C´è Sempre un Motivo Gallery
Sicily, Italy 2006
® Baron Barnett
The time with Ernesto is very spiritual. Viewing his images is very moving. The editing sessions enhance ones awareness of their visual environment. If you wish to stimulate and spark your visual perspective, spend time with Ernesto. You won’t forget it! Baron Barnett
® Bob Cocozza
It was wonderful to be back in Sicily. Having the opportunity to spend time with friends made last year was as important as the photography. Visiting, photographing, drinking wine at a local enoteca or preparing for a marathon shoot with a hot arancina. What a brilliant way to spend ten days.
On numerous occasions I have heard Ernesto say: ”it is important to return to the same event or location if you want to build a strong body of images. With my second trip to Sicily, I have taken Ernesto’s advice and my collection of images is all the richer! Bob Cocozza
® Hin Chua
For me, this entire experience has transcended the mere act of taking photographs. I’ve learned so much in the areas of previsualization, processing, editing and above all, the discipline and persistence required for creating a meaningful body of work. My friends say that my pictures look different after this. Whether they’ll continue to remain different I do not know. What I can be sure of is that I will hold on to the lessons learned here for the rest of my life. The world looks slightly different now. Hin Chua
® Keith Prue
Just before I left for Sicily, my wife cautioned me that the experience might not match my previous wonderful workshop with Ernesto in Oaxaca. Naturally the people, places and occasions were different, but Ernesto was unchanged. His warmth, generosity, passion for his craft and life and genuine concern for his students is quite remarkable. The most extreme foibles were accommodated with grace and humor. We laughed, joked, shared experiences (both photographic and life) in a fascinating country, where food and religion are so prominent. We were all itching to get out and shoot – not from any sense of competition, but seemingly to share our vision with “the maestro”. We spent delectable hours viewing and discussing Ernesto’s work and that of other masters. The growth in my work was discernible, and again, Ernesto, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for a wonderful extravaganza, and look forward to our next meeting in NY. Keith Prue
® Marcy Cohen
The ten days we spent together in the villa by the sea and exploring northwest Sicily during Easter Week were pure magic and enlightenment. Ernesto, the other participants in the group (including our mascot — the diabolic and entertaining cat Garibaldi) all-providing the essential ingredients for an enriching, entertaining and challenging escape from reality.
Ernesto’s commitment to each student’s individual visual growth is uncompromising. The daily and immediate critique of the group’ shootings was well organized, purposeful and in the end very effective. Ernesto has a discerning point of view and inspires by truth not the usual sugarcoated platitudes. The critiques were tough and honest, yet no less rigorous than the self-criticism and merciless editing Ernesto applies to his own work, rendering the process both effective and supportive. Participating in the Sicily workshop has clearly given me the ingredients to move my photography down the track to the next station.
Despite the hard work we managed to slow from our hectic urban lives experiencing local wines and specialties, meet local photographers and get in tune with Sicily and her seductive ways. Needless to say, I highly recommend Ernesto’s workshops to any serious photographer looking to grow rather than receive mere affirmation of past work.
Grazie e a presto to Ernesto and my new friends… Marcy Cohen
® Stephanie Flack
Processions and passion plays Armani and Gucci draped men and women leap out of the pages of Italian Vogue and strut their stuff alongside their biblical times attired fellow folk. A collision of the ages…a fusion of participants, spectators and voyeurs.
The sepulchral and haunting tones of the brass band pervade and linger into one’s slumber. Sensory indulgence…a feast for the eyes, ears and taste buds. A wonderful and worldly, eclectic band of fun loving, sharp shooting, visual minstrels hanging out in a beautiful, rambling villa on the rim of the Mediterranean Sea. And…the piece de resistance…la crème de la crème… the visual maestro, Signore Ernesto Bazan.
This is…Easter in Sicily. Stephanie Flack
