Today's The Day... Dia de los Muertos

My talented photographer friend Caroline Wright never disappoints!

Dia de los Muertos, one of Birmingham's finest celebrations starts at 4:00 this afternoon till.......

CDP Theme Day - Landmark

Today I join my fellow City Daily Photo blog friends around the world who are celebrating the theme I chose for this month....LANDMARKS.  I had method to my madness when I was asked to pick a theme.  As my faithful followers know, the historic 100 year old Lyric Theatre in downtown Birmingham is undergoing a fabulous restoration and I have been so blessed to be able to chronicle the progress through my lens.  The work underway and huge changes are taking place. I've not been inside for a few months but today share one of the my many obsessions with this lovely old place... the horsehair backed plaster architectural details.  Before the serious stuff started, I'd walk around the balconies with my camera and find pieces at my feet. I'm told the horsehair backing is the reason for the fabulous acoustics.  I hope to bring you recent photos of progress very soon.

BOO!

Eager to get the party started!

The Fairy and The Spectators

 

There were a gaggle of ghosts, goblins, fairies and super heroes at the IPC Day School's Halloween Parade yesterday. The 4 and 5 year olds paraded round and around the playground to the delight of the younger kiddos and a flock of proud parents and grandparents!

And Mario

Leaf

Yesterday, I was at Kelly Ingram Park again, photographing Elizabeth MacQueen's marvelous THE FOUR SPIRITS for her. This single leaf caught my eye blown between the two bronze shoes.

Spiraling!

This stairway leads to a fabulous skylight atop the new Benjamin Russell Hospital for Children. It is one of many amazing healing places in Birmingham.

And The Winner Is........

Yesterday I watched a study in cooperative decision making, well sort of.  Two classes of two year olds at Independent Presbyterian's Day School went out to the courtyard and surveyed the pumpkins on the lawn. This wasn't a "choose your own cool pumpkin" event.  No, it was choose our class pumpkin.  There were many who found their fav but these three boys gave it some serious thought, along with some thumping to make sure it was a good one. This was their choice.  I'm happy to report that there were no tears involved. A lovely lesson learned.

A Closer Look

As you may have read on yesterday's post, I visited Railroad Park on Saturday to photograph the monks who were in town for the Dalai Lama's visit to Birmingham.  Since Wednesday they had been about the work of creating a mandala, from crushed marble in an enclosed tent there at the pavilion. The process appears to be tedious and painstaking but one monk explained that the pattern is part of their prayers so it's far more than creating a piece of temporary art.  Yes, it is temporary. Today at 5:00 , there will be a ceremony where the sand will be swept up, shared with those in attendance and the rest released into a body of water.

Welcome

This weekend, the city of Birmingham welcomes the 14th Dalai Lama.  Yesterday, I was fortunate to visit and photograph the monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery in Mundgod, India.  The are creating an amazing mandala of colored crushed marble at Railroad Park. On Monday afternoon, they will give some
of the sands to visitors and then as is their tradition, they will release the rest of this beautiful creation into a water source. 

Being able to meet and interact with them was such a wonderful experience for me. They were so kind to explain the process. Such gentle souls.  I look forward to hearing from those who get to hear the Dalai Lama today.  A very very special time for our city.

Tomorrow, a closer look.

One Week Till Halloween...

and not one single pumpkin photo.  Well I can take care of that!  More where that came from.

Under the Red Umbrella

Here in the Deep South, autumn takes its sweet time getting here. We like it that way. Yesterday I sat under the Adams' red umbrella in the still warm October sun and admired their gorgeous garden. The Mexican sunflowers are glorious right now. They will die out soon and make way for the  autumn leaves to put on their show.  Everything has its own season.

A Lucky Boy

Meet Henry.  Henry is a very lucky boy. Thanks to Adopt A Golden Birmingham, he has found his forever home with a very, very, very loving family.  I sat in the grass and photographed Henry yesterday.  I brought treats. He loved me!

Meet the Artist, Brad Morton

Those of you who have followed this blog since 2008, might just remember the first time I posted  Brad Morton's work right HERE.  This installation at St. Vincent's Hospital, has always been a favorite of mine.  As I shared on yesterday's post, I was lucky to revisit Brad's studio last week.

Here, he's working in clay, the first of a very long process on its way to a magnificent bronze piece. I hope I'll be able to check back and share more photos as this piece comes to life.

Thank you Brad, for sharing your creative talent with me and my readers.

Artist's Smocks

I had some big fun on Friday afternoon.  Birmingham metal sculptor Brad Morton invited me back to his studio on 1st Avenue South.  He took time out from his work to explain the long process of creating his wonderful bronze pieces.  At some point, he plays with fire, hence the gear on the wall.  He's promised that I can come back to photograph more steps of the process.  I can't wait!  Come back tomorrow and meet Brad himself.

Scoot!

The plaza at the entrance to Avondale Park is the perfect place to ride, skate or scoot!