Minorcan, Basement Arena Rock from Asheville, North Carolina

I recently scanned old film negatives that are over 25+ years old, from when I started to learn photography in 1997. I was in high school at the time, but was attending the photography class at a local college. I remember taking these pictures as part of an early assignment. These negatives were never printed, because at the time I thought I had captured more interesting images. Time has passed and the significance of these photos have morphed in meaning.

Black and white photo. In the foreground, flowers are in a vase that has been dug into the sand. In the background, the ocean waves are breaking. Not big waves, but the sea is rough. — Black and white photo taken by Minorcan, circa 1997/1998

Especially, this first picture of the flowers in a vase stuck in the sand…My mom had these flowers inside the house, probably on the dining room table. I’m not certain if the flowers were for a special occasion, or there because she liked them. I grabbed the vase, walked out to the beach, stuck the vase in the sand, snapped the photo. Brought the flowers back inside and put them back on the table.

When I first developed the roll, I recall looking over this negative and thought the photo was too cheesy….

On February 8th, 2024, my mom died of cancer. A few days after her death, my family and I went to this same spot on the beach in North Florida to spread her ashes in the ocean. Discovering this flowers-in-a-vase photo, taken so many years ago, made me pause and remember a lifelong of instances when I set out to create art. Finding this photo saddened me, made me laugh, and made me proud of my young self that snapped this picture.

Mom, maybe time travel does exist. Thank you for always supporting me in creating art.

Black and white photo, group of people standing, looking at the camera, daylight. — Photo taken by an unknown person walking by, February 2024

Below are other photos taken on this same day back in 1997 or 1998. They have new meaning to me now, because I no longer live by the ocean. These sights were at one time an everyday occurrence, but now, in my present life, living in the mountains, I rarely see a sailboat passing by my house or people playing/walking/riding bikes in the sand….

Black and white image, sea dunes in the foreground lined with sea oats. In the middle ground on the left side, a sailboat with a white sail on the ocean. In the background, the ocean goes off into the horizon. Grey sky. — Photo by Minorcan, circa 1997/1998

Black and white photo, foreground a trash barrel, two other trash barrels are seen in the middle ground. A public beach, off in the distance there are two people riding bicycles, people walking on the beach, a person and white dog in the ocean. — Photo by Minorcan, circa 1997/1998.

Is this art? A note on Grief.

A little bit of Tom T. Hall