ON THE STAIRS
No matter what tools you use to create, the true instrument is you.
- Rick Rubin, The Creative Act: A Way of Being
I started reading the book “The Creative Act,” and the quote above came to mind when I edited these few Reboleira Specials today. That’s how I call these pictures taken in 2024.
On The Stairs, in Reboleira.
You will always find something weird, something bizarre that makes you think: Why is it here on the staircase? These few images were captured mostly by Tiago, when he left the house or returned from work; two of them were taken by me. I wish we had continued this project beyond these six photographs and put our imagination more into action, e.g., to write stories for each, wrap them into artsy short films, and tell stories from Lisbon, Portugal, and some contemporary eyewitness accounts. We could have gone “wild” and printed them in large formats, framed them, and then pitched them to the next coffee shop or pop-up gallery opportunity. Well, that’s me - the Dreamer. And maybe…
…six photographs are all you need sometimes to create something.
1. The Duvet Part I
2. The Gel
3. The Pure Yoghurt
4. The Bags & Shoes
5. The Duvet Part II
6. The Runners
Do you see how something random in the house you live in can be put together in a black and white photography project with some short stories or poems wrapped around?
THE DUVET (Part I)
Once wrapped in warmth, a soft embrace
There were moments of peace in this weird place
On these stairs of stone, our memories now sleep
The once found comfort is buried deep
Simple things, and still worlds apart
A duvet's warmth could not cure a divided heart
The Gel
Disinfect your hands to avoid infection.
Disinfect your soul to avoid depth.
Disinfect your heart to avoid pain.
Disinfect your attitude to avoid clashing.
Disinfect your friends to just fit in.
Disinfect your love to avoid the storms.
Disinfect yourself to become one in a million.
The Pure Yoghurt
This is not pure yoghurt.
This is full of sugar.
This is not pure yoghurt.
This is full of sugar.
This is not pure yoghurt.
This is full of sugar.
The Bags & Shoes
The bags of other people’s problems that you carried around got very heavy. The shoes you tried to fit into got really small. And still, you did not change them. You did not put the bags down. You stopped on the stairs and took even more bags, and placed them on your back.
The Duvet (Part II)
A stolen sheet, a narrowed view, we both felt the crack
He said I love you all the time, just to hear it back
In Reboleira, on the stairs
I had to let go, and still I care
Surrendering to the tide, to a safe inside
An honest, fragile feeling, I cannot,
And I don't want to hide
The Runners
Are you running away? With those shoes that got too small for you?
Get new ones. And one size larger.