Adam Jahnke Portfolio

Tomorrow // Aus 6

adam — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 04:37:32 +0000

Wildlife // Aus 5

adam — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 12:42:33 +0000

The Story So Far // Aus 4

adam — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:40:48 +0000

Welcome The Plague Year // Aus 3

adam — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 05:03:03 +0000

mistakes were made // Aus 2

adam — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 13:55:23 +0000

survival is a constant struggle no matter where you are // AUS 1

adam — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 03:24:29 +0000

Oct 14th: Solo Exhibition at Alexander Salazar F.A.

adam — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 05:15:06 +0000

I am pleased to announce that Alexander Salazar Fine Art will be hosting my first big solo exhibition on the evening of Friday October 14th. The images on display will be from my body of work entitled CTRL+ALT+DELETE. The photographs presented will be a departure from traditional photography and more of an exploration into appropriated digital mixed media. The conceptual theme of the work calls into question the purpose of suicide in contemporary culture. So by nature some of the work on view will be graphic in nature. The gallery space is located in downtown San Diego at the corner of 7th and Broadway. The reception will be held from 6-9pm.
I am very excited that this show will be coming on the heels of my showing at MOPA that will take place from September 30th-October 5th. There will be a public viewing of the work from Sept 30th-Oct 3rd. My photo will then be auctioned off on Oct 5th by Christie’s auction house. You can find more info for this event here: MOPA :
I am incredibly excited for both of these events. Please come out!. Thank you all for your continued support.

Oct 5th: MOPA Photography Auction

adam — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 20:54:12 +0000

I am pleased to announce that one of my photographs has been selected to participate in the Museum of Photographic Arts annual photo auction. The auction will be held on October 5^th from 6-9pm at MOPA. The auction will be presided over by Andrea Fiuczynski, president of Christies Los Angeles.

This is a very exciting development for my emerging career as an artist to be participating in such a world-class photography auction. The fact that my work will be apprised along side some of the greats of photography is mind blowing. Though none of the sales from my print will go to myself the recognition from just participating is huge.

Here is the link to MOPA’s website for more detailed information about the auction. MOPA Auction

The print for sale is apart of a series of ten. For information on purchasing a print from the series please contact Alex Salazar at (619) 531-8996 or email at alexsalazarfineart©gmail•com .

DAY 33: Mapleton OR-Florence OR

adam — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 09:32:54 +0000

It has been almost exactly a month since I started peddling from Pueblo CO, destined for the Pacific Ocean. I have traveled for over 2000 miles since leaving Pueblo in June and have finally reached the central coast of Oregon. I have finally completed my journey across the United States by bicycle, which began on the east coast of Virginia and has ended on the west coast of Oregon. This journey has taken me over four thousand miles and spanned two years of my life. Experiencing the United States via bicycle has been such a tremendous honor and privilege. The speed at which one travels on a bicycle allows for this incredible interaction that occurs between the rider and the surrounding environment. This experience has resulted in some of the most raw euphoric of feelings. It has also lead to some very primal fear that makes one contemplate physical safety and wellbeing. But it is these emotional highs and lows that create such an enriching experience that creates a lifetime of stories, memories and lessons that can only be obtained through such a means.
I started this trip with four companions and finished alone. Traveling solo for the second half of this trip was a truly new experience that I frankly enjoyed. As much as I wanted friends to initially accompany me, I found that once I started I really came to enjoy the solitude and flexibility of traveling alone. Granted there were many times I wished I had somebody to share a moment with, but there is also this incredible beauty in experiencing a new emotion utterly alone and unaltered by the presence of a companion. It is these experiences and emotions that only exist in my memory and truly belong to me alone.
I arrived in Florence Oregon on the 29th of July, a full five days ahead of what I had initially planned. I really don’t know why I had arrived so much earlier than what I had anticipated but whatever the reason may be I was pleasantly surprised. The coast was a beautiful sight after spending so much time in the Rockies and Cascades. Oregon was a formidable state to ride through. If I wasn’t climbing for many miles, I was dealing with blistering temperatures and battling head winds. The state itself was a scenic surprise. Starting from the east and cycling across to the west allowed me to see a varied geography that I never had considered for a state so well known for the Cascades and coast. To be completely honest I really didn’t enjoy much of riding through Oregon until I was at least three days out from the coast. I did get to stay with some incredible families along the way in Oregon. I had a house to stay at in Baker City, a deluxe donation based hostel in Mt. Vernon, a home in Redmond and a home in Eugene. Everyone who put me up was a delight and I am very thankful for their kindness and generosity. Upon Leaving Redmond I was on my way to the McKenzie pass. An intense sustained climb that lasted for over twenty miles but took me to an incredible view of a lava rock sea that spanned for miles in every direction. It was a very lord of the rings type of landscape. My decent down the McKenzie pass lasted for about twenty miles and directed me right into the thick Cascadian forest. The cascades were unlike anything I had ever seen before. The tall dense forest had crazy amounts of old growth covered in moss that is then covered in more old growth. It was awesome to spend a few nights sleeping in the raw essence of it all. I eventually made it to Eugene where i had an incredible family of bicycle tourists put me up for a night. I left Eugene destined for the coast but had decided to prolong my coastal arrival until the next day. So I decided to ride to the small town of Mapleton, which was 14 miles outside of Florence and camped behind the local elementary school. I had an incredibly hard time trying to sleep that night knowing how close I was to reaching the water. I can only compare the anxiousness I felt to the emotions experienced the night before Christmas morning. I could never sleep the night before Christmas. I finally dosed off and woke up before the sun came up. I finished up the last fourteen miles and arrived in Florence before noon. I rode straight to the local bike shop before seeing the water and inquired about obtaining a cardboard bike box that I could pack my bike up in. They said they did and they cost ten dollars. Bogus! This stuff is just trash and you want ten dollars for it. I have never paid for a bike box in my life. Of course I didn’t say any of this but just promptly left their shop and rummaged around through their dumpster until I found a bike box. Eat my shorts 101 bicycle shop. After procuring a bike box and hiding it, I made my way to the water. The fog was still pretty thick on the coast so I really could not see much until I was literally on the beach. I roamed around the beach looking for a good place to photograph and the marine layer burned off. The scenery was spectacular. This coast line was unlike anything I had ever seen before, the Oregon coast appeared very dramatic and unforgiving, though still very enchanting. After making some phone calls and taking photos I went and picked up my bike box and rode over to the local postal shipping store, packaged my bike and shipped it off. I then picked up my backpack that my mom had shipped to Florence, filled it with the essentials and was now destined for Portland. I successfully migrated my way to Portland a couple days ago and am now in the company of friends who I have not seen in a very long time. Since being in Portlandia I have been on vegan overload. To go for so long without having any vegan accommodations to now having the opportunity to go to a vegan strip club is mind blowing. I think I am actually experiencing a bit of culture shock. Since being in Portland I have also been afforded the opportunity to travel to Seattle Washington where I went and had arguably the world’s best vegan donuts. Needless to say, I ate five and had two this morning. I will be in Portland for the next week fattening up on vegan delights, attending shows, art openings and zine symposiums.

I will be back in San Diego at the end of August and preparing for my first solo art exhibition at Alex Salazar Fine Art, in San Diego, that will be taking place Saturday October 1^st. I hope to see you all there; it should be a pretty good time.

I would like to thank everyone who has supported me on this trip thus far, especially equipment wise. Special thanks go out to Charlie Kent, Jeremy Nuttal, my brother Andrew and my Dad for so graciously letting me borrow their camping/traveling gear. Thank you to everyone along the way who has opened up their home to me and let me shower and sleep. Thank you to everyone who mailed me a care package in Missoula, hopefully you all have received what I sent you back. Thank you to everyone who reads this blog and has offered up words of encouragement, thank you so much. The rough parts of this trip were always eased when I would recall or see your kind words. I will be contributing to this blog more frequently so check back for new work, exhibition details and updates on my future travels (ie. 2011-2012 Australian Crusty Punk Traveling Bender Extravaganza!)

Thank you all for reading.

-Adam

Day 26: Oxbow OR-Baker City OR

adam — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 07:43:41 +0000

7/19/11: Grangeville ID- Riggins ID:

I woke up in the city park of Grangeville on the morning of the 19th around 6:30. I restlessly slept that night worrying about weather or not I would be sprayed by sprinklers in the middle of the night. There were signs posted everywhere warning unsuspecting campers of these sprinklers but the sprinklers were not visible above ground. Selecting a sleeping spot was a gambled. I ended up choosing right and watched sprinklers go off around me but not on me. Me and Vince made breakfast together and schooled each other on places to camp for the upcoming evening. Right before riding away Vince informed me that he was filming for an upcoming feature length film he was collecting footage for and inquired about interviewing me on camera. I obliged, wanting to help out, and answered a few questions while trying to not look like to much of an idiot. Well see when the film is done. Vince and I split ways and I was headed to Riggins. The morning started off very nice with a four mile climb that descended into a ten mile decent down a 7% grade. I was going pretty fast for those ten miles. Once I got to the bottom of the hill I was flagged over to the side of the road by a sheriff’s deputy. I guess I was blocking traffic for a while bombing down the hill. The bike lane was treacherous so I took a lane for a few miles. My safety down that hill was my number one priority not weather or not some one in a car was going to be slightly inconvenienced. I shrugged off the officers request to stay out of the cars lane and didn’t say much to him except, “uhhhhh yeah, nope, never will I do that again, I pramise”. I got back on my bike and continued riding along the Salmon River inside of a pretty steep canyon. The ride was very hot until about mile 40 when I noticed rain drops falling out of a bright blue clear sky. I had never experienced this before; it was absolutely beautiful, like I was riding my bicycle through a surreal dreamscape. A few miles later I realized that those drops were being blown from a massive storm cloud just beyond a blind turn. Ughhhh my joy quickly transformed into utter disappointment. I quickly scrambled under a bridge to take shelter from the storm. I stayed under that bridge for quite a while watching smiling people raft by me on the river. I was maybe under there for an hour and decided that I would make a break for it during a pause in the weather. I made it to Riggins shortly after and the weather started back again. I decided to take shelter again inside of a screen printing studio for temporary relief until I could figure out where I could set up camp. It turns out that the deputy from earlier that morning was in there moonlighting as a graphic artist. Uhhhhhhhhh. O well he didn’t sass me, I don’t even think he even recognized me. He ended up giving me a pretty good for camping along the lower salmon. After the weather stopped again I bid farwell and headed to the lower salmon about a quarter mile awhile. The spot along the river was very scenic but not as good as my little slice of heaven I got a few days prior on the Clearwater River. I made dinner and got to bed fairly early that night.

7/20/11: Riggins ID-Council ID.

I woke up to gun shots and RV generators on the lower salmon the morning of the 20th. I slowly got my things together that morning and made breakfast. I left the lower salmon around 9:30. I made it back to the road and headed for council. The ride involved a fair amount of climbing with a solid 70 miles ahead of me. The weather was fairly perfect this day. The sun was out but there was just enough gentle cloud cover to keep me nice and shaded. I made it to new meadows id around two, ate some lunch, made some phone calls and charged my iPod. I hopped back on my bike around three and was off to my final destination. The rest of the ride to council was very nice. More clouds cleared out, the wind was low and I was feeling pretty good. I rode through a town called tamarack that was characterized by one huge lumber yard that prompted visions of scenes from the kids movie fern gully. It was pretty bad. The lumber yard was appropriately named evergreen forests. Go figure. I made it to council and used a pay phone to call the sheriffs office about camping in the park. They said u can’t camp in the park but I can camp behind the old court house. Awesome. I made it to the courthouse and started soaking rice for dinner. After dinner I decided to sleep under the picnic table I had just cooked on.

7/21/11: council id-oxbow or

I awoke the morning of the 21st under the picnic table, which turned out to be a great impromptu shelter. I gathered my things and ate a small breakfast. I then headed to the local grocer and bought some produce as well as another loaf of bread. Sourdough. I then started my ride onto Oxbow. I reached the town of Cambridge ID about 20 miles into my ride and decide to bread for brunch. It was eleven. After brunch and some colorful conversations with the locals I was off again. I approached the climb I had anticipated about five miles later and it was so much worse than I could have imagined. The climb wasn’t so bad but there were road crews resurfacing the road which meant that for the entire climb I was riding on loose packed gravel, dodging massive trucks, on coming traffic and loose bits of rocks flung at me from car tires. This lasted for around seven miles. It was probably the worst stretch of road I have ridden on. I finally made it to the pass and bombed my way down a road that was in slightly better condition. A lot of lose asphalt. I descended into Hells Canyon and true to its name the temperature rose as I got further into the canyon. The temperature in my best estimates was in the mid 90s. It was hot. The ride though was along a couple of reservoirs and creeks so it was very scenic. I made it to oxbow and accidently passed right by it. Two miles down the road I stopped in a gas station where the attendant confirmed my suspicions and gave me some tips on free camping. I thanked him and made my way back towards oxbow. I ended up finding another riverside camp spot. I settled my things and bathed in the river. It had been about a week of me not washing my hair and it was starting to dread and attach itself to other objects. Like the wicker chair I was seated in earlier. I then made dinner and jumped into my sleeping bag.

7/22/11: Oxbow OR-Baker City OR

I woke up in the middle of the night in Oxbow to the sensation of rain falling on my face. I had prepared for bed that night without setting up my tent, thinking the sky looked clear enough. I guess in the middle of the night a storm rolled in and caught me by surprise. I promptly left my sleeping bag and started to set up my tent in the rain. I finally got the tent up and jumped back into my sleeping bag and went back to sleep until the sun rose. I made a small breakfast that morning and set off towards the local convenience to fill my water bottles. The attendant informed me that the temperature was supposed to be over 100 degrees. This was a comforting thought knowing I had 70 miles still ahead of me and it was an up hill day. I climbed my way out of Hells Canyon and took a lunch break in Richland OR before I made the rest of the way into Baker City. The rest of the day was spent going up hill. The temperature didn’t feel as hot as I had anticipated but it was very dry and windy. I finally made it into Baker City around 8:30 and rolled right up to my host’s house where I had a long anticipated sh0wer.