Jordan Swartz- The Rad Times #2

There’s a passage from a book I can’t remember the name of that has stuck with me for going on two decades- I usually think of it when it feels a little directionless. The narrator ponders on how so many get stressed driving in the rain, focusing on the myriad of drops crashing against the windshield, eyeing every drop. What you need to do is look past the rain and to the road ahead, rendering the windshield plane out of focus and obsolete. I’m no scholar, but I’m assuming the author knew this was a pretty damn good metaphor for life- the chaos swirls, jobs lost, lovers leave, but you can always look past the rain and focus on that dotted line threading into the distance, where ever it may lead. So here we go, swinging blind into the unknown.

Thanks for hanging!
Be good to each other.

If you know me personally you might be surprised to learn my love of suits/ tailoring and fashion in general; considering I’ve worn blue jeans and a white t shirt daily for the last 15 years. As a certified jack of all trades, I am always envious of people with a true singular craft, a precision and perfection in a focused realm.

I’ve always had a love of the radio as an idea but not necessarily for its content. In the mid to late ‘90s Sue Carpenter in Los Angeles felt the same way. Operating out of a closet in her apartment she invited strangers to come share their taste with whoever was in signal reach, eventually getting a pretty eclectic mix of DJs. In my digging I found a recording of a KBLT broadcast from March 14, 1997 that stands as a rad time capsule of a time and place- https://youtu.be/vW6uSN3uxWs.

While I’ve always been a multi disciplinary artist- photography was the first medium I really latched on to and pursued. There was some magic of photography that allowed me to go out into the world and return with what I’d found, both a surprise to me and the viewer. This video does a really good job of summing up a lot of my thoughts and feelings on photography in general.

Previous to living in Austin, I didn’t own a car. For over a decade while bouncing between D.C., New York, and Philly, my main mode of transportation was a bicycle and sometimes public transit. I didn’t realize how lucky and how uncommon this was. I’ve always been interested in urban planning from an accessible and design stand point and the older I get the more that is the life I want. Jane Jacobs has a great book “The Death and Life of Great American Cities” if you’re also interested in this topic.

Better known as a director (Game of Thrones, True Detective, Ozark) Daniel Sackheim is also a photographer. Turning his camera on LA he brings a heavy knowledge of film history and cinematography to his photos. Deep blacks, and a not subtle wink to film noir, his photos blur the line between surreal and documentary, with an almost video game screenshot quality (reminiscent of Leonardo Magrelli’s series West of Here)