Armand Emamdjomeh

Jelly’s

Emamd — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:35:34 +0000

This Sunday I went to Jelly’s for my first photo shoot for El Tecolote, a 40-year-old bilingual newspaper and website based in the Mission. Jelly’s is a dance club in Mission Bay that has been threatened with eviction and closure by the Port of San Francisco after a fatal shooting occurred outside the club on July 11. I was sent to take photos to accompany an article in the upcoming issue of Tecolote.

The big wall of windows on the east side of the club looking out towards the Bay provided some challenging light to shoot in, but also an opportunity to make some dramatic pictures.

The picture above was the first image I snapped while walking into the club. The blur makes it unsuitable for newspaper or even online slideshow use, but I like the image nonetheless.

Stay posted for more once the article goes up.

New Mission, at the De Young

Emamd — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:20:35 +0000

This Friday, a short video I did, “New Mission,” which incorporates photos I took and audio from the neighborhood with the poetry of Marcella Ortiz will be shown at the De Young museum as part of the Street Art San Francisco: Mission Muralismo film night celebrating the book, the art, and all that is Mission.

There will also be films by Michael Nolan and Veronica Majano, which I’m really excited about, especially the premiere of the film “Why I Ride: Low and Slow,” by Veronica.

This Friday, September 3, 7:00pm. Be there.

Did I mention it’s free? And there’ll be music and other art as well? So you really have no excuse.

On Saturday, Vero, Annice Jacoby and I were on Radio 2050 on KPFA talking about the show. One topic that was brought up during the discussion was how most of these projects are on the street, and less so in people’s homes. It got me thinking about how the Mission, maybe more than any other neighborhood in the city, is a neighborhood where life takes place on the streets, it’s very public and feels very much like a community – not a place where most people spend their days cooped up in their homes. It’s something that speaks to the very nature of the Mission and what makes our neighborhood what it is.

You can listen to the full show, including my incoherent rants about photography, streets and pigeons, here. Thanks to Darren and Elida for having us on.

The above shot was taken on 24th street.

Look Down

Emamd — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 23:41:34 +0000

Taken a while ago somewhere south of 24th Street, probably on 26th.

A Small Victory

Emamd — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 23:01:56 +0000

A few weeks ago, I shot a few portraits (and did a tape sync) for ProPublica of Suzanna Wertheim, an Oakland resident who had been given the runaround for a year and a half trying to get her mortgage modified after losing her job and finding out she had terminal cancer in the same day.

Karen Weise published a profile of her ordeal on ProPublica, which then got picked up on the Rachel Maddow show.

Two days after her appearance on Rachel Maddow, she got a call from Wells Fargo that her loan modification was approved.

Sometimes the work we do does make a difference, even if it’s very small.

Alone on the Roof

Emamd — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 23:05:09 +0000

Some good news – along with the 200 Yards show at Heart, a few Mission night shots just got accepted into a show at San Francisco city hall. The show, Night/Light: Bay Area Photographers Take Aim at the Night is a collaboration between the SF Arts Commission and PhotoAlliance.

I took this shot, which is one of the images in the show, on New Year’s Eve of this year. 3200-speed film, Nikon FM2, 50mm f/1.4/ I think it needs a better title. If Troy were here, he’d think of one.

More Cross-Process Goodness

Emamd — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 01:24:53 +0000

Looking up from 24th and Mission, but it could just as well be LA.