Happy New Year!
We hope everyone has had a good year and will get some good time to be around the people they love. We have had a busy year and worked on some really cool projects. It’s been awhile so we wanted to share what we have been up to and hear how things are going for everyone. Always down to have a coffee and talk shop. Give us a ring and let us know what you have been working on!
Virginia Terroir
We had the distinct pleasure of working directly with a government agency this year after we won a contract with VDACS, The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The task was to showcase Virginia winemakers and distillers for an international buyers event. During the process we got to meet a variety of fascinating characters and learn what inspires them.
During the intensive pre-interview and on camera sessions, I learned things about winemaking and distilling I had never even considered. There is a deep connection to local farmers, terroir, and history of the region. My eyes were opened to the local grain economy and the uniquely resilient grape varietals that thrive in capricious Virginia microclimates. I was riveted by the fact that from a lineage of moonshiners, Chuck Miller founded the first legal craft distillery in the country right here in our backyard at Belmont Farms.
I’m excited to sample more of all that Virginia has to offer, especially with a deepened knowledge and respect for the craft. We couldn’t have made it happen without the great team of collaborators at VDACS, and we were all really pleased with the results. Check out some stills and links to the final long form videos below!
-Jack
Living History
History is a personal hobby. To me fiction falls short when compared to the lived experiences and socio-political movements of the past.
This year Fotochrome helped the Virginia Museum of History & Culture develop an oral history series centered on the Vietnam War. The archivists at the museum conducted in depth interviews with 27 people who lived through the historical moments of the Vietnam War and many of whom had starkly different experiences. From leaders in the military to those who protested the war, the exhibit casts a wide net to archive and preserve stories that immerse visitors in the feeling of the times. Long form archival versions of the oral histories can be seen on the museums website here.
The exhibit has a touchscreen display we programmed that plays short cuts pulled from the archival interviews. Consisting of many personal and historically charged items graciously donated to the museum by the interviewees in the oral histories, the exhibit wonderfully ties together history and life.
On many occasions while working on the project I got lost in peoples’ stories. The weight and emotion of personal truth and lived experience gives a comforting perspective. We are capable of so much regardless of what life throws at us.
-Will
Pressing mute on the digital maelstrom
Does anyone else feel tired of the algorythmicly driven drivel? AI slop? I have personally needed to escape the noise. While I believe we all have a responsibility to push for a better world the current digital mechanism keeps us locked into tragedy and systemic problems that boggle the human brain.
To create a quiet space I picked up the paint brush and started painting again. This series of paintings might be called “Yawn”. The goal was to create quiet boring spaces and sounds. The opposite of the online barrage. Do you ever feel divine in a perfectly arbitrary and mundane moment?
I haven’t painted in years so I set some goals for myself. This has been a project to fully conquer color mixing. Excluding the portraits which include some vermillion red, all of the pieces are developed with a naturalistic and muted palette. Naples yellow, raw umber, burnt umber, ivory black, flake white, and titanium white were the colors used. The breakthrough piece is the tennis ball and wood block. I love how the tennis ball which is painted with naples yellow and ivory black actually almost reads as green and neon green at that!
All of the paintings are oil on ~4in x 5in wood board
-Will
