08 Jan '12

Philadelphia’s secret garden…

An elevated railway high above the city, filled with wild grasses. You may have heard of New York’s High Line Park, but this isn’t it. No, Philly has it’s own secret garden, and it’s kind of way cooler.

I was recently introduced to the full extent of the Reading Viaduct’s City and 9th Street branches by the folks at ViaductGreene, and was amazed to discover the vast expanse of potential that is hidden in plain sight in the heart of the city.

I already knew a little bit about the meadow over the rooftops by 9th and Spring Garden, but to get there I first had to discover the tunnel beneath the city and the canyon between the buildings. The entire route runs from the Art Museum, across to Broad Street and all the way up N. 9th Street. This map should give you an idea of the ground that we covered. Here is what I discovered… (more…)

08 Jan '12

Three months in West Africa…

The year is off to a big start…

My adventures in Philly in the last year have mostly revolved around beautiful dancing Philadelphians through the many facets of my How Philly Moves project. But now it’s time to hit the road for a few months…

The image above was taken during the course of some earlier medical work in Central America. I’m actually heading back that way this week, although it’s to Nicaragua to play wedding photographer. But three days later, I hop another plane to West Africa, where I’m going to be spending three months serving aboard the Africa Mercy, a floating hospital ship run by Mercy Ships.

I visited the ship last spring when it was docked in Sierra Leone, and this year they’ll be operating in Togo. It’s a pretty amazing operation that delivers a first class quality of care, offering free surgeries that make some amazing impacts in the lives of those that they serve.

I’ll be somewhat off of the grid during much of that time, but will try and post some periodic images and updates on the JJ Tiziou Photography Facebook page. While I’m away, I’m also going to be starting to plan a few special things for when I’m back stateside, so if you’re not on the mailing list, I’d love if you would sign up so that I can give you a heads up when I’m coming home.

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08 Jan '12

How Philly Moves: most recent shoots

The most recent How Philly Moves shoots were amazing, with over 140 additional Philadelphians being photographed over the course of an intense three days of community dance photo sessions. The video above should give you a sense of what a magical weekend it was.

An update is on the project website, along with news about the permanent exhibit in the baggage claim, and of course the massive mural at the airport is complete. The project’s continued to get a pile of great press, and the Kickstarter blog just featured my little narrative of the crowdfunding process that brought this most recent incarnation of How Philly Moves to fruition.

Check out the news feed on the HPM site for the images.

Being able to create work in this crowd-funded way is the beginning of a dream come true. I’ve wanted to work this way since 2002, but the tools to facilitate community-supported photography are only now becoming available. It’s exciting times, and I can’t wait to see what comes next. If you’d like to come along for the ride, sign up for updates!

14 Nov '11

Why do we compete?

Two interesting experiences from this weekend that I’d like to share:

I spent Saturday evening onstage at the Kimmel Center, acting as a judge in Southeast Philadelphia Collaborative‘s talent show. While I’d originally been asked to act as a judge for the visual arts exhibit, I ended up being roped into judging the performance component as well. It was a pretty amazing event with a bit of a bittersweet ending for me…

For those of you who aren’t familiar with SEPC, they’re an umbrella group that brings together all sorts of organizations and stakeholders working on behalf of youth in their area. I’ve been wanting to get more involved in working with youth, especially since encountering a few great inspirations in PSU, PYPM, and recently catching PYOS at TEDxPhilly. I was excited to discover what these young people had to share with us.

The visual arts component took place in the lobby, where throngs of people milled about and had a chance to meet the young artists and see their work. There was a wonderful diversity of subjects and mediums, and a wide range of technical skills on display. The one thing in common was the enthusiasm of the participants, and it was great hearing them talk about their work.  As we packed into the Perelman Theater, the energy was pretty great. (more…)

26 Oct '11

Big Band needs backing…

I first crossed paths with Orrin Evans back in 2003, when we took some photos for his then project LUVPARK. He’s been continuing to play up a storm with a host of brilliant musicians.

If you’re into music, jazz, swing, soul, love, beauty, and that big band sound, you might want to pay attention to this.

The Captain Black Big Band is gearing up for their new recording, and they could use your help. Get on it now!

 

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