David Jones. Jr.on Civic Greatness @ IdeaFestival 2008

The Common Denominator of Great States

Vest Advertising interviewed Louisville business and civic leader David Jones, Jr. at the Louisville IdeaFestival 2008 on the thesis of guest speaker Amy Chua, a Yale law professor and avid historian; viz., that great civic hyperpowers were talent magnets built on tolerance and inclusion of minority cultures and religions:

David Jones, Jr. sees Louisville as a fertile field for the seeds of multiculutralism and talks about how his own business has benefited from the diverse talents of diverse people.

East of Eden is Eden

These pastoral scenes are slightly east of Metro Louisville.

Windstorm 2008

Windstorm 2008
A hurricane force windstorm (winds exceeding 75 mph) blew through Louisville in September leaving in its wake numerous fallen trees and countless uplifting examples of courtesy and kindness. Electricity was restored to all after six days.

The last of the true believers

A thematic anthem from Nanci Griffith, one of Danzig U.S.A.'s favorite artists:

Oh, he said it was the sound of the winter calling
from up around the bend
Or it could be the cry of your restless heart
for the love of your long lost friends
Me, I think it's just the summertime
and the heat of these Texas winds
They keep on slapping my face with dust so thick
that the tears won't roll again

Chorus:
Last of the true believers
Have you grown weary all alone?
You could go home again, home again, home
Last of the true believers
You pack your things and go back home
You could go home again, home again, home

You can't stay away forever
'cause they say love doesn't last that long
and the ghost of the one that you loved the best
is bound to be long gone
So you fall for the one you believe in
and take pride in the heart you hold
'Cause when the wintertime pounds upon your door
it's shelter from the cold

[Repeat chorus.]

There's a shadow on our wall
where I once stood with him in mind
And there is an empty space beside him
where I do take my rest at night
Oh, I will be the last of the true believers
if truth is his heart to lend
'Cause the wintertime sure looks cold to me
coming up around the bend

[Repeat chorus.]

Oh, I could go home again, home again, home
Well, it looks like home again, home again, home
Oh, I could go home again, home again, home
Well, he brings me home again, home again, home . . . .

Where I go

The Green River near Mammoth Cave, Kentucky

Natalie Merchant, Where I Go, Tigerlily (1995)

climbing under a barbed wire fence
by the railroad ties
climbing over the old stone wall
I am bound for the riverside

Well I go to the river to soothe my mind
ponder over the crazy days of my life
just sit and watch the river flow

find a place on the riverbank
where the green rushes grow
see the wind in the willow tree
in the branches hanging low

well I go to the river to soothe my mind
to ponder over the crazy days of my life
watch the river flow
ease my mind and my soul
where I go

well I will go to the river from time to time
wander over these crazy days in my mind
watch the river flow
where the willow branches grow
by the cool rolling waters
moving gracefully and slow

child it's lovely
let the river take it all away
the mad pace, the hurry
the troubles, the worries
just let the river take them all away
flow away

The Kentucky River near Shaker Village, Kentucky

A Journey to Ithaca: anchor at the island when you are old.

A Journey to Ithaca #12

A Journey to Ithaca: Make haste slowly, festina lente

A Journey to Ithaca # 11

this image would be cropped to eliminate the wing of the Cessna (intentionally included by the photographer but a great irritant and distraction to many who look at the image).

A Journey to Ithaca: To learn and learn from scholars.

A Journey to Ithaca # 10

A Journey to Ithaca: Pray that the road is long.

A Journey to Ithaca # 9

A Journey to Ithaca: Ports seen for the first time.

A Journey to Ithaca # 8

A Journey to Ithaca: Always keep Ithaca in your mind.

A Journey to Ithaca # 7

A Journey to Ithaca: Let your thoughts remain lofty.

A Journey to Ithaca # 6 Let your thoughts remain lofty.

Note: in this image, the face of Justice Brandeis will be clearly visible. Look at 9 o'clock then into the image about one fifth of the distance of the width.

A Journey to Ithaca: there are many ways to Ithaca.

A Journey to Ithaca # 5 ...you will enter ports seen for the first time There are many ways to Ithaca. Make haste slowly.

A Journey to Ithaca: do not fear.

A Journey to Ithaca #4
When you set out on your journey to Ithaca....do not fear.

A Journey to Ithaca

A Journey to Ithaca #3
When you set out on your journey to Ithaca, pray that the summer mornings are many.

Journey to Ithaca

Journey to Ithaca #2
Always keep Ithaca in your mind.

Journey to Ithaca: A Picture Gallery for a Law School Classroom

Journey to Ithaca #1 When you set out on your journey to Ithaca, pray that the road is long....That the summer mornings are many... Constantine Cavafy (1911).

Note: When classes begin at the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville, Dean James M. Chen introduces students to Ithaka, the celebrated poem by Constantine P. Cavafy.

The proposed picture gallery for a law school classroom uses pictures of Louisville, the launching point for the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the George Rogers Clark cabin to illustate notable lines from the poem. Eleven more images follow. The exhibition, however, will use only nine.

Same Skyline, Different Worlds

Louisville's business, commerical and financial district shares the horizon with a net fisher seen here casting the net. The fisher has ample parking for his enterprise.

Louisville Indiana

A Fresh Perspective
In search of a new way to look at Louisville, I went to the front perch of General George Rogers Clark--in Indiana! Sitting there in the rocking chair, I SEE Louisville from a fresh, Indiana perspective, the same perspective enjoyed by the great American explorer, conquistador and patriot. General Clark loved his cabin (built near the launching point of the Lewis & Clark Expedition) but moved to Locust Grove in Louisville to live with his siter after his health failed.

ps, the entire photoshoot is on my Flickr site at a gallery called Louisville views from Indiana.

Art vs. Art

Art vs. Art, a painting competition in which artists compete against each other and the losing art is destroyed, is coming to the Mellwood Arts Center on September 6, noon - 6 p.m. Art vs. Art is a fund raiser for Primary Colours, an Indianapolis-based arts nonprofit.

In the first stage — the paint-off — the program invites artists to come to the arts center, pay a $10 fee, and paint for 4 hours. The supplies are provided by the competition. You can stop by to watch the painting at Mellwood and later go online to view the paintings and vote for your favorites from the following cities: Louisville, Columbus, Ohio, Hammond, Ind., and Indianapolis (Indy's paint-off is September 13; the other three are September 6).

Once the paintings have been painted and the votes have been tallied, the top 32 will be part of a death match, in which the audience votes for its favorite art, and the losing art at each level is either sold or destroyed. Yes. You heard it. They destroy the art, unless you, the audience, saves it.

If you'd like to see painters at their craft, and would like to have some fun, visit the Mellwood Arts Center on Saturday. I think the event will be a lot of fun.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #28 (last in round 2 series)

#28

Doing well in Capture Kentuckiana voting although some have asked me to crop out the wing of the airplane (which I include to help define space and perspective).
** **
Note: The images included in round two have limited and simple subjects. Round one images are more panoramic. With the exhibit limited to nine images, panoramic views are the most cautious way to capture Louisville ethos.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #27

#27


Doing well in the Capture Kentuckiana voting.

A Classroom Gallery #26

#26


This image is doing very well in the Capture Kentuckiana voting.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #25

#25

Bridge at Big Rock Park.
I love the winter sunlight.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #24

#24

Baringer Creek, Cherokee Park
This picture is also doing very well in the Capture Kentuckiana voting.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #21

#21

Louisville Steeples

This image is polling very well in the Courier Journal project and I am not surprised. This picture is rich with metaphor and evokes much commentary and inquiry. One of my personal favorites and used as a gallery card. Many world's share the same horizon.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #20

#20

Picnic Table @ Hogan's Fountain

This image has recevied a large number of votes (I was surprised).

A Classroom Picture Gallery #19

#19


Also doing well in the Courier Jounral project.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #18

#18


The Courier Journal is currently (September 2008) sponsoring an online solicitation of Louisville/Kentucky/Sourthern Indiana photographs for a picture book. The image posted here is doing well in the voting so I thought I would show it.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #17 (final post in first attempt to select nine images)

#17

Louisville Slugger

** **
Notes: the gallery will be comprised of nine images, seven along the outer circular wall of the classroom and one on each side of the lectern wall. Aerial images of architectual landmarks in the center city were favored in an attempt to capture familiar views that will resonate with many AND which are likely to remain stable over a long period of time (hence, there are no views of the arena site or other construction sites which will be dated very shortly). The two landscape images were selected for natural beauty and potential metaphorical value.

The images selected will be presented in a high gloss, sqaure format and displayed between the respective wall pillars above the heads of those seated in the back row of the room and surrounded by an abundance of white space. A 36x36 size is the target size but actuall size will depend upon the resolution and file size of the images selected. Using a finishing process known as sublimation, the digital images will be transferred by a heat press to a scratch resistant surface. The result is a high-quality, vivid and durable picture marked by rich color and luminosity.

DV

A Classroom Picture Gallery #16

#16

The Louisville Slugger

A Classroom Picture Gallery #14

#14

The Kennedy Bridge (see Louisville Slugger Field)

A Classroom Picture Gallery #11

#11

Note the faces of Muhammad Ali on the tile wall of the Ali Center, lower left.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #9

#9

Let There Be Light

Several educational institutions adopt as their motto the first words of the Hebrew Bible: let there be light.

** **
Late summer, Harrods Creek (Louisville), KY.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #8

#8

Nil Admirari, be astonished by nothing
Snow flakes cover blossoms of the crabapple and redbud tree in late April. Be astonished by nothing is Horace's sermon, borrowed from the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, preached by Pythagoras and Seneca. The dictum teaches several lessons: what can happen will happen, don't be seduced, bamboozled or surprised.

**
late Spring at Harrods Creek (Louisville), Ky.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #7

#7

The Many Roads of Louisville

The Portland Canal and the McAlpin Locks allowed Louisville to become an important trading port in the 19th century. Visible in this picture are examples of Louisville's bridges, rail, river, highway and airport resources. Visible to the right of the dome of the Aegon Tower is the runway(s) of the Louisville International Airport.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #6

#6

Make Haste Slowly

At ground level,the tangled path hides the destination and the way. Finding a place above the fray helps one see the twists and turns for what they are.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #5

#5

Look Ahead

It's helpful to students to see their destination. Here is a picture of the 2008 graduation ceremony with the law school well-represented by its flag and its flag bearer, Dean James Chen.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #3

#3

United States Court House and Custom House at Louisville

In the foregound of the picture is the historic United States Court House and Custom House at Louisville (blue-green roof). Also visible is the nineteenth century Jefferson County Courthouse, built with aspirations of Louisville becoming the capitol of Kentucky. The Kentucky General Assembly did in fact meet there once when Confederate troops were expected to raid Frankfort.

A Classroom Picture Gallery #2

#2

The Louisville Skyline from the West

The Louisville skyline is seldom portrayed from this angle. And yet, so much more of the skyline is visible from the direction shown. The image teaches: look at your subject from all angles.

A Classroom Picture Gallery: Image 1

#1

Historic Louisville

Here is an image depicting Louisville's historic city core. Visible in the center left of the picture is the face of Mr. Justice Brandeis for whom the law school at the University of Louisville is named.