San Francisco's tawdry nostalgia

san francisco, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

There is a certain tawdriness to San Francisco, especially when the sun is shining. But it's an honest tawdriness- a tawdriness of historical reference. It's a nostalgic tawdriness - so maybe not honest at all, or as honest as how Kodachrome convinces you of its veracity; preceding and replacing even your memories like some Bualdrillard thesis. It's strange because it doesn't have the brick and mortar of sturdy midwestern nostalgia - a nostalgia of the turn of the century, the depression and the new deal. It's a clap-board nostalgia of cheaply remodeled facades that have worn into a kind of patina of mid-century modern reminiscences. It's a weathered time capsule of an era that was never elegant, or sturdy. It's a nostalgia for a discarded era of plate glass and strip malls, plastics and frivolous pursuits. But it's also more than fast cars, surfing, bikini movies and mirrored wall tiles - it's also a nostalgia for a cast off disposable reality that promised a new future when the old one was tired and worn. It's interesting that what's left is a tired and worn reminder of what was never replaced.

berkeley, california

berkeley, california, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

I saw these plants lying on their sides looking a bit like a crime scene. This is why I always have a camera with me - which of course also means that I take far too many pictures. I'm trying to get better at editing and deleting the ones that don't speak to my when I transfer them to my computer.

berkeley, california

berkeley, california, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

I'm always fascinated with what happens when two lights collide - visually but also in their meanings. There's such a fantastic confluence of light between the slightly violet of a foggy dusk and the harsh green of cheap security lighting. It's a lot like Berkeley itself I suppose. It makes for dramatic pictures anyway.

rockridge, california

rockridge, california, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

Sometimes fate aligns the colors in the world and presents you with an opportunity and a camera and a moment.

crested butte, colorado

crested butte, colorado, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

unfortunate framing and exposure, but it makes me nostalgic for my childhood. I recently went back to Colorado and, though so much has changed in our post-walmart homogenization effort, there are still moments of what I remember as solid. A rough hewn timber romance of some ancient mountain town - it becomes a marker, a meter of what's substantial.

Via Flickr:
P8112463

sfmoma, san francisco

sfmoma, san francisco, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

san francisco

san francisco, originally uploaded by escott sukotto.

Airports are such a fantastic source of primary colors and grays all with strong graphic structuring elements. I would love to go behind the scenes and take pictures of the operations of an airport. Maybe do a book.