- MIKK PAHAPILL
i about to fell off the couch when talking to my dad and asking him about the olymipcs.. and asking who are the hot stuffs from the estonian team? he said mikk pahapill!! so amazing for two reasons - i sat next to her sister natali in elementary school and in third grade dated his best friend and my best friend dated mikk, so we would always go to these double dates in the woods or go sledding together… and it’s amazing how i have no clue what is going on in estonia. makes me so sad. i love the olympics, it’s such a huge part of our culture. estonia really loves to sing, drink beer and watch the olympics (and world cup). i’m super excited to see the games this year and i really wish the best for him. so please cheer for him if you’re watching, cause he is only 25 years old and i bet he can kick some ass.
in the meanwhile, enjoy my very first olymic games memory.. a true gem
- MAINE-CHICAGO-WISCONSIN
©Karen Sarfatyhaystack was amazing! i’m not even sure how to sum up the 2 weeks i was there. i took bunch of photos: with serious and not so serious cameras. in the meanwhile you can get a little taste from the pictures on my flickr account. the key words are - ocean, jumping off a rock to swim in the ocean, photo making, bookbinding, bonfires, amazing people, a meadow by the ocean, cake every day, volleyball, falling asleep to the sound of ocean, lobster, lobster boats, dish washing, beer pong, dance party in the metal-smithing studio, fog, hula hoops.. and many more. i will post some pictures soon… as soon as i get back from my next adventure.. in wisconsin. oh yes, Juliayn and i are going to spend the 4th over there with her family… we’ll be on the lake where they have a sauna!!! also, her family is big in water sports… and i love love wakeboarding and waterskiing… and i’m also excited to try windsurfing. Juliayn has promised to show off her “rooster tails” as well. we leave tomorrow morning and be back on sunday. i’m excited to take more pictures and just get away from the city. plus we got these hot hot new bathing suits yesterday, so we’re totally ready. talk to you soon.
- HAYSTACK!!
going to Maine, on the 14th for sure now… cause i just got the ticket… even though it was expensive i can excuse it with the work study scholarship to HAYSTACK. i will be gone for 2 weeks and go for the “leather seduction” workshop. can’t wait! i really need to see the ocean and nature. it was funny… cause tonight my mom and i had dinner with Karen Glaser and her husband. i love Karen, i was so glad that my mom got to meet her. she’s an amazing teacher and a great person. she taught me so much about making really great prints, and really following my heart, and would call me a sissy if i was too afraid to burn and dodge. she said that she used to go to Haystack as a teenager.. for summer camps… and warned me to watch out for the lobster fishermen when going skinny dipping… hahaa, it was a funny story. man, but i still haven’t told my work, next week i will. i just want to learn some really old traditional bindings and work with leather, and just meet different artists other than photographers. or take pictures of the lobster fishermen… go for walks and sleep in a sleeping bag. mmmm…
- WINE AND WATERMELONS FOREVER
this has been the most relaxing weekend ever… mom and i are just chilling to the max. even though tuesday promises to start another crazy week. so far i’ve managed to graduate, get stuff ready for the schneider show with sarah, starting to get ready for south union, taken some hot hot pictures of rose and laurel, had margaritas, got brunch with erin, max and mom from angel food, walked around andersonville and got few cocktails, bought a super cute grandma style good church girl dress, took my mom on a bike ride to pilsen and now we’re (=mom) cutting up more watermelon for justin’s bbq tonight and there’s still tomorrow… but tuesday i have to shoot this ladies huge paper installation/sculpture, run around.. turn in film… and pictures and try to print and make some very delicious c-prints with evy, and make a book sometime this week… phew!!!
- MOVING AND GROOVING
yesterday i and my phone got rained on like 5 times… so when i finally made it to our old place i was still soaked. Juliayn was gonna come over and help me clean up the last bits so Erin and i can finally and officially be moved out… you know.. paper clips, pennies, tape, birthday cards.. weird stuff still laying around. i warned her that i’ll be running around in my underware cause i’m sick of cold and wet clothes. but when it came down to take out some trash… i decided to make a styrofoam skirt… which turned into this beautiful outfit made by Juliayn. of course we took tons of pictures and video just to keep putting off cleaning.. i really wanted to bike in this but it kind of started ripping so i borrowed a skirt.
- BDAYS/SHOOTS/BULLS/INDESIGN/SHOOTS/FINALS/LIFE/LOUD CARS/SHOOTS/ANGEL FOOD CAKE/MORE SHOOTS/ANNE OF GREEN GABLES/OPRAH TICKET/TAXES/SHOOTS
oh and here’s a very funny awesome clever brilliant b-day present from bff’s IGA and CHRIS
KIM and i went to see a bulls game on friday… wow… i’m so suprised that these guys can play ball in that kind of setting… they won but the crowd was unhappy that they didn’t score over 100… cause then you get a FREE BIG MAC. so sad.. but Kim and i drank plenty of beer before hand so we were totally satisfied… i mean, the bulls won
oh and here’s another b-day related interactive super bling greeting from Brian.. which i got today… hahahaaaaa…. it’s really great. see it HERE
- FRIENDS AND BUNNIES
another busy weekend behind, but it was a lot of fun. i took the train to crystal lake on saturday morning and met up with Chris, who made me and his two sisters a very royal breakfast. then we headed over to Lisa’s mom’s for the easter egg hunt of course (see the pics). i haven’t seen Lisa for over a year, it was just really fun to spend time with her and her family. also tons of food and a pretty serious snow ball fight. these are the pictures that Lisa took.
then around 8pm Chris and i met up with Iga, went to a bar, then i got cranky and started a fight which we survived, so luckily that was minor. Chris went home and Iga and i fell asleep at her parents around 2am. we were suppose to get up at 9am to paint the eggs for her family’s easter breakfast. we totally didn’t get up for that. then Chris came over and at 10am we had a very huge meaty traditional Polish easter breakfast… it was totally out of control. Iga’s mom had been cooking for the entire week. took some pictures and got on a train. but then… Kim and her bf picked me up in chicago and we were heading over to her family’s easter dinner in Evanston. Kim’s so funny, and has a really crazy fun Estonian grandma Dorrit. it was really nice of them for inviting me over as well. ate some more and had the traditional easter dessert Pasha, which Dorrit made. also got another gift from the Easter Bunny which included a tooth brush… and i totally needed one, so that was really great. and when i finally got home i received a really nice email from Aimee.
I just feel really lucky to have such great friends and have them take care of me, and thank you Easter Bunny for all the great presents and hopefully some great shots from this weekend.
- WEEKEND BUSINESS
hope that everybody is having a great weekend, so far mine has been busy and productive, feels great. yesterday i had a big day, which i planned out sort of last minute, but things fell into place. i got to borrow a car, so the day started early, with checking out lots of equipment from school. just in case.. i still ended up using just a camera. but it felt good to be prepared. so i flew in the suburbs and had my first shoot at this bar where Marion works. i intended to take pictures of just her, but ended up shooting more portraits of other female customers. it was fun to see all the old regulars from the River Bend restaurant (which is closed now) come to Tommy’s, where Marion now bar-tends. i’m so happy that i got to see Tony and Whitey, and then Tony went home and brought her daughter in, cause we always used to chat at the River Bend, and it’s been such a long time since we saw each other. ok, then i went over to Maria and Elva’s, a mother and daughter who used to work at the River Bend kitchen. they taught me how to make tortillas by hand and Elva always took care of me as her own daughter. and she yelled at me for stealing a piece of cheese cake or turtle pie. she now works a third shift in a factory and was sleeping when i got there. so i just shot Maria, and her uncles (Carlos and Alberto). man, the uncles were so funny, they thought i was nutty, cause my spanish is so bad and i kept saying weird things like “pretty men” and “thank you” and “i’m crazy”. but we were all laughing, and they really liked their picture being taken. then i met up with Chris and Iga, and hung out at Iga’s with her mom and grandma. then i spoke some broken polish, i can say the usual, but it’s fun to pick up random words from their conversation and say them, so that made some more people laugh. then we drove to the city and Erin had made an awesome dinner (apple-spinach salad, baked carrots and beets, mashed pot, chk, pear-cream pie!!!), and Zoë was over so that was a nice ending for friday. yesterday, Chris and i went to st.ratrick’s day thing at Rachel’s and basically hung out and ate sausages and drank beer. then i went to see Autumn Ball, which i almost didn’t see, cause it was sold out… but i begged my way in.. using the “but i’m an estonian” excuse, and saw it. seriously go see it!! i know that many people back home hate this film, but i think perhaps cause it has some really negative truth to it, it felt so real. it’s not an easy film, but so beautifully shot, plus you get to see Taavi Eelmaa’s fine naked ass. it’s interesting how there’s no sun in this film, only dark and overcast days.. like the real thing. plus the music’s great. and perhaps this film really shows the tortured life in a mundane neighborhood (Lasnamägi, etc), and perhaps the results of 40 years of occupation. the actress Maarja Jakobson is amazing in it, and i wish i wish i could photograph her some day, she is stunning looking.
ok, keep it cool and talk to you soon.
- MADE IN ESTONIA
there is a European Union Film Festival going on at the Gene Siskel, and i was so happy to find out that two films from Estonia are playing there as well. Show times here!
i’m for sure going to see SÜGISBALL (Autumn Ball), a film by Veiko Õunpuu, who also directed one of my favorite movies TÜHIRAND
a still from TÜHIRANDand here’s the trailer for SÜGISBALL
i’m also happy to see that a film KLASS (The Class) by Ilmar Raag will be shown at the festival. Here’s the trailer.
one more thing.. Julien and i are so upset that one of are favorite movies FUNNY GAMES by Michael Haneke is made into this Hollywood bullshit with Naomi Watts… the 1997 original version is so great and chilling.. there’s no need to remake it. what’s more upsetting is the fact that the new version is exactly identical to the original. WTF! see it for yourself.
here’s the amazing 1997
and here’s the 2008 crap
- ORGANICISM
… is a stop motion animation made by Iga Puchalska and Julien C. Smasal, and a great pianist lady who wrote the piece just for this film. I’m so proud of them!!! I think it is such a beautiful animation, and that they did a great job. I know that they went through a week of no sleep and lots of coffee and cigarettes, so I hope they get some rest now.
and here are the great artists themselves…
also there is a St. Ratrick’s Day coming up this saturday… starting at 12pm. so bring your bikes. Juliayn and I are riding a tandem bike, and she’s gonna play her accordion. So totally worth coming! check out the flier
flier2.pdf