Paul Henry's Acoustic Jam 73

I would like to mention, this gallery exists for the artists to present their work to the public.  The gallery gives the environment for the public to enjoy and connect with the artist, and for the public to purchase some of the artists work.  Browse the gallery when you are there on a Thursday night, ask about any of the art, the artist, even ask if the artist is there that night. The acoustical artist who come out to JAM Thursday night typically have a gig the upcoming weekend.  The Thursday night JAM has become their playground for practice, which is what makes Thursday night fun.  The gallery encourages the JAM artists to advertise, and the JAM artists would like you to enjoy their work in other atmospheres too.  There are many places the artists go to "do their thing" for each of us to enjoy in our own way.  I would like to ask that you take time to find that experience and show the appreciation to the artists.  As I become aware of Internet information on the artists, I will post a link to their site to the right of this blog under "Friends of Wesley", so you can keep up-to-date on what is new with them and where they will be.

First up to warm us up was Lou Shields.  This time he brought his "possum stomper"!

Next up was Meredith Judd on his banjo.  Meredith is a good old sole that probably enjoys life more than we could ever hope for ourselves.  Anyway, after talking to him that is how his life looks to me . . .

After Meredith came Mycul Hanus . . .

The crowd was great as always, along with the art in the gallery . . .

Do you recognize the next photo JAM artist?  Okay, maybe not by the shirt, but by the hands.  It was Rich Hall.

Rich is so into it, he eyes became keyboards . . . okay, I am just pointing out the fact you can see the reflection of the keyboard on his glasses in this photo . . . (click on the photo to enlarge it)

Later in Rich's set, Melissa Welch joined . . .

And now I will say, Melissa kicked some saxophone butt last night . . . she needs to be recorded!!!!! You can tell the crowd thought so as well, because the applause put a smile on her face :)

And they kept on playing . . . YES!

It became perpetual fun with Melissa throughout the rest of the night . . . she whaling on the sax making us smile, us making her smile, she returning the favor with some more sax . . . and and and . . . Thank You Melissa from all of us!

Next up was another first time artist to JAM with the clan . . . and that was Lisa Garcia. This night, though the first for Lisa, she asked the audience and other artists to jump in and play / sing with her, and it was fun.

 

Next up was Dan Serapin (left) and Adrian Remeriz (right), with Melissa joining the first song.

Then Thomas Matecki on piano and Richard Alvarez on bongos . . .

Remember the show Dobie Gillis?  Specifically, do you remember the statue of The Thinker?  Hmmm . . . this next photo is of photographer John Brudek.  I don't know if it is good or bad, photographer's taking photos of photographer's.  Must be a beatnik thing . . .

And we know who's next by this photo, right?  Okay, even I would not know.  It was Don Taylor with Melissa joining him on the first song.

Next, Michael Hanus and Mark McKechnie . . . and Mark alternated in and out with Ben Perkins . . .

And later joined by "bongo Rich" . . .

Next was Lee Watson, who eventually had the other JAM artists up with him.  And here is the funny side of this.  Not only has Lee been supporting the gallery, he was also my son's first boss and I did not know that at the time I was taking the photos!!  The laugh's on me this time . . .  

And the photos keep truck'n . . . or should it be photo'n for this?

Then came the second round of sets with whomever felt like jamming . . . with a lot of attention from the audience . . .

And I was caught in the act of photography . . . a couple times . . . guess you can only be so sly before your caught . . .

And the artists kept coming up for seconds . . .

Previous blogs on Paul Henry's Art Gallery:

72nd Acoustical Jam - Paul Henry's Art Gallery

71st Acoustical Jam - Paul Henry's Art Gallery

Thursday Night Jam Session 

Paul Henry's Art Gallery - Thursday Night JAM 12/29/2011

Paul Henry's Art Gallery - Hammond, IN

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Paul Henry's Acoustic Jam 72

Another great night. For me it keeps getting better. I said that out loud last night and realized I never finished what I was thinking, so I am sure it did not sound right to others.

To explain now, it is getting better because you become "more in tune" (pun intended) with the atmosphere, which is great when you get there . . . to the atmosphere. However as you keep coming back you feel more and more "fit, form, function" (just to play on some quality terms used in automotive). You are still in awe of the talent, however you are now "seeing". And I do not mean seeing with just your eyes. You are seeing through artistry, a talent of those who get up in front and dabble, test, try, express what is within them and then to watch them alter it because it was not just right for them. The perfection they are looking for is not technical, but rather within their self satisfaction of who they are, who they want to be, where they are from, trying to find their individual True North. So I "see" this happening within them, a "voice" of art, that keeps getting better as I come from an infant understanding.

For me this first photo comes close to describing the process of art, which starts with Fred Anderson tuning his banjo. For me, Fred was great. His song, rhythm, attention to "his" detail that was needed to satisfy only him, yet so simple, in a simple setting, that we may have selfishly thought it was all for us. Artistry at it's best.  For you this photo may not "voice" all that, which is my fault. I am still learning. You may not see the "Wes" behind the camera yet because I am still in the developer. You may not see the "voice" yet on the other side of the camera because I may still be under or over exposed, though I am improving.

My goal for this and future blogs on Paul Henry's Art Gallery is to now develop my photographic voice. Hopefully over time you will clearly hear what I am saying. Discussing with a friend, the "10,000-Hour Rule" seems to apply . . . that to be successful you will need to put in 10,000 hours in practicing the specific task - Malcolm Gladwell; Your first 10,000 photos are your worst - Henri Cartier-Bresson. I roughly counted up the photos I have taken over the years. In just one year with my previous digital SLR I have taken over 10,000 photos. Combine that with the 1,000 I took just this week with my new/used digital SLR.  Five thousand or more photos from point and shoot digitals, 3,000 in negative frames I still have from various 35mm SLR's and medium format cameras, and the many more negatives I have discarded or lost from the same cameras and a large format camera. I have shot over 20,000 photos. Yet for me, I do not feel even close to being there, which is good because I want to continuously improve. To put this into another perspective, there is approximately 2,000 working hours in a year given a 40 hour work week. So, if I were to do my specific task of photography, I would have to put in 5 years of constant effort to be successful. This is really not bad if you think about it.  However the real point to be made is, if you want to be good at something put in the time.  People want to quantify, apply a measurement.  I say bollocks . . . find your True North first, and the rest will follow.

What the artists like, I think, is the open door the gallery gives to artists just wanting to come in and jam.  Last night two new artists to the gallery joined us, starting with Winfield Smith (below), who gave us some real good music.  (Remember to click on the photo to enlarge, if you wish, and click again to index.)

Carl Strain was there, and this time with his daughter.  One cannot help but enjoy Carl's simple outlook in his music.  He dedicated his second piece to his daughter, and from there on I thought she was going to fall to pieces.  It was a great moment to watch her admire her father, in a more personal admiration than any of us can ever give Carl.

Back again was our favorite enviromedian Mr. James Wesley Jackson, shown in the next set of photos.  As a side note, I wonder if he new there were 3 Wesley's in the house that night????  (James Wesley, Wesley Robert, and Nicholas Wesley - ya, were all related can't you tell????)

This time my camera and I got along, and I was able to take more photos of James.  He baited us with hook line and sinker, and we were crazy enough to want more.  You know when a comedian has talent.  He knows how long a laugh will take before he starts his next line.  He knows not to hesitate or he will not draw us in.  Yet he also knows when to hesitate, because we are still explaining the joke to each other.  As funny as that sounds, it was even a funnier night to have experienced.

To show how much the crowd was enjoying James, all you have to do is look at Melissa's smile :)

The crowd was good this night, given the cold bitter weather.  I would say we all left our digs to a better warmth.

And we had Lauren Dunning at work . . .

Earlier, Lauren won the first raffle of the evening.  This painting was donated by Sophia Rapata, and was one piece I was really crossing my fingers to win.  It found a great home with Lauren.

Next up was our artist and musician, Lou Shields.  I say "our" because you just want him as part of the family.  The next photo is some of his work showing at the gallery, followed by a photo of Lou entertaining us that night.  (Please see the other blog posts for more photos of Lou.)

Our second first time artist at the gallery was Kyle Peek.  Very enjoyable.

I thought this next group of artists were very interesting.  This is what made everything new for me.  At the piano was our jazz pianist Thomas Matecki, on the bongos Richard Alvarez, and my favorite sax player Melissa Welch.

Next up was a combo of Adrian Rameriz and Melissa Welch . . .

And they got our attention . . .

Next up was Maureen Garison who sang to us . . .

Next was James Sanders on guitar followed by his friend Captain J. Moses who read some good poetry he had just written that morning, and after his reading he played the guitar.

Then came Ed Smaron on the piano . . . a very cool guy . . .

Then came a second round with whomever was willing . . .

And photographers getting in the way everywhere . . . Hi David!!

But who can argue when it is Lou back on deck . . .

There is a lot to entertain the senses at Paul Henry's Art Gallery.  Here are some other photos I took around the place.  The first is the dungeon where David puts you if you do not pay the $5 when you come in!

And 110 years later we have proven our moms were right . . . roller skating in the house will ruin hard wood floors . . .

Here are links to previous blog posts I have written on Paul Henry's Art Gallery.  If you like art, this is the place to come look, wonder around, and buy if anything strikes your fancy.  For a fun evening, bring your $5 on a Thursday night and enjoy the JAM and pot luck.  The JAM starts at 7:00PM and ends at 11:30 PM, or there about.  For more information click here.

71st Acoustical Jam - Paul Henry's Art Gallery

Thursday Night Jam Session 

Paul Henry's Art Gallery - Thursday Night JAM 12/29/2011

Paul Henry's Art Gallery - Hammond, IN

Click on this line for my copyright.