David James and son Seven, atop the Los Feliz Club Apartments with Vermont Ave in the background. The Onyx Cafe was located on the spot (bright-strobe) in the photo behind them. This 'spot' now is occupied by Figaro Cafe.
Dated interesting article I've come across from a photohistory book, thought of sharing.
The New York Times
March 6, 1923
Steichen, one of the first masters of pictorial photography, made it quite clear when he
thought that movement was over.
No progess has been made in photography since the daguerreotype, Eduard (sic) J. Steichen,
widely known photographer and a former colonel in the photographic section of the A.E.F., said
last night. He called the soft focus lens "the most pernicious influence in the pictorial world,"
and bitterly criticized "the movement in fuzziness" now vogue among supposedly artistic
photographers. He spoke at a meeting of the Pictorial Photographers of America, at their
exhibition at the Art center, 63 [or 65?] East Fifty-sixth Street.
According to Mr. Steichen, since photography is an objective art, a photographer is supposed
to take things as they are, without injecting his personality into the picture. In the days of the
daguerreotype so many difficulties surrounded camera artists, he said, that they were satisfied
to get any kind of an exact reproduction. Mr. Steichen urged a return to the sharp pictures and
praised "the meticulous accuracy of the camera."
"I don't care about making photography an art," said Mr. Steichen. "I want to make good photographs. I'd like to know who first got it in his head that dreaminess and mist is art.
Take things as they are; take good photographs and the ART WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF."
It would be forbidden, that down the road of this personal project, I might deviate from the original
thematic intention of this PHOTOBLOG, which obviously, from the get go, is to showcase my
photography from my personal heyday Los Feliz/Onyx cafe period (1992-1998). I might
stubbornly, include some undepicting "ONYX images" , that I may find personally interesting,
historically and photographically. -- Paul
Farewell to a great artist and friend - PAPO DE ASIS.
after hearing of Papo's death from friend Hassan Jamal and Joshue Jose, i e-mailed Papo's friend Juliane Backmann who recently photographed him. then i received an e-mail from Ginette Rondeau whom i haven't heard from in years. and she writes.
Hi Paul,
This is Ginette, Papo's old pal. Juliane forwarded this email to me. In disbelief, I had a very difficult time opening it as I guess I didn't want to see the contents of it.
I am crushed and heartbroken and can hardly believe that he had a heart attack. I adored Papo and I am blessed with the special relationship we both shared. I guess he would laugh and say it was passionate. We would have our "spicy" conversations following some great laughter. I remember hanging out with both Papo and Al Herion at the Onyx, laughing, talking politics, sipping coffee, teasing one another and watching Papo beat everyone at chess all night long. He was amazing! We were best friends; kindred spirits for a while and enjoyed going to all sorts of art receptions together. I would love to watch him paint and go through piles of all sorts of things looking for “found objects” to put into his paintings. He has so much spirit and passion about his art. We would have great conversations about life and dreams. I always enjoyed hearing stories from his life in the Philippines. Papo had a great love for his children and his country. He was a very proud man with a heart of gold who always wanted to make a difference.I always admired Papo and what he wanted to say with his art. He was courageous. Yes, I always wanted him to paint more. He was unbelievable with such a powerful talent. He was an artist’s artist. It is hard to believe that he is gone since I just saw him last year and we were discussing plans to create a traveling exhibit. It is all too surreal.
Please send me Ray's, Jojo's and/or Mona Lisa’s contact information if possible or anyone else who might be directly connected to him. I would like to assist anyone in giving a tribute to him. I will let the other artists and friends know who enjoyed his passage through their own life.
He was dearly loved and respected.
Thanks for posting up his picture on your website. Your site is wonderful and I am glad you are doing well. I would like to talk to you about getting a copy of the Onyx picture since it has sentimental value to me.
Take care! Ginette Rondeau
My sincerest condolence to Papo's family, relatives and friends. Papo
was truly a good friend, a master of his craft, and an uncompared person in his own right.
Were all going to miss you PAPO.
-- Paul
Photos taken during the"Delirio"opening reception at the Onyx Gallery, 11/1992.
Ginette Rondeau and Papo de Asis. Onyx Gallery. 1992
ph : paul posadas. all rights reserved.
this "photoblog" site is dedicated to Jaime Rode and Mark Nichols, both, whom we'll
always keep in our onyx day memories, and also, to the other "onyx souls" like ike boschen (dating back gorky's cafe days), alfredo alcala, the comicbook artist, "bo" the coffee table book salesman, "bodjig", our friend eddie ajamians little dog and onyx mascot, and others, unrecorded, that have crossed over.
by the way, i've meant to thank my good friends - dave bogoian and hassan jamal for the jumpstart back into my lifelong passion, not to mention s.a. griffin, for the
inspiration and motivation to share my "onyx cafe experience" with photos taken during this memorable period.
"I don't care about making photography an art," said Mr. Steichen. "I want to make good photographs. I'd like to know who first got it in his head that dreaminess and mist is art.
Take things as they are; take good photographs and the ART WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF."
the PHOTO GALLERY containing photographs taken at the Onyx Café is work in progress, most of these scanned negatives were recently unearthed. since i've benefitted a great deal from the onyx cafe(free coffee, etc.), it's now payback time to mr. john leech and to every soul i hung out with, with my photographs. enjoy!!!
the Onyx Café was more than just an institutional cafe to most of the regulars and myself. it was a "state of mind" without the aid of any mind altering pill. it was a place where you can actually feel how "timeless" the place was. it was a conglomerated convergence of people from all walks of life. from hollywood celebs to suitcase-geared travelling bohemians introducing themselves, and being welcomed (and not interrupting any intellectual arguments). it was the crossroads to every major city on this planet. it was happening! day and night, into day again. amidst the aroma of the coffee lingering in the air, there was also, all kinds of drama. but we will not go there. you can never complain about the taste of espressos and cappuccinos served here, nor how the architectural facade of the place appeared, nor even how people looked or dressed. people come here for the same one thing that everyone else is seeking --- and it's not just the java. it is.. NIRVANA. yep. and the whole crowd was experiencing it collectively.
