from the butterfly exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC

something to consider

A trio of butterflies, almost reckless in their fun, flap bold, brittle and beautiful in a game of 'let's duck and weave through the visitors, silently bumping them with a puff of air'.

They chose life over looks.

© 2008 joe blend. All rights reserved.

It was a really interesting exhibit. In a relatively small room/corridor, sealed to keep in the humidity and the flapping exhibits, the butterflies were everywhere and nowhere. No sounds to indicate movement, just a flutter in your peripheral vision or a flash of color next to a leaf. And you had to watch every step you made, there was no way of knowing where (or when) a butterfly would decide to sit.

To see one in public is amazing; to see many of them in one space is profound.

url - http://www.mnh.si.edu/

the beauty of a manmade rainforest

These plants and window were actually very easy to overlook...

{...the entire exhibit is essentially a manmade rainforest within a giant room; there were not only trees, water and plant life but several birds either seated on branches or flying around. The point is, with all the squawking/rustling/humidity, you could easily miss something as generic as a window.}

subject: plants, flowers, and window
location: National Zoo (Washington DC)



© 2008 joe blend. All rights reserved.

Joe Blend and Capitol Eyes: a gallery experience

A couple of months ago, the owner of an eyeglass boutique in Washington DC commissioned six of my photographs for display/sale in his store. After a couple of stressful months of shooting/editing/matting/framing, the work is finally installed (the sixth photograph will be installed on Tuesday May 22nd). Both myself and the store owner are very happy with the results; upon installation, he commissioned another four pieces so it's back to work for another exciting round of art production!

Anyway, here are four of the photographs that I selected for display/sale...

Flamingos:



Empire State Building:



Cherry Blossoms and random zoo plant (respectively)



I'll post a preview of the additions after they're installed. For those of you in and around the DC Metro area that are interested in checking the work out in person, here's the address of the store:

Capitol Eyes
1201 F Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004

I'd like to say thanks to all of you that have supported me and my work in one way or another over the years and thanks to Dr. Allouche of Capitol Eyes for this incredible experience!