Color | Virtually Gina

Red Doors

April 25, 2016 by Gina Marie

When I see a red door, I am drawn to its whimsy and vibrancy. Inspired by the audacity of whoever painted such a color, I find myself wondering: what is the story here? It turns out there are quite a few reasons a person might paint their door red. In the ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui, a red door is said to draw welcoming energies into a home. Many Christian churches have red doors, a tradition stemming from an Old Testament story wherein the […]

Categories: Doors, Urban, East Coast, Photography, Photo Essay • Tags: Color, Doors, East Coast, iPhoneography, Photo Essay, Photography, Portals, Urban

Interview with Travel Photographer Kimberly Vogel

October 26, 2013 by Gina Marie

The German word for “bird” is “Vogel,” which is especially fitting given the way photographer Kimberly Vogel seems to flit about from continent to continent, Canon SX120 in tow. The images she captures have the power to transform a subject as banal as a cup of coffee into something downright sublime. She recently unleashed a new website to document her travels. In recent years, this emerging American artist has visited Japan, Sweden, Tunisia, Palau, and Thailand, among others. She draws […]

Categories: Architecture, Art, Birds, Color, Interview, Photography, Travel • Tags: Architecture, Art, Birds, Color, Interview, Photography, Travel

Guanyin, the Bodhisattva of Compassion

July 11, 2013 by Gina Marie

The following collage is based on a work of art called “Bodhisattva of Compassion (Guanyin),” located in the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Asian Art wing. In searching for a verse to accompany the image, I was reminded of the following song lyrics: “Wake up the dawn and ask her why A dreamer dreams she never dies Wipe that tear away now from your eyes.” -Oasis, “Champagne Supernova*” The last line seems especially appropriate, as it might well have been uttered […]

Categories: Art, Buddha, Collage, Color, Compassion, Mixed Media, Music • Tags: Art, Buddha, Collage, Color, Compassion, Mixed Media, Music

Emblems of the Underworld

March 23, 2013 by Gina Marie

The following collage superimposes three images atop one another. In the background stands a silhouette of the Sacré-Cœur Basilica in Paris. Below on either side are the mirror images of a statue in Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill Cemetery. I used an HP M537 PhotoSmart camera to photograph the basilica, a Nikon D3100 to photograph the statue, and two photo editing programs to manipulate the digital images (i.e., Microsoft Picture It! and Google’s Picasa). When I look at this image, I am reminded the following lines […]

Categories: Art, Collage, Color, Light, Photography, Spooky • Tags: Art, Collage, Color, Light, Photography, Spooky

Modern-Day Time Capsule

January 13, 2013 by Gina Marie

Recently, I received access to the data files from an old flip phone on which I had stored several low-res photos. Viewing the newly-rediscovered images was akin to unearthing my own personal time capsule, placed unwittingly in the bowels of this technological dinosaur (otherwise known as a Samsung SGH A157) by a slightly-younger me only to be discovered several years down the line. I share a few of these newly discovered images with you, dear reader. This was a mural […]

Categories: Art, Color, Memoir, Minneapolis, Photo Journal, Travel • Tags: Art, Color, Memoir, Minneapolis, Photo Journal, Travel

A Visually Aware Human Being

December 6, 2012 by Gina Marie

“I’m not just a ‘photographer’ or a ‘painter,’ but a visually aware human being searching out ways to communicate the intensities of life.” -American artist Barbara Morgan (1900-1992)

Categories: Architecture, Art, Color, Drawing, Holidays, Inspiration, Life, Light, Philadelphia, Photography, Shadow, Winter • Tags: Architecture, Art, Color, Drawing, Holidays, Inspiration, Life, Light, Philadelphia, Photography, Shadow, Winter

Resplendent in Autumn: Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill Cemetery

November 20, 2012 by Gina Marie

Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill Cemetery is one of America’s most notable burial grounds. Founded in 1836, during a time when the only options for burial were in overcrowded churchyards, Laurel Hill was established as a bucolic alternative where the living could bury their dearly departed. In recent years, the cemetery was designated a “National Historic Landmark” — the first graveyard in the country to receive such a title. Many notable figures have been buried here, among them Civil War generals, Titanic […]

Categories: Art, Color, Graveyards, Nature, Philadelphia, Photography, Travel • Tags: Art, Color, Graveyards, nature, Philadelphia, Photography, Travel

Unexpectedly, She

November 8, 2012 by Gina Marie

(Mixed Media, 2012)

Categories: Art, Collage, Color, Drawing, Portraits • Tags: Art, Collage, Color, Drawing, Portraits

In Heaven, It Is Autumn All Year Round

October 27, 2012 by Gina Marie

The Wissahickon Valley is a 1,400-acre park in the northwest corner of Philadelphia proper. Second to none when it comes to beautiful scenery all year round, the area is particularly breathtaking in autumn. No wonder it has inspired poets, writers, photographers, and painters for so many centuries. Nowadays, the park hosts mostly pedestrians, equestrians, hikers and bikers. (Few rollerbladers come here, however, since the vast majority of paths are unpaved.) Scattered alongside the wooded paths, ancient trees bear the markings […]

Categories: Autumn, Color, Nature, Philadelphia, Photography, Travel • Tags: Autumn, Color, nature, Philadelphia, Photography, Travel