kennel club

In the wake of a tryptophanciful weekend, overflowing with stuffed bellies and long drives down back-country roads, I bring you some of the non-edible spoils! Goldberg and I spent our Thanksgiving alone together- and he cooked us a tremendous dinner, which was, in every aspect, more enjoyable than Thanksgiving last year. The menu was much the same, but last year I was just coming out of the hospital for the second to last time, I was supposed to be fasting, but was granted a few holiday nibbles (which mostly consisted of stealing a bite of M's amazing stuffing every time I was upright to go to the bathroom), but mostly I recall being in so much pain I nearly passed out repeatedly that day, being heavily doped up on codeine and watching Eraserhead in my delirium. Not a highly recommended combination. Though I was afraid to move basically through the New Year, and every mysterious feeling prompted terror that I was falling apart yet again... little did I know I was on my way to a full and shiny recovery. This year I can truly be thankful for everything I have, and top of my list is my health. I am also thankful for the amazing people I have had the chance to get to know better and spend time with this year, both personally and professionally; my travels big and small - and the generous sponsors who made the big trip to Iceland possible; as well as the amazing photography projects I had the chance to work on this year with some very fine folks near and far. Last but not least I am thankful for my Goldberg and my family, all of whom are always there for me, even when I was running off to the emergency room... again... and not in top form.... or even when I was a total crabapotamous. I love you all.


first blush © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.

Towards the end of October I went to see my friend Phil Nesmith's show Flight Patterns at the Irvine Contemporary in Washington DC (which continues through December 12 and is well worth a visit!). His large scale photograms on glass plates depict intriguing interplays of winged creatures and containers, all in silhouette.

Directly after the show I made my way to visit one Ms. Plaisted in rural Maryland, where we were joined by the lovely Irina Souiki. Halloween merrymaking ensued, as did some afternoon trespassing while the kids napped. It was great to spend time with two long-time friends (Linda who I had met prior at her opening in Frederick in April, and Irina who I first met when she showed up at my Cafe Estelle opening early this year and many times thereafter when she returned to Philly on consequent business trips) - all three of us have long been drawn to beautiful abandoned buildings, though Linda had never actually been inside one, we took her for a grand tour in return for her kind hospitality.


aghast © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.

Treading lightly, we managed to get into a couple houses without being noticed. When I returned home that night, driving in the dark I stumbled across an abandoned building whose location I passed along to Linda and Irina. The next day they went on to explore it and instead, came across "The Dog House" nearby, so named for the unfortunate soul Irina discovered in the basement- the remains of a small dog who had apparently become trapped, tried and failed to escape. After seeing their photos, I really wanted to make a trek back down to MD with Goldberg to do some more exploring and hopefully see The Dog House firsthand. So this weekend, we did just that.


curb your dog © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.


samoyed © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.


Rising at 6am (which is basically unheard of for me), we hit the road by 7:30 and were sneaking in a side door by 10... the first day this autumn that actually felt chilly enough to be winter. The house had been mostly abandoned for 18 years, according to the most recent newspapers strewn on the kitchen floor, though one of the bedrooms appeared to have hosted a squatter in more recent years, the bare mattress dressed with a pillow, frilly lamp and clock, blankets pinned up in the windows, a lone chair in the corner. Every room was a different and more daring color combination, reds, pinks, patterns, royal blues, dark grays, green, and yellow.


sleeping dogs lie © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



irish setter © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.


I couldn't bring myself to go in the basement to see the house's namesake, but I was aware of his frail presence the whole time. In his honor and in the memory three friends' of beloved pets I learned were lost over the holiday weekend, I named each of the images after dog breeds and idioms.


kennel © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



piebald © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



panting © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



bark and bite © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



house trained © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



collar © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



sire © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.



bloodhound © Laura Kicey, All Rights Reserved.

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Finally, it is the dreaded holiday shopping time of the year. To make it a little less painful, between now and December 15th I am offering sale prices and free shipping on your choice of any photograph (or construct!) in my etsy shop (or something on flickr that isn't there but tickles your fancy) - at 8"x12"/11"x17"/12"x18" sizes. See the featured items in my shop and send a message with your print choice along with your purchase.