Joshua Tann Photography: March 2011

Thursday, March 17, 2011

My view of Burano

Colorful Serenity - Burano

Burano, a small island in the Venice Lagoon is different from Murano, which is well-known for its beautiful glass products based on centuries-old artistry. Burano is famous for two things: their lace and their colorful houses. Their lace-making is now mass-produced somewhere else, unfortunately. The island is actually a collection of four islets connected by bridges. The island was reportedly founded by people from Altino in the 5^th or 6^th century and traditionally has been a fishermen settlement for centuries so fishing has been an important economic factor for the island. It was reported that the houses were painted in bright and contrasting colors so that the fishermen can identify their homes on the way back in the misty lagoon.

While Venice has the grand architecture of the ornate palaces, basilica, plazas and campanile, quite appropriate due to its previous role as the center of commerce and political power in the strategic area; Burano has a simpler presence with its rows of houses. They represent modesty; no grand entrance, no ornate façade or elaborate roof structures. To me, this particular image represents their quiet way of life. The contrasting colors of the houses show a clear dichotomy between the serenity of way of life and the excitement of having so many colors in a community. Additionally, the community seems to be built around the row of houses, as they are connected as one, and yet the multi-colored façade can be perceived as diversity. Granted that the initial purpose of the colors was probably practical, but one can ponder that the duplicity of this image can be strikingly attractive.

With this, I am also releasing for the first time, the Burano colorful houses in the form of printed notecards and can be purchased individually in 4 x 6 in. and 5 x 7 in., or in a set of 8. They come with envelopes and a short description of the area in the back of the cards. Enjoy!

www.joshuatann.com

www.joshuatann.etsy.com

www.facebook.com/joshuatann
www.twitter.com/joshuatann

Joshua Tann Photography

Monday, March 14, 2011

My first blog in Blogger

The grand ruins of the Roman Empire

This is my first blog in Blogger. I created a commercial website to revive my interests in Architecture since I was a kid, and no other medium can capture it as well as photography.

A building or structure does not move from its place and location such as people in portrait photography; however, the variation of its image still depends on time, light, angle, composition and mostly, the vision of the photographer. Hence, there are numerous images can emerge from one building. As a psychotherapist by profession, I create the vision of a building from its psychological space. For one, a structure is usually built for people. The purpose of a building is indeed to fulfill people's need of shelter and a sense of safety and for a temple or cathedral, to fulfill humanity's need to worship its god or diety.

The idea of a handmade note cards was born because personal messages are usually lost and became impersonal when delivered in the form of e-cards or e-mails. But fortunately, many people are still writing their messages in the form of notecards because it still gives them a personal sense in their message. I am hoping that creating a handmade note card to achieve this purpose would take this to another level and make it more personal. I hope you enjoy the images and visit us often. If you so inclined, you can purchase the cards through the website. From time to time I would blog about of the images offered in the website.