52 in Saint John

Thirty: Alison Gayton

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed 25.March.2010 in her west side pottery studio.

The most suggested individual for this project, since the beginning, has been Alison Gayton. After meeting her, I can certainly see the reasons so many were quick to suggest she was making Saint John a better place.

Alison is the president of Third Space Gallery, works at an art supply store (ESL Art Supplies) on Union Street, and she is vice president of Quality Learning New Brunswick — an interesting initiative to provide books and read to young people in New Brunswick. She also works with the Saint John Arts Centre.

But Alison teaches art, in the form of pottery, to around 50 kids per week. She calls this her real passion, and it comes through in conversation with her. Sometimes she is at Touchstone School in the valley, sometimes at the City Market, and most often from her Duke Street studio on Saint John's west side.

Twenty-nine: Lauren, Anna, Matthew, Gavin, Mitchell, and Alexandra

Tue, 23 Mar 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed in Studio 2 on Bentley Street.

Lauren Stead wants to be a nurse.

Anna Duncan is going into medicine at Dalhousie University.

Matthew Christie is hoping his band, Neon Light Knife Fight, "works out". I hope I got that band name right.

Gavin Downes is gonna rock his band.

Mitchell Tims is going to study arts at UNB.

Alexandra Fournier is going to Acadia to study English and history.

This Sunday night these young Saint John thespians, along with some other great young actors, will perform Interaction Theatre Company's rock and roll version of Romeo and Juliet.

Update: I forgot to add that I also would have liked to photograph Zoe Caddell, the show's young music director and composer, but she wasn't available. She's already on to big things--recording out of town while those photographed above were rehearsing.

On a small photogeekery note: I shot their photos on Polaroid because I thought it was cool to photograph these actors and actresses on a camera that was made long before any of them were born, but also because yesterday The Impossible Project announced they are making brand new film for Polaroid SX-70 cameras. My SX-70 just so happens to be one of my favorite cameras, and I'm thrilled.

Twenty-eight: Gary Mittelholtz

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:01 -0300

Not photographed.

Gary Mittelholtz was one of the first names I put on my list when I started this project. I never met him.

Twenty-seven: Richard Roy

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed 08.March.2010 in the Saint John Theatre Company rehearsal space on Princess Street.

Richard Roy is the subject of one of my favorite portraits, a shot we took for the Saint John Theatre Company's production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest that didn't end up being used for the final poster.

Richard, who is currently preparing for the role of Jim Reston in the play Frost/Nixon, told me he wasn't sure how many Saint John Theatre Company shows he has been in at this point.

"I lost count somewhere around twenty", he said. His first show at Saint John's Imperial Theatre being The Three Musketeers, a show I remember attending as one of the earliest I personally saw at the theatre.

Full disclosure and fair warning, I'm also in the upcoming Frost/Nixon, which opens March 18th at the Imperial Theatre, and I suspect next week's portrait may come from show preparations as well... since that's where I'm spending all my spare time.

Purchase tickets for the show online.

Twenty-six: Clinton Charlton

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed with Tucker the cat in the kitchen of his west side apartment on 01.March.2010.

I said earlier that I had three weeks of the 52 reserved ahead of time for people who made Saint John better for me in a more personal way. Clinton Charlton isn't one of those three, but he probably should have been.

I'm happy he gets the halfway point.

Clinton, besides being a stand-up guy, is a songwriter of the highest caliber. In my opinion, he can stand with any other songwriter to ever come from Saint John, the province, or even the country.

Some may argue that it was the Port City All Stars Safari that best captured the sound of Saint John. Some others might suggest it was Brent Mason's Hitcher on the Road or The Organizers Painting Bricklin Blue. I'd entertain any of those arguments, but Clinton's 2009 disc Parade is, for my money, the disc that best captures Saint John's sound.

Clinton has a show this Thursday, March 4th, at Vintage Bistro.

As I mentioned, we're up to week 26. Halfway. I wanted to take an opportunity to thank everyone for visiting this little site, sharing the link with your friends, and suggesting people for portraits or participating yourselves. The response has been fantastic.

I also want to encourage people to visit the annual Best of Saint John Readers Poll over at Giraffecycle. Chuck Teed, a man who should be on this website himself, has organized this endeavor the past couple of years. Once responses are collected and tabulated, they usually have a little show somewhere in Saint John to celebrate the winners and nominees. I went a couple of years ago, and it was a great night of music.

Twenty-five: Michael Partridge

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed on Water Street, 22.Feb.2010.

My meeting with Michael Partridge began with his wife, Darlene, explaining Michael's personality by telling me about how he went into a meeting with a new manager for the very first time and planted a whoopee cushion to surprise the new manager.

Michael Partridge has been called a "hearing hero". I won't try to tell his whole story, because he tells it best himself here.

The short version is that one morning, while at his cottage in Nova Scotia, he awoke unable to hear. After some struggles and testing, he was given a cochlear implant which dramatically improved his hearing.

Since then, Michael has spent a great deal of time helping other candidates for a cochlear implant both online and in person. He is an administrator of an online forum for the Hearing Loss Association of America, and he has served on a New Brunswick committee that supports and advocates for cochlear implant patients and families.

And as he walked away after I took a photo, he told me to make sure I mention the fart thing.

Twenty-four: Chris London

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed 10.Feb.2010 at the New Brunswick Community College campus, Saint John.

Chris London and I went to college together for Computer Programming Technology early in this decade. The difference between us, as students, is that Chris was good at it.

So good, that after some time in industry, he was asked back. He returned to teach, and more importantly to inspire students at the college to be the future project leaders, developers, and creators of technology and software.

Twenty-three: Andrea Arbour

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed on 08.Feb.2010 in the uptown apartment where Andrea has lived for 14 years.

Andrea Arbour is an artist, artisan, and committed volunteer with organizations like the Saint John Theatre Company.

She hadn't always intended to stay in Saint John, and she isn't necessarily staying forever, but has found a place and people she loves here.

A few days ago, Andrea had hair that went halfway down her back, but after being inspired by a co-worker, her hair is now being used to make a wig for a cancer patient.

Twenty-two: Jason Ogden

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00 -0300

Photographed by the light of a wicker lamp behind the soundboard at the Blue Olive on 31.Jan.2010.

I don't think it's overstating things to say that Jason Ogden is a legend of the Saint John music scene.

Back when I was just a kid going to an all ages show at The Hampton Youth Centre, Jason blew me away fronting his then band NFA.

And just this week, a much more cynical and jaded 31 year old crank--me--was blown away again when Jason's current band (1 of), Hospital Grade, played the Blue Olive.

On February 13th, Jason and his friend Adam Mowery, along with some other Saint John music legends, are taking the stage for their third annual Valentines Day show at Peppers Pub.

You can buy Hospital Grade's album Secrets and Sawdust on iTunes.

Twenty-one: Sarah Jones

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:01 -0300

Photographed looking through the window of her Germain Street gallery and studio space on 22.Jan.2010

Sarah Jones told me time spent earning an art history degree in Ontario gave her a special appreciation for Saint John and its people.

The young uptown entrepreneur, artist, and part-time Enterprise Saint John employee recently converted her Beans bookstore on Germain Street into a full time gallery and studio space where Saint John residents are invited to stop by and watch her paint, or create and learn about art themselves through courses taught at the gallery.

Until March 6th, you can also see her work in the Canada Games Gallery at the Saint John Arts Centre.