Jamie Beck and Kevin Burg, Photography, Video, Cinemagraphs, New York City
What a wonderful, wild experience it is to walk inside a painting and to see the world through the eyes of an artist. An early morning train from Paris, a walk through a quiet French town, and then you arrive into the pallet of Monet‘s mind.
“My wish is to stay always like this, living quietly in a corner of nature.”- Claude Monet
“I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.” -Claude Monet
We put Santa Fe in our review mirror and headed into the great expanse of the American West. We drove all day and into the night arriving under a blanket of darkness to Monument Valley where I reflected the next morning:
Sunrise over Monument Valley… I arrived in the night, black on black the monuments rose in a silhouette of stars. Sleeping monsters hiding in the dark. I felt small in the shadow of that mighty fame. As dawn emerged from beyond the endless horizon I became a weightless feather riding on the back of an eagle in the hallways of the valleys between, together waiting for the sun. They say Native Americans believed everything has a soul and as I look out on this vast and strange place I can’t help but feel these formations have memories and wisdom and are looking back at us just as we are of them. What do we have to say that could possibly compare to all that the monuments hold?….
At Monument Valley we stayed at The View. The rooms are nothing to write home about (life hack: I always travel with a scented candle to help elevate hotel rooms) but it was all about waking up to the sun rising from the balcony of your room with the most incredible view. If I ever find myself back at Monument Valley I would do an early morning or early evening horseback ride through the monuments to experience the nature up close since you are not allowed to venture off the designated road in your car. The below image of me looking out over Monument Valley is taken by the freestanding boulders to the left of the visitor’s center as you head toward the entrance to drive down into the valley.
We then continued west to Horseshoe Bend which is an easy pull-off the main road and requires no admission fees. It is a 10-15 minute hike to the bend (just FYI) and can be very crowded at sunset but still totally worth it.
The next morning I wanted to photograph Antelope Canyon which you must make a reservation for and is actually quite expensive. I opted for the photographer’s tour which was about two hours in total. Being that it was winter there only ended up being two of us with a guide who takes you through the canyon and points out some of the best photographic spots and helps clear people on other tours out of your frame. Some very important facts to know about this: the canyons are narrow and VERY crowded. There are multiple tour groups at a time and can be claustrophobic. However, if you are on the photographer’s tour you will have opportunities to shoot in empty spots as they occur with the help of your guide. Also very important to note, you must have a DSLR type camera (not just an iPhone or point and shoot) AND a tripod. They will not allow you to take the tour without these two elements nor let persons you are traveling with to accompany you if they do not also have their own gear. I personally think these rules are ridiculous but that is the way it is. I am so glad I did the tour and I’m happy with my shots, however, I would not do it again as the experience is stressful. I photographed Upper Canyon, Lower Canyon was closed, but from my understanding Upper Canyon is more photogenic. Additionally, if you want the famous light beams you must visit during summer and request that time slot.
Then it was off to the Grand Canyon. We stayed at the El Tovar Hotel right in the center of it all which was great for easy access to sunrise and sunset views. Being that it was winter and quite cold, the hotel’s lodge-like atmosphere with burning fireplaces felt cozy and the restaurant, which you will need reservations for, had organic seasonal options.
It has always been a dream of mine to do this road trip across America and I cherish these memories. There were long stretches of not much to see, there were at times never ending urban sprawl but then there was magic. As the time between now and then separates the highlights float to the top and it was really just a relaxing way to travel that slowly without a real plan and opening ourselves to discovery.
The road trip came about because I hadn’t been home in so long I had many places I needed to visit. The thought of overpaying during holiday season to fly from city to city for weeks in cramped airplanes with no personal space and being treated poorly was too distressful a thought. I’m so sick of people going through my luggage, patting me down, taking apart my camera bag, and fighting for overhead space. So I hatched this idea to just drive. From coast to coast, sea to shinning sea. The only problem was … highways terrify me. The only way I’d do it is in one of the safest cars on the road, a Volvo XC60. I know a lot about Volvos. I did a road trip through Sweden in the XC90 a couple of years ago. I shot a collection of Volvo’s over the decades for their 60th anniversary out in L.A. and Palm Springs and even on top of Griffith Observatory! But this was different, this was personal and with that, in our XC60, starting in Savannah, Georgia, we took off.
Review of the Volvo XC60 (this is not paid for, btw, I just love this brand / vehicle)
We came across all weather conditions on this journey from hot and sunny to 2 degrees and snowy. I always felt safe, first and foremost. The vehicle is quiet, and the sound system is so good. We listened to music, to audio books, to my favorite daily podcast. I can also say without hesitation because now I know after weeks of being in this vehicle, the seats are the most comfortable. I’ve been in a few cars since and nothing compares in comfort. The drive is smooth, you feel removed from the road and as passenger I greatly appreciate this. It has all the safety features from the cameras to little lights on the mirrors when a car is in your blind spot. It can assist you in parallel parking, it can drive assist for you down the highway which is amazing when you’re looking at a flat, straight 8 hour highway in western Kansas. It will stop you if you are about to run into something or someone. Seat warmers were life savers and the car in general heats up really quickly. OHHHH, but perhaps my favorite feature was the ability to pre-condition the car while it’s plugged in. Meaning, if my yoga class was at 5pm I could schedule the car to pre-heat while plugged into the house at 4:30pm so my ride to class in the snow was not freezing. Speaking of plugging in, being a hybrid we could charge it at home and at certain charging stations in museums, concert halls, and even grocery stores making the vehicle super green. The iPad sized display was beautiful and easy to use. The entire top of the car is a sunroof if you want. It was all just really awesome. I don’t think I would have enjoyed the journey so much in any other car… probably because I would be sure every eighteen-wheeler we passed (which was A LOT) was about to kill us. The Volvo protected us from the fear, the sounds, the size of things on the road that would typically give me anxiety. The car is also just so smart, it felt like its own little character as part of our trip.
Below are some of those highlights I mentioned earlier from discovering the American West.
It’s always amazing to me how quickly you can go from New York City to quiet, pristine, lush nature. On one of the last weekends of winter, a group of friends met on 15th & 8th under the hustle of city life blanketed blanketed by the sounds of cabs honking and the last few snowflakes of the season kissing my rosey cheeks. We piled into the car, cranked on some Chris Stapleton and headed north up the Hudson River until we reached that final winding road that led us climbing high top the waterfalls and forests until we reached our weekend sanctuary, Deer Mountain.
With only six rooms, this boutique lodge nestled in 168 wooded acres balances the historic rustic nature of the original building from the 1880’s with its modern luxurious updates and amenities. Even though the charming town of Tannersville, with its own set of restaurants, shopping and activities is at the base of Deer Mountain, the inn is set up so you don’t have to leave, if you’re simply looking for a restorative weekend to relax, like I am.
I love places like this. Charm, character, and no two rooms alike. I like a place that tells a story, that leaves an imprint on your memory that can only belong to that one place and when you revisit the moments in your mind you are quickly carried away in the currents back to a place and time with its own particular feel, smell, taste, and warmth. Deer Mountain will always sound like the laughter of friends, smell like a roaring campfire, taste like bespoke cocktails and feel like a special home away from home, where you can sink into bed at night knowing all the stars are watching over you in that clear mountain sky.
On this holiday week I’m looking forward to wrapping up projects and going for quiet walks in Central Park. I love the city over the holidays, the way it smells like roasted nuts and hot apple cider. How your face feels the newly crisp air kiss its cheeks. Everything sparkles in the clear, golden, autumnal light and there is a thickness of hope that presents the city at its most charming. On Thanksgiving we choose not to leave, we instead choose to have it as our own moment to breathe and be thankful for the lives we have found in New York together. We so often get carried away in the day to day stresses of running a creative studio it’s easy to forget all the things we are thankful for. But one thing is for sure, I’m thankful for these autumn memories, for this beautiful fall and to have spent another year of my life making photographs.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all.
A few years back I met Bess Wyrick. She was doing a floral instillation in Gramercy Park’s Rose Bar — a giant hanging skeleton made from white flowers. I had always thought about flowers in the sense of arrangements but never really in the form of a live sculpture. There is something I really love about the idea of creating art that can only last and be appreciated for a short amount of time before its organic nature recycles back into the earth. An amazing example of that is in the whimsical work of Patrick Dougherty which blows me away.
Whenever Bess is in New York we try to collaborate. Most recently I asked Caroline to come by the studio and pose for me, something we have been doing together for years now. Bess, being the sculptor she is, created this spring garden nymph moment around Caroline’s delicate body which, to me, is reminiscent of the fleeting weeks when we get to dance under the pink shade of the cherry blooms before nature moves on to the green gardens of summer.
This May I’m going to be heading out to L.A. to spend a weekend retreat at Rose Story Farm (remember how we had roses shipped from them for this beautiful shoot?!) with Bess doing a workshop on flower arranging and creative expression. It’s going to be a lovely group of women, so think about joining us if you out in L.A.! More info on the workshop can be found here.
Happy Spring!
So, why did we go all the way to Bali to shoot the summer campaign? The answer is simple if you look at the product. Cuyana is a fashion brand producing a limited, curated collection that aims to be timeless. They source manufacturers from all over the world – not because they want to find a way to be less expensive, but because they want to hire the best of the best. If you want to make a cashmere sweater, why not have the experts in Scotland, with their knowledge going back hundreds of years, create it? Or the perfect leather tote…who is amazing with leather? The artisans of Argentina.
Cuyana searches the world to find and support the creators, cutting out the middle man and selling the designs themselves in order to keep costs down and quality high. So to answer the question above – why did you go all the way to Bali to shoot this summer Cuyana campaign? Because all their new gold jewelry is handmade in Bali and what a place to be!
Yesterday we unlocked the key to Bali culture but that is only a fraction of the story…arguably many people come here for the awe of the island’s nature scene which is as lush and beautiful as the people themselves. I was awestruck by the endless vistas of rice paddies wrapping around the island’s mainland. The air is damp and thick, and in the early evening light, the view fills with mysterious blueish smoke from farmers’ fires, turning the look into a cinematic movie scene. It’s serene and beautiful and it’s only the beginning of Bali’s natural wonder…
Of course Bali has amazing resorts (remember the dreamy Amandari & serene Como Shambala?!…because I do!) but you can also rent awesome Bali homes like we did with the team from Cuyana. Just around the house, we found perfect rice fields and coconut trees. Our first morning there all we could do was wander around in awe of the early morning light.
Below: Anastasia wears Cuyana’s classic white oxford dress.
A 15 second journey through Brazil, from Iguazu Falls to the Amazon, exotic birds and playful monkeys.
More travel videos….
Brazil City in 15 seconds / Paris in 15 seconds / Patagonia in 15 seconds / Atacama in 15 seconds / Cumberland Island in 15 seconds
Of all the activities Juma Lodge provides, my favorite was the jungle walk, a serious hike through the Amazon Rainforest. The breathtaking flora and fauna, the steamy nature of the air around you, the wild views of dense tropical rainforest reaching stories high above your head to the fallen leaves under your feet. It was – in one word – BEAUTIFUL. Leaving the lodge by boat, we ventured to a new part of this dense forest. I loved when our boat would enter into the tree canopies; it was like entering a magical world full of natural secrets. We started by clearing the path through the jungle with a machete, then learned how to climb Acai Trees like the natives by making rope out of leaves, how to communicate far distances with a stick and a tree, that Babasu Gongoin (beetle larvae) tastes just like coconuts (and according to our guide, Bill Gates loved them on his walking tour!), and how to separate palm leaves in order to fold them into forest crowns. Not your typical Monday activities in Manhattan!
After a refreshing swim at the end of our hike (remember it’s like 100000% humidity) we had lunch cooked over an open flame and took a dip to cool off. That evening we went fishing for piranhas which later became part of our family style meal. The journey to get here, the monkeys, and being forced to disconnect from the rest of the world will put this place, deep in the heart of the Amazon, forever deep in mine.
and FYI- Manaus is only a 5 hour flight from Miami, what adventure you take from there is up to you!
One of the coolest unexpected experiences of the Amazon and our stay at Juma Lodge was meeting these guys. While touring the resort, the guide told us that two monkeys lived in the area, and when they jump on you, it’s important to not be startled, to stay calm and not scream because you wouldn’t want to frighten the monkey. They also told us to keep our doors locked whenever we left the rooms, because the monkeys liked to ‘help themselves’ to your belongings and make a huge mess of it. He also warned that if we hear a “knock” on our door to not open it all the way, to crack it first and make sure it’s not a monkey trying to get in. We all chatted in excitement about all these little tips over dinner and tucked ourselves in for the night hoping we would get to see one of these little guys the next day.
Well… see these monkeys we did. Around 6:30 am the knocks on the door started coming! Just as the guide had warned us, it was monkey time. Up and down the resort they went, waking everybody up. They crawled on us, they cuddled in our arms, they swung from our bodies with their tails, they napped on us in hammocks, and they stole the limes from our cocktails. It was amazing. I’ll never forget napping in the hammock, hearing the pitter-patter of little monkey feet coming and then seeing his head popping over the hammock edge…and in he came to join me. It was a blast.
Monkey love – The female monkey was absolutely 100% head-over-heels in love with our travel companion Zach. Any time he was outside his room she was in his arms. As the trip progressed, the deeper she felt and even started swatting Kelly away to keep him all to herself! He couldn’t move without her attached to him and if he was in his room she’d knock and try the door knob repeatedly!
I love when life gives you these memories you can never plan for, an experience you didn’t know was possible. Such an adventure… just monkeying around.
I remember that photograph. It was instantly synonymous with American style, American royalty, and that fairytale wedding to Prince Charming. I never forgot that image, the beauty of the moment, the elegance and intimacy of the chosen venue. Such an interesting choice to make for such a famous last name. Fast forward nearly 18 years later, and I’m standing on the steps of the First African Baptist Church on Cumberland Island thinking about all the dreams that one photograph gave me as a child. I remember reading about how the guests stayed at the Greyfield Inn where the reception was held but as time passed these little details faded away, now those faded details are a part of my very personal memories. Cumberland became more than a dream, but a cherished experience.
The day is full of delight with the kind of youthful energy and discovery you find in a F. Scott Fitzgerald book. We went on hour long hikes, took bike rides to old cemeteries and rode around horses grazing beneath the ruins of the Dungeness mansion. We rode for hours down the seashore without ever seeing another person, finding seashells and chasing horses. One of the most charming rituals of the Inn is how they make their guests picnic baskets for lunch everyday you can take with you on your private adventures. On our second morning we rode with the house naturalist on a tour of the island where we visited that famous church, saw the house where President Jimmy Carter ate at multiple times, and discovered Plum Plantation which took my breath away. The history and nature, preservation and privateness is so far beyond anything I have ever experienced that I can only describe this stretch of land, twice the size of Manhattan, as magical.
If you ever need to find that corner of the world where things just are… where you can sit in the natural silence of the world alone and breathe in the sunlight, taste the salt of the sea and feel that life is just simply beautiful… then come to Cumberland Island. My heart will be there waiting for you.
… and oh, the falls. The beautiful nature of almighty water displayed in the grandest of dramatic fashion. God must have been truly inspired when he painted this masterpiece. Layers upon layers, walls among walls of never-ending falling water. I stood on the footbridge in the center of it all, mist wrapping around me in a whirl and felt the freedom of letting go and floating away into the fog of whiteness. It was a breathtaking romance, a real rapture between power and might, and breaths of teardrops. Iguassu Falls, when witnessed by Eleanor Roosevelt, caused her to say, “Poor Niagara!“…and I think that says it all.
The best view of the falls, however, is underneath the falls! A real river safari, a true Brazilian adventure. We screamed, we laughed, we got totally soaked and begged for more. There are these moments in life when you sit back and say, “Am I really here right now?!” I knew when coming to Brazil I was going to experience a lot of color, culture for sure, but oh, the COLOR. Such a welcome escape from the cold gray winter days back home. Sitting on a log in the middle of the Bird Park, my eyes were feasting on the red, blue, yellow, pink, and green feathers flying around me. Colors so vivid and saturated you can’t help but stare in love. The bird park, a refugee camp for birds that have been injured or rescued to recover, was a real study of natural beauty…
Cataratas, Brazil: This is what adventures are made of.
Alone in the natural wonders… if you stay here you can experience the falls before they open to the public. Wearing a white Tibi crochet dress.
The most beautiful view is the one looking up.
Patagonia’s skies are true works of art. With the drama of a Renaissance painting and the bizarre UFO-like nature of lenticular clouds there is never a dull moment, as if the sky was nature’s form of entertainment. It all just gives way for the spectacular light show that happens this far south leaving you with the memories of the most beautiful saturation and contrasts of colors that can only be found in Patagonia.
“The poetry of the earth is never dead.”
– John Keats
It’s hard to describe seeing a glacier for the first time: the seemingly unnatural color, how still it appears to be when in fact it is a moving river, the god-like size that reminds you of your fragile, ephemeral life… all I can say is that I couldn’t stop staring until I had become completely enchanted. And now, thanks to our Quasar tour guide, I can say I have eaten glacier ice straight off of an iceberg.
The might of Patagonia has to lie within its waters. From the spectacular green color of Lake Pehoé to Lake Grey with its floating icebergs and then to be hit with the rapid roaring waterfalls of Salto Grande and Cascada Rio Paine, and finally down comes rain out of clouds that redefine the word drama. Water is all around you, and never in a boring fashion.
“I climbed a path and from the top looked up-stream towards Chile. I could see the river, glinting and sliding through the bone-white cliffs with strips of emerald cultivation either side. Away from the cliffs was the desert. There was no sound but the wind, whirring through thorns and whistling through dead grass, and no other sign of life but a hawk, and a black beetle easing over white stones.”
― Bruce Chatwin
