Sally Mann, photographer

Untitled (#30) by Sally Mann

From the "Deep South" series

Tea-toned gelatin silver print, 38 x 48 inches

© Sally Mann

My first introduction to Sally Mann was on Tuesday evening, watching art:21, Series 1:Place. WOW! Gorgeous landscape photography that I would love to cover my walls with, all done with a very ancient camera and process. Having seen her at work on the program I am shocked to find out that she is 20 years older than I am. I need her recipe for eternal youth! I suspect it involves generous pinches of Drive and great dollops of Intensity.

I rented art:21 from Netflix because of Alyson Stanfield's Blast Off class, which has been a great kick-start for me. (Yes, Alyson, I am still reviewing my plan). There's a new class starting Sep 16 and I'm almost tempted to follow along to regain the momentum I had before the summer. And I just joined her twitter book club (#gertrude, starting Sep 14) - all part of my continuing education as an artist that she suggests in the Blast Off! class.

However, in an attempt to leave the world of books and (re)join the real world for a while I took only a sketchbook to wait at piano lessons and came back with Ideas. Not Shiny New Ideas, but reworked ideas that I can take into the studio and work with. They may be Ideas Above My Station though. Since I am a non-objective painter my ideas are the subject and I spend a lot of time poking them with a stick to see what they will do.

And I totally agree with Sally Mann's quote in the short video What Remains - you have to make art from what you love.