As for pretty pictures

Lately I've developed quite the affinity for clean and classy design elements (most of which incorporate walls covered in pinned polaroids and the like). I can't wait until I have power back so I can print out multitudes of photos to pin up on the corkboard in my room, because the little postcards and snapshots I have up there now have been there much too long and are collecting dust. 'tis a waste! I also just ordered to postcard-sized prints of some Brassai photographs; let me express, I love Brassai. Here is an example, just so everyone can appreciate.

Beautiful. Also, his female nudes are literally like landscapes. He documented Parisienne nightlife mostly in the 1920s and '30s and has a lot of beautiful shots of couples, characters, ballet dancers, and the backstages of erotic clubs. No matter what aspect of a seedy underbelly he might have captured, he always did so in the most gentle and still fashion, always creating a quiet and intimate moment. These snapshots are truly little self-contained gems. Some of my absolute favorites. I also highly recommend playing the soundtrack to "An Education" as you peruse his portfolio.

Anyways, back to where I started. This is also getting me stoked to decorate my dorm room, and really take advantage of the clean white space. I can't wait to create little photo collages in every nook and cranny, and safety pin a string of photos on a piece of yarn (which is what I'm going to do in front of the window by my desk...when I get around to it). I promise I won't procrastinate this mini-project, and I'll post some pictures once it's done :) See, now that I wrote it here, I actually have to do it....

Also, I'm mildly obsessed with those apps that take pictures with vintage/polaroid effects (this is just me getting eager about getting a polaroid camera!) Here's one. I'm on a fervent craigslist hunt for a vintage one...looks like I might have some luck!

               

ALSO I just finished Patti Smith's biography "Just Kids" thanks to the multitudes of unplugged time due to this damn weather, and let me tell you, it was truly a revelation in its clarity and honesty. It was nearly like being uprooted and plopped down in this central location in this turning point of a time period - Andy Warhol, Allen Ginsberg, the Chelsea Hotel...the list goes on. A very worthwhile read (especially as a pleasure read, I sure as hell needed a break!).

I can't stop listening to Eva Cassidy.