Saguaro Wanderings: Seeing 2013 (#16)

For your consideration: of those who've recently agreed to sit for portraiture in front of my lens, this particular subject proved to be both the most severe and the easiest to capture . . .

Although getting this sitter to remain still was a non-issue, the penetrating and unwavering stare did resurrect disturbing memories from my very early youth, tremors which had long been slumbering (out to pasture, so to speak).

I grew up in Tucson, which in the early Sixties still featured large tracts of undeveloped desert and tumbleweeds within its city limits, as well as still living vestiges of its pseudo-wild west culture. Being a kid I mostly relished such clichéd accoutrements such as cap guns, lassos, sombreros and spurs. (Guilty confession: stick horses, too.)

In retrospect, the weekly testing of the forest of air raid sirens across the valley lent a surreal flavoring to the dusty ambiance — every Saturday promptly at 1:00 p.m. came the eerie howls. While I did indeed comprehend the import of those warnings, their threat paled in comparison to The Sign. As the link reveals, this neon ghost still resides perched above Miracle Mile, undoubtedly maintaining its unwavering and glowering stare over all passersby day and night. Trust me: on those (blessedly) rare occasions when the family car passed by this landmark (or so I beheld it) I kept my own beady eyes locked on it; even now I remember the mixture of fear and fascination which lingered long after the stare-downs.

Not coincidentally the specimen (a cousin perhaps?) now in my possession also hails from Tucson. I've been wanting to explore its photographic potential for quite some time. Using my recently acquired studio lights, I have carefully explored and exploited the abundant nuances of texture, shadowing, and surprisingly rich geometry and character of this headstrong subject.

I am extremely pleased with the result. (Really, be sure to view it full-sized.)