Megan: Steampunk Textile Mill

Megan and I have known each other for over half a decade at this point, and have always shared a kindred connection thanks to our mutual love of all things dark, spooky, and nerdy.  As a photographer with a knack for makeup and modeling, Megan and I share a creative brainwave. When she’s not shooting the Moon and capturing the Milky Way at night, you can find Megan chasing storms and freezing lightning bolts by day.

We’ve bounced photoshoot ideas back and forth for years, but the distance between DC and Rhode Island has hampered our opportunities.  On my last visit in 2018, we had planned a foggy graveyard shoot, but this never materialized.  This Summer we made more firm plans for photoshoots in advance of my trip to Rhode Island in July.  Unfortunately our foggy graveyard plans fell through yet again… but we were able to finally have our first photoshoot together after all these years, and it definitely isn’t our last!

Over the years I’ve come to love Rhode Island’s mix of oceanic leisure and venerable rural antiquity; the small New England state is rich in history and photogenic backdrops.  At a super-secret location, Megan and I held our finally-first-ever photoshoot in a former textile mill, incorporating our mutual love of steampunk to coordinate with some of the antique equipment surviving from the industrial revolution.  We used this first shoot as an opportunity to experiment - Megan had a wardrobe first, sporting a steampunk-styled corset, and ran through poses while I took advantage of the creative flexibility and added some dramatic color I don’t usually get to include in many of my other photoshoots.

This was a photoshoot we were excited for months, maybe even years in advance, but we ended up even more excited about it after seeing the results as they offloaded onto my computer - dark, bold, and dramatic.

So today, on “The Queen of Halloween’s” 30th birthday (born on lucky October 13th!), I hope you enjoy the first creative project my Rhode Island Muse and “The Duke of Spook” finally collaborated on together.

The Queen of Halloween & The Duke of Spook will return!

Behind the Scenes

Well, less behind-the-scenes, and more selfies during the shoot and afterwards at a cookout - have to keep our super-secret shoot location super-secret somehow!

The Renwick Gallery: WONDER

Recently my dear friend and fellow #hashtagger Ellen invited me to join her in touring the newly reopened Renwick Gallery, a modern American art museum operated by the Smithsonian.  I'd actually never heard of the museum, even with its prominent location: it neighbors The White House.

Admittedly, I didn't photograph half of the exhibits.  Actually, we breezed through it pretty quickly.  We both love art, but honesty on a few pieces grabbed us.  The first thing we both noticed actually was the curvy-cut-carpet leading up the stairs, and the LED installation above.

After that, we went back downstairs, where you were supposed to begin and tour in order.  The number of visitors was incredible - astounding to me, for a museum I'd never even heard of.  After visiting, we learned that Renwick is the current fad on Tinder - selfies among the "Photography Encouraged" exhibits; it explains why so many people were taking so many selfies.  Photography Encouraged is something I can get behind though - I wish more places embraced that photography is a non-threatening recreation; the 9/11 fear of cameras being weapons is still unfortunately widespread, probably forever. #PhotographyIsNotACrime

One of the installations that grabbed us grabbed everyone - the colorful suspended threads of Gabriel Dawe.  It's beautiful, it's mesmerizing, it's disorienting, it's fantastic for selfies - you can actually spot a selfie in the making in this picture.

The polyester thread is loomed through eyelets on the floor and ceiling, and woven amongst its neighbors.  The individual threads are so thin that walking past them feels almost as though you are captured within a large, colorful spider web.

Next was Tara Donovan's index card towers, which reminded me of anthills, and Ellen of her dark days in architecture school, building models without seeing sunlight for days on end during finals.  We moved along.

Upstairs we were confused about why so many people were lying on the floor watching Janet Echelman's colorfully lit netting - it's pretty, but we wouldn't view it as if we're cloud watching.  Ellen challenged me to produce a picture of it that made it "not boring."  I definitely win this round, young lady; this is actually my favorite picture from the entire day.

We were also confused as to why there was a line wrapping around all four walls of this room to enter the next - peeking around the door, we saw what was next, and proceeded into the line to continue through.

We were greeted by John Grade's Middle Fork; a wooden sculpture of a hemlock tree.

Ok, I'll admit, this one is tied for my favorite picture of the day.  It's beautiful.  If you want to see it, but with someone's head in the middle, go on Tinder.

Next we saw Chakaia Booker's Anonymous Donor, and Hiram Powers’ Greek Slave.  Booker's piece smelled fantastic to a petrolhead; I commented that it needed some straightpipe hydrocarbon smell to complete it (that's not sarcasm; I really did like it, being a gearhead).  Powers' sculpture deserves some hashtags, since Ellen and I often have entire text conversations in hashtags, and the work itself spurred some discussion which I thought was outrageous, particularly since it is 173 years old.

#NudityIsNotSex #NudityIsNotPorn #BoudoirIsNotPorn #SensualAndSexualAreNotTheSame #FreeTheNipple #EveryoneHasNipples #ItsJustANipple #TheHumanBodyIsArt #ArtMakesYouThink #ArtCreatesDiscussion #WhyAreYouThatOffendedOverANippleYouHaveTwoOfThem #IfSomethingOffendsYouThatMuchDontPurposelyGoToPlacesWhereYouKnowYoullGetOffended #2015TheYearPeopleGotOffended #2015WasLastYearSoStopItAlready #WhyArePeopleOffendedByTheHumanBody #EveryoneHasABody #EveryoneIsArt

Next was the pink, bug filled display In the Midnight Garden, by Jennifer Angus.  This, moreso than the other exhibits, was difficult to photograph because of the number of people.  It was very unsettling  - I really liked it.

Lastly we visited the gift shop; lots of cool, artsy stuff.  I am SO tempted to go back just to buy this journal.  If you know me, you'll know its *very* "me."

The museum was packed to start, but when we left, there was a freaking line to get inside, and guards were metering entrance to the gallery!  Unreal!  Drugged up tiger selfies are so 2014 (thank God - can we please put an end to that? - #SwipeLeftOnTigerSelfies #ExceptForMyOneFriendWhoIsTheNationalTigerSanctuarysPhotographerShesCool).