No excuses left

26th October 2020

Why have I missed a couple of weeks? Maybe I’m struggling with the fact that actually any image I show will remind me how much I yearn to flex my shooting muscles and what little I have achieved recently. I’m feeling a tad behind.

However, I had a good reason to delve back through my archive recently .Rebecca Topakian asked me to contribute to a print sale to raise funds for those affected by the Azerbaijan and Armenian conflict. Rebecca and I met when I took one of my favourite birthday trips to Armenia and Georgia in 2018.

She was exhibiting at a gallery and I’ll never forget her images for a few reasons. One being that they were stunning and incredibly inspiring. I wandered around the gorgeous space in awe.
The other is that a few images were printed onto a marine turquoise stone. I was astonished as a few days prior I had bought the same precious stone miles away.

<

I have a rock collection ( mock away) . I try to collect a piece of rock from each little adventure that makes a mark. On this trip I stumbled across a tiny market on a roadside and spotted a throne made from wolves.

Despite the absurd cruelty I had a surreal moment and a chat with the stall owner. He explained these dazzling blue stones were from the very bottom of the ocean and incredibly rare and expensive. The stones were unusual, and I asked to buy one for my collection. He gifted me one with a smile and I felt lucky.

Rebecca later explained this was simply glass found at the bottom of Lake Sevan …

So, here are a few images I stumbled across. They have reminded me how Armenia is somewhere that blessed me with kind people and a wonderfully inspiring trip. I want to return… OAO x