Special Presentation: Quaker Meetinghouses of Massachusetts
By local photographer: Jean Schnell

I’m pleased to announce a special presentation of photographs of Quaker Meetinghouses by Jean Schnell on April 22.  Since 2014, Jean has photographed more than 20 of these meetinghouses across the state. Some are old buildings, some are new, some are still in use, and some are currently preserved as museums.

From a recent article about this project in Friends Journal:

It has become so much more than a photographic project for my mentorship program. It is a true calling and a labor of love. It has been a wow type of personal journey. I had a lot of fun photographing while on this artistic journey. I learned how to shape a collection of photographs in both style and subject as well as how to sift through a large number of photographs to pick a relative few. I learned many technical skills with the camera in order to get the pictures that I wanted, and after all of that, I learned some more! In order to write about my experiences, I needed to relearn a lot of Quaker history as well as discover facts related to meetinghouse locales. I needed to understand more about Quaker beliefs and practices in order to explain them to others. I reexamined my own relationship to my Quaker faith and practice.

Jean will present some prints from her final portfolio for this project, and will also share some related digital images.  She will share her goals for the project, the process she followed to photograph these sacred spaces, the laborious process of selecting the final portfolio from thousands of images, and her approach to showing and marketing these photographs.

These images were on display at the S&G Gallery (New Bedford) in September 2018, and in the Moakley Courthouse (Boston) from October through December.  This project has a Facebook page here, and is featured on Jean’s Web site.

Jean Schnell is a lifelong Quaker with roots in Valley Meeting in Wayne, PA. She is now a member of the Framingham (Mass.) Meeting. She is a retired nurse and health coach. She loves the contemplative process of viewing the world through a camera with delight, awe, and joy.

Today’s topic: Visit Danforth Museum

For our next outing please join me (Tom Doran) and other NELP members to visit to the newly relocated Danforth museum. The museum has been relocated to the campus of Framingham State. I have not seen the new facility so I’m curious to see it as well as the artwork. There is an exhibit and talk by the artist Lois Tarlow on Saturday, June 15. The talk by the artist begins at 3 pm.  I propose we meet at 2:00 to view the art before the presentation.

There’s also a photography exhibit (Armchair Travel: Work by Emily Belz, Rachel Loischild, and S. Billie Mandle) we can check out while we’re there. 

If there is any interest, we can have a beverage somewhere afterward as well. Because it is so close by I’m not going to suggest car pooling but if anyone needs a ride let me know at bassdocta@gmail.com.

Please join us for an enjoyable afternoon at the Danforth Museum.

For more information here are the listings on the Danforth Site:

Weekend Artist Talk with Lois Tarlow

Armchair Travel: Work by Emily Belz, Rachel Loischild, and S. Billie Mandle

Tonight’s topic:  Photography Goals

We’ve done this for the past several years, and have had a great discussion!  It is a great way to start the year.  (Credit for the original idea came from the Worcester Photography Meetup group)  The topic for our October Education Night will be a discussion about our individual artistic goals for the coming year.

I’m starting with the assumption that we all have our own ideas and our own pace.  We don’t all work the same way, and different approaches help each of us be productive.  That said, it is generally helpful to envision where you’d like to be in a year’s time and to express it in your own words.  This will be an open-ended discussion, including:

• What type of goals do you want to set for yourself?  Will you have succeeded if you produce a certain number of pieces, if you complete a specific project, or if you spend the desired number of hours each week.  How will you decide that your goal has been achieved?

• How much detail to you want and/or need?  Is it enough for you to just state your goal, or would it be helpful for you to identify some interim steps (milestones) in the direction of your goal?

• Would it help you to put your goals down in writing, or are you more comfortable just discussing them?  Would you be comfortable sharing your written goals with the group?  Would this help you?

• What can NELP do to support you and encourage you?  What can you do to support and encourage the rest of us?

• How often would you like to discuss progress towards your goals?  Annually?  Quarterly?  Monthly?

Please give a little thought to the above, and come prepared to discuss your goals (if you have any) for the coming year and how NELP can support you.  Please come even if you’re not sure what you want to set as goals (spectators welcome).  I’d like to have as many different perspectives represented at the meeting as possible.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Special Guest:   Gail Fischer

Topic:   Images of Hope in the time of COVID-19

Note: Until further notice, our meetings will be via Zoom.

We have a special guest speaker, Gail Fischer, for our July 27 Education Night. She will be talking about her recent project “Images of Hope in the time of COVID-19”. 

Images of Hope is a series of ‘electric flowers’ created in my home for 90 plus days, while practicing social distancing measures here in Massachusetts. Each day, using pen lights,
plastic tubes, plexiglass shapes, color gels, glass vases and flashlights, I created flowers and spirals in complete darkness. The collection’s main goal was to reach those working on the front lines combating the virus. I printed several images and made greeting cards as an end product. The cards were taken to the Brigham’s ER staff. Many other cards were sent to friends and relatives.  I will be giving a talk about how the idea transpired, and how you can make  ‘electric flowers’ like these on your own.

Attached find an example of one of these ‘electric flowers’ images. 

If you are new to the group or have any questions, please let me know. We look forward to seeing you.

– David   {artphotos(at]davidlkahn[dot)com

Special Guest:   Jay Ball

Topic:   Sight Gags – A book of photographic humor!

Note: Until further notice, our meetings will be via Zoom.

We have a special guest speaker, Jay Ball, for our October 5 Education Night (rescheduled from September 28).  Jay will be talking about his recently published (with his son, Alan) book of photographs: Sight Gags.

Jay and Alan have a lot in common, including their love of photography and wordplay.  Some 25 years ago, they came up with a way to combine the two – a technique they call photopuns.  As seen in the example below, the title of each photograph and its subject are connected via creative wordplay.

Jay will be sharing with us the inspiration for this ongoing project, some of his creative techniques, and an assortment of images from the book.

From Jay: In these days of COVID-19, climate change, gerrymandering, election interference, massive unemployment, Roe v. Wade under siege, nuclear proliferation, world hunger, racism, overpopulation, marine pollution, social unrest and … what have we forgotten? … we thought you might like something to make you smile.  Hopefully, this will do the trick.

Jay got his first camera – a Brownie Reflex – as a gift on his 12th birthday. That was 73 years ago, and he’s been hooked on photography ever since.

If you are new to the group or have any questions, please let me know. We look forward to seeing you.

– David   {artphotos(at]davidlkahn[dot)com