The following is the last of a series of posts on Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym. Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym (Rafael Trejo Gimnasio al Aire Libre) is, from my understanding, the oldest Western boxing gym in Havana, Cuba. Rafael Trejo was a Cuban who was murdered by police in 1930 during a student protest against the Machado government. Rafael Trejo, a law school student president, became a martyr and a hero for the Castro regime. (Source.) The gym is named in his honour. I only spent two days and no nights in Havana. Finding the gym was my main focus. I had arrived in Havana years earlier, in 2006, to source out a boxing gym to train at. I didn't find one. In 2013, I … [Read more...]
PHOTO SERIES
Who knows what will happen when I have a camera in my hands. Many of the photos in the following series were shot with the intent to bring attention to the overlooked, be it people, places or a feeling some try to avoid. This doesn't define the entire category, but it does highlight, in addition to beauty, what I generally gravitate towards. I love finding grace in what others discard.
In regards to photos series by other contributors, I'll let their work speak for the artists represented. Please enjoy.
Cuban Street Photography
The photos in this series provide a glance of Havana. They were taken over the course of two days and are the third installment to a three part photo series of Havana. Part I is here. Part II here. While walking the streets of Havana, I picked up on what I wondered if my travel partners didn't see or chose not to discuss. I could see things I didn't during my first trip to Havana in 2006, or perhaps, what I currently fail to remember. Much of it is due to spending 2.5 years in Buriram, Thailand; it changed my life and my perception of much. There's a feeling I tapped into in Buriram, a feeling I can't quite put into words, but it's a feeling that was echoed in … [Read more...]
Havana – Beauty In Decay
There is something hauntingly alluring about beauty in decay, particularly when the process is as organic as the subject. It's one of the reasons autumn is my favourite season. It's also one of the reasons I was originally attracted to Havana. I spent two days and no nights in Havana as I took day trips from Jibacoa to the capital. Many of the sites in this piece are ones that most travellers to Havana will visit on organized government tours; I tried to capture, perhaps, a different view of what many tourists photograph. At times, it was a challenge to not snap shots of foreigners in this Havana photo series. The buildings in this photo series provide a … [Read more...]
Havana – Everything Good, Bad And In Between Will Exist In Another
It's interesting slouching in a hard-backed wooden chair, wearing a black scarf and my roommate's hoodie, surrounded by ivy and white Christmas lights while attempting to conjure memories of my one week stay in Cuba six weeks gone. I'm in Toronto, I'm outside, it's September and the heat of Havana's pavement is so far away. My nose is cold and the sky is black. It's 8:27 pm. Cuba was a last-minute decision and Havana was a weird mix of a focus and an after-thought. This happens sometimes when I travel - I become ambivalent. Riding the present while concurrently possessing some sense of duty to the trip. Thoughts of what I should be doing, of what I may regret if I … [Read more...]
The Montreal Jazz Saints – A Photo Series
The following photos were taken somewhere along rue Sainte-Catherine / Saint Catherine Street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. A last minute invite to Montreal resulted in much time to wander Montreal's streets, appreciate the street art and feel the city. More photos of Montreal may be found in an earlier posted Montreal photo series. The following images struck me. They were found in a dirty alleyway, along the side of a building I forgot to identify. If you know where they may be found, please let us know! In the meantime, enjoy the Jazz Saints of … [Read more...]
Montreal In A Day – A Photo Series
Spur of the moment invites have the power to entice me. Riding the wave of the present, accepting life as it is and jumping on opportunities that sit right within. That's how I found myself in Montreal this past week. Here are photos of my first 24 - 26 hours there. For additional photos, please check my Montreal Jazz Saints photo … [Read more...]
Photo Series: Infa Riot + Antagonizers ATL at This Ain’t Hollywood, Hamilton
England's Infa Riot and The U.S.' Antagonizers ATL started their mutual seven day tour on July 1 in Toronto, Canada. The Toronto gig was cancelled last minute due to complications. The following photos were taken in Hamilton the next day. It was both bands' first and only Canadian show to date. Infa Riot's Bio courtesy of their official page: Infa Riot were formed in 1980 (not 1979 as published incorrectly in other biographies/CD booklets) by Barry D'Amery and Lee Wilson, after becoming friends with the Angelic Upstarts at the Lordship pub in Wood Green north London. Lee’s brother, Floyd Wilson was recruited to play Bass. Barry and Floyd were only 15yrs old at the time and Lee was … [Read more...]
Photo Series: Wolf Eyes + CCMC At MOCAD, Detroit
Detroit's Wolf Eyes and Toronto's Canadian Creative Music Collective (CCMC) played the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) on May 21 to launch the 19th annual Media City Film Festival across the border in Windsor. The night also served as a launch party for the limited edition vinyl reissue of the 1978 CCMC Volume Three, a lost recording made available as a limited edition pressing of 500 copies after 35 years. In attendance performing as CCMC were Al Mattes, John Oswald and Michael Snow. From Media City's Film Festival Guide: CCMC (Canadian Creative Music Collective) formed in 1974 as "a composing ensemble united by a desire to play music that is fluid, spontaneous, and … [Read more...]
Photo Series: Winter’s End
Where the two motor cities almost meet. Windsor, Ontario, Canada on one side of the Detroit River and Detroit, Michigan, USA on the other. As a kid growing up in Windsor, I was told that aside from the strong current, the pollution in the Detroit River would kill me. This was further punctuated by stories of pollution in Windsor's west side. I would hear tales of locals having to rewash the laundry they hung to dry as pollution, filtering in from Detroit's Zug Island, would contaminate their lives. I was thankful I grew up in the south central part of the city despite living outside of an industrial park. Rolling around in discarded factory plastic wrap and thinking the aqua … [Read more...]
Working Class Kids: Early 90s Skinhead Portraits
The following is Part II of a two part series of portraits found in a box under the stairs in my parents’ basement. All shots were taken with a Canon AE-1. I originally developed a number of these by hand. Part I, Antisocial: Early 90s Hardcore Portraits may be found here. I had a radio show entitled Hold Your Ground, that I believe began in roughly 1993 and lasted for approximately 7 years. I played punk, hardcore, oi!, streetpunk, seminal punk and anything of the corresponding lineages. The show won a couple of awards, I was featured in George Marshall's Skinhead Nation, and I met a lot of great people because of it. Here are some of … [Read more...]
Antisocial: Early 90s Hardcore Portraits
Spending some time in my hometown of Windsor, Ontario, Canada is eliciting some serious nostalgia. The following is Part I of a two part series of portraits found in a box under the stairs in my parents' basement. Part II, Working Class Kids: Early 90s Skinhead Portraits may be found here. All shots were taken with a Canon AE-1. The last photo was the only not taken by me (and I have no idea who did, but it was with my Canon). I originally developed a number of these by hand. I grew up listening to punk, hardcore, oi!, streetpunk, seminal punk....I lived in a house with three brothers, two of them being record geeks who listened to the above incessantly. … [Read more...]
Photo Series: North American Black Historical Museum
All photos were taken at the North American Black Historical Museum located in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada. Amherstburg played a vital role as a crossing point for Americans escaping slavery during the nineteenth century. From the Museum's website: Amherstburg meant freedom, as the Canadian destination for many Black people escaping slavery in the United States. The Museum is uniquely situated to resource a profound history, steeped in its surroundings, to further extend public knowledge and enjoyment. The Museum features an original residence and church of former slaves, toward its mandate to acquire, preserve, interpret, research and exhibit a collection of objects of historical … [Read more...]