Artography by Dlonzo - Portfolio
I like to say I began taking pictures in 1982, but the truth is I’ve been taking pictures since 5th grade. I remember getting my first camera when I graduated from 6th grade. It was a Kodak 126 film camera. It required one of those cartridges that you inserted.
I remember the first time I picked up the camera. My parents were away or out of the room and I snapped a picture of the light bulb in the bedroom. I put the camera down and hoped they wouldn’t find out, but of course when the pictures were processed…, but I don’t recall ever being asked if I had taken the picture, but I’m sure it probably happened.
Although, until I started taking pictures, the camera would just be there until someone was reminded to get the pictures processed.
Taking pictures just came natural to me, but I never saw it as an art form the way I do today. I would take pictures at the family gatherings and school plays. I can say now that I really had an eye for capturing things, but at the time I never thought anything of it. I just liked taking pictures.
The fun part was when the pictures came back from Fox photo or Katz and Bestoff which were two of the main photo places at the time. Film would be in the camera for long periods of time until there was a reason to take pictures. Once the entire roll was used up then it was brought to the store to be processed. It usually took about a week and sometimes they stayed longer until someone had a reason to go to the store to pick them up.
(Some of the models after their first audition)
When I got older and had my own money I could speed up the process. Back then picture taking was pretty easy. Everything was in focus, but sometimes a head or an arm might get cut off. It was all about learning. I often wonder why I didn’t take photography in high school? My focus then was on writing. I took journalism and was on the school newspaper. I was on the year book staff all four years. Still, I never tried to take any of the pictures except those of myself. Maybe it was because there were several photographers and they were usually taking pictures of me. It’s funny the things you can remember when you start writing about past experiences.
(A photoshoot in the studio)
Just the other day I was trying to remember how I got hooked on the Pentax K1000. Perhaps it was from an ad I had seen in a magazine. I’m not sure if I knew anyone that was using that camera. I think the first person to photograph me (Bruce Sondes) may have used this camera. However it happened, it became my camera of choice. When anyone would ask me what camera they should purchase, Pentax K1000 was my recommendation. It was big, but it was easy to use. It also did a lot of things that you didn’t have to create in the darkroom. I believe when I started working it was one of the first things I purchased.
I started taking pictures during my lunch hour of the buildings downtown. When I decided to show my work around people thought they looked like post cards. I would shoot a roll every two weeks, maybe less. Even then I still had to be inspired.
I was still learning because this new camera required me to take control. I had to teach myself about f stops, film speed, focusing, etc.
When I lost my first job, everything changed. A new world opened up to me. A world I never had any intention of being a part of. This is why I believe things happen for a reason. We meet people sometimes for them to help us and sometimes we help them or we help each other. By accident the world of modeling presented itself. Then I decided I’d start my own modeling troupe and began taking my own pictures. The rest as they say is history.
In November of 1982, I started something that I had never ever thought about. Most of us think about being famous and we chase after that dream until something else comes along. I always thought I would be an actor, but the plan changed when I was asked to return home to attend school at least for two years. I was 17 when I graduated from high school and my mother thought I was too young to be in California alone. It was one of those things that just wasn’t meant to be. I had some connections, but mother usually always wins. LOL.
I came up with a new plan as to what I wanted to do. College just wasn’t for me, but I did learn some stuff that came in handy. The entire time I was in college I just kept thinking I wanted a job where I could sit behind a desk. I really didn’t care what it was as long as there was a desk. There was no size of a desk, just the image of me behind a desk. I was majoring in Architecture which again was not my original plan. When I had applied to Berkley I wanted to major in commercial art. I followed the rules as they say on getting that first job, but it wasn’t working. Finally, I just made a call to the principal of the high school I attended. Which is the reason I felt I was ready to work. I had learned so much in high school. The principal had a contact and it lead to my first job and I was sitting behind a desk. I also got a chance to use some of that drafting I had learned.
(The last fashion show)
When I got laid off from my first job I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. That was a blow to my new plan, but I found out I could get unemployment. I would get paid not to have to work. To a 21 year old that was like, so cool. Right before the lay off’s one of my supervisors had taken a picture of me at a company function and asked if I ever thought about modeling. I laughed. Acting yes, modeling no.
I took a weekend gig working for Paramount Pictures’ insurance company and started to look into other things I liked to do. I had started taking pictures and I had sold a few. I didn’t really know what types of pictures I wanted to take specifically so I was doing some of everything. Buildings, people, anything that appealed to me.
One day I went to a modeling audition with a cousin and I decided to try out. I mean, it never crossed my mind especially since I was not 6 feet tall. The guy in charge of the agency said he could get me work. Now whether or not he was running a scam or not I wasn’t sure, but I was working and I was making good money and I still had a new plan.
I had another cousin who was working for a hair stylist that was putting on a hair show and they needed some people to model hair and clothing. There was no pay involved, but it was a new experience. It suddenly hit me, why not start my own group of models. The woman in charge (Peggy Toregano) encouraged me to do it and that’s when Dlonzo Modeling Troupe was created. We started out small and then began to expand. I called everyone that I could think of who I thought would want to be apart of my venture. The majority of us had never thought about modeling, but I saw it as a stepping stone to other things. A chance to meet people, make new friends and connections. It also provided some extra money for camera equipment and other things for my studio. I passed along as many perks and information to my models as I could. Tickets to events, discounts on clothing, etc.
I remember the first big fashion show was for Milne Boys Home on Franklin Avenue in New Orleans. It was a fund raiser and some of the boys at the home either modeled or performed. I had 20 models for that show; it was a great experience.
When I started getting work for my models with other people I then became an agent when needed. Since there were other agencies involved in other shows, sometimes the models’ checks would go to them and I’d have to step in to make sure they got paid. I would then charge a standard 10% fee to get them their money. Then I saw a new opportunity and the name was changed to Dlonzo Models. In the beginning we were all around the same height so that it really didn’t seem odd on the runway. As opportunities presented themselves I went with the industry standards, but my original models always had a spot. One of the department stores took my idea and created petite models. The industry called for Female models to be 5’9” and male models at least 5’11”.
The head of Elite models once said, “you can’t teach modeling, you either have it or you don’t.” I always believed that. Some models have a face, some have a body and some have a walk. Finding all three is the challenge.
Things were really working out. I was working almost every weekend as I still had my regular job. I would produce a show for groups trying to raise money and then I worked for others. When I wasn’t working I was focusing on taking pictures. At the time I didn’t think of my photographs as art, but when people would look at my portfolio they would start telling me my work looked like other photographers whom I had never heard of. When I started doing research I saw the resemblance and I started to see myself and my work differently.
Artography by Dlonzo was the name I came up with before I started Dlonzo Modeling Troupe. I wanted to create a persona that would allow me to still have my privacy. (Today they call it branding.) (There were other services I was providing. Designing logos, tee shirts, business cards, letter heads, greeting cards and other printing needs along with photography.)
Although I had always dreamed of being famous, I never wanted my life to change.
Andy Warhol once said, “In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes.”
I used to get recognized from a commercial I had done, but I could always play it off. Of course children can sometimes insist that they recognize you. People would always tell me I looked familiar. In the late 80’s and 90’s I would get mistaken for Spike Lee.
I started wearing baseball caps and had circle rimmed glasses like he did. (Although I liked Spike Lee’s movies, I didn’t like people thinking I was him.)
In 1989 when an article was written about me in the Times Picayune my life changed for a brief moment and then everything seemed to change. (When I look at the article now there was some misinformation, but that’s journalism. They just didn‘t pay attention to what I was saying and added on to fill up space.) There were more doors opening, but there were other things happening as well. My models were going through personal things that made me rethink what I was doing.
Early on I had decided I would give anyone who wanted to model the chance. Who was I to tell someone they couldn’t do something. After all, I decided to take it on when I wasn’t part of industry standards. There were some that were really talented and if they had been taller could have probably made a career on the runways of New York. I did have a few models move into the film world and commercials.
(The outfit was one of my designs that came to fruition)
In the early 90’s there was a young girl that really wanted to be a model. Turns out her mother was a model when she was younger. She was featured in my last show at the Lakeside Shopping Center in Metairie, Louisiana. That show was the biggest I had ever done. I was introducing many new faces. I got to model for Benetton and Oaktree. Stores such as Porter Stevens, 5-7-9, and The Limited participated in the show. I was trusted with thousands of dollars worth of clothing as some of the stores were not open on Sundays. I knew I was on my way.
I had found someone that wanted to invest in the career of the young model. Things were starting to happen until she was found dead. Then there seemed to be some sort of snowball effect. Two models died tragically, and another from illness.
My parents had become concerned about me, but I was okay. I just couldn’t believe what was happening. Everything just came to a halt. I just stopped everything.
It was almost a year later, when I picked up my camera again to take pictures when I went to Seattle, Washington in 1994 for the first time to attend the Seattle International Film Festival. I was now focusing my attention on something else. My art was now becoming my therapy and the camera was bringing it all to light.
The photographs tell the story of a moment in time. Together they tell a story of my life. I’ve photographed so many people for so many different moments in their lives. School campaigns, graduations, weddings, celebrations, newspaper articles, portfolios and so much more.
My camera has allowed me to travel to many places I probably never would have seen.
In 2001, I decided to embrace the fact that I was an artist. I would just create art through my writing, drawing, photography, poetry and performing.
Today I consider myself an Xtreme artist that takes pictures among other things. (see above.) It’s now Artography by Dlonzo and it is coming along one picture at a time. I like to take things slow. I like to get to know the people I would like to photograph. I want the picture to speak to the viewer. And the client will remember that moment as if it were just taken.
I understand being an artist is not a bad thing. We have to embrace our creativity. Without creativity and curiosity the world would be a boring place.
No one would ask questions and no one would give there interpretation through visuals. I just focus on doing the best I can and enjoying what I do.
Artography by Dlonzo “It’s not just a Photograph, it’s Art!”
If you are in need of an artist/photographer drop me a line 1960Photo@gmail.com or Photo1960@aol.com
(This entry is dedicated to the thousands of people I have photographed over the years. Some famous and some not so famous, but it was truly an honor.)
Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind and do come back again to see where the journey leads.
Check out my other blogs for more insight.
http://dlonzo-OpenYourMind.blogspot.com
http://filmlover4pg.blogspot.com
http://artbyDlonzo.blogspot.com
(Tom discusses one of the pieces with one of the models)
(art lovers at the bar)
(I'm always creating art within art)
(Part of the permanent display from the first show I had seen at the gallery)
