Monday, December 06, 2010






It may have been around the mid 80s when Mac Parry dispatched me to photograph boats, their owners and in a couple of cases builders of boats.

The most interesting of the boats, and subsequently their builder was Velko a Croatian naval architect. He built fast boats with fiberglass hulls and and with exquisitely turned wood decks. He then installed B&W engines. I was taken in one from Granville Island to the gulf island home of architect Dan White who owned a Kavalk boat as Velko’s creations were called. The boat exceeded 50-plus knots and I feared for my life!



Velko was no count, but he certainly had the look of one when I photographed him in his garage boat building area. I was not to know then that many years later I was going to dance the tango with his très elegant daughter who was one of the finest ships on two legs (my, what legs!) I ever did meet.


I do remember some time ago that I was driving on 6th avenue and going east when I almost drove the the car into a tree. I had been distracted by a woman, almost 6ft tall, wearing a short but well tailored skirt and black pumps. Her fishnets had a seems going up from her heels to where my imagination took over.