Friday, June 27, 2008

The Art of Gesture in Tourist Italy


(Warning: silly pictures ahead)

Okay - back from my week in Italy, visiting Pompeii and Herculaneum (more about them later, perhaps) and in an accidental sort of way, Pisa - from which there was a convenient flight. We managed to arrive in time for the yearly Luminaria celebration (more about that later too). In Pisa my elder daughter became fascinated by all the people taking pictures of their friends holding up the leaning tower, or pushing it over - it is never easy to tell from the wrong angle. At times there were four or five people in a row all holding their hands up - which, when taken out of context, looked like some kind of mass-hallucination tai chi class.

She asked me for her camera and disappeared for a half hour, and then came back with these, which I think vie with many of the conceptual art pieces in the Whitney Museum. I found them hilarious and strangely compelling.















19 comments:

in_flux said...

Tell your daughter bravo. She clearly inherited your since of whimsy and ability to take new perspectives.

spacedlaw said...

It does look like a giant tai chi group gone mad...
I have given you an award.

Namnet said...

I do like the pictures:-)
The situation is the same as with Greenwich Meridian, based at the Royal Observatory, in London. People stay long queue just to take a picture of themselves staying with one leg on the Eastern and the other on the Western Hemisphere.
The funny thing is that the meridian stretches along the whole yard of the observatory but people take pictures just in one place. In front of some kind of work of art.

Barry Pike said...

What hilarious genius!

Rima Staines said...

Brilliant!!

Anonymous said...

Hullo! Not sure if you've already happened upon this, but just in case..
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5747670

Jean said...

I like the last two especially! Your kid's a natural!

Heather McDougal said...

Yes I have seen the etsy page, but thanks for the reminder! My birthday's coming up in a couple of months...

Sam said...

Wow, I'm never, ever going to do that.

Bolsoman said...

You're on Phonkmeister now: everyone in Italy knows it already! :)

Anonymous said...

:D I'm italian and I do live in Pisa, as a student. I see those strange "poses" almost every day, in my way to the university.
I don't deny every now and then I try to ruin their photos walking right between them and the cameras (and by "them" I mean especially the japs :D), but if I had to walk trying to avoid their "shot range" I should as well buy a pair of ski and "slalom" them. Nice photos, by the way. I hope you enjoyed your journey in Italy :)

Francesco

Marcy Massura said...

THIS is pure comedy, Seriously....people crack me up. What we will do just to have that funny picture of ourselves for our desktop I guess.

I have been there too- and it was not really funny in person. It was just accepted thing to do. Raise your hands in a yoga pose and say CHEESE!!!!! Tell your daughter she has a future in photog. journalism with an eye like this! I am a photog too!

Anonymous said...

Love the Giant Lady in the first one...

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful collection of photos. Your daughter has a keen eye.

Anonymous said...

Nice job! I have documented this phenomenon as well... enjoy:

http://doiop.com/pisapose

Anonymous said...

I did this pose back in '94. I wonder who was the first person to strike this pose was?

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness...this gave me a real laugh :) well done to your daughter :)

Anonymous said...

We've all been there and got the Leaning Pisa photos but great collection of different people in your images. Great collation!

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Venice accommodation

Italy said...

Make sure you include Italy in your next holiday plans .