Photo Cuba 2010!

PhotoCuba!
Cultural Immersion with Camera
with Trina Koster & the Photo Cuba Team
February 21-28, 2010
at Los Galeones Hotel in the village of Chivirico, Santiago de Cuba


Photo Workshop fee/ Early Registration: $595 + GST (includes overnight trip to Santiago)
Registration after December 1st, 2009: $695 + GST (includes overnight trip to Santiago)

Cultural Workshop only $250 + GST ( includes overnight trip to Santiago, language and culture lessons only)

Travel fees approximately $880 CAN/based on double occupancy (includes flight, air tax, hotel, food and all inclusive bar for 1 week)

Travel with Purpose! Have fun in the sun, get off the resort and experience the real Cuba! Meet wonderful people and connect with culture through photography.

With her 15 years experience as a portrait photographer, Trina will lead you in photography lessons on visual storytelling,the decisive moment, composition, sculpting light and capturing gestures. An emphasis will be made on connecting with people while immersing yourself in a new culture. This workshop is suitable for image makers coming from different levels of photography. If you are a beginner, you will not be lost, if you are advanced you will not be held back as each person will have their photographs personally reviewed and critiques customized to your level.

Throughout the week our team of instructors will give you feedback on your images. You will greatly benefit from this diverse group of artists. Along with Trina, the PhotoCuba team includes photographer and author Laura Taylor (www.lauraetaylor.com), graphic novel and commercial illustrator Scott Mooney (www.moon-man.com), cultural promoter Arisdan Balado Rodrigues and surrealistic Cuban painter, German Portuondo. German is also a professor of Fine Art, and director of the Guerimellio Galleria de Arte in Chivirico (in the village where we will be staying). In particular, German brings great insight and a truly unique Cuban perspective to the students understanding of their images.

By collaborating with local Cuban photo guides, we will help you to quickly connect to real people and the rhythm of daily life in Cuba. Chivirico is not a touristy town, instead you will find babies, school kids, seniors, fisherman, bakers, commuters, dogs, chickens and pigs going about their lives in the most natural of ways. These kinds of photographic opportunities usually reserved for professional journalists will be an abundant part of our program. (Please note, Cuba is one of the safest islands in the Caribbean to be walking around in)

Since you’ll be immersed in Cuban life through photography Laura and Arisdan will be teaching you basic Spanish lessons to help you communicate with your subjects. There will also be lectures in Cuban culture, music, dance and art to enhance your Cuban experience.

Mid-week we will venture out on an overnight trip to historical downtown Santiago de Cuba. Our excursion will include a guided tour of the streets of Santiago with options to visit the best museums and galleries. There will be a sunset photo shoot at El Morro Castle. Following that we will enjoy an authentic Cuban feast on a rooftop terrace overlooking the Santiago Bay Harbour. A private salsa dance lesson will prepare us to hit one of the local Salsa dance clubs afterwards. You will stay in a Casa Particular and experience the warmth and hospitality of Cubans. In the morning we will go to the farmer’s market, visit the Centro de Arte Gallery and then head back to our retreat at our cozy hotel in the mountains.

Los Galeones is a sweet little hotel situated between the Caribbean Sea and the famous Sierra Mountain Range. Chivirico is next door to Umbaro, where Castro and his comrades lead THE Revolution. On top of the small mountain is our laid back hotel where you can take a dip in the pool , enjoy a 360 degree view, gorgeous sunsets, and friendly staff. The hotel also has a private beach with snorkelling and a wonderful dog named “Lobey”

Our night time activities include sipping back Mojitos, while listening to one of the many fabulous musicians that play nightly at the hotel. This is a fun, socially interactive experience for people of all ages from teenagers to retirees, singles and couples. (We encourage travel companions to partake in the Cuban Cultural component.) Although this is a group workshop, participants should feel at ease knowing solitude time will be respected.

Since the inception of Photo Cuba, Chivirico now has a photo club “Photo Che”. In the past, students have brought donations of digital photo and computer equipment and art supplies to help support the access to image making. We also show gratitude to the people of Chivirico by bringing clothing donations to be distributed through the village.

Our Photo Cuba experience will wrap up with a Fiesta and slideshow celebrating the images from the week. This slideshow will go on to exhibit at the local gallery so the people in the community can enjoy the photos of themselves.

Photo Cuba is an adventure into the heart of Cuban culture, to a place as one student said “has soul”. A creative experience you’ll never forget is waiting to embrace you!
For more information please visit www.photocubaworkshop.com. On the “Gallery” page you will be able to see photos from previous students, images of the hotel, village and instructors.
To reserve your spot or if you have any questions please call Trina at 519-767-2948 or email info@trinakoster.com.
Our annual Photo Cuba fundraiser will take place Saturday January 16th at 7pm at TKP.

Photo Cuba 2009 Feedback

These testimonials are from the feedback forms for Photo Cuba 2009. There were lots of great logistical suggestions for improvements to the workshop too. We'll be implementing many of those next year to continue our trend of ever improving this already amazing experience!

***

I Love you guys --- my heart is so full!! Thank you.
I think it’s your joy, your respect for each other and us is what makes this absolutely the best workshop. Trina, Laura, and others... You know I have been to workshops taught by other photographers --- some world wide famous ___ and I AM telling you.... (now don’t let this go to your heads).... it is my belief that you are the best... (and I’m not trying to butter you up for better critiques either!!)
-- Anonymous


Thank you for the opportunity to explore this wonderful place and meet such warm lovely people. I feel my work has improved by a level from this experience.
-- Anonymous


The music & dancing in the art gallery was by far the most amazing part of the trip for me. The intimate setting, the band was amazing,and the dancers were incredible! I didn’t take pictures of this because I didn’t want to miss anything.
The guides were very helpful, patient and available at all times.
The people on the trip were amazing! A great creative holiday with a wealth of knowledge available if you so desired. A lot of thought and preparation went into planning this trip and it was very apparent as the week unfolded. I love the fact that we pooled our tips and donations so that as many people as possible will benefit instead of just a few.
-- Anonymous


The highlight for me was how welcoming the people were to us. The fact that these “strangers” are opening up their lives to us and giving us their time, gifts (eg. fruit, Chaisser’s {music} show) and wanting to share their culture with us was so amazing to me. I am very sad to be leaving and I really want to come back next year and contribute more to them.
-- Melissa Glidden


The highlight: So hard to pick one - so I won’t! I loved the dance/music in the gallery. Loved Trina’s critique. Loved Trina’s demos on portrait photography. Loved Laura's Spanish lessons. Loved the fact that I feel like I got to learn a little (and got some access to) the real Cuba. But more than that - the workshop was challenging at the perfect level for every individual photographer - a real feat. And what a supportive, encouraging team! Also - there was time to be on your own, do your own thing and explore up to (and even beyond) your comfort level (good for us introverts).
-- Sandra Herber


Trina - you said yesterday you asked what it took for the pregnant woman at your studio to be present for the photoshoot; For me - what did it take fro me to be here? 26 years since my first camera, always loving photography - always feeling lost in a good way, or captured/captivated in the taking of or look at photos; doing “so-so” in the only course in photography in University - then recently picking this trip over a journey to see aging relatives in Ireland, & seriously focussed recuperating from a recent illness. Thank you for accepting me & allowing me to grow & refocus & enhance my journey.
-- Anonymous


I would rate this experience in the 90th percentile.
-- Ken Roberts


Highlight as singular is almost impossible - Photographing kids and grand-arentss in family units in the village was tops. Cultural and spiritual discussions were right up there as well. Overall the workshop provided a unique experience in the creativity and art of photography along with technical details. The stress on culture and art and the opportunities to experience the people, the music and dance and the joy of life in a supportive environment were amazing.
-- Jim Wilton


A huge bouquet to all of you who have had the courage and creativity to make this workshop a reality for us... Will draw on these very special memories for years to come. Muco Gracias!
-- Burna Wilton


Terrific group of Participants. Great job organizing! We all realize the huge amount of work and co-ordination it took (especially in Cuba).
-- Anonymous


Highlight: The people. Being greeted like a long lost relative or best friend from childhood.
-- Anonymous

Photo Cuba 2009 Video!

Hey, Check it out! We've got a video of some awesome student photos from Photo Cuba 2009! See what you can do? You'll want to join us on the next photography workshop in Cuba once you see this!

Okay, the edge of the video is invisible here in the blog, so click on the link here to see it's full glory directly in YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPU3IUiZvEE



Photo Cuba! is an exciting travel photography workshop. Learn photography in an exotic and inviting place. All you really need is a sense of adventure, the willingness to try and the desire to have fun with your camera in a new place! You will learn about travel photography, storytelling with your camera, composition, design, capturing gestures, portraiture and lighting. Most of all this workshop is about connecting with people and immersing yourself with camera in a new culture.

Check out our official site at www.PhotoCubaWorkshop.com.

Photo Cuba 2009 Pictures Delivered!

Sandra Herber, one of our lovely wonderful Photo Cuba 2009 workshop students, returned to Cuba recently for a second trip and graciously delivered prints of all the photos of the people of Chivirico (Santiago de Cuba) that were taken by the students this February. Here is her photo report:

Hi everyone,

Just thought I'd drop you all a quick note to say what a great time I had in Cuba last week. Everyone was thrilled to receive your photos - it was really lovely to see. I took all the photos to the gallery and within a few hours people had come to pick up their own photos and those of people they knew and 90% of them were gone! When I left there were only a few that hadn't been claimed and German thought they belonged to people from other towns who had come into Chivirico to deal with the local government. He believed they would be back and someone would tell them to come into the gallery to pick up their photos. Cheisser took me around for an afternoon delivering photos to people that he knew. As well, I took photos back to people I knew and I've attached a few snapshots of people receiving their photos. Suffice it to say that it was a real treat for me to take all your pictures back and they were unanimously well-received.

As you'll see in the background to one of the photos, the exhibition had arrived by the time I left (and German was arranging it). I was not able to see it up, but it should be up by now. German was very happy with the photographs.

Hope you're all well,

Sandra

Ruth Howard: 3-time Photo Cuba Participant!

Making photos on the southwest coast of Cuba, is a dream come true. From both a photographic and a personal point of view, Chivirico is unlike any other place in the world. It is enticing and seductive. Add Trina’s excellent touch as a teacher of photography and traveling companion, and you truly do have magic.

The openness of the local people is so inviting, even when they have their backs turned to us, as in “Old Sole” [above]; in this picture, it doesn’t matter that we are unsure whether the subject is male or female. Actually, for me, it’s the not knowing that helps make this photo, because the subject and its story have universal application.

The citizens of Chivirico are totally comfortable with having their photos taken. Their gestures and their body language say snap me… The life they lead is so different from ours, because of both the stunning geography and the intricacies of the island’s politics, yet these people are our extended family.

The warmth and acceptance is pure joy for us, and despite our having visited Chivirico six times in just over two years, we continue to find the village a wonderful place to keep building on our creative forces. The progression in the style of our own work over the past two years is obvious. Trina always spurs us on to new and different ways of looking at our subject matter, and our creativity has become so much more fluid and emotional.

Just when I think that I have squeezed out everything that I can, photographically, from this little corner of the world, somehow I am revitalized and inspired again. This past February I fell in love with shooting into the sun, a total departure for me. I am enjoying the challenge of the direction in which my work is moving.

Typically, I have been shooting thousands of photos when we’re visiting Chivirico and Santiago de Cuba. I don’t think I’ll be doing that anymore: rather, I shall be concentrating on expressing meaning in a more abstract and focused style.



It is pretty well guaranteed that nowhere else in the world will you find people so amenable to being photographed as they go about their daily business. Each time we’re in Cuba we’ve learned something new about ourselves and making pictures in a new way, which we can apply to all our photography.

Chao
Ruth xo

Thanks to Ruth Howard for sharing her images and thoughts! You can find more photos by Ruth and her equally talented partner Alan Madras at their website, http://www.connaughtplacestudio.ca/

Go to www.photoworkshopincuba.com to check out more great photography from the Photo Cuba workshop, and details about the location... and how you can join us on the next one!

Cheers!
Scott Mooney
Trina Koster Photography

Sue Rietschin: PhotoCuba Workshop Student!

Sue joined us for PhotoCuba 2008 and made some wonderful pictures! Here's the comment Sue gave me to put with her photos here:

"The experience of having such a wide range of things to photograph is wonderful. People, animals, architecture, landscape, flowers...everything one could want is in Cuba. Trina's help in learning what makes a good photo is invaluable and the input from the Cubans involved added so much to the learning. I have so many photos taken there that I really like...it is hard to select a few!"








For more info on joining us for the next PhotoCuba! check out our official website at www.photocubaworkshop.com.

Cheers!
Scott Mooney
(Husband of Trina and VP of gettin' stuff done on the computer!)

Join us in Cuba this February!

Looking for an experience of a lifetime? We teach a photography workshop in Cuba that is unanimously loved and cherished by the people who join us for it. We've taught three photography workshops in Cuba in the last three consecutive Februarys, and a fourth one is scheduled for this coming February (February 1st- 8th, 2009). Even if you've already taken other photo workshops in Cuba (and there are several out there) I promise you this one will be very different because this one is taught by a team of teachers, some Cuban, some Canadian, and you get set up with English speaking guides, and are given access to warm inviting Cuban families who love to be photographed!

The leader of this adventure is Trina Koster, a commercial and art photographer living in Guelph Ontario. Trina has been running her own little workshop center there for over a decade and and enjoys a loyal following of students. Her forte is creating a culture of sharing and growing in the group that's fun, playful, and profoundly insightful. Please join us on our next adventurous photo workshop in Cuba and connect with creativity in an amazingly welcoming place. You are going to love it!

For details, check out our official site at www.photocubaworkshop.com.

To your creative evolution!
Scott Mooney

www.photocubaworkshop.com is Live!

If you are interested in partaking in a photography workshop in Cuba then check out our new site which is all about this February 2009 adventure!

This February 1st- 8th, 2009 we'll be running our 4th photo workshop in Cuba. Our mission is;

• A fun creative learning environment
• Inspiration
• Travel with purpose.
• Connect with culture with your camera.
• Expand your photography skills with Trina Koster and German Portuondo.

Go to http://photocubaworkshop.com/ to learn about our 2009 February group adventure in Chivirco, Cuba (a small village outside of the cultural hotspot Santiago de Cuba). This site will also allow you to check out galleries of great student and instructors' photos from the past workshops, learn about the instructors and the locations, and read student's testimonials.

Here's a sneak peek at some screen captures.



Her's what the Lonely Planet Cuba guide says about the city of Santiago De Cuba:

"Nowhere else in Cuba will you find such a colorful combination of people, or such a resoundingsense of historical destiny. Diego Velazquez made the city his second capital, Fidel Castro used it to launchhis embrionic revolution, Don Facundo Bacardi based his first ever rum factory here and just about every Cuban music genre from salsa to son first emanated from somewhere in these dusty, rhythmic and undeniably sensuous streets."

So check out the site and see what you could be doing in warm sunny vibrant Cuba this February! www.photocubaworkshop.com.

PhotoCuba! 2008 Was Sooo Good!

We had a really fun time with the PhotoCuba workshop again this year. 16 participants joined us for the photo workshop plus a few other spouses and friends came as travel companions. Once again the cultural exchange has been rich and exciting. (I'm working on getting images together from the students to share with you soon.) Everyone had a great time and made some fantastic photos, on May 9th we will be slide show of the student's work at the PhotoCuba '08 group exhibit.

Our fearless leaders! This is our team of Teachers. From left to right: Laura Taylor has been involved with our studio here in Guelph for about a decade. She's been a student, a teacher, and one of our team of wedding photographers. German (second from left) is a surrealist painter and the director of the local art gallery. He's also a professor of fine art. He did several talks about Cuban art, principals of art in general, as well as sharing his unique perspective on composition and concept during student critiques. The next guy there is Arisdan, our technical assistant, translator for German, and organizer of the Cuban side of the exchange. And then there's Trina, head teacher, organizer, visionary and CEO of the PhotoCuba! Workshop.

As a part of the workshop experience we take the participants into Santiago de Cuba for a photo excursion. This year, we visited Centro Provincal de las Artes Plasticas, a public art gallery, where the work from our PhotoCuba! workshops from 2006 and 2007 was hanging! What an honour! German (pronounced “Her-man” with a rolled ‘r’), our Cuban art teacher arranged it. We had no idea just how much the local art community valued the project.

The following week, Trina, German, Arisdan (our Cuban co-ordinator, translator, and technical assistant) and myself returned back to this gallery for Trina to give an artist's talk about her own personal work. She showed a slideshow of her “Searching for Sensuality” photo project, which includes her “Special Waters” images. During the Q&A one of the Cuban artist asked Trina if she would teach a workshop for Cubans. We are now in the planning stages of trying to make that happen. However, our classic PhotoCuba! 2009 for the Canadian and international students is a go for February 3-10th.

The Gallery; Centro Provincal de las Artes Plasticas

Trina's Talk

German, two artists involved in curating the gallery show, Trina and Arisdan.

In the interest of keeping this workshop a true exchange the students bring donations of clothing and art supplies for the community. This year there was a large duffel bag full of art supplies for the grade schools in and around Chiverico.

Some of the Donated Art Supplies

Trina and Arisdan did a class talk for a grade two class at a local school to explain how photography is an art form and why it's so wonderful to photograph in their community.

This guy is the School Principal...

... And this, of course, is the class.

We received some beautiful drawings from the kids at the school expressing their gratitude for the art supplies that was brought to their school. So, thanks again to all of you who generously packed their bags with donations.

All in all this has been another very positive cultural experience for us and we're really looking forward to returning back next year. We hope you can join us! PhotoCuba! 2009 is scheduled for Feb 3rd-10th and people are already asking to be in it!

We are accepting deposits to hold your place so if you’re interested please let us know. We will only be accepting a maximum of 20 students into the class itself… but of course you are welcome to bring travel buddies. The hotel has only has 32 rooms and is often filled with regulars, so it is a good idea to book in advance.

Check out the website for details (www.photoworkshopsinguelph.com). Call us at 519-767-2948, or click here to email us about holding your place in the workshop.

Cheers!
Scott Mooney

Another Cuba Photo Show!

Note: We now have a Website dedicated to our PhotoCuba workshop! Go to http://photocubaworkshop.com/ to check out galleries of student and instructors' photos from the workshop, learn about the instructors and the locations, and read student's testimonials.

Alan Madras and Ruth Howard attended our first PhotoCuba! workshop. They fell in love with Cuba. They returned again and again (including attending our second PhotoCuba! workshop the following year) building relationships there and making beautiful photographs. Now they're having an exhibition all about it. It runs October 5 to 25 at Artistic Grounds, 167 Bathurst Street, Toronto. For more info on this photographic couple, their website is www.ConnaughtPlaceStudio.ca.

Here are some of those beautiful photos for you to see!





Check out our official site at www.photocubaworkshop.com!

PhotoCuba! 2007 Overview

To give everyone an idea of what our students were up to in our class, this is an overview of the trip. Here you'll see one photo each of every student photographer who participated! Take a look and feel free to leave positive comments for the photographers. Everyone appreciates acknowledgement!

Photographer : Sue Rietschin, Day 3

Photographer : Sharon Mullin, Day 3

Photographer : Ruth Howard, Day 3

Photographer : Doreen Kirkland, Day 3

Photographer : Bobbi Porter, Day 3

Photographer : Bob Davis, Day 3

Photographer : Barbara Booth, Day 3

Photographer : Amanda Mullin, Day 3

Photographer : Irene Yong, Day 2

Photographer : BobLiptrap, Day 2

Photographer : Alan Madras, Day 2

Photographer : Sara Williams, Day 1

Photographer : Emma Smallbone, Day 1

Photographer : Bogna Dembek, Day 1

We'll be running PhotoCuba again next year! Feel free to contact us for imformation! Also; Don't forget to check out the PhotoCuba Show! The Opening Reception is on Friday, April 20th; And the show is running from April 15th - June 9th. Check it out!

Oxanna Adams, PhotoCuba! Student

Oxanna has joined us for many courses at TKP and is also a regular renter of the darkroom. It was so cool to have her with us in Cuba. It's really neat traveling with people you know, like bringing a little piece of home with you. Oxanna is a very active and passionate protector of our community. I wonder what she thought of the community dynamics in our favorite little Cuban town?

Back in March she'd asked me to announce a Guelph Civic League event along with her photos but I didn't get my act together fast enough so it's long past. But here's the part of her message that's still relevant:

"The Guelph Civic League is currently my favorite organization. For more details see www.guelphcivicleague.ca. I highly recommend signing up for their on-line newsletter. Find out what is going on municipally in Guelph, become informed, and most importantly get out and vote in our next municipal election this coming November!

If you haven't figured it out yet, helping to make Guelph a great place to live, is one of my major passtimes."
--- Oxanna Adams

I think you can see her love of community building in these portraits of local Cubans pitching in to rebuild houses destroyed by the hurricanes in the autumn of 2005.

Bob Liptrap: PhotoCuba! Student

Bob is not only one of our most avid students, he's also one of our instructors. Bob Teaches some of our landscape Photography workshops. He's also a retired Veterinary Doctor and proffessor with a soft spot for elephants. Bob's sent me comments for each of his photos but something happened in the formatting of the email and I can't tell which photos go with which comments, so hopefully I guess correctly here.
Taken on day 1 with Pat's digital point-n-shoot after an afternoon of some frustration.

Break time on day 2. Serendipity - its the calmness that appeals to me.

Taken on day 3. Trina pointed out the richness of colour and to be ever ready- so I took it.

Done on day 2. A number of adults and children on street with 4 photographers "shooting" in all directions.

Santiago-de-Cuba. From an era when decoration was still important.

Square in Santiago-de-Cuba. Is the echo of blue in the window deliberate?

There is something symbolic about the posture - why are we drawn to the ocean?

PhotoCuba! Student Ruth Howard

Ruth is an avid travel photographer who had recently returned from a long trip through Asia. She was delighted to discover that on her first day in Cuba she made some of her best pictures ever! Wow! ... and that was before we even started teaching! Must have been a combo of the open Cuban vibe and the excited group of photographers' vibe! ... plus, of course, Ruth's own evolution as an artist.

Ruth is part of a collaborative Photo team with her husband, Alan Madras. (I know they're married because we shot their wedding!) They have a website showcasing their Travel Photography at http://www.connaughtplacestudio.ca/. You can also read about their upcoming exhibition there!




PhotoCuba! 2007 still has a few spots in it as of this writing. This means it could be you taking photos like these there this February! Remember what it's like here in Canada in February? Pretty cold, eh? Not so in Chiverico, Cuba! Warm, dry, and beautiful swimming in the ocean. Plan ahead and get in on it now so you can take a break from that! Check out the details on our website at http://trinakoster.com/workshops/schedule.cfm?eventID=200. You'll definitely be thanking yourself for a relaxing personal creative growth experience this winter!

PhotoCuba! Student Niels Hansen

Niels has been involved with our studio for years. He is an ongoing student, he's evolved to also be our framer, and he's our Rent-a-Dad when we need something repaired around the studio that we don't know how to do ourselves. Niels was deeply moved by the Cuban situation, and truly connected with some Cuban people through his role as a photographer. Normally Niels is a landscape photographer, and as you can see this course has helped him to unleash his talent for portraiture and reportage.

PhotoCuba! Student Eldis Oliva Cordero

One of our students couldn't make it to PhotoCuba! 2006 at the last minute and asked Trina to donate her spot to a Cuban. Eldis was that Cuban. Unfortunately I don't have Eldis' last name so if any of you PhotoCuba! 2006 Grads knows it, let me know so I can credit him properly. Eldis was lent a digital camera for the course and he made a lot of really beautiful images. Here they are.

PhotoCuba! Cuban Photo Show

Our delivery angels arrived from their mission to bring our student's photos to Cuba for an art show! German, the gallery director, asked us to create a show to bring there. Alan and Ruth (two of our PhotoCuba students... {and client's too... we shot their wedding a few years ago}) were kind enough to bring the matted prints with them on their recent return the Cuban town of Chiverico, the wonderful little town where we held the PhotoCuba! workshop. This is their account...

Hi, Guys -

I'm sure you're eager to hear how your/our opening went at the gallery in Chivirico, so here goes... We got through customs with no problem, despite our angst re the valuable cargo we were carrying. Perhaps it was because we entered via VIP that everything went so smoothly?

Left to right: Arisdán, Ruth, Juan Carlos, Alan, and Carlos, most of the core team for the show.

Anyway, Sunday night we met up with the usual suspects - Carlos, Arisdan, Juan Carlos - and after hugs and some more hugs, we arranged to set up the show the next day. With everyone's assistance, including that of Norbay (I'm not at all sure of the spelling), the photos were hung relatively quickly. After much deliberation on the part of German (whom we did not see after that, as he had to go to a conference in Santiago) and Norbay, the photos were hung according to the age of the subjects. It did make a statement. It was interesting to watch the two artists moving the display around till they were satisfied with the placements.

While the work was going on, people were wandering in and out, so the show had an informal following right from the beginning. Grandmas were dragged in by the little boys. Mothers came in, babes in arms. The old. The young. They all dropped by. Pointing, smiling, laughing. It was a real high for everyone! Oh, I forgot to mention the delighted reactions of our immediate group when they first opened the package of our photos.

The next couple of days were the lead up to The Opening. Carlos tacked up around the village posters that Scott had sent along with us. We stuck one on the window of the bar at the hotel. Sierra Mar photocopied and hung posters in their three restaurants. The local journalist gave us some publicity, though we're not exactly sure in what capacity. Carlos alluded to different things he was arranging (a band? a dj with recorded music? rum?). Along the length of the porch, some women, whom we think were from the library, strung paper flags and paper lanterns and chains that they'd made from newspaper. This was to be An Event!

Thursday at 8, it all came together. The folklorica band (The Aguilleras) inside, and the dj with his speakers and turntable on the porch (do they still call it a turntable?). A woman in-the-know took hold of the mike and reminded the townspeople of the importance of the occasion and encouraged people to come on in. And they did. We were told by several people that there had never been so many people in the gallery before. Norbay was thrilled and said he hoped that this would bring in more people when they had there own exhibits in the future. The band played on, Norbay made a wonderful speech, which we understood enough to tell you that he was extolling the virtues of photography as an art (Alan photoed the speech - copies on request) and that he was warmly thanking the Canadian photographers for their contributions.

Speaking of contributions, on behalf of the group, we donated to the gallery the equipment for hanging stuff: metal tape measure, fishing line, nails, tape, scissors, hammer and other stuff. (Of all the gifts that we left behind, I think that the little hammer that German had asked us to bring was the biggest hit; his smile lit up the gallery.) We also supplied the rum for The Opening, but I doubt there’s any left for next time. Not to worry, there seems to be an almost limitless supply on Cayo Damas, the little island, and it’s only a paddle away. There was a spoken word performance and lots and lots of acclaim and applause for everyone (including all of you) and everything!!!


The rum flowed. Glasses were clinked in congratulations. And the crowd overflowed onto the porch. A tango, or two, was danced spontaneously - this is Cuba, after all.

So, the matting around your pictures is slightly smudged. Fondling does that.

A tourist asked if your photos were for sale. We said "No." "Pity" was the response. But, hey, what a compliment!

Was the evening a success? You bet! Poor Norbay was so tired and so eager to close up for the night so he could go home to his family, but he let the last stragglers have a last look, and he let us drag the evening on a little longer before we finally let him lock the doors and call it a night.

When I went by the next day, he was there. He was still smiling.

The subjects of our photos and their families (that means pretty well everyone in town, I guess) have thoroughly enjoyed their fifteen minutes of fame. Now it seems that everyone wants a piece of the action and everyone wants their photo taken. (Several times over.) With hopes of hanging in the gallery next time 'round. I think we'll have to ask Carlos to coach them not to ruin the Kodak (there's an anachronism for you) moment by excitedly informing our subjects that the camera is trained on them. Plays havoc with what would've been the perfect shot.


In closing, everyone is fine. Arisdan and his wife seem to be on the mend and are "starting over". By the way, his English is improving in leaps and bounds (Carlos has been tutoring him). Juan Carlos is as sweet and lovely as ever and has just been granted programming papers. Eldys is working on fulfilling his dreams re photography; he wants to document the before and after changes that are coming to town. The gas station has been painted and has new modern pumps (though the cash register wasn't working, so the station was temporarily inoperable.) The lady in the next village - the woman who'd had the thyroid op - has recovered and is full of smiles. Dr. Leo at the mud baths is scheduled to go on a long-term mission to Venezuela, possibly leaving before February. He's sad that he's going to have to leave his wife and baby for eleven months at a time, with a month's leave between missions for the first two years. He's fretting that the turbine for his water pump at home will cost five months salary to replace. He'd like a little camera. He's philosophical. He's fine. And man, oh man, does he give an extraordinary massage.

Gladys's baby is due in about two months. She's finding it increasingly difficult to walk up and down the mountain road - wow, it's so hot there and not even summer yet - those with cars, including tourists, help her as much as possible. She'll be working one more month and hopes to be back at work in October/November, in time for the next tourist season. Yoli, Dora, Sandra, Glenis and the rest of the gang are well and as lovely and loving as ever. Some concern over jobs and income over the slow summer season. The main concern seems to be that they'll have to live on fish till the fall. They and rest of the staff bent over backwards for us.

Hmmmm. What else? It was different without you guys there. Sure, we had fun, but it just wasn't the same. Thanks for letting us take care of things on your behalf. For those of you going back in February, we know that you're going to enjoy returning as part of the Chivirico family. As for the first-timers, for sure they're in for a treat.

In answer to your question, yes, we took zillions of photos to document this pivotal event in all our lives. We're working on narrowing the pics down to our Best Ofs. When Scott and Trina get back from their fact-finding mission in Italy we'll arrange to let you have a look at the new photos. Maybe at Shirley's party in May?

Oh, we delivered the photos that some of you sent along with us. Squeals of delight from everyone, along with requests that we take even more pictures. Their having to wait till February for the next delivery seems of little consequence to the people. Time kind of stands still in Chivirico.

So much more to tell, but all for now,
Love,
Chao-ciao
Alan and Ruth

Shirley Hunt

Shirley had the unfortunate combination of being chatty and knowing how to speak Spanish. The first day she found that conversing was distracting her subjects from the photographic experience. However, next day she didn't let on how much she could speak and found it way easier to get those candid moments.

Cuba is a beautifully natural place. You don't see garbage around, not even leaves and sticks last long on the ground in the park. I asked Shirley if there was anything she'd like to say to the world with this post. Appropriately, this is what she asked me to pass on:

Just stumbled upon a great pamphlet reminding me why I shouldn't buy bottle water, and I think it fits nicely into the Cuban experience. One of the things that impressed me a lot about Cuba was how inventive they were, resuing pop bottles for beer cups, washing out plastic bags for re-use, fixing everything rather than throwing it away. So much we can learn from that!
So here's my cause or my beef;

Bottled water companies are pumping water out of our groundwater streams aquifers, or sometimes directly from our taps, and then selling it back to us for exhorbitant prices. After a very short life, most water bottles end up in the landfill sites, and the toxins from the plastic leaches into the soil, threatening the water table. Most bottles are not recycled, and most companies will not pay the added expense of using recycled plastic.

Student: Darlene Lamb

Darlene, a grandmother, described the PhotoCuba! trip as a highlight of her life. Wow! Her focus for the workshop was "sensuality." People are drawn to her like a magnet because of her loving and sensitive positive energy. The Cubans love her as much as we do, and it shows in the intimacy of her pictures.

PhotoCuba! Student Gerry Lodder

Gerry had so much fun on this trip that the locals nicknamed him "Loco." We've been teasing him about that ever since. Gerry's a real estate investor with a great eye for geometrical composition. If you're curious about his investing plan you can check it out at http://www.diversifiedbusinessgroup.com/ . Tell him The TKP blog sent you;)

PhotoCuba! 2006

Click Pic for larger view. Hola!
Okay, I finally got my act together to post this collage of portraits I made from the Photo Cuba workshop. If you happen to be one of these characters that means you participated in the workshop... Yay! Wasn't that fun? If you're not pictured in the above collage you still have a chance to get in the workshop for next year! Yay again! There are still a few spots left. The workshop runs February 4-11 of 2007. I know it seems like a long way away but that's what's so great, because you have time to book it off and put some money aside! Click this link for more information and registration; http://www.trinakoster.com/workshops/schedule.cfm?eventID=200.
Cool things about Cuba... great music, great dancing, great dark rum, wonderful open welcoming people, warm weather, beautiful snorkeling, and goats... lots of goats.

Photo Cuba Workshop Feb 1-8th,2009

Check out www.photocubaworkshop.com for all the details! This workshop is a blast!