled movement in her body, even at age 66. (She turns 67 today.) She’s a trained dancer, with a background in classical ballet and influences as diverse as Anna Pavlova and Isadora Duncan. To continue practicing her art for 40 years, even as people continue to make fun of her for her artistic choices, demonstrates a vision and commitment of the highest order.

Some the shots I took at the taping are below. Click to enlarge.

Happy birthday, Suzanne. And thank you, Phil, for being a stalwart friend to Sue for so many years. I’m lucky to know you both for so long!

2018 Bike-to-Work Parade

This morning, I had the privilege and pleasure of photographing the Third Annual Bike-to-Work Parade at Hofstra University, sponsored by Car-less Long Island. The bike parade route was 6.5 miles, and the walking route was 1.9 miles. I drove from stop to stop, but still managed to get a lot of walking in. It was a pleasant day, with mild temperatures and a dense fog that lifted as the morning progressed. Here are a few of today's photos. Hope you enjoy, and that every once in a while, you take the opportunity to walk, bike, or take public transportation to whatever your destination. It's good for the planet, and it makes the world a safer place for fellow pedestrians and bicyclists

Click on any of the images in the gallery below to see a full version of the photo.

Recent Sessions

I've been fortunate to work with two amazing models in the last few weeks: Eddie Sing, of Eddie Sing and the 31 Days; and Lita Cortez. On the face of it, they couldn't be more different -- Eddie is a larger-than-life musician, and Lita is a petite rockabilly girl -- but both gave me amazing sessions, and both were an absolute pleasure to work with. Photos of both appear in my Portraits and Art pages. Enjoy.

MOVING TO WESTBURY

After five wonderful years in the village of Mineola, my partner Chris and I bought a house in neighboring Westbury. The down side is that we won't be living in an urban neighborhood anymore -- we won't have several terrific ethnic restaurants in a five-block radius! -- but the up side is that we won't be living in an urban neighborhood anymore -- no noisy upstairs neighbors and (we hope) no sirens at all hours of the night!

The real up side, of course, is that we now have a home of our own, to do with as we see fit. Including a studio for my photography. It's a huge third-floor room with a big semicircular window for abundant natural light. Tons of storage space for my equipment, and plenty of blank wall for backdrops.

I couldn't be happier!

Long Island Ice Cream Tour

On Saturday, August 16, Chris and I went on the Long Island Ice Cream Tour. It's a tour of shops that make their own ice cream, starting from the East End of Long Island and ending just outside Queens. We were only able to make four of the eight stops, but the ice cream and the company were both exquisite! Most of the tour-goers were college age, and they were charming and funny and wonderful. You can see some photos of them (but not the ice cream) here.