30 + 50 points
Seeing Beyond Sight Photo Challenge by susy derkins
September 29th, 2007 9:52 PM
I decided to do the task in the town square, where I never even go anymore, unless some visitors want to do the official tour. On my way there, one block before, decided to try the blindfold on, leaning on the walls of buildings, couldn´t be that hard. Walking awfully slow and awfully self-conscious: there could be people watching me from inside the houses I was touching. Stopped, something, a hole, a flight of narrow steps to the street felt by vertigo, or by the way car sounds changed into something hollow. I would have broken a leg if I had fallen there, easily.
Got to the secondary plaza, where musicans and skateboarders meet. I figured out a walking path and secured the blindfold in place. Walked a little on the edge towards the center, wonderful "swooosh-thump" noises to my left and the sun was all out, after some rain before, one of those amazingly sunny evenings. Music started on the right side, I later learned that Friday evening is danzon evening at the town square: old couples dancing very seriously, without looking at each other, lots of clapping after each piece. I was sitting on the floor, it seemed the safest place to be while blindfolded. The sun was getting me too hot under the hoodie, the music was louder so I was sure I´d get at least some couples in the picture but I later discovered the action was all behind a monument just in front. Pity.
Started to walk towards the main plaza, an acquaintance saw me and called my name, so I greeted him back mumbling something about eye infection, little talk about illnesses and the weather, he had to run, we said goodbyes and I waited 20 seconds and shoot at the direction I felt he had left. I think his head is on one of the pics. Kept on walking slowly to a bench following the rock edge that lines one side of the square. One shot directly in front of me. Must have stayed sitting there at least 10 minutes without daring to move, not sure of there was another person at the other side of the bench (maybe someone reading the paper?). I kept listening intently till I notice I was seing purple inside my closed eyes.
There were laughing kids and shouts and the music coming from the far side where the dancers were. There were some christian guys talking with a megaphone. And also the footsteps right in front of me: I noticed that many people drag their feet while walking. Footsteps made me notice that I was all tense, my own feet bent in a strange way, pushing hard against the floor, my shoulders, neck, everything ready to jump.
Out of the blue the noise of a motor approaching. WTF? I shot a picture. It turned to be a government truck, right in the middle of the town square. Sheesh. It passed fast.
A bell chimed, loud but kind of far. Twice. No churches near. A clock? I shot in the direction of the sound. Turns out an old tower clock is behind some nicely kept big trees that I had never actually noticed. Clock bell chimed again later: I guess it was every 15 minutes. And there were the balloon vendors, who announce the merchandise by inflating one and letting go of the air with a particular whistling sound. Hard to miss.
I could hear entire conversations if the wind blew in a certain way. I heard some girl apologizing with a drunken man who appeared to be a friend of his father, telling him she needed to go meet his boyfriend "who has been expecting me for 45 minutes". I thought about why I´ve never met anyone at the town square.
There was a strange horn sound that kept changing places. Later I discovered that it was from the jell-o vendor cart. (On my way back I saw a pink and brown jell-o in the middle of a rain puddle. Who knows how the story went.)
I felt cool breeze/wet air on my left ear. No many noises coming from there, only sporadic children laughter. Later I saw that there was this water tank beyond my bench, shaded by a tree. Kids playing marbles, maybe, on the ground? Climbing the tree? Never found out.
A sound of metal and squeaky wheels: the camera revealed the garbage man, in his way to lock the barrel cart someplece where lots of other garbage men lock some other trash barrels every day. Shoe shiners were also leaving for the day, stopping to shake hands with some of the men on the other benches, the
regulars of the square town, I suppose.
Someone sat down on the right side of my bench, talking on a cell phone, saying something about "taking a little break". Kept on talking for a while, then suddenly I stopped hearing it: glanced at me and found me too weird to be sitting right by, moved to another bench? I went to the very end of the seat, felt the arm rest, metal was cold and oil-paint slippery. I froze in my place, couldn´t take any more pictures toward the center of the square, it was not right anymore.
A goodbye shot to my bench. The sun was still shining but very low. Not quite twilight yet. I took a picture of myself. I guess I did looked pretty creepy. Removed the blindfold. No one seemed to notice me at all.
Five minutes after I was seeing again a woman came by, gave me this paper "Hello, excuse me, I can´t hear" with prayers and examples of sign language. Five minutes after that a guy on the next bench smiled to me and asked me if I was waiting for someone. And if I was married. Who knows if he had been watching me before.
Got to the secondary plaza, where musicans and skateboarders meet. I figured out a walking path and secured the blindfold in place. Walked a little on the edge towards the center, wonderful "swooosh-thump" noises to my left and the sun was all out, after some rain before, one of those amazingly sunny evenings. Music started on the right side, I later learned that Friday evening is danzon evening at the town square: old couples dancing very seriously, without looking at each other, lots of clapping after each piece. I was sitting on the floor, it seemed the safest place to be while blindfolded. The sun was getting me too hot under the hoodie, the music was louder so I was sure I´d get at least some couples in the picture but I later discovered the action was all behind a monument just in front. Pity.
Started to walk towards the main plaza, an acquaintance saw me and called my name, so I greeted him back mumbling something about eye infection, little talk about illnesses and the weather, he had to run, we said goodbyes and I waited 20 seconds and shoot at the direction I felt he had left. I think his head is on one of the pics. Kept on walking slowly to a bench following the rock edge that lines one side of the square. One shot directly in front of me. Must have stayed sitting there at least 10 minutes without daring to move, not sure of there was another person at the other side of the bench (maybe someone reading the paper?). I kept listening intently till I notice I was seing purple inside my closed eyes.
There were laughing kids and shouts and the music coming from the far side where the dancers were. There were some christian guys talking with a megaphone. And also the footsteps right in front of me: I noticed that many people drag their feet while walking. Footsteps made me notice that I was all tense, my own feet bent in a strange way, pushing hard against the floor, my shoulders, neck, everything ready to jump.
Out of the blue the noise of a motor approaching. WTF? I shot a picture. It turned to be a government truck, right in the middle of the town square. Sheesh. It passed fast.
A bell chimed, loud but kind of far. Twice. No churches near. A clock? I shot in the direction of the sound. Turns out an old tower clock is behind some nicely kept big trees that I had never actually noticed. Clock bell chimed again later: I guess it was every 15 minutes. And there were the balloon vendors, who announce the merchandise by inflating one and letting go of the air with a particular whistling sound. Hard to miss.
I could hear entire conversations if the wind blew in a certain way. I heard some girl apologizing with a drunken man who appeared to be a friend of his father, telling him she needed to go meet his boyfriend "who has been expecting me for 45 minutes". I thought about why I´ve never met anyone at the town square.
There was a strange horn sound that kept changing places. Later I discovered that it was from the jell-o vendor cart. (On my way back I saw a pink and brown jell-o in the middle of a rain puddle. Who knows how the story went.)
I felt cool breeze/wet air on my left ear. No many noises coming from there, only sporadic children laughter. Later I saw that there was this water tank beyond my bench, shaded by a tree. Kids playing marbles, maybe, on the ground? Climbing the tree? Never found out.
A sound of metal and squeaky wheels: the camera revealed the garbage man, in his way to lock the barrel cart someplece where lots of other garbage men lock some other trash barrels every day. Shoe shiners were also leaving for the day, stopping to shake hands with some of the men on the other benches, the
regulars of the square town, I suppose.
Someone sat down on the right side of my bench, talking on a cell phone, saying something about "taking a little break". Kept on talking for a while, then suddenly I stopped hearing it: glanced at me and found me too weird to be sitting right by, moved to another bench? I went to the very end of the seat, felt the arm rest, metal was cold and oil-paint slippery. I froze in my place, couldn´t take any more pictures toward the center of the square, it was not right anymore.
A goodbye shot to my bench. The sun was still shining but very low. Not quite twilight yet. I took a picture of myself. I guess I did looked pretty creepy. Removed the blindfold. No one seemed to notice me at all.
Five minutes after I was seeing again a woman came by, gave me this paper "Hello, excuse me, I can´t hear" with prayers and examples of sign language. Five minutes after that a guy on the next bench smiled to me and asked me if I was waiting for someone. And if I was married. Who knows if he had been watching me before.
10 vote(s)
5
anna one
5Loki
5The Villain
5Blue
5Jellybean of Thark
5Burn Unit
5Lincøln
5lara black
5Bex.
5Sparrows Fall
Terms
(none yet)5 comment(s)
posted by The Villain on September 30th, 2007 9:51 AM
You are receiving a vote for "genius in composition" for the following pieces:
Vive la blindfold!
posted by Blue on September 30th, 2007 12:39 PM
That write up is great…
Had me anticipating what the pictures would look like the whole time.
posted by susy derkins on September 30th, 2007 9:09 PM
The task was amazing enough in itself, every step of the way. Now getting votes from you guys leaps it to a whole new level of resonance and possibility.
So happy to be here...
posted by Bex. on June 18th, 2008 12:43 PM
...for using sound and vertigo to avoid a stairway and for sticking through your fear and for sticking to it after an aquaintance sees you and for getting actually really lovely lovely pictures out of it!
It doesn't sound all that impressive when reading the task description, yet every writeup is wonderfully entertaining.
How do you win a vote from me? Easy. Complete this task.
It's high time I tried it for myself. Think I'll do so immediately.
Nice detail in the writeup, Susy, and welcome to the game.