Sunday, April 14, 2013

My Mother's Red Shawl - El Rebozo Colorado
Alexandra Hill - Soprano





Alex meets Alex. What a pleasure! Or as he put it “what fun!” What fun indeed, I thought, as I sat next to him at his editing desk last Sunday afternoon looking at the Polaroids [Fuji Instant Film] just scanned into his PC. It is not every day that one is asked to take part in such creativity. What fun, as he dunks his cookie into his Earl Grey tea! What fun, as I pose in the dress my mother made me and the shawl his mother gave him, Russian Red lipstick and hair up. What fun that our paths should have crossed at all!

Had you asked Alex ten years ago if he’d ever take portraits of people for such a project, he’d have said no.

Had you asked me this time last year if I would be singing the soprano solos in Bach’s St. John Passion, I too would have said no. No way. No thank you. Not possible.

A wise friend once told me: enjoy the process. His words have never left my mind. If I am to dedicate my life to music, I had better enjoy the processes involved with that career choice, and forget about end-gaining. I had better enjoy the nuances of many different languages. I had better enjoy learning to disorganize and reorganize the beauty of an aria and to enjoy the time it takes to discover and rediscover a character. I had better learn to appreciate and enjoy the ever changing human body that houses my voice. I had better learn to enjoy an unending quest for simplicity and perfection, the treasures that await every artist at the end of the rainbow.

I am. The process is marvelous. My eyes and ears have been opened to new challenges and to new perspectives.

It is my guess that Alex Waterhouse-Hayward, who uses film to capture the subjects of his Red-Shawl Project rather than the digital medium, also enjoys the process, perhaps on both a figurative and literal level. And I believe he puts the process in the best of light: What fun!



Georgina Elizabeth Isles Figure Model
Emma Middleton Actor
Mark Pryor Author/Lawyer/Assistant DA Travis County TX
Brother Edwin Charles Reggio, CSC Mentor & Teacher
Veronica Vex Burlesque Dancer
George McWhirter Poet
Raúl Guerrero Montemayor Padre-Compadre
Alexandra Waterhouse-Hayward Maestra
Shirley Gnome Singer/Provocateur
Yeva & Thoenn Glover Dancers/Choreographers
JJ Leewriter
Jacqueline Model
Cathy Marsden Psychiatrist
André De Mondo Wanderer
Colin MacDonald Saxophonist/Composer
Nina Gouveia Yoga Instructor
Stacey Hutton Excercise Physiologist
Colleen Wheeler Actor
Sarah Rodgers Actor, Director,Mother
Timothy Turner - Real Estate Agent
Kiera Hill Dancer
Johnna Wright & Sascha Director/Mother - Son/Dreamer
Decker & Nick Hunt Cat & 19th century amateur
George Bowering Poet
Celia Duthie Gallerist
Linda Lorenzo Mother
Katheryn Petersen Accordionist
Stefanie Denz Artist
Ivette Hernández Actress
Byron Chief-Moon Actor/Dancer
Colin Horricks Doctor
Ian Mulgrew Vancouver Sun Columnist
Jocelyn Morlock Composer
Corinne McConchie Librarian
Rachel Ditor Dramaturg
Patrick Reid Statesman, Flag Designer
Michael Varga CBC Cameraman
Bronwen Marsden Playwright/Actress/Director
David Baines Vancouver Sun Columnist
Alex Waterhouse-Hayward Photographer
Lauren Elizabeth Stewart Student
Sandrine Cassini Dancer/Choreographer
Meredith Kalaman Dancer/Choreographer
Juliya Kate Dominatrix