Island Man

Probably my favorite record, if forced to choose, is Grace Jones ‘Living My Life.’ Her backing band includes the likes of Wally Badarou, Sly Dunbar, and Robbie Shakespeare, who were all part of the Compass Point All-Stars band put together by Island Records impresario Chris Blackwell.Blackwell and his label are responsible for some of the …

Pigeon Racing in Leeds

For over 40 years, Peter Miller has had a consistent photographic mission to record the buildings and people of his hometown Leeds. In some hands, pictures of a decaying industrial city would have led to a rather depressing, humorless ‘it’s grim up north’ vibe. Miller avoids this with sharp humor. If he shoots a racing …

Scarecrows

Peter Miller has known for taking photos of his hometown Leeds for over 40 years. However, it seems that that isn’t only photographic interest. He also loves scarecrows. It led to a fascinating photo series of these hitherto rather ignored country icons

Motel Vegas

The motel is a quintessentially American thing. A place that speaks of road warriors and road trips and people running from some unseen moment in their past. They are the stuff of film noir and speak to the transient nature of American life. They also have a weird beauty. Fred Stigman’s ‘Motel Vegas’ shows them …

Cuba Libre

The Netflix series ‘Cuba Libre’ is a timely reminder of how a small group of dedicated extremists can take over a country. I’m guessing you probably didn’t know that the ‘army’ took Havana in 1959 led by Camilo Cienfuegos and Che Guevara, comprised of just 300 men. Even though the army of the military dictator, …

Isla

Ernesto Bazan was the man who taught me how to take photographs. You may not have heard of him but this is an oversight on your part for he is one of the best black and white photographers in the world today. He has just released his third book on Cuba,the island where he lived …