"Om"

     I was recently approached by photographer and artist J.T. Liss of NYC, a mutual acquaintance, with the idea of collaborating on a photo essay based on his photo "Om." You can read his personal blog post on the piece here- http://www.jtlissphotography.com/blog/every-picture-tells-a-story-om/ - including the motivation behind the title. Check out the rest of his stuff, too, while you're there. I think it's great that he is taking what he loves, photography and art, and using it to bring about social change.

     He got me into contact with the band Atomic Bride (whose poster is featured prominently in the photograph) who agreed to a brief interview for the piece. The brief interview turned into a 50 minute conversation with the band's front-woman, Astra. Astra was a joy to speak with and the band really reflects all of the qualities that I love in artists, especially when it comes to refusing to compromise their style and building strong bonds with their fans.

     After a while, I whittled down the conversation into sound bites and wrote this piece. It was a great joy and honor to work with J.T. and Atomic Bride. And I figure that since I use Muhammad Ali as a metaphor in this piece, it fits within the framework of the blog and justifies my shameless promotion of it here. Enjoy.

http://www.jtlissphotography.com/blog/a-commentary-on-om-2011-photo-of-the-year/