Tag Archives: @southdakotaphotography

looking back at 2023…

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As a creative who struggles with the blues, looking back at another trip around the sun can be marked by what I didn’t do. I don’t want to drag this feeling of lack & sorrow into 2024. Instead, I want to acknowledge what I DID in 2023. 

My inventory isn’t only about my creative life, that’s just the most tangible for me. Taking time to do this inventory isn’t only better for me but for those in my orbit too. 

A SENSE OF AWE

I witnessed a lot of remarkably soul-stirring predawn light. That time of day is truly sacred to me.

I tried to drown my sorrows, but the bastards learned how to swim, and now I am overwhelmed by this decent and good feeling. —Frida Kahlo

MY HEROES

I learned that my creative heroes, photographer, Dorthea Lange and Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo were friends. Since I read about their friendship, I’ve imagined spending time with these creative, ambitious, and unconventional women.

TIME TRAVELING

I’ve begun a deep dive into my ancestry. Learning about the events that shaped their lives, their successes, and their heartaches has given me a new sort of grounding in my identity. 

MILDRED, THE MISSING YEARS…

I’m working on a project creating a “what if” multi-media body of work about my maternal grandmother, Mildred. She was living in California in the late 1930s, and no one seems to know much about those few years of her life. I’ve narrowed my research to 1934—1939.

I’m lost in birth, death, illness, dust storms, drought, pre-US involvement in WWII, the Great Depression, fashion, films, music, the New Deal, and the pull of California for Midwesterners. Mildred is becoming so much more alive to me as I research her life in the context of family, cultural, and historical events.

Mildred died in 1964 at the age of 48, a few years before I was born. She’s described as witty, stylish, intelligent, complex, and a good dancer too.

What if she had become an actress in California and never went back to South Dakota?

I’m borrowing photos of the actress Evelyn Brent as inspiration for this project. Putting myself in these images is helping me imagine the story I want to construct about my grandmother’s alternative life. 

A 1930s actress also happens to be my alter ego…so darling, this project is simply marvelous to me.

see, I was a hoofer

music was in my bones

I was real good too

maybe a little too good for the Bible Belt

ART

I’ve made a lot of art and often forget about it until I’m searching for something else. I want to be more deliberate about sharing what I create this year. I used to think of my creative work as a form of meditation. However, energetically I now believe art in whatever form is meant to be shared. 

A FEW OF MY FAVORITE PHOTOS OF THE YEAR

Happy 2024!

I wish you a year filled with whatever sparks you, the courage to let go of what no longer does, and the wisdom to know the difference.

NOTE: The photo of me on the beach was taken by fellow sunrise photographer, Joe Johnson.

Will Lillibridge’s words & my photos

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My great-great uncle, William Otis Lillibridge (1877-1909) was a dentist and an author in South Dakota. One of his books, Ben Blair was made into a movie in 1916. My grandfather recounted that his father used to say that Will was a much better writer than dentist.

After a recent trip to South Dakota I wondered if I had photos that reflected some of Will’s words. It seems that Uncle Will loved the wildness of the prairie as much as I do.

A BREATH OF PRAIRIE & OTHER STORIES by William Otis Lillibridge

“The reddish glow in the east had spread and lit up the earth…”

“The self-confidence of the splendid animal was his. He would work and advance himself.”

THE DOMINANT DOLLAR by William Otis Lillibridge

“I’m serious, Robert. Douglass is a cattleman west of the river.”

“The river!” apostrophized Bob. “The man juggles with mysteries. What river, pray?”

“The Missouri, of course. Didn’t you ever study geography?”

“…in a spirit of bravado, roped the “devil” and instituted a contest of wills. The pony was stubborn and a battle royal followed. As a buzzard scents carrion, other cowboys anticipated sport, and a group soon gathered.“

“No, but I know the country. It’s new and wild now, of course, and you’ll find neighbors a bit scarce; but it’s alright.”

LINK: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29245/29245-h/29245-h.htm#:~:text=WILL%20LILLIBRIDGE%20AUTHOR%20OF%20%E2%80%9CBEN%20BLAIR,%E2%80%9D%20%E2%80%9CTHE%20DOMINANT%20DOLLAR,%E2%80%9D%20ETC.

The story of his life is characteristically told in this brief autobiographical sketch, written at the request of an interested magazine.

“I was born on a farm in Union County, Iowa, near the boundary of the then Dakota Territory. Like most boys bred and raised in an atmosphere of eighteen hours of work out of twenty-four, I matured early. At twelve I was a useful citizen, at fifteen I was to all practical purposes a man,––did a man’s work whatever the need. In this capacity I was alternately farmer, rancher, cattleman. Something prompted me to explore a university and I went to Iowa, where for six years I vibrated between the collegiate, dental, and medical departments. After graduating from the dental in 1898 I drifted to Sioux Falls and began to practise my profession. As the years passed the roots sank deeper and I am still here."