Photography archives

Entry no.: 476

28 Apr 2008, 1:17 PM

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Photography Writing

Writer working at Cafe Wintergarten in Literaturhaus, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Berlin, 2008.

Writer working at Cafe Wintergarten in Literaturhaus, Berlin.

As a hopeless office inmate, I often fancy the idea of working in a public space—a nice café like Cafe Wintergarten at Literaturhaus1 in Berlin—but I never actually try doing it. I wonder whether its mild noise of dishes and chatter would inspire or rather distract.

Moreover, I just learned that my preferred café in Bucharest, Crem Cafe Royale, has been acquired by a local restaurant chain and will be murdered in order to make room for another mediocre luncheonette with greasy spoons.

While passing by it, I’ll murmur —The price of progress!, and I’ll keep looking the other way.

1 Right across the street from the Leica Store—even looking through its window inflicts serious damages to a bank account.

Entry no.: 470

21 Apr 2008, 12:51 PM

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Photography Bounty

Bounty, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Berlin, 2008.

Store window, Berlin, 2008.

Entry no.: 444

25 Feb 2008, 9:06 AM

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Comments: 5

Photography Blooming economy

Blooming economy, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2008.

Economic growth gets really luxuriant—this country is clearly well managed and really blooming. Any day now—the blooms. Any day.

Entry no.: 439

19 Feb 2008, 2:30 PM

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Photography Cool texture

How to create a cool background texture in 3 easy steps

1. Find a river

Dambovita, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2005.

A river or a lake on a windy day—water with small waves.

2. Find a building

River texture, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2005.

A building reflecting in the river/lake, that is. More lines in the architecture, more intricate the texture. A sunny day helps.

3. Shoot the water

River texture—detail, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2005.

Shoot that building’s reflection in water. Play with the picture, change the colors, get crazy if you feel the urge.

Entry no.: 437

14 Feb 2008, 3:48 PM

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Photography Orange

Orange Window, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Cluj-Napoca, 2005.

Living the brand: proposed revision to Orange™ logo.

Entry no.: 429

5 Feb 2008, 1:10 PM

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Photography Burst

Future, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007.

Boston from Top of the Hub, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Boston, 2005.

While playing with the pictures above (large on black here and here), I thought about writing something about the melding past and future, about time stretching like a grotesque accordion, freaking enormous and grossly out of tune.

Until I saw the glistering white tops. One in the painting and one in the picture. I stopped in bewilderment, trying to get my mind around this like when you bite off more than you can chew—choking, unable to move jaw, unable to spit all out.

I shot these pictures thousands of kilometers and a couple of years apart. Fucking long accordion!

Entry no.: 415

25 Jan 2008, 1:26 AM

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Photography Soft drink

Soft drink, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bangkok, 2007.

Click to view large on black.

Entry no.: 405

9 Jan 2008, 8:41 PM

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Photography Volvo ad

Volvo, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2008.

Entry no.: 404

7 Jan 2008, 1:49 PM

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Photography Snowverdose

Tree, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2008.

Snowverdose, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2008.

A subjective account of winter nights—shaken shots with frozen hands.

Entry no.: 402

3 Jan 2008, 1:30 PM

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Photography Portraits

Floating Market saleslady, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Thailand, 2007.

Boat rower at the Floating Market, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Thailand, 2007.

Continue reading "Portraits" »

Entry no.: 395

27 Dec 2007, 9:11 AM

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Photography Bangkok 360°

Bangkok 360° panorama as seen from Baiyoke tower, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bangkok, 2007.

Bangkok 360° panorama as seen from Baiyoke tower. Click on the image to enlarge.

Look what these people managed to build in 20 years. Compare with Eastern Europe.

Entry no.: 365

29 Nov 2007, 11:44 PM

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Photography Cubism not dead

An amazing incident of retrofuturism

Chair Descending a Staircase, No. 2 (French: Chaise descendant un escalier n° 2), Cristian -Kit- Paul, Iasi, 2007

Cubism is not dead and I’m ready to testify—I’ve just seen a chair descending a staircase, 95 years after Mr. Marcel Duchamp saw a nude doing the exact same thing. History repeating1!


1 “History Repeating” is a totally addictive arrangement performed by Propellerheads and Shirley Bassey. Watch the video.

Entry no.: 356

23 Nov 2007, 3:23 PM

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Photography Bresson

Prizzi poses in homage to Cartier-Bresson, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007.

My friend Bogdan Dumitrache showed me an impressive “Henri Cartier-Bresson visits Romania”1 photo retrospective right off his iPhone yesterday—a fine opportunity to drift into a rather lengthy discussion about Leica rangefinders (Bogdan collects Leicas, affectionately naming them “musical sculptures”).

That’s why today I find appropriate to post a photo of Prizzi posing with/in homage to Cartier-Bresson’s Manhattan shot from his 19472 American series, a work that I love and I was lucky enough to see in Amsterdam a couple of years ago.


1 I wrote about his 1975 visit to Romania a while back.

2 The year when together with his friend and colleague Robert Capa and David Seymour, Henri Cartier-Bresson founded Magnum Photos agency.

Entry no.: 351

21 Nov 2007, 9:50 AM

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Photography Postcard from Mordor

 Postcard from Mordor, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007

Entry no.: 345

16 Nov 2007, 12:51 PM

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Photography Close encounters of the unknown kind

Old woman stepping into the light, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Alba Iulia, Transylvania, 2007.

I walk through the narrow underpass of an unfamiliar town—uncomplicated people hurry to attend their first lives1—when it bursts out with overwhelming clarity: the watercolor beauty of the real world.


1 “First Life is a 3D analog world where server lag does not exist.” Darren Barefoot, Vancouver web geek, getafirstlife.com.

Entry no.: 286

10 Oct 2007, 1:24 PM

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Photography Everybody hurts

Everybody hurts, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007

A voicelessly despaired brass robot head, all beaten up, scratched and dented—look closely and you’ll notice those tears. Heartbreaking.

A take on that Faces in Places mildly delusional idea.

Update: Yes, it made it to the Faces in Places blog!

Later update: The picture, it seems, has been published in Scotsman Magazine.

Entry no.: 280

7 Oct 2007, 11:20 PM

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Comments: 13

Photography Come on, Vogue

Yes, I can

Listen, if The Sartorialist guy can do it, then I can, too: real-life style photography. Staggering findings of urban sophistication. Elegance. Panache. Hell, why not even style commentary—if I want to.

Design avant-garde or wardrobe malfunction? Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2005

Style and all things chic

Now really. Look at this: les annees folles of transition economy, wild parties and champagne in the morning—a few sips too many—and she hits the street dressed with a sofa cover, prettified with an assemblage of lovely fluffy tassels dangling limp like a strangled family of little animals.

Quite a warning. There are things going on underneath, mysterious things. Ambiguous and intriguing things. Artifacts obliviously hanging out, probably by design—post-modernly quoting the misfortunes of wardrobe malfunction. Design should be, though, because those flowery baits will shrewdly entice your hungry eye—like a stupid little puppy—toward the vicious curves concealed underneath like boas in the jungle, unmerciful and relentless.

And then, the finishing BDSM touch: cheeky not-so-tiny golden hand-cuffs, sprinkled with blinding Swarovski crystals, teasingly barring the way to the vast carnal temptations sequestered underneath. Do sailors blush?

Entry no.: 277

6 Oct 2007, 12:07 AM

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Photography Gershwin

West Side Story, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2005

“Chapter One. He adored New York City. He idealized it all out of proportion.” Then, he stops, corrects himself, substitutes “romanticized” for “idealized,” and continues, “To him no matter what the season, this was still a town that existed in black and white and pulsated to the great tunes of George Gershwin.”1

Gotcha

Just messing with you, really—this is Bucharest, can you believe it?

1 Henry Jenkins, Tales of Manhattan: Mapping the urban imagination through Hollywood film.

Entry no.: 249

22 Sep 2007, 2:13 PM

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Photography Gattaca

Romexpo Hall, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007

Yesterday at Romexpo Hall I expected my DNA to be sampled and checked upon admission so they can screen the valids from the poor god children. They somehow forgot. Nevertheless, I hid my glasses in a pocket—just in case.

Entry no.: 242

18 Sep 2007, 11:25 AM

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Photography Disenfranchised

Waiter!, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Targu Mures, 2007

There are situations when dogs are much more delicate and well mannered than humans—the totally wrong situation, usually. For instance, this civilized and respectable dog awaited for a menu with patience, even if he was the only customer sitting at a terrace table while the waiters ignored him repeatedly.

I wish he chased the monkey suits around a little bit, challenge the food chain. Get some respect. Put an end to this discrimination where every crassly ill-bred barbarian dressed with embroidered jeans like a bankrupt fat Elvis sporting shovel fingernails and a biohazard hairdo gets more respect than a clean, exemplary behaving dog.

Entry no.: 236

12 Sep 2007, 8:38 PM

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Photography Life on Mars

Liviu David at Coca-Cola Base on Mars, Cristian -Kit- Paul, 2007

Captain David at The Coca-Cola Base Station on Mars, 2007.

True, there’s little water around here, but our sponsor sends us plenty of soda from Earth. As soon as we’re done with the wiring, flick a switch—Bang!—”Planet Coke.” Can’t wait, really.

On the other hand, NASA is annoying. They keep sending their freaking Pathfinder rovers that are roaming around taking pictures and sniffing for cooties like some goddamn sleepwalking paparazzi. Lucky they’re utterly confused and functioning in slow-motion so we have enough time to collect all the chewing gum and the cigarette stubs littered in their way.

Remote controlled snapshots-taking robots! If this is not a tabloidization of cosmology, I don’t know what is.

Entry no.: 225

5 Sep 2007, 2:52 PM

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Photography The future that was

The Progress, Bucharest, 2007

Progress is a wonderful thing. If — and when — The Ministry of Truth says so.

Entry no.: 221

27 Aug 2007, 3:52 PM

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Photography Imprigionata

Imprigionata, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Bucharest, 2007

How working cats are different from lolcats — or why Caturday was not created equal for all.

Entry no.: 219

24 Aug 2007, 10:33 AM

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Photography Charlie's Angels

Charlie's Angels, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Moscow, 2007

I’ve seen Charlie’s Angels in broad — and harsh — Russian daylight! Yes, it is true. Walking — all goddamn foxy and daringly long-limbed — among all those frowning hurried Muscovites on the boulevard, they must’ve been on a dangerous mission.

Entry no.: 215

21 Aug 2007, 11:27 AM

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Photography Otherworldly

Otherworldly, Cristian Kit Paul, Bucharest, 2007

There’s a secret passage between worlds, right after the eye, ear and invisible soul trio of ivy-covered columns. If the light bulb is lit you can pass safely, if it’s dim, open the door and you’ll be sucked into the void and your whole existence deleted. Don’t smoke — and don’t try to smuggle cigarettes to the other side — God hates that.

Entry no.: 213

16 Aug 2007, 11:51 PM

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Photography Warp

Warp, Cristian -Kit- Paul, Mosow, 2007

Subway station in Moscow, squeaky clean and completely deserted. The curved pillars look like they’ve been distorted by a a wide-angle lens. Or a gigantic force field. Uncanny.

Entry no.: 202

7 Aug 2007, 11:10 AM

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Photography Happiness is...

Happiness is..., Cristian Kit Paul, Copenhagen, 2007.

Happiness is easy. Too bad we’re the over-talented masters of complications.

Entry no.: 193

30 Jul 2007, 11:13 AM

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Photography Get wallpaperized

Speaking of graffiti and walls, I have some crazy-textured wallpapers for you: two from Moscow with love and one from Bucharest with murmured anger. Handmade.

Peace Wall

Graffiti on Peace Wall, Cristian Kit Paul, Arbat Street, Moscow, 2007

Graffiti over Peace Wall’s thousands of tiles painted by schoolchildren on Arbat pedestrian street in Moscow. Corny cold-war name — Peace Wall — but cool texture.

The Wall of Tsoi

Graffiti on The Wall of Tsoi, Cristian Kit Paul, Arbat Street, Moscow, 2007

The Wall of Tsoi on Arbat St. in Moscow is covered with graffiti dedicated to Russian rock musician Viktor Tsoi (Russian: Виктор Робертович Цой), leader of the rock group Kino, who died in a car accident in 1990. Rough and sincere like spilled guts.

Scratches

Scratched wall in Bucharest, Cristian Kit Paul, Bucharest, 2005

Scratched inscriptions on a house wall in Bucharest. A blind, distressed murmur relentlessly corroding the street.

Pro versions

Russian and Romanian graffiti wallpapers pro thumbs, Cristian Kit Paul, 2007

For the graphic professionals that cannot afford saturated colors on their desktop, low contrast grayscale versions are available:

Send ‘em in

If you decide to use one of these wallpapers and you don’t mind sending a screenshot of your desktop (e-mail to kit at kitblog followed by dot com) along with your name and/or web site address, your precious captures will be appended to this post, after the jump. Now is a good time to acknowledge your obsessive-compulsive need for maniacally ordered rows of icons, or to admit your lazy-ass style of obliviously piling random yet completely useless stuff.

Be brave — if you’ve got it, why not flaunt it? Send ‘em in!

Continue reading "Get wallpaperized" »

Entry no.: 188

23 Jul 2007, 4:27 PM

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Photography Saint Peter's

Saint Peter's, Cristian Kit Paul, Bucharest, 2007

Entry no.: 178

14 Jul 2007, 4:30 AM

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Photography The day under

The day under, Cristian Kit Paul, Bucharest, 2007

I picked the blue channel, muddy and stained as it was — I liked it — here it is.

Entry no.: 177

10 Jul 2007, 9:25 AM

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Photography Saab

Take it as a Saab print ad, Cristian Kit Paul, 2007

Looking back, Cristian Kit Paul, 2007

Loving Scandinavian design means buying Scandinavian design.

Entry no.: 144

8 Jun 2007, 3:09 PM

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Photography Twinkle twinkle

Twinkle twinkle little electric star, Cristian Kit Paul, 2005

The stencil reads “Do not climb on the hood Danger of electrocution 27000 V”.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are

Entry no.: 133

13 May 2007, 12:03 PM

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Photography Bend

Bent horse, Ivan Milicin trainer, photo Cristian Kit Paul, Corbeanca, 2007

Owner Ivan Milicin practicing with one of his horses Haute Ecole training.

Entry no.: 118

17 Apr 2007, 5:20 PM

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Photography Dirty dusk

Dirty dusk, Cristian -Kit- Paul, 2007.

I hate trains. Public transportation anxiety. Or maybe travelers’ spleen.

Entry no.: 85

6 Feb 2007, 2:09 PM

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Photography To the other side

To the other side

Entry no.: 51

1 Jan 2007, 5:00 AM

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Photography New Year is right there

Bucharest, New Year's party

Entry no.: 49

30 Dec 2006, 1:35 PM

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Photography Security matters

Security matters

Entry no.: 5

23 Sep 2006, 1:23 AM

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Photography Cosmin Bumbuț

‘Professional Photographer of the Year’ at IPA

Cosmin Bumbut

Cosmin, Bucharest, July 2005

Cosmin Bumbuț confirmed his professional stature once again at this year’s edition of International Photography Awards Competition / International Photographer of the Year Competition by winning a 1st place in Editorial category with images from Aiud prison series and a 3rd place in Travel-Tourism category with images from Transit series, along with no less than 12 Honorable Mentions.

This results qualify Cosmin’s work for inclusion in both IPA 2006 Annual Awards book and 2006 IPA Best of Show exhibition.

I am very proud I could contribute to his outstanding results by sponsoring the cutting-edge custom pre-press process of his Transit book, a first in Romania.