Stu Jenks' Fezziwig Press

"A Chair in the Wilderness" is coming...

Above image: "Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, After The Flood, Sonoran Desert National Monument, Arizona" (c) Stu Jenks 2018

A Chair in the Wilderness, my 15th book, is coming. Like my previous tomes, there will be semi-iconic photographs of rocking chairs and such, but unlike my other books, this one will be purposefully funny. And political. And spiritual. And a little sad. But witty and funny is what we are going for, like a dark chuckle in the night from a wounded man while the civilized world burns. Fun stuff. Trump stuff. Good times.

The dedication for ACITW is probably going to be a quote from my good friend Karen Hardy from the Northern Neck of Virginia. We were talking on the phone a while back, mostly about how her mother Victoria was doing, when, as I recall, I talked about how I perhaps cared too much regarding what other people think of me, and that I'm more than a little sensitive to art criticism from strangers on the internet.

Then Karen spoke this chestnut:

 

"They talked about Jesus Christ, Stu. They are going to talk about you and me, too."

 

Look for A Chair in the Wilderness before Christmas, wherever you buy your books.

Love you guys,

Stu.

(P.S. below are some images from the past couple of months and some older ones. If you have an questions, don't hesitate to call. Or email. Or tweet. Or message me. Or heaven forbid, talk to me, face to face, like they used to do back In Olden Days. Don't lose hope, y'all. Resist.)

The Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair Installation at Tohono Chul Park

As part of the Dia De Los Muertos show at Tohono Chul Park in Tucson, The Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair Installation is up and ready to go. The opening is Thursday, August 24 at 5:30 p.m.. The show runs until November 8th. Thanks so much to James and Karen for allowing me to be part of this show.

And this post goes out to all those folk who live outside of Southern Arizona, so you all can see and enjoy the piece too. To read the artist's statement for the piece, just click on this link.

Again, thank you everyone for your financial and emotional support this summer. It's been a tough one for me and for many. You all have helped more than you know.

The Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair Installation (2012-2017)

The Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair Installation (2102-2017) by Stu Jenks.

This installation will be part of the upcoming Dia de los Muertos show at Tohono Chul Park, in Tucson, Arizona from August 24th, until early November. I am thrilled to bring this installation to the world for the very first time at Tohono Chul. Many thanks to James Schaub and Karen Hayes for making it all possible.

 

        My sister Pamela Jenks has been dead six years now. Died of breast cancer at age 62. I miss her. Not all the time, but from time to time. I certainly don’t miss the selfish, mean, loud drunk she was most of her adult life, but I surely miss the considerate, kind, loving woman she became the last six months before she died. Thanks, Pamela, for being the sister I always wanted to have, those last few weeks.
        From soon after Pamela’s death in 2011 to the present, I’ve been taking my sister’s toddler rocking chair hither and yon. Due to her alcoholism and her general fear of the big bad world, Pamela Jenks was a virtual shut-in the last couple of decades of her life, living in my family’s falling-down old home place in Raleigh, North Carolina. I first took Pamela’s Baby Rocking Chair out and about, when I drove it and me to my sister’s grave in rural Virginia in 2012. Since then, with only a few breaks, I’ve photographed the PBRC all over the place, from the streets of New York City, to the hills of San Francisco, from the wilds of Sonora, Mexico to the snows of Utah, from the Atlantic Ocean in South Carolina to Swami’s Beach in Encinitas, California. I’ve taken Pamela’s chair to where she was too afraid to go.
        Then last winter, something unexpected happened. My sister’s chair wasn’t so much about her anymore. It became my chair. It represented me as well as my sister, about my journey through life, not so much about my memories of her and of my deceased mother and father. The chair is me, and judging from all the patrons over the years who have bought prints of the PBRC, the chair has become you as well.
        This summer has been financially and emotionally tough for me. Hell, it’s tough all over, but creating this installation has put a number of things in their proper perspective.
        1) Pamela’s dead. I am not.
        2) I’m still making stuff, recording music, typing words. Pamela’s ain’t doing no cross stitch no mo.
        And 3) I have friends and family that I love very much and they care for me too. They can talk to me and hold me and hug me and I can do the same back. Pamela, however, is in the grave, unable to humanly love and touch me, and she can’t be touched or hugged back or listened to.
        But maybe that’s her over there, skipping through the trees, a teenager having her whole life ahead of her, not seeing the future alcoholism, the desperate loneliness, the checkered job history, and the resentful bitterness that made a cold bed for her to lie in every night.
        Maybe her light-filled spirit is right here, right now, right over there, free and happy.
        What did you just say Pamela?
        “I’m fucking proud of you, bro,” says the angel ghost off my left shoulder. “I fucking love ya.”
        “Thanks, Pamela,” I whisper to myself. “I love you too.”

 

 

        To read the Pamela’s Baby Rocking Chair book, you can buy the e-book on Amazon and on other sites, or listen to or buy the audio book on iTunes, or Spotify, or if you want to buy the real live paperback book book, contact me at www.stujenks.org. The second Pamela’s Baby Rocking Chair book, A Chair In The Wilderness, will be released sometime in 2018.
        Have a blessed day, y’all.

 

From the road, south, east, and west...

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Lake Brandt, Greensboro, North Carolina." (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"The Magician's Assistant and The Chair, Lake Brandt, Greensboro, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[One of the best images from my trip south I think, because you can make up your own story about this woman and this chair. Mystery and magic are good things in art and in life.]

 

"The Death of Money, (For John B. McLemore), Green Pond Presbyterian Church, Alabama" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[John B. was largely unbanked, and had much hidden gold or so folks thought. I couldn't find his small headstone, but I think John would have found this image amusing, given his views on God, the financial markets, and the world at large. Rest in peace, John B.]

 

 

"Noah and Effie Carroll's Headstone, Rutherwood, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[I worked as a magician at Tweetsie Railroad, near Boone, in 1981. I lived in a mice-infested house just up the hill from Noah and Effie's graves. My old house is still there, looking about the same. Still kinda shitty.]

 

 

"Nannie's Mirror at Zelma Carroll's Grave, Rutherwood, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Nannie's Mirror, The Cragway Trail, Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[Note to those wanting to be professional landscape photographers: Sit in one spot and wait for the light to come to you, and take tons of images. I took around 30 images to get the desired depth of field and to get those green pine needles in the mirror in proper focus. It just takes time, like all good things.]

 

"Atop Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Grandfather Mountain Infrared, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"One of Rodin's Burghers In The Rain, Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, D.C." (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"I Have A Dream, Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C." (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[A rare moment at the Lincoln Memorial, when there wasn't a ton of people. Perhaps it was because it was late in the day and raining. One of my favorite spots in the District. Fun fact: My mother saw them building the Memorial when she was a child, living just across the river in Alexandria.]

 

 

"Purple Flowers, Mary's Grave, St. Mary's Whitechapel, Lancaster County, Virginia" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[I bought these silk flowers at a Walmart in Oklahoma expressly for my mother's grave. My mother liked the color purple for it was the color of royalty. Been thinking many kind thoughts about my deceased, very complex mother. She was mostly a pain in the neck, don't you know, but she taught me some wonderful things when I was a kid, and frankly, she, along with her mother Nannie, were the only family members who gave a damn about Little Stu. Fun fact: Mary gave me $30,000 in 2008, before she got sick, so I could quit my day job and be a photographer and a writer full time. It was 10% of her worth at the time. That was very generous. The money is gone now but it gave me a very good kick start. Rest in peace, Mary. The Nannie's Mirror series is now as much about you as it is about your mother.]

 

 

"A Blue Heron on the Eno River, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair in a forest near the Eno River, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

 

"The OK God Let's Do It Bench, St. Mary's Whitechapel Episcopal Church, Lancaster, Virginia" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[Was this image photoshopped? You bet your sweet bippie it was.]

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, The Eno River, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Why Not, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Burnt-Down Liquor Store, Shit-Town, Alabama" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Glen Alpine, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Big Witch Tunnel, The Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Nannie's Mirror (with dumpster and baby doll leg), Chattanooga, Tennessee" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pink Dogwoods Going To Sleep At Sunset, Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, The Haw River, North Carolina" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Washita River, Washita Massacre Historic Site, Cheyenne, Oklahoma" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Black Kettle's Camp, Washita Massacre Historic Site, Cheyenne, Oklahoma" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[An incredibly tragic thing happened here. Google it and read all about it. Ghosts wander these plains.]

 

"Cobwebs on John B.'s Chair, Woodstock (S-Town), Alabama" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

[I trespassed and spent all of ten minutes at John's house. The property is now owned by the man who owns K3 Lumber. K3. Get it? A very strong unwelcoming vibe was all around me, both at the house and all throughout the town. I'm guessing they has all heard the S-Town podcast by now. The property felt especially haunted and I don't use that word lightly. Everything is gone from John's house and his clock workshop. I didn't even go searching for the hedge maze, I was that spooked. I said a prayer for John, took photos of a lonely wooden chair on the porch and the three old chimneys and made my exit. As I drove away, I blew a kiss at the South Forty Trailer Park sign and made my way to the Cahaba River. Rest in peace, John B. and much love to all the folks in Shit Town, the good, the bad and the in-between.]

"The House With Three Chimneys, John B. McLemore's House, Woodstock (S-Town), Alabama" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

"Pamela's Baby Rocking Chair, Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge, Alabama" (c) 2017 Stu Jenks.

 

The Field Of Empty Chairs

"The Field Of Empty Chairs, at dusk, Oklahoma City National Memorial, Oklahoma" (c) 2014 Stu Jenks.

All 8 1/2" x 11" A/P archival pigment prints by Stu Jenks for $25, shipping, handling and taxes included...

Image: "Queen Esther Baptist Church, Lancaster, Virginia" (c) 2011 Stu Jenks (Just down River Road from Victoria's house. Love that luscious red carpet. And for you nocturnals out there, it was handheld. Rare for me.)

In this time of making photos on iPhones and Macbook Pros and only looking on screens, I forget I'm a old-school guy. I make a 8 1/2 x 11 work print on archival paper of EVERY image I make. EVERY one. It's the only way, for me, to accurately check for color shift, density, composition, etc. I really like my iPad screen but it's no way to make a good print.

And I have hundreds, if not thousands, of work prints artist proofs at my studio.

If you see an image of mine on The StuBlog or on my old website or on the Fezziwig Press Store or in any of my books, there's a beautiful small print in a box somewhere, perhaps with your name on it. And since I'm organized, I can find it.

Many of you can't afford my larger prints. I understand. I don't have an extra 50 or 100 lying around either. But I do have an extra $20 for stuff I really like.

So if you see an image of mine on any of my sites or in any of my books and you want it, it's yours for $25, shipping, handling and tax included. (I believe in paying taxes, sales and otherwise.)

Just email me at my facebook page or through the StuBlog or at [email protected], and tell me what print you would like or just pull the jpeg and send that to me.

I was just watching the Tarhells lose today in basketball, working on images at my computer when I thought, 'I bet people don't realize I have boxes of work prints here.'

You all do now.

Love and light,

Stu

p.s. Ignore the catagories belows. The computer went wacky. Another reason why I prefer a print in the hand as opposed to an image in The Cloud.

Now available, on the Apple IPad: The Transpersonal Papers (1861-2010) and Bozo In Love

Been a long time coming for The Transpersonal Papers (1861-2010).

Three editors, two proofreaders, two designers, four printers, and hours, days, weeks, months, years, lifetimes, (I know I'm overstating), of writing, traveling, shooting, editing, remembering, hiking, and more writing, shooting, and editing, but I'm not complaining. No, no, no.

And apologies for not having the dough right now, to print The Transpersonal Papers as a coffee-table book as I had originally planned. ($10,000, it would have cost. Maybe someday.) But you now can buy it, for $14.95, as an Ebook on the Apple IPad, and I expect it to be available within a couple days on the Nook and the Kindle as well.

I just looked at it on my new IPad. The photos, text and design look grand.

And as an extra surprise, Bozo In Love is now up on IBooks too, ($9.95), as well as the rest of my catalog: Flame Spirals, Hoop Dancing, and Dementia Blues, on IBooks, Nook and Kindle.

Just in time for Christmas.

And don't worry. All but The Transpersonal Papers can still be bought as a book book through Fezziwig Press. I have plenty. Just go to www.fezziwigpressonline.com, for the hardbounds and paperbacks, but go to ITunes, today, (and Kindle and Nook, soon) for the ebooks.

Heavy sigh from my third story apartment balcony. I look out onto the Tucson city lights in the valley below. Cold, dry air embraces me. I inhale deeply. Exhale.

A very good night in the desert.

Think I'll make a cup of coffee with egg nog and play some Angry Birds on my new IPad.

Time to celebrate.

 

"Oklahoma Windmills"

"Oklahoma Windmills, West of OK City" (c) 2008 Stu Jenks