STRINGS & THINGS

I love guitars! Banjos, mandolins, violins, viola de gambas! Not only do I get to photograph the musicians that make music on these amazing stringed creations, but I also get to work with the especially talented, thoughtful and gifted folks that design and build the instruments that allow musicians to make the noise that we call MUSIC! I recently had the opportunity to document a few of the latest guitars from Pennsylvania luthier Matt Artinger and some stunning banjos from Beltsville, Maryland based Kevin Enoch! Not only are these amazingly beautiful bits of musical eye candy, but they all sound as good as they look.
My personal favorite- “The Tokyo Rosie” but, then again, it would be! I got to lend a small hand in the design of this one- Billy Gibbons, eat your heart out! ( now I just need some folks to play with- )

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THE ROAD TO MEMPHIS

Once again, the intrepid traveler and neon explorer has loaded up the trusty Retromobile and set a southwesterly course through Kentucky and on to Tennessee before making my yearly pilgrimage to Princeton and Penningtonfest! As planned, it was a long drive, but one teeming with roadside treasures and surprises galore. My trusty and loyal crew and I were rewarded with new adventures and plenty of bizarre and interesting bits of vanishing small town Americana. …and, of course, plenty of neon, lost commercial ephemera from bygone eras and interesting architecture that the 21st Century has bid a not so fond farewell to in favor of a landscape of homogenized conformity.

What would a trip to Memphis be without a stop to Graceland. Sorry, no published pictures allowed! Elvis, Elvis!

Historic Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis- Beautiful!

Some cool neon in Memphis


I just LOVED this house- Was formerly a Doctor’s office, now up for sale, but too far from anything to make it practical

Old small town movie theaters

Several generations of wildly diverse roadside architecture in the South

Who knew that rural Tennessee was home to such great Deco design?

ON THE ROAD TO KENTUCKY – SOUTHERN NEON

Once again, the intrepid photographer is on the road, southbound through West Virginia on the way to scenic Kentucky, Land of Bluegrass, Bourbon and, of course that tasty delicacy, Pig’s Brains. Since there are several aspects of this journey, each a visual treat in itself, I will break up the postings into individual portfolios, and hope you enjoy them for their specific merits.