The 5th Annual Hammers Inc Art Festival - Life by Passion

A close friend of mine, Garrett Smith of Hammers Inc Photography, had a three-fold mission when it came to his art: to create, communicate, and curate the best possible art he could be involved with.  He created with his unequalled passion for photography and the places and sports he shot.  He communicated by offering workshops (formal and informal) to anyone interested in listening.  And he curated with his immensely successful Hammers Inc Art Festival.



I am honored to have been invited to be involved the past couple of years with the art festival.  Garrett gave me a chance early on in my photography path that I would not have been afforded otherwise.  I owe a large part of where I am at creatively today to his support and all the times we were able to get out and shoot together (which was a lot).

When Garrett passed away this March many of us were determined to not let the art festival fade out.  He had started a strong legacy with a ton of opportunity.  With the help of a great team of friends, artists, etc. I am excited to announce the 5th Annual Hammers Inc Art Festival this upcoming Friday, December 2, at the Rio Gallery in downtown Salt Lake City.

We have teamed with the Utah Avalanche Center to help raise money for its ever-diminishing budget.  The UAC provides a service that is invaluable to anyone who spends their time in the mountains in winter.  Those of us who spend a great deal of time up there watch the reports daily and rely heavily on the information they provide.  We felt like this was the perfect organization to partner with this year given the work they do and our personal connection given recent events.  We are asking for a $10 donation at the door, although you are welcome to give as little or as much as you like.  The art featured in the show will all be for sale with a commission of each piece going to the UAC.  We will also have a silent auction and other events going on to help with the fundraising part of this great event.

The show this year will feature the art of Adam Barker, Trent Call, Kandyce Groesbeck, Flossie Kehr, Chuck Landvatter, PJ Mannion, Sarah Mannion, Kristin Marine, Zachary Proctor, Garrett Smith, and Matthew Turley.

Here is the link to the event on Facebook.  I hope to see you there.

Backyard Fun

Spent some time in my in-law's backyard yesterday with my dog, my nephew, and my wife. Decided to take pictures of it.

Kaleb didn't seem to mind having his picture taken.

I liked how these two images (one of Bowie and the other of Kaleb jumping off the deck) turned out to be awesome even though they were more or less shot from the hip.

Then I had Stacy come outside for a few photos since she is 8 months pregnant and the kid is someday going to want to see what she looked like.  She looks great.  I would have liked to have done some more creative pregnancy photos, but we didn't have access to a full length mirror at the time.

Thanksgiving is great.  I am thankful for lots of stuff.  Especially my wife... and skiing.  I need to go skiing.