A very Wainwright thing…
I have been thinking a lot recently, about love. Last week I found myself in the audience of a Rufus Wainwright concert at Yale, and I was struck, once again, at the overwhelming feeling of love in the room. The Wainwrights are a spectacularly talented lot: Loudon Wainwright is the father, Rufus and Martha the children, Kate McGarrigle the mother, and assorted relatives, including Sloan, the aunt (who opened for Rufus at Yale, and whose voice has such resonance and beauty it brings tears to my eyes) make up this extraordinary family.
All photographs by Tracy Ketcher
I do not do concerts anymore, and I am not someone who is impressed by celebrity, but I am deeply impressed with talent. After discovering the Wainwrights a few years ago, I go in to the city once a year for their annual Christmas concert at Carnegie Hall, and am always awestruck by the feeling of love and connection in the audience.
I went to this concert, as I always do, with The Horsey Girl and her step-daughter, who is a brilliantly talented photographer. She got to sit up at the front and take these photos which I adore - not just because they are beautiful photos, but because for me, they capture the cheekiness of Rufus Wainwright, and I do think that great photography is so much about capturing the essence of your subject.
I have loved my moody beach picture which is my current publicity shot, but everyone tells me it doesn't capture 'me' at all, and so I have asked the wonderful Tracy to come and take some new photos of me, which she will be doing in a couple of weeks - I cannot wait... Will post them when I have them to see what you think. In the meantime, you can see her work at www.tracyketcher.com.
Recently I have written that I have come to realise that Love is a verb. That it requires acts of love. And these past few weeks I have seen it in motion. One of my friends is unwell. Not the sort of unwell that requires climbing into bed with a hot honey and lemon and aching for a few days until you get better, but the kind of unwell that is frightening and life-changing, that requires daily trips to the hospital, that forces everyone around her to look at life with a different perspective.
I was with her last week, at the hospital, when she asked her doctor - one of the best and brightest in his field - about levels in her blood that seemed unusual. He assured us it was fine. Her brother, upon hearing the news, swiftly got on his computer, and a few hours later came up with the precise explanation as to why the levels were unusual (the news was good).
This is a man who, since the diagnosis, has devoted himself to being his sister's advocate. He has become an extraordinary researcher, sifting through the thousands of pages of information, to find out things that you or I wouldn't possibly know. Even doctors, even the best, cannot possibly spend all these hours discovering the very latest research, the very latest news. But this is what my friends brother has chosen to do. Every day he has more information, and every day, he holds her in his heart as he continues to prove that love is a verb.
It is awe-inspiring to watch. And inspiring. I am so very lucky to be living a life that is filled with love, every day.
Thanks so much for this - loved every word of it! Oh, and the pictures - adorable
Thanks so much for this - loved every word of it! Oh, and the pictures - adorable
Lovely post and I agree wholeheartedly.
Love is most certaiinly a verb, as your friend's brother demonstrates so well.
And, don't you love the McGarrigle's song, Talk to Me of Menocino? So gorgeous.
Lovely post and I agree wholeheartedly.
Love is most certaiinly a verb, as your friend's brother demonstrates so well.
And, don't you love the McGarrigle's song, Talk to Me of Menocino? So gorgeous.
Great photos
A lovely post as well -- and you're quite right, Rufus (& family) bring out the best in all of us 
Great photos
A lovely post as well -- and you're quite right, Rufus (& family) bring out the best in all of us 
Dear Jane,
Your essay about your experience at the Rufus Wainwright concert the other night and about the very talented Wainwright family in general gave me a serene, peaceful feeling. I also thoroughly enjoyed Tracy Ketcher's photos of Rufus and feel she captured the essence of his passion for his music. She's a very talented photographer even if, as her mother, I may be prejudiced! Thank you for all the compliments for Tracy and appreciating her talent.
Dear Jane,
Your essay about your experience at the Rufus Wainwright concert the other night and about the very talented Wainwright family in general gave me a serene, peaceful feeling. I also thoroughly enjoyed Tracy Ketcher's photos of Rufus and feel she captured the essence of his passion for his music. She's a very talented photographer even if, as her mother, I may be prejudiced! Thank you for all the compliments for Tracy and appreciating her talent.
Ditto, on the love that we enjoy every day.
Love to speak to you about illustration.
I shall be in touch this week.
Lots of irons in the fire here!
pve
Ditto, on the love that we enjoy every day.
Love to speak to you about illustration.
I shall be in touch this week.
Lots of irons in the fire here!
pve
He will be at Musikfest in Bethlehem, PA, Aug. 7th. It's a great festival if you've never been there! We live in the city and enjoy it so much every year. The tickets are only $37.
http://www.fest.org
He will be at Musikfest in Bethlehem, PA, Aug. 7th. It's a great festival if you've never been there! We live in the city and enjoy it so much every year. The tickets are only $37.
http://www.fest.org