Of course it has been a struggle both physically and financially to pull together an entireshow of stock, (57 pieces in all)  in one months time, but I have learned a great deal in the process.  I can say now that it is VERY true that the hardest part of being a photographer is actually the pricing of your work.  After many pleading emails to all my amazingly talented photo friends and hours of Internet research, I learned it is a very personal process mixed in with a bit of math.  You never really know if you were correct until the day….so I will have to let you know how I did after the event.,

Many times over this past month, while I worked I marveled at how a life’s worth of knowledge picked up here and there, all are drawn upon and are ready in reserve when needed.  My museum knowledge helps for design and archival needs.  My Father passing along his construction knowledge to me during my childhood comes in with the framing, my painters eye is everywhere.

With all the work now  matted and framed with archival materials, signed and numbered with certificates of authenticity mounted on the back paper, just the final blue foam protectors are placed on each to ensure the 5 hour drive awaiting them is a safe one.

My team, husband and dog, are also thankfully accompanying me.  What would I be with out them, for it is my dog that gets me out shooting in all weather and it is my husband’s constant encouragement and faith in my creative process that spurs me ever forward.  It is he who first put a computer and camera on the desk of this stubborn artist while I complained I saw no need for it in a painters life.  Boy do I ever look back at that declaration and laugh.

I wish you all could be there in Brussels cheering me on and raising a drink with me as I begin this new challenge…..and teach this old dog…many new tricks!
Great Light to you ALL

This is a long time coming I believe.  I have hinted about and gave you some bits and pieces and ideas about my village, but I thought it deserved more.

This piece was written for JPG Magazine a few months back and now want to share it with you.

Here begins, “Ladenburg…Where my Heart Found a Home”:

What city do you live in?

I live in a 2000 year old Roman village in Germany, called Ladenburg….I say 2000 years, but I believe it was established long before perhaps as an encampment by the Celts.

The neighborhood I live in is reasonably new. What use to be fields surrounding the walls of the city have with time become neighborhoods. My location is a little special as it is on the walking street to the cemetery. In most countries this may not be a favorable location, but in Germany, visiting your family members who are no longer with us, is an important daily ritual….thus forcing the entire town to pass by my house at least once a day… giving me ample opportunities to make friends and know the many faces of my village.
What are some adjectives that describe your neighborhood?

Along the tree lined streets are tall multi-dwelling homes, like town houses, each with their own garden. It is reasonably quiet, as are most German neighborhoods. I guess most Americans would call it “overlooked”, as my husband does, but for me…I call it intimate. I love having my neighbors close by so everyone can interact daily.

How long have you lived there, and what brought you there?

I believe I have been here now about two and a half years. My husband’s job has kept us overseas for about 12 years now so we have been blessed to have lived in many wonderful towns and countries in Europe.

What is your favorite thing about this place? Your least favorite?

I LOVE living in a village. It is my first experience with it and the feeling of community even for me, an outsider, is wonderful. If I ever feel lonely or perhaps a bit blue I just wander into the Old City, (downtown) and there I find many smiling faces wishing me, “Good Day or Good morning”. How can I stay sad or lonely? My dog Clover and I make a daily wander to the local beach along the Neckar river which is filled with dogs from the village looking for a friend to have a play date. Us “parents” will sit and chat about our 4 legged children, (as if they were real children) and for me these moments are priceless. I get a feeling of community, I get a free German language course and I get to burn out some of that Terrier energy all in one fell swoop! There are so many wonderful things about my village that I could go on forever.

What I don’t like??!!! That I know I can not live here forever.
Do you feel that you belong there?

Yes, absolutely! It is strange as I honestly don’t really belong anywhere. I have been constantly on the move since I was a kid. First foreign exchange, then college, then I married a soldier moved to Germany and have not stopped wandering long enough to plant real deep roots, but the shallow roots I did cultivate in each place….each tiny root has been painful to remove. Here in Ladenburg…I have forced down the closest thing to tap roots yet, is it age that makes uprooting so much harder each time? I do not know, but here in Ladenburg…. when I walk through town, connecting with it’s people, answering questions about my dog or my camera…I feel those root tendrils grow, thrive and spread. I am proud to say that I have made many close friends with the residents. One life long resident recently said to me, “Laura you are more Ladenburger than most Ladenburger’s”. I was so honored to be told that and I wear that title with pride…. “LAURA the LADENBURGER”.
What is the most common misconception about where you live?

I hear lots of misconceptions about Europe and being an American living here…Some of it is true…that at times it is hard to break through and form a real connection. I have been told by people in many cultures that since they are not as transient as Americans and they tend to stay in the same towns all their lives, near their family units and friends….so for them it is hard to fit in an outsider. BUT once they do…once you learn the secret handshake and are invited into the inner sanctum…you build friendships that are for life. People ask me all the time what do the Europeans think of America…it’s people..it’s president….THE WAR….I try to say, that I have found…when it comes to meeting people….it seems to be understood that there are People…and then there is Politics…I prefer to connect with the people.
What is a special fact about your city that you have to live there to know?

Carl Benz, of the car company Mercedes Benz lived and died here. That one of the largest Roman Basilicas in Western Europe lies under it’s streets and houses. That we have the most amazing poppy displays each year around the village.
What aspect of your city do you secretly love?

I LOVE it’s location…in the valley between two hilly ranges covered with vineyards and castles. A stones throw from the national forest of the Odenwald. Farms and vineyards surround us providing us with an endless supply of fruits, vegetables and most importantly WINE! The river Neckar, which has always been of great importance to people as it connects with the busy Rhine, now also a magical guide through the landscape for walkers and cyclist alike.
Anything else you’d like to add?

If you get a chance….and are coming to Heidelberg…. mark little Ladenburg on your map and come for a cake and coffee…..wander her cobbled streets….and then come to the river and look for Clover and I…we will be the one’s with all the cameras.

A celebration of life is exactly how I would describe it to you…does that surprise you?  It certainly surprised me.  Walking the white stone lanes, spending a few moments at each grave side, I felt I almost got to briefly know each soul resting there.  So many markers moved me to tears, so packed with emotion  and yet others lifted my heart.

Signs of life and the living were everywhere.  From the enormous storks nest erected high above as if keeping sentinel and reminding all life is about the living, to the various bottles of champagne and glasses I saw tucked at various graves.  Each place was so personal, so intimate was their message.  Every stone told a story…from the engraved granite marker of a motorcyclist speeding along a beautiful depicted country road to the skier racing through powder snow…all artistically replicated to remind us all of their zest for life.

I didn’t need to know how to read Dutch to know the tale each told to those visiting.  On my second day wandering amongst the resting I was approached by one of the grounds keepers.  He asked me what exactly I was photographing and what kept bringing me back.  I think he could see on my face how moving I found the place.  When I started to explain my impressions…how this place was more about the living and the amazing lives these people lived…his nature changed.

I think he meant to scold me for invading such a private place with my lens’, but we ended up walking together.  He shared with me his personal favorites.  “All the most famous people of Holland are buried here”, his face filled with pride for the work he did.   I thanked him for his time, for the amazing work he and his co-workers did and for letting me invade if only for this little while the sanctity of this place.  He asked only that I didn’t publish the words on the stones…they were private words…so I will honor his request.

I do believe when traveling…a visit to the cemeteries is important….not only does it say a lot about a people how they honor those who came before, but also we all come from somewhere….you may just find your ancestors and know a bit more about where from whence you came.

As a child I dreamed of Holland and it’s picturesque windmills from the stories my mother use to tell.  These descriptive stories were fuel for my young creative mind.

I often imagined the endless rows of multicolored tulip fields, spread out like a tapestry…with wooden shoe clad Dutch children playing to the creaking sound of the wooden windmills as their sails engaged with the wind…Holland in my mind…with it’s endless flat grassy landscape dotted about by happy cows and sheep.

As an adult, I was thrilled to discover my idyllic childhood dreams of the Netherlands were indeed reality.  Wandering about it’s countryside, you do feel as if you have some how stepped into the well weathered pages of long forgotten fairy tale.

©bostonthekimagery.com

Sitting here trying to form my thoughts into creative words, I am breathing deep the soft scent of the bouquet of Lilies of the Valley in the vase next to me.

I have been having a difficult time getting my head back into the blogging rhythm after two weeks in the Netherlands.  How can I in short verse bring to you a “taste” of my experiences and the beauty that surrounded me.  Perhaps if I write you several smaller blogs about the different moments that stood out the most in my mind on my travels.

Through this exercise, I hope  I will regain my focus and find away to bring to life through words and images…Life in Holland in early Spring.  Of course as usual, I traveled with my 3 favorite camera and my two favorite companions…my husband and my dog Clover.  It is my wish that our wanders in this amazing land will inspire you to add Holland to your dream travel list.  Here is a little teaser from my trip…enjoy!

This part of Germany is referred to as the Tuscany of Germany, which once you have seen it’s beautiful landscape you would agree.  Each year I mark my calendar to try and make the
Gimmeldingen Mandelblütenfest (Almond Blossom Festival)…the date of which can only be made weeks before to make sure the blooms are at their best.   This year it will be held on the 4th and 5th of April (09)…if you are in the area it is so worth the trip.

The word festival gives the impression of a more party atmosphere then I  experienced..it is more low key.  A quiet event, with people wandering along the many paths which all have wonderful views….wine is sipped, coffee and cake of course…I discovered the most amazing small sugar cookies representing the tiny blooms and iced in almond blossom pink icing.  Just perfection right down to the amazing packaging.  Many people were dressed in clothes to match the blooming trees and all were wearing smiles.

I can’t say enough about this sweet festival…to read more on the event and the beautiful village of Gimmeldingen, go to:

http://www.videokultours.de/gimmeldingen-erw.html.en

http://www.neustadt.eu/output/La2/1441.26/1441.303.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Wine_Route

“The first thought that came to mind upon seeing Laura’s work, was, These seem like visual prayers. I hope, wish and pray that your work continues to reach an increasing number of people!”

When I was approached to create an exhibit, Piya’s haunting description came immediately to mind.  My dearest hope in presenting this work is to share the feeling of serenity I have been blessed to tap into on my daily wanders.

Currently we have two venues scheduled in California, to hang the collection and are in the process of finding more interested parties.   Should you know of a location that would be in need of “Visual Prayers” please contact me directly.   Healing through Art is very near and dear to my heart so if my work can help add this feeling of hope, I am very intereseted.   Hospitals,  Clinics, Medical centers…meditation, Yoga and Pilates studios all I believe would be enhanced by the collection.

My vision for this project is to send these images out into the world and for them to spread their  message of hope and healing.   A book containing many of the photographs in the exhibit as well as many other inspirational works will be accompanying the show and will also be available for sale at lulu.com.

You can hear the podcast interview at:

http://farmboypodcast.com/

It is my very first interview as a photographer, so I hope you will enjoy it.

Thanks again everyone for your love and support of me and my work!

In Germany, if you loose something, there is a great chance of recovering the item.  The important thing is not to panic and to make sure you look up and NOT at the ground.  When a German person finds a lost object, say a glove or a scarf on the street, they will pick it up and hang on the nearest available tall structure at eye level.   The cultural difference in this case, an American looking for a lost item will always look at the ground in search of this forlorn particle of clothing.  I have to remind myself constantly, “LOOK UP LAURA, LOOK UP Your in Germany!!” My neighbors in this village have been known to go so far as photograph or sketch the found item and create poster with details and contact information!!

With regularity I see gloves, scarves and even eye glasses dangling in trees and bushes, waiting to be found once more.  I have actually been the recipient of this considerate gesture when I lost my signature floppy knit hat and stumbled upon it on hanging in a tree…on a trail I hadn’t even remembered taking before.  Amazing…I certainly was happy but I fear my husband, not so much…he is not a fan of my “signature” hat.

In the Winter months, when berries are scarce, another common sight dotted about the bare tree limbs are small suet and seed balls suspended in little mesh bags.  Presented as gifts to the birds, during a time when foraging is difficult for them.  These little happy adornments never fail to bring a smile to my face while I am out walking.  Deep in a dark wood, these thoughtful gifts to nature’s winged creatures and the mind that thought to bring along the little offering.

Nothing thrilling but just some of my observations…that make me smile.