Welcome to my new blog. I decided to start a new blog in 2013 just to showcase people and places that deeply impacted me, my work, my life... Click Denver still has a soft spot in my heart, but since I started it so many years ago, things have changed, life has changed me, and my work has been neglected in my posts. I wanted to do too much with it. So, after a crazy car accident at the end of last year, I had the opportunity to spend some needed time with myself, in silence, and listen. What was the inner voice telling me? To concentrate on photography. See, my intent is to show you how I see people, in all their beauty and potential. Connecting with a musician up on stage in the moment of his or her creation, is the same feeling I get when I look at someone seated next to me on a train ride in the middle of Australia. Which brings me to Maree. This is my post entry from 2010, when I met her, on a train ride.
"A few days ago I was on a train ride back from Katoomba's Winter Magic Festival and magic really did happen. I was standing in a packed cart, not an inch to spare, when a woman caught my eye. I couldn't stop looking at her, I was completely drawn to her energy. And then, the seat next to her magically became available and I sat right beside her. There was small talk about a cloth doll she was sewing for a friend, and then she reached inside her bag and pulled out a small point and shoot camera to show me a picture of when she was a baby. She recently acquired it from a friend and took a snapshot, so she was really proud of her photography skills. Taking a picture of a photograph is not easy. I sat quietly as she exchanged memory cards and started to flip through some seemingly uninteresting people shots. When I asked her if I could see some of them, she slowed down her review and photographs of her and Leonard Cohen appeared. I voiced my surprise and she just smiled, continuing her review. She said that night she felt pretty and showed me a picture of her with fake, long, PINK eyelashes. I was more and more intrigued by her and finally asked her if i could take her photograph, as I thought she was one of the most striking people I've ever met. Literally, her energy just kept on drawing me closer and closer. She graciously agreed, and I took about 5 frames, talking to her as I would a long lost friend. She then proceeded to show me some photographs of her "drawings" and that's when I just about blew a fuse. Her artwork is simply STUNNING, completely alive, colorful and full of emotion. You can see the motion, the love, the passion in each stroke. I finally asked her what her name was and she wrote her name and address on my train ticket to keep in touch. Maree Faulkner."
Unfortunately, I never had the chance to contact her, and was recently informed that Maree passed away, surrounded by family, and so many people who loved her and her artwork sent me emails from all over the world to thank me for this little blog post. Her artwork was on display at Wollongong City Gallery, and a catalogue quote from a current WCG exhibition she was a part of reads: 'So in making new works I can reflect, look forward and get on with life, remembering to have gratitude that my art brings joy to many'.
Maree deeply affected me that day, and I know she touched so many people with her art. Her kindness showed me her gentle spirit. Goodbye, Maree, until we meet again...
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