.calamity strange is my doppelgänger.
this is the official blog of kelley richardson and ~strange angel studios~
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when i’m not taking photographs along the side of deserted highways, painting pictures of skeletons, aiming my camera at all things chrome and shiny, or gluing random pieces of my past together to make little auto-biographical dioramas… i still do most of my professional work creating portraits for people. i’ve never really felt the need to share all those photographs on the internet- since i am hired privately (and i still think it’s a little odd that you can browse through so many blogs and look at everyone’s engagement photos, or pictures of their babies…)  but from time to time i guess i should remind people (or myself) about what i do to make ends meet.  it seems that most of the photographers i know are strictly photographers, and they shoot in a pretty specific way, and they do mostly just that.  i also see that most of the artists (other genres or photographers who only make ‘art’ and do not hire themselves out) also stay kind of specific to one stream of creating.   in my case, i think my diversity is both a blessing and a curse.  on the one hand, i’ve had art shows where people walk in and say “oh, where are your photographs?” (when it’s some other genre)  and as recently as april- when i had the heretics and heathens opening at chimera arts in santa cruz many people thought that it was a two person show- due to the two distinctly different mediums on display.  (yes, that was all mine.)  on the other hand… i have a very broad range of interests when comes to creating, so i’ve got a huge arsenal of ideas and a pretty strong set of skills and resources! oh see, now i’m all off track!  (i am also a little bit ADD and a lot OCD- in case you hadn’t noticed)  here’s an example of a couple of very basic portraits i did for one of my favorite clients and collectors.  it’s fun to take pictures for the same families year after year- and watch their kids grow up.  it’s also really cool to be able to be the documentarian (if you will) and to be trusted to authentically capture the history of other people’s lives. 2006 2011 and just for the hell of it- here’s another way to keep it interesting. sometimes i make other art- out of the portraits i take!  this is a 30x40” mixed media collage i made with the first series of their portraits that i did in 2006.

when i’m not taking photographs along the side of deserted highways, painting pictures of skeletons, aiming my camera at all things chrome and shiny, or gluing random pieces of my past together to make little auto-biographical dioramas… i still do most of my professional work creating portraits for people. i’ve never really felt the need to share all those photographs on the internet- since i am hired privately (and i still think it’s a little odd that you can browse through so many blogs and look at everyone’s engagement photos, or pictures of their babies…)  but from time to time i guess i should remind people (or myself) about what i do to make ends meet. 

it seems that most of the photographers i know are strictly photographers, and they shoot in a pretty specific way, and they do mostly just that.  i also see that most of the artists (other genres or photographers who only make ‘art’ and do not hire themselves out) also stay kind of specific to one stream of creating.   in my case, i think my diversity is both a blessing and a curse.  on the one hand, i’ve had art shows where people walk in and say “oh, where are your photographs?” (when it’s some other genre)  and as recently as april- when i had the heretics and heathens opening at chimera arts in santa cruz many people thought that it was a two person show- due to the two distinctly different mediums on display.  (yes, that was all mine.)  on the other hand… i have a very broad range of interests when comes to creating, so i’ve got a huge arsenal of ideas and a pretty strong set of skills and resources!

oh see, now i’m all off track!  (i am also a little bit ADD and a lot OCD- in case you hadn’t noticed)  here’s an example of a couple of very basic portraits i did for one of my favorite clients and collectors.  it’s fun to take pictures for the same families year after year- and watch their kids grow up.  it’s also really cool to be able to be the documentarian (if you will) and to be trusted to authentically capture the history of other people’s lives.

2006

ellie 005

2011

IMG_8778

and just for the hell of it- here’s another way to keep it interesting.

sometimes i make other art- out of the portraits i take!  this is a 30x40” mixed media collage i made with the first series of their portraits that i did in 2006.

ellie

Jul 18 2011

Photo