Today’s Photo, 11/4/13

Student sketching at the Art Institute of Chicago, November 2013.

21 Comments on “Today’s Photo, 11/4/13”

  1. I’ve done some sketching there myself. That’s where I saw an Asian girl surreptitiously touch her forehead and prayer beads to the knee of a statue of Buddha which I was sketching. Instantly changed my relationship to that particular statue, and every other piece of religious art I’ll ever see in a museum. Being in a museum implies a sort of static timelessness, but in that moment, that ancient stone Buddha came alive.

  2. Nice composition and technical execution. I also like the color balance very much.

    This is an image that I would be pleased to hang on the wall of my home if I had taken it.

    – Tom –

  3. Actually, the Art Institute of Chicago encourages pictures in the galleries of their collection. You cannot, however, usually take pictures in galleries where the works are on loan from another museum or private entity.

  4. Lovely pic.

    @Raucous, it depends on the museum. Many allow photography of pieces in permanent collection and some exhibitions, as long as there’s no flash and the image isn’t used on merch or otherwise sold.

    Also, elbowing other visitors aside to get the shot is generally frowned upon.

  5. Wow, really nice. Ditto what Tom said about composition, color, etc. Also, the contrast between the postures of the woman in the picture and the woman doing the sketching adds interest.

  6. John, you are a gifted photographer. I’ve been meaning to post for sometime now, after seeing your pictures come through my mail boxes. Do you have prints available for sale?

  7. Catherine:

    I don’t sell the prints but if you want to print a few out for your own personal use I’m fine with that. Just go over to my Flickr page for larger versions; most of the ones I’ve posted over the last couple of years are at high enough resolution for printing out at 8×10 or even a little bit larger.

    http://flickr.com/photos/scalzi/

    And thank you!

  8. My father attended the Art Institute of Chicago. I can imagine him sketching there 60-odd years ago. And yep, that’s a great photo!

  9. That’s a beautiful photo – I love the contrast between the student and the woman depicted in the painting, and the thought of the century-plus between them.

    Plus my knitter self looks at the CABLE KNITS and starts thinking “How would you do this one …”

  10. I love what you did with the color processing. When I first looked at this I swear I thought it was a Rockwell painting I’d somehow never seen.

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