Memoirous

My friend and underground street photographer, Fred Burkhart is having a gallery opening tomorrow, January 18 at Alibi Fine Art here in Chicago (1966 West Montrose Avenue  Chicago, IL 60613). I met Fred a few years ago and I can truly say he has opened my eyes. I see things differently. Also he wears hats. Some of Fred’s most controversial subjects has been an intimate portrait of members of the KKK and chronicling Chicago's Gay Pride Parade since its beginning. In addition he is the house photographer for JesusPeople USA a 350-member community on the northside of Chicago. He is one of ours. Here is a clip from a recent article found in the Examiner . ** Burkhart’s memoir is his art. **He says decisions about what he photographed never felt deliberate. “Photography is a collaboration, and sometimes it’s not on the surface. When you fall in love with someone, you know it, pow. You’re choosing each other, and there’s a certain trust there. When you photogr...

Now is all there is. We never once thought it would change. There would always be dusty roads and distances to cover And egg water and mildewed hay bales and volleyballs hitting us in the head. There would always be long lines, too many people, and heat That descended like a sweat fog covering the land like a pestilence, Or like a brick of congealed gummi bears left out too long. Every year there was summer and there was Cornerstone, We lived all year planning, scheduling, debating, Coming up with a theme, making T-shirts, producing press kits, ordering doughnuts, And yet we were never ready. Never prepared with enough golf pencils at registration, never enough volunteers, never enough This and that and so we made Wally-runs. Back and forth, there and back. And always we added on, just one more thing to the list Or stopped for a DeeQue, or brought back coffee or a water gun Because there was always so much cash floating around; we could never run out. ...